{"id":97185313,"date":"2017-02-14T18:10:43","date_gmt":"2017-02-14T18:10:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/?p=97185313"},"modified":"2017-02-15T16:00:25","modified_gmt":"2017-02-15T16:00:25","slug":"damien-escobar-interview-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/damien-escobar-interview-2\/","title":{"rendered":"On the Road: A Quick Chat with Hip-Hop Violinist Damien Escobar"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you already thought Damien Escobar was unbelievable, you might want to sit down as you learn more about the multi-talented hip-hop violinist. You already know the basics: 13-year old Juilliard graduate, amazingly talented violinist, on an epic comeback from his 2012 career nosedive that left him sleeping on the New York subways. (If you\u2019re staring at your screen with your jaw on the floor, see <\/span>part one<\/span><\/a> of our profile on Damien to learn more about his journey). But where has his journey led him?<\/span><\/p>\n

To a pretty great place.<\/span><\/p>\n

In January, Escobar wrapped up a yearlong tour, he plans to release his new album, <\/span>Boundless<\/span><\/i>, in March, and he\u2019s slated to kick off his Heart & Soul<\/a> tour this May. Not to mention the various entrepreneurial endeavors he\u2019s involved with — violin design, wine collections, and children\u2019s television production — all while traveling from state to state on a tight schedule promoting his music.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is anyone else tired?<\/span><\/p>\n

Escobar isn\u2019t. The excitement in his voice is contagious as he talks in-depth about his tour, his television show, his routines on the road. If anything, it sounds like he\u2019d take on more work — and gladly — so long as it somehow brought the joy of music to new ears.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody\u2019s not going to understand it, they\u2019ll like what they like, but everything evolves, you know? So it\u2019s an evolution of what classical music was.\u201d Escobar says of his music, recalling a moment when his violin instructor told him that he wasn\u2019t playing in a way that Bach would approve of. \u201cI looked at her like she was absolutely crazy. I\u2019m like, \u2018Hold on for one second \u2013 Bach was alive in the 1600s and he was an innovator.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He Did Fusion… Before It Was A Thing<\/h1>\n

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Escobar\u2019s music — a hypnotic blend<\/a> of classical violin finesse over modern hip-hop beats — is exactly that: an evolution of music. It seems like this kind of fusion is something like a movement as of late. Think <\/span>Glee<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>Step Up<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>Hamilton<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>La La Land<\/span><\/i>. But Escobar came before all of it. [perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Learn more about what Damien was up to between 2012 — when Nuttin\u2019 But Strings broke up — and now in <\/i>part one <\/i><\/a>of our two-part series on the violinist.<\/i>[\/perfectpullquote] He started mixing classical and hip-hop in 2004 when he and his brother\u2019s Nuttin\u2019 But Stringz took their act from the subway to the stage — a move that had been a long time coming.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in a household with a single mom who couldn\u2019t afford to give us the things that we wanted. But she taught us how to go out and get it for ourselves. So my brother and I, we were on the subways making money since I was 10,\u201d Escobar says. \u201cIt turned into an amazing 10-year career together — that had its highs and lows — but we won Emmy Awards, sold millions of records, and we became those guys that crossed over classical violin to mainstream, we were the innovators of that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But if you thought that Escobar would be content with the already jam-packed life of a traveling musician, you obviously haven\u2019t been paying attention. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cViolin is the main thing that I do, as an artist. Music is something I love, but there are other branches of music that I\u2019ve embarked on this year,\u201d Escobar says, explaining his ventures into children\u2019s television, violin design, and a line of wines due to debut at the end of this year. \u201cThe problem when you deal with things that have an old tradition \u2013 like wine has an old tradition, the violin has an old tradition \u2013 they don\u2019t typically like artists that are rebels, and that\u2019s kind of what I am, so they [a potential collaborator] passed on the opportunity. So I said, \u2018You know what? That\u2019s okay.\u2019 And I started my own line of wine.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

On Tour: A New City Every Day<\/h1>\n

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This sort of determination and hard work is evident is every bit of Escobar\u2019s life — on and off the stage. He just spent the past year on the road, hopping from city to city to promote his album <\/span>Sensual Melodies<\/span><\/i>. Most times, he spends less than 24 hours in each place.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe get in in the morning, I do a lot of press for the show and I\u2019ll visit a school, talk to some kids, and then I\u2019ll do sound check, perform the show, meet and greet, and then I\u2019m back on the tour bus, on to the next city.\u201d He rattles it off like the routine that it now is — this life of a musician on a nationwide tour. <\/span><\/p>\n

Sometimes, he notes, they <\/span>do<\/span><\/i> get to spend a couple of days somewhere along the tour route, usually in a town that\u2019s not on most people\u2019s bucket lists.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBloomington, Illinois\u2026 It\u2019s the most random city in America, but it\u2019s so awesome! It\u2019s so cool!\u201d Escobar laughs as he recalls his time in the town. \u201cOh my goodness, we ate like five deep dish pizzas and were extremely stuffed and then we did a photoshoot in the middle of the street and there were cows walking behind us — it was the greatest moment — and we randomly went and did hot yoga\u2026 We had a really good time because there was \u2018nothing to do\u2019 there and it kind of forced us — my entire team — it forced us all to be social, to hang out, and just really enjoy the moment outside of performing. It was a really cool moment.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Escobar makes a point of making sure his team gets to enjoy the tour holistically — they do hot yoga whenever they can find it and travel with a massage therapist to ensure that everyone is at the top of their game, not just professionally, but mentally and physically as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll wake up, we\u2019ll do hot yoga,\u201d Escobar says. \u201cMental wellness is extremely important to me. I want to make sure everybody is in the right mental state, I want to make sure everybody is happy, I want to make sure everybody feels heard. That way, we\u2019ll have a successful tour and a successful team and everybody is enjoying what they\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n