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

Hi Reewa, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Living with fear stops us from taking risks and if you don’t go out on the branch you’re never going to get the best fruit. One basic principle I follow in my life is to follow my heart and not the crowd. Being a singer/songwriter is risky, you don’t know where you’ll end up in life, there is no job security at all. You’ve probably been told how hard it is to make it or that you have a better chance of winning the lottery than becoming famous. Most of the time you might be thinking “ya, whatever”. The fact is that trying to make it as a musician is actually taking a big risk as far as careers, finances and your future goes. That being said, becoming successful takes even more risk. There are some decisions that you’re going to have to make that will be tough. Let’s face it, it’s your career you’re dealing with. The good news is that once you get used to taking risks, it gets easier. But to make it, you’re going to have to take risks on a regular basis. Marketing, touring and even putting out a CD is a risk. The more risks you take, the more chances you’ll find new fans and new outlets for your music. Right from childhood success to me meant waking up and being able to do the things i love , which is sing, play piano and create music. I did a lot of aural training to identify pitches, intervals, chords, etc.
When I was writing my first single ‘One Above’ I was told by someone that it’s not going to work and I am better off writing another song. I was completely devastated by this incident. But this discouraging review made me more determined to achieve what I believed in. I love challenging my limits. I want to create anthems for big moments in people’s lives…I don’t want my music to play for a few months and then go away forever and not only that, I want to do incredible things that make a difference too. I think it’s not only about the music you release, it’s about the things you do while you’re making the music.. I thought about my values, my dreams, all the hard work and the sleepless nights I went through to compose the song. Then I said to myself “This song is who I am” and I decided to take the risk of releasing it. The very next year it won the Mirchi Music award for Best Independent Song Of The Year -sponsored by Pepsi. That’s when I realized how important it is to take risks and believe in yourself.
I am from Bombay – India and my parents are Bollywood celebrities. My father has sung for many blockbuster movies and I have always been in awe of him in every aspect. He has been such an inspiration. In spite of having easy access to Bollywood my dream was to take my music to the world. I wanted to tell stories through my music, just one country wasn’t enough.
I don’t know why, but I have always chosen the hardest paths ! But still remained proud of my decisions. Every one of us has their own path and the only way to be ultimately happy is to follow that path and honor it, even though it may be difficult for a while. Hardships are meant to make you grow: they’re not meant to be avoided.
I strived to be better each day and figured out who I was as an individual and what I really stood for. My journey has taken me all across the globe collaborating extensively with artists from Paris, London, Spain, New York and Los Angeles which include 16 time Grammy Award winner Humberto Gatica , Nicolas Neidhardt, Roxanne Seeman, Dj Ravin, Satnam Ramgotra to name a few.
There is a lot of exciting stuff coming up in 2022! Can’t wait for people to hear it .
I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, life is a crazy ride and nothing is guaranteed..but I know one thing for sure, if you don’t risk anything you risk even more!

Love
Reewa (Reevs)

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 take the liberty of being creative- I feel that my music is the dream combination of traditional jazz and ultra modern 21st century pop, seasoned with a huge pinch of soul!
I have always wanted to create my signature sound and leave my footprints in the sands of time. I just want to explore this vast sea of music and search for my star until i find it. I am stoked to be featured in a music video alongside Kenny G, Lang Lang, Eldbjørg Hemsing, Rosey Chan and Anna Hu by Yue Sai Kan called One World in Beauty honouring Estee Lauder.
I am super excited about a few projects lined up which will be revealed sooner than later.
Nothing in life comes easy, you have to work hard for it. I have always focused on self-improvement. According to me technique is more than hitting all the right notes, or avoiding wrong notes. For top tier performers, one expects them to surmount technical difficulties to the extent that we hear the musical and emotional content of the work, not the difficulty.
I think I’ve set a very high benchmark for myself so i gotta work twice as hard…
Just doing as well as you did last time is not good enough!! I need to challenge my limits every single day.

There are only two things worth aiming for, good music and a clean conscience. I’m all about that!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Malibu is definitely my favorite location so I would surely plan a trip to Malibu Wine Safari and then perhaps to Nobu which is known for exquisite cuisine. After that we would probably chill at the beach, I mean happiness comes in salty water! Then we would go for a sundowner at Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica and enjoy the warm glow of the setting sun with a glass of ‘pretty in pink.’
Apart from that I would also love to go to Santa Barbara, it is a paradise. Cold Spring Tavern is only 20 minutes from Downtown Santa Barbara, but the Los Padres National Forest outpost feels like an entirely different world. The dark, cozy restaurant is perfect for a romantic meal, while the lively Log Cabin Bar hosts live music and dancing on weekend nights.

And ofcourse, Rodeo Drive is a giant butterscotch sundae.

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?
I want to give a big shoutout to my parents Roopkumar Rathod and Sunali Rathod who have supported me in every way and helped me get closer to my dream. Their guidance means everything to me.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reewarathod/?hl=en

Linkedin: https://in.linkedin.com/in/reewa-r-0425a8a2?trk=public_profile_browsemap_profile-result-card_result-card_full-click

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RathodReewa?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RathodReewa/

Youtube: https://youtu.be/1FNJj73OKg8

Other: https://youtu.be/wkS8pRhJblI https://youtu.be/8YJGAWaRucY https://youtu.be/j_qeOC4dLhI

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutLA is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.