We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tyler McDonald a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tyler, appreciate you joining us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?

I always think to the first time I told my mom I wanted to make music. I was standing next to my mother at one of my brothers baseball games. The rustle of the leaves, the crowd talking, and a far away car alarm all came together in my head and I started jamming in my own mind. My mom said, “It’s marvelous that with just sounds you could make something so complete in your mind. I just wish I could hear what you’re hearing.” Five years later I moved out on my own, right before CoVid, I met two of my roommate’s friends. They showed us dubstep at first I wasn’t really about that kind of music. I heard of Skrillex and Svdden Death, but I never really delved into the genre. Eventually I caught myself listening to EDM in my daily life without those guys. When CoVid hit I watched “Couch Lands” and took in the virtual atmosphere paired with the music and it was one of the coolest things I would have never thought I would have seen. When the travel restrictions were lifted I made it my mission to go to “Lost Lands”‘. A full circle moment and that’s when I found my genre, my feel and my passion for making EDM. It’s been the only thing in my life that I have been certain I wanted to do. I have had many careers in my very short working life, and I was on the verge of solidifying myself in a job that I got because a friend was able to get me it. But production of electronic music and the controlling of the vibe during a show that is what I want to do for the rest of my life. It wouldn’t even be a job. If you do something you love you’ll never work a day in your life. That’s what I wanted. I do wish I started when I had that conversation with my mother, or when I had what seemed to be all the time in the world on CoVid lockdown. However I had to endure and experience everything in the years between that conversation and now, to give me the drive and love for the passion that I devote all of my spare time to.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I first got into the industry through a colleague, AZL, I met at a show. He took my number down and told me if he had something that came up he’d let me know. I completely forgot about our conversation when he called, so when I answered I was speechless. He was running an event up in my area and said he would run a half an hour earlier to give me a shot. I had just started creating music and wanted to challenge myself like one of my idols: Subtronics who always seemed to make songs right before a show or on tour. I wanted to be like that and I came out with two very solid tunes for someone at my caliber in a short amount of time. At the bar we played at people came up to me and said they were impressed with my originals and wanted to give me props or pointers. The people who gave me pointers were very taken aback that I had only been making music for about a month at that time. AZL was the one I was aiming to impress the most and he said, ” You played like a pro, I will definitely be calling you more often.” Since then I shot up, I did some open decks at other venues and made 16 new tracks to date. I keep aiming to be better and stay consistent in my work at the very least. I give 100 percent at every show and every song I make. I hope to release my first EP this year and maybe do an opening set for a touring DJ.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I have always been the underdog in everything I’ve tried. I want to excel in this because I think in music, I wake up to songs in my head that I feel if they had a chance to get out of my head they could be impactful or at least up lifting to someones day.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Support local talent. Everyone starts somewhere. Giving the new guy a chance could pay off in everyones favor. I have made a lot of friends in this industry in under a year. I love going out and see them perform just as much as I would go out to a regular tour show. With a bias sometimes I like it more. We all want to make it and I find solace in the fact that I got their back and they’d have mine.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maflux.music?igsh=ZmIwemM2NzA5bnQw&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550098570901&mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MaFluxMusic

Image Credits
Ian Trzepacz