Dylan Garcia shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Dylan , a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
I can answer that I’ve had both feelings at the same time. About a week ago it hit me. All the time invested, all the songs written and recorded, the venues, the performances, the opportunities and how much fun it is. Also, never giving up when things weren’t happening or when I had 2 shows that nobody showed up to and I performed only for the staff. That’s a tough pill to swallow wondering if it’s even worth it continuing forward. I’m glad I never gave up when it got tough. I started laughing and I said to myself…”Holy Sh** I did all that stuff.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Dylan Garcia. I believe the world can unify with music. I want my music and journey to represent that you can lose it all, even your mental health and still turn out okay. I know from experience. I love being creative. It feels amazing being in flow state while working on music. I’m continuing to make a difference by sharing my story to help others. Being bipolar is not a death sentence, it’s a gateway to tapping into a source that many cannot.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
Everything I’ve done is literally everything that I thought I couldn’t do. Growing up, I lived in a very strict household and we always had to live by the rules. When I went away to college, I realized I could do whatever I want with my life. It’s my choice. It’s my decisions. I look back now that I’m 44 and realize that I’m the one in my family who really lived, traveled, graduated college, stopped living by those rules and created my own landscape.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I would tell my younger self to not have so much self-doubt. It’s like I’ve always had to destroy this monster that always wants to hold me back. And I use it as fuel to challenge myself to do things outside of my comfort zone and be as creative and as expressive as I truly want to be. I would also say, you know that dream you’ve had since you were a little kid, you can make it happen.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What’s a cultural value you protect at all costs?
In 2012, our family discovered that on my dad’s side, my grandfather and siblings were 98.9% Ojibwe native. I take much pride knowing where my roots come from. Being a native makes you different. It makes you original. Not only that, to me it feels like I have a brother and sisterhood with all my native brothers and sisters because we have native blood running through our veins
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What are you doing today that won’t pay off for 7–10 years?
I’m building my catalog of music. Once you have one song that gets really popular, your whole catalog becomes valuable. That’s what I want to leave to my family when I’m no longer here, so they will have something financially tangible if they need it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://dylangarciamusic.com
- Instagram: dylangarciamusic
- Facebook: dylangarciamusic
- Youtube: dylangarciamusic
Image Credits
Allan K
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