Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Yoshie Nakayama. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Yoshie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the best or worst investment you’ve made (either in terms of time or money)? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)

The best investment I have ever made would be the tuition, living expenses, and time to study at Berklee College of Music.

I decided I wouldn’t want to spend the next ten years the same way when I was reaching my ten years of continuous service at an organization in Tokyo. I had a teaching license for music in middle school and high school from Kunitachi College of Music, but I didn’t become one. My family relative kindly introduced me to a steady job that had nothing to do with music. Because of the job, I could afford to enjoy music as a hobby which requires paying for the performance venue and rehearsal studios. Naturally, I always questioned myself, “After all those knowledge and investments in the study at Kunitachi, why am I not working as a professional musician?”
My study at Kunitachi was based on classical music theory, but I wanted to work with contemporary music. I also wanted to learn music production. I learned that Berklee College of Music would be a great fit.

My savings and retirement money would have been just enough to go to Berklee for at least a few years without scholarships. I invested in several months of private instructions to learn the Berklee method and trombone until auditioned for Berklee. Thankfully, Berklee awarded me a scholarship worth about 50% of the tuition.

When I entered Berklee, I was very committed, excited, focused, and ready to invest all my money and time in education at Berklee because I was over 30 years old, and because I paid everything out of my own pocket.
I have no regret about spending all the money I had just in three years. In return, I gained priceless pieces of knowledge, experiences, and hundreds of new friends that will be my life-long treasures.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am a music producer, specializing in acappella productions. In recent years, my main job is a professor at my alma mater, Berklee College of Music. I teach three arranging courses in contemporary music where students learn not only to notate arrangements but also to produce recordings with other musicians. Arranging 1 – Arranging with the rhythm section: guitar, keyboard, bass, and drum set.
Arranging 2 – Arranging with trumpet, trombone, and alto/tenor/baritone saxes with the rhythm section.
Vocal Writing – Arranging and producing recordings with vocal harmony/acappella with or without the rhythm section.

In 2020, I founded Songs for World Peace with my friend from Berklee, Utako Toyama. We are a global initiative by musicians from all over the world to promote peace through the power of music. So far, we have proudly released nearly 100 songs by 100+ artists from 80+ countries in their native languages. On September 21st, International Day of Peace, we host the annual online event, “Peace Day Panel Discussion” with global leaders who unite people with music to achieve world peace.
It’s inspiring and humbling to learn every artist from all over the world has a different perspective on world peace. Our mission is to release peace songs by artists from 190+ countries about world peace performed in 70+ languages. We are currently preparing for September 21, this year to release new peace songs and host the annual event.

I also provide composition, arrangement, orchestration, real instrument recording, music transcription, and music preparation, as well as trombone and vocal performances. My arrangements are published through Sheet Music Plus. It makes my day when people in random countries I have no connection with purchase my works.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I often talk about this with my Berklee friends, but I wish more artists would study in the music business, such as how copyright works, how artists nowadays could thrive in the industry, and how little artists earn from streaming services. There are countless free resources to learn these topics. We tend to spend our time and money on learning and producing what we are good at. The difference between knowing and not knowing the business aspects and how to properly provide the products are night and day.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

When I was studying at Berklee, I spent 24/7 attending classes, visiting my teachers’ office hours, and working on assignments. As a perfectionist, I wanted As, and I was determined to learn everything I possibly could. During my senior year, after attending classes, rehearsing, and recording with trombone all day long, I would use the college’s workstations to stay focused and keep working until they close at 11:45 pm. Then I go to Wendy’s to grab a quick dinner before they close at midnight. Then, off to a different workstation room that was open until 5 AM. I was hungry to learn and try. Most of my friends at Berklee had a similar lifestyle. Work until late at night, wake up in the morning to drag myself to classes, and back to work on assignments or projects until I can’t keep my eyes open.
Luckily for me, the only side effect of this crazy lifestyle was gaining weight from late-night dinners at Wendy’s. Now I’m unlearning not to always be in work mode and tell myself that it’s ok to do nothing in the evening to have a physically and mentally healthy life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.yoshie-music.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yoshie_nkym/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YoshieMusic/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yoshiemusic/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/yoshie_nkym
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/YoshieNakayama
• Other: Songs for World Peace https://www.songsforworldpeace.org

Image Credits
Trombone Photo by Barrett Bramstedt