We recently connected with PlexusPlay and have shared our conversation below.

PlexusPlay, appreciate you joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

What I do combines both music and visual elements and my paths to learning each been quite different. For music, I began performing at age 6 with the xylophone and ultimately went through a rigorous college training where I received 2x bachelors degrees in jazz performance and neuroscience from Oberlin College & Conservatory. Throughout my education, electronic dance music was always a guilty pleasure of mine, which gave me motivation to deepen my knowledge of it mainly via youtube tutorials after graduating.

On the other hand, my visuals skills have been largely self taught through online software communities, patreons, and youtube channels (specifically for learning touchdesigner, unreal engine, and editing softwares like premiere / davinci).

If I were to do one thing different to speed up my learning, I’d advise people to learn from friends and fellow creators in person. Studies prove people learn most efficiently and retain information better socially. When I’m on the road performing and collaborating with other artists, nothing compares to exchanging skills creating music in the same room, or speaking with other animators / video editors that are figuring out new tools to keep their jobs…it’s almost always ahead of what comes out online months later, and overall feels more inspiring and innate to learn from like-minded people.

The 2x most essential skills I’ve learned are
1) my music performance abilities from jazz and ability to hear and quickly learn music in real time – this is only becoming more valuable as AI lowers the skill bar for producing and releasing music – more and more people will want to consume it live
2) learning to sync my music software Ableton Live to my main visuals tool TouchDesigner, which has opened up way more possibilities for expressing my ideas with audiovisual production, and made the creative process more efficient.

I wouldn’t say I have an obstacle that stands in my way of learning as most of it comes from a need to create, but I would say the challenge of balancing work and personal life is one that I’m still figuring out the best balance (and always will be learning as life changes!)

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

PlexusPlay is an electronic dance music experience unlike any other – it combines DJing, live instruments, reactive visuals, custom LED clothing, and moments of audience interactivity.

What are the main themes in my story? – Movement, Music & Systems

I’ve always been a human driven by movement and high energy experiences. As a kid I played African dance songs on marimba, tennis, and plenty of super smash brothers melee. In university I studied jazz performance and neuroscience, which deepened my knowledge of composing and improvising, while also unveiling a passion for understanding audiovisual systems like our brains. Since then, I’ve found purpose in combining live music and technology for an experience that extends beyond traditional jazz club or night club settings; shows that invite audiences to move, to participate – instead of presenting to a seated crowd. EDM festivals and immersive art venues quickly became the best testing grounds for shaping these experiences and finding engaged audiences.

The central values of PlexusPlay revolve around courageous self expression and movement together. I feel most proud when people tell me after shows that they plan to return to creative practices they’ve lost touch with, or that the live show felt “nothing short of a religious experience” with how immersed and present everyone became on the dance floor. Nowadays people are more insecure, anxious, and guarded than ever, so my shows serve as safe spaces for people to dance, connect, express, and release with friends new and old.

Some notable past performances include:
-America’s Got Talent – received four yesses from Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Sofia Vergara, Heidi Klum (2024)
-TEDxSanDiego (June 2023)
-Electric Forest Festival (2024, 2025)
-Lightning in a Bottle Festival (2023, 2024, 2025, 2026)
-Beyond Wonderland Festival (2023, 2024)
-Burning Man (2024)

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Supporting artists can take many forms but I think the top three are social support, financial support, and community gathering.

Socially, advocating and underscoring the value an artist brings to your life to someone close to you carries WAY more weight than sending them a clip on social media. So speak out on the artists that impact you, think critically about why they do, and develop a passion for them that carries beyond the main ways we consume media online. Additionally, bringing them out to see the artist in the real world is becoming increasingly valuable as digital spaces become more flooded with art that is inauthentic / rushed / artificially produced.

Financially, the best way to support artists is finding direct routes without third parties. These are most often buying merch / music / art in person staight to the artists pocket or buying through providers that still retain artists best interests (artist websites, bandcamp, patreon). You’d be shocked learning about the cuts taken by venues, festivals, streaming, agents…etc. The industry bleeds artist dry, so find us directly and ASK how is best to support!

Thirdly (and this goes even more for people who are artists), develop and create the scene you want to see in your local community. Most of my year is spent performing contracts for festivals and events, but once a year I host my own mini festival called INDULGE – combining live music, DJs, live art, yoga & massage, dancing, and delicious local food & drink. The mission of INDULGE is to support local like-minded experience creators and their combine their offerings into something unique for the community.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I’m definitely a people pleaser and it’s taken me a while to learn this – the most rewarding aspect of being a creative is experiencing the worlds wonders, digesting it from your own perspective through critical thinking, and producing the most authentic human work possible. People can FEEL the truth behind this type of art – anything fundamentally human will resonate, and even if they don’t share the same experience, they are inspired by your contribution and your pursuit of it.

Sure, external affirmations always feel nice, but most great artists understand the 3+ month delayed gratification that if they focus on their process, their lives, and their output first, that the support, affirmation, and sustainability follow. That consistency in routine, commitment to your craft, and potency of life with healthy habits on your own schedule is what’s most rewarding, and what distinguishes timeless artists from average ones.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.plexusplay.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/plexusplay/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/plexusplay
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-dibiase-7a901566/
• Twitter: https://x.com/plexusplay
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@plexusplaymusic
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/plexusplay
• Other: https://www.plexusplay.com/shows/indulge-iii

Image Credits

Photos by: Ginger Gordon, Jon Bo, and Nicolette Luna