Interview with Paul David Stanko
Paul David Stanko is a musician and minister.
Why did you want to be in the music industry?
The short answer is: I enjoyed music in high school (marching band, concert band, swing choir, church choir, musicals) and when it came time to decide what I wanted to be when I grew up, well, nothing else came to mind.
I decided I would go to college and become a music teacher, because I liked most of my music teachers growing up. When I got to college, I discovered, as a drummer, I knew nothing. I had no chops and they were using terms I never heard of. In music theory, my sight singing skills were horrific. The vocal students had beautiful, full voices; had this thin thing...
But I stuck with it and got some chops and learned how to understand (mostly) intervals and ear training (come on, I AM a drummer after all). But mostly, I discovered the rhythm inside. I found freedom (and attention, let's be honest) in playing and expressing myself. As I battled through the war of self-esteem most teenagers and early 20-somethings go though, music provided a place to go work out my shit (can I say shit here?).
Then, one Sunday morning, well after graduation, I was directing one of my many church choirs over the years, and what came out of that choir was far better than it had any right to be. They were transcendent... and that transcended me and, for a moment, I touched only a small piece of the glory, power and energy of Source Energy. That was enough, I was hooked! I needed to bring that joy, that LOVE, to earth however I was allowed to do so. So basically, I am looking for ways to keep doing just that.
What inspires your music?
Texture and color. ...and life, but that is such a trite answer. Of course, my life inspires the ideas of where I am going, but tone color, sound, texture inspire me to take that life and turn it into something. The tone of the Rav Vast tongue drum I play inspires relaxing, chill vibes. The udo drum and its bass "thoom" inspired the groove for "We Can B Free", along with the barking of my dog I accidentally caught on "tape" (what do you call it when you capture it in your digital DAW?) which I combined with hand claps in "We Can B Free". I like taking found sounds and turning them into something, like the voice mail from one of my old jobs that became the story of "Karen Wants a Reservation."
All of these things are inspired by my life, but the textures and colors inspire the music and arrangements (if that makes sense).
What things get you in the mood to write songs, or do lyrics come spontaneously?
Parts of lyrics come spontaneously, so I keep notebooks (or pages of notes on my iPhone) with those ideas. But to write a song, the stars have to align correctly. I have tons of sketches that are ideas I may one day flesh out into a song, but the muse must be with me to complete it. ...and that can take some time.
Take "Artist's Prayer, my latest single. The lyrics were written in 1993 and put into a book and forgotten. I was going through my folder of collected lyric snippets and came across them. They were not altered in the final version from what I found: it just wasn't ready to be born back in 1993. I am VERY pleased with how it came out and I was at a different place musically then-I hadn't found my sound. What the song evolved into being is consistent with "my sound" and was well worth the wait.
How do you want your music to affect people?
I wrote a journal back in college, and on one entry, reflecting on what I wanted my life to be I wrote, "Let that be my goal: to move as many people as possible through contact with me." I think that's how I want my music to affect people: I want to move them. My first CD, oh-so-many years ago, was a bit darker and "woe is me" in it's vibe. I made a conscious choice to move away from that and write uplifting music now.
I also want to challenge people. That is a key part of who Paul David is. I like to push envelopes and force changes in perspective. I like layers of things... for example, in my tone poem "Emergence" written for the Minnesota Philharmonic Orchestra (the Minnesota's first LGBTQ orchestra), the piece is inspired by the coming out process. The melody line is "Bb-Ab-F-Ab-Gb-C" (Be a Fag, See?) with the statement chords as FM-AM-GM (F-A-G). I love that kind of stuff! In "We Can B Free", Forgiveness, Unity, Courage, Kindness-the seeds of chage-are something else ENTIRELY (and I have a whole merch line with that on it lined up to make it all a little clearer). All of those things are there to give layers of meaning to my work and to maybe challenge the way we think about things. ...I have also used a dildo as a percussion instrument, just saying. Music is everywhere.
Do you test out your songs before releasing them? How do you do this?
I do. I test them 1,000 times in my car to ensure I am happy with every nuance and tweak I have made. I also will put them on my Soundcloud account or will test them with bloggers to see what their opinions might be. I can then take the feedback I decide is valid and make changes.
It is really important to stress this: not everyone gets your vision or likes what you hear. It is a very humbling experience to submit your creation (especially if it's experimental or not what is on the radio now) and have someone rip you to shreds. A thick skin and a healthy self-esteem are crucial for testing out your material in this manner. Remember, opinions are just that. YOU, as the artist, get the final say! Never forget that.
How do you prepare for a gig?
Practice, Practice it all-the music, of course-but also your stage presence and stories (if you are going to talk). Have a few canned jokes or compelling stories to give yourself a minute between songs. You can wing some stuff, but unless you are good at public speaking, you're most played song will be ‘...um".
What is your favorite song that you've written?
Oh, you mean which of my children do I love the best? LOL I like the lyrics and build in the middle of "Artist's Prayer." I like the Udu groove of "We Can B Free". I like the layers and humor in "Sunshine (after the rain)". I like the synth solo in "Superhuman (feat, Dr. Fink)". I like the triumphant fanfare section of "Emergence" (a orchestral tone poem on my reverbnation page).
Each song has a bit that I love, but my favorite is the one I haven't finished yet. The anticipation of what it will become puts it top of my list...until there is another. I probably play "Sunshine (after the rain) the most right now.
Has there been a reaction to one of your songs that you've been surprised by?
I guess the most surprising reaction was to the dance mix of "We Can B Free". As a child of the ‘80's, I really loved dance mixes because they explored elements of the original song and took it someplace different. I TOTALLY took "We Can B Free" somewhere else with the dance mix (added a couple of minutes to the song) and when I submitted it to bloggers, they didn't seem to understand the genre. Some thought it was "too experimental". It was JUST a dance mix... a funky, sexy, dance mix with a play on Forgiveness Unity Courage Kindness. THAT surprised me.
What are some ways that you promote yourself?
Interviews like this. I have a website (of course https://PaulDavidMusic.net). I have merch with some cool designs and my website on it. I post semi-regularly on social.
What would you say has been the biggest challenge of your career?
Distractions. There are so many amazing experiences to be had here on earth, and a lot of them are really fun! I allowed myself to be distracted away from my craft by life-which I do not regret-but it set me behind on my artist's journey. Then there is the distraction of "I'm not good enough" which needs to be overcome. Then there is the distraction of paying the bills and eating-enter the day job.
Let me be clear: there is nothing WRONG with distractions. They just take you on a different path for a while. It's when they take over you have an issue. Sex, drugs, gambling, binging Netflix...all are distractions. None of them are inherently bad in moderation. But just remaining aware of them is important.
The hardest distraction is probably the "I'm not good enough" one. It's so easy to compare ourselves to other people or other artists. The self-talk of "I'll never be as famous as (fill in the blank)" or "I am not as handsome/pretty as (fill in the blank)" are hard things to overcome, especially when it's not popping for you.
Always remember, you are YOU. You have your OWN unique voice-a voice no other artist has. You do you, boo. Don't worry about anyone else. Be who you are boldly and create what YOU hear. Your voice is important in the world and your art needs to be shared.
The distractions will always be there. Learning to manage them and live with them can be your biggest challenge. It was for me (and continues to be).
Are there advantages to being an independent musician?
I get to create whatever I want to create. No one controls me and there is no pressure to write "the next big thing". Of course, we all want to write the "Next big thing" and I would not say "No" to a licensing deal for sure!
It can be challenging to do all your own creation and promotion but the freedom of doing what you want to do, when you want to do it is pretty amazing.