Meet Bałka

We were lucky to catch up with Bałka recently and have shared our conversation below.

BaŁka, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.

Keeping creativity alive can be tough sometimes. The stresses of everyday life have a way of creeping in and diluting it, and that distraction can be hard to overcome. For me, I find there are 3 main things that contribute to creativity – inspiration, mental state, and direction.

Inspiration is a big one. I try to expose myself to new experiences—listening to new music, watching shows I wouldn’t normally go for, or diving into new art. Creating art is really just a series of inputs and outputs, and without new inputs you can’t really make new outputs!

Having a calm mental state is really important as well. It’s so easy to get impatient when things aren’t clicking, and that frustration can completely kill the fun. I’ve found that meditating or just taking a moment to be present helps me reset. And I’ve learned not to stress so much about whether something is “good enough” because that pressure only blocks creativity.

Direction is my third pillar. Every creative project needs a guiding light—some feeling or idea to lead the way. It doesn’t have to be set in stone; I let myself pivot if needed. But having that sense of focus keeps me from feeling lost and guides my decision making and idea generation.

Whenever I’m struggling creatively, I go back to these three pillars and ask myself: Am I lacking inspiration? Am I being too impatient or hard on myself? Or do I just need a clearer sense of direction? Usually, the answer lies in one of those, and once I address it, I feel my creativity come back to life 🙂

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

Hi! I’m BaŁka (Jeremy Burrows-Balka), an electronic music producer and DJ from Jackson’s Point, ON, Canada. After working as a mechanical engineer for a couple of years in Toronto post-COVID, I realized I wanted something a little different from life. That realization took me traveling around the world, eventually landing me in Los Angeles, where I studied at Icon Collective and began building my artist project.

I started this project late last year, and it’s been an incredible ride so far. For me, making music is a way to explore the beauty and chaos of life and share that journey with others. I want my listeners to feel something real, to be reminded of what matters, and to connect with a deeper meaning. At my shows, my goal is to immerse people in the moment and leave them with that sense of awe and presence that’s so easy to lose in everyday life.

It’s been exciting to see things take off. I’ve released music on MONTA Records, performed direct support for Hollowdeck Productions, and signed with Cage Riot, an LA-based music group. I’m currently interning at Dim Mak Records and learning so much from so many talented people! Honestly, this is just the start, and I’m so pumped to see where this will go next.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Looking back, the three most important qualities that shaped my journey are curiosity, confidence, and purpose.

Curiosity is what sparked everything—it’s what led me to discover music production in the first place. I remember watching Pitch Perfect and being fascinated that someone could create mashups and produce music entirely on a computer. Until then, I had no idea how it was done, but that curiosity pushed me to learn more.

Confidence came next—it gave me the courage to take the leap into the arts. To be honest, you have to embrace a bit of eccentricity to pursue a creative path fully. It’s about believing in your vision, even when it’s uncertain, and trusting that others will connect with it in their own way. Without that confidence, I wouldn’t have been able to make the jump.

Curiosity and confidence developed my interest, but purpose has been my guiding light. You have to figure out what you want from life, and the beauty is that there are no right or wrong answers. For me, purpose is about using the time I’ve been given to experience life fully and connect as deeply as I can with the world around me.

For anyone just starting out, I’d say: nurture your curiosity by exploring and learning everything you can. Build your confidence by trusting your vision and leaning into who you are, even when it feels uncomfortable. And let your purpose guide you—it’s what will help you stay grounded and keep moving forward, no matter where life takes you.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

The most impactful thing my parents did for me was provide a stable, supportive, and loving household—a foundation I’m endlessly grateful for. Any success I achieve will always trace back to the care and encouragement they gave me. Beyond that, one of the greatest gifts they gave me was pushing me to explore every activity, class, and event imaginable when I was younger—despite my many complaints at the time! I dabbled in everything from music and team sports to summer camp, karate, visual art, hiking, camping, chess club, and even archery. That constant exposure to new experiences sparked a lifelong curiosity and taught me to embrace the unfamiliar, finding joy in the process of learning and growing. It built the skills I rely on today and gave me the confidence to keep exploring. Their love and encouragement shaped who I am, but their willingness to open the world to me through so many experiences is what I consider the single most influential thing they’ve done for me.

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Image Credits

Ky-Leigh Martinez
Nils Heinstedt
Paulo Manlapaz

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