Meet Aryk Crowder | singer/songwriter/artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Aryk Crowder and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aryk, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
While I can only speak for myself, I don’t think any artists chooses a creative career, but more so something we feel compelled to do. Whether it’s music, painting, dance, acting, etc., creating art to feed your soul and pay your bills is not easy to come by. Hell, if it were a choice, I think a lot of artists would choose something much more stable when they see how challenging it is to make a decent living creating art. The carrot of being a celebrity/rockstar/whatever is dangled in front of our face like it’s easily attainable, when in reality those folks represent the 1% of artists trying to earn a living with their art. However, in 2021 there are so many more avenues for artists to make a sustainable living with the art they create and that gives us all hope. Personally, music has been a part of my life since I was a kid as I got to watch my mom perform with her band. I’m pretty sure that sitting in those rehearsal sessions and feeling the vibrations of those instruments was the catalyst that caused me to want to pick up a guitar in my teen years. From there it simply grew in that compelling passion of, “this is what I’m born for”.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Let me start by sayin this…I fell in love with music well before starting to make it and my tastes have only grown as I’ve gotten older. On one end I have a heavy affinity for soul and r&b while on the other end I will blow speakers out when playing Rage Against the Machine. As an artist, I firmly believe that we are only as good as the last artist we stole from (yeah, all good artists steal). However, that doesn’t mean we should try to emulate those artists or their art. As a musician/guitar player, I find myself loving those hard rock elements that I grew up playing, but have a hard time fitting them into the music I write which tends to naturally lend itself towards the side of soul and pop music. As a singer, my vocals lean heavily towards the side soul music, but that doesn’t mean I don’t wish I could pelt out an AC/DC song with the conviction Bon Scott did. It’s this odd little pocket I find myself in and am trying to come to terms with in making music I enjoy, while also making music I want to share.

I don’t wanna pigeonhole myself, but I also don’t wanna stifle myself and so it’s a constant challenge to write the soul/pop music I love and also be able to turn my guitar up to 11 and rip away. I mean, Prince did it, but in no way do I feel I can compare myself to such an amazing artist that I idolize myself.

As for overcoming challenges…Not having a real start to an artistic career until I was in my early 30’s made me feel time was a limiting factor as by the time you reach that age, you’re at a point in life where sacrificing time means sacrificing a big quality of life as well as you’re tied into financial and other obligations. It’s been an ebb and flow of that for sure. For the most part, I feel a large part of success is about the amount of quality time you can invest into all aspects of your craft. Just like most things in life, it’s a numbers game of the songs you write, the shows you play, the people you meet, etc. etc. The less time you invest, the smaller those number are thus giving you less of a chance for success. I’m still out here swinging away though as that gut feeling of writing/playing/performing music is my life’s calling.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’ve called LA home for 3 years now and while I still have a long list of things I wanna see/do/eat, I’ve done my best to get out and explore this amazing city. Let’s make a list shall we?

– Apollonia’s Pizzeria (best I’ve had in my life. I’m from Chicago and so that tells you a lot right there)
– Sidecar Doughnuts (I’m a doughnut fiend and this is by far thee best)
– LACMA (cuz they just got some real neat sh*t in there. Even tho it’s “touristy”, that lights exhibit just outside is great)
– A joyride down Mulholland Drive and the PCH (the views on those drives are pretty incredible)
– The Juice Joint at The Study (the groove is so heavy on this night. So many amazing players here)
– Hotel Cafè (hands down, one of the best spots to hear amazing songwriting)
– The LA Arboretum (there’s something about seeing such a huge variety of plant life in one space that makes me warm and fuzzy inside)
– Hiking (any one of these trails in the hills is a good way to show folks how beautiful LA really is)

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
It takes a village, right? There has been so many folks that have played an instrumental role in me having a music career. My mom being the first big inspiration with her own music endeavors, my dad for presenting me with my first guitar, my first instructor, encouragement from friends in finding my singing voice. I could go on and on. No one succeeds alone, but if I were to nail down that one person that had the biggest impact, it would be my mom as she’s been my biggest supporter since day one. She too once had big dreams of being an artist, but 3 kids and the responsibilities that came with took priority over that for her. While I wasn’t too fond of the country music she loved and performed, I still recall being in love with being in the room during those rehearsals. There’s something magic about having a group of musicians in a room playing live music that just can’t be explained. To the this day, performing live is by far my favorite thing about being an artist.

Website: www.arykcrowder.com

Instagram: instagram.com/arykcrowder

Twitter: twitter.com/arykcrowder

Facebook: facebook.com/arykcrowder

Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1khu50YyIutIokRaPRxERd?si=_7KwPErLQpqnIde8NYYTTw

Image Credits
-Ashley Wendt -Gigi Greene