Real Talk Real Music Ep 3 (I.Den.t.T)

Host Charles Laloma sits down with Jazz LDM Music Award winner I.Den.t.T

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Throughout time, I've seen many differentpeople, people like all guys of music,
all guys. I've learned good musicis what feelings sounds like. I
followed me on my journey to discovernew music, new styles, and new

(00:23):
people. Welcome. This is realfalk, real music here on the LDM
Radio station. Hello, Hello,ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the
LDM Radio station, your station forthe independent artist, and it is time
for real talk, real music.So we're here today with another winner,

(00:48):
at first time winner uh the LDMRadio and we're gonna find out if he's
had other wards, what he's beendoing. But here he is. He
is the seventh LDM MU Sick Awardsin the Jazz category himself identity. So
how's it going. It's going great, Thanks for having me good. I
cannot believe I won. I'm soexcited. Oh my god, it's uh,

(01:12):
it's crazy. Some you had twowrite two or three songs of two
songs, two sons, uh takea breath under the jazz category, right
and six to work. Oh yeah, that was that was That one's a
funny one. That was a funnyone. And yeah, I'm so thankful
that Jay one is well j Sam. Jay Sam's awesome and so yeah,

(01:32):
totally I love that song too.So yeah, Jay Sam is gonna be
up here speaking about his new songtoo. I think for the next two
months, we have some great artiststhat either the U Award winners or writers
and stuff like that. So it'sgonna be good. Uh. But uh,
six to Work that was It's it'sjust uh, like one of those

(01:57):
songs that people were like, Idon't really care for the other lyrics,
it's just that that part. It'sso it stays with you, you know
what I mean. So it's likeone of those songs that no one knows
the lyrics, but they know thechorus. Yeah, So it's uh.
I even using them some of mycomedy. I played some of the songs,
you know, like just played thissong if you don't want to go

(02:17):
to work, you know what Imean. So, since we're bringing up
what made you make sick to work? Like sick to Work was a callback
to when I was young and asa queer person, you know, like
I didn't have a lot of queerrole models back in the nineties, you
know what I mean, Like Ididn't have a lot of people I can
connect with and talk with. Andso I don't know, I felt like

(02:39):
anytime I felt any as semblance oflove or caring because you know, maybe
I went out and met someone thatnight. You know, I had to
call him sick because I just couldn'timagine letting go of that affirmation, that
love, that celebration, you know, And so I called him to sick.
I called in sick to work alot like today, I don't need
to do that as well. Yeah, yeah, like on Mondays, everybody

(03:01):
calls him sick to work, especiallyon Mondays all Fridays, they're be like,
oh man, my check came onThursday. I'm calling him sick to
work, right, it's Friday.I gotta get you know, go outside.
But it is so funny, youknow where you when I heard that
one, say he was sick.Oh say that's a good one. That's
a good one. You know yougotta call in, you know, like

(03:22):
yeah, and underneath that, it'sI mean, in all my music,
it's really about spreading queer joy.Right, there's not enough queer representation out
there. I mean we're getting better, for sure, right, calls drag
race. We got tons of stuffnow, right, But I feel like
it's about putting more and more aboutthere because there's so many things that are
working against us right now, ourpolitical systems, our schools, our educations

(03:43):
right like, so sick to workwas like, hey, you know what,
sometimes you just can't. You justcan't. And as a person of
color, I don't know what it'slike for you as a person of color.
Sometimes I just can't deal with theoppression that's happening outside my door.
I just rather roll back in bed. You know, it happens, uh,
you know, and I make sureI got a day that. You
know, in this kind of business, there's a lot of people like,

(04:05):
oh you really, yes, youknow, I do. Like I still
dab a little in the computer,and I still ask a couple of phone
calls, but like maybe three phonecalls and that's it, Like the fourth
person, I'm not answering no more, because it's my day, you know,
just for me. I learned thata lot because as time went by,

(04:26):
I wasn't doing it. I wasn'ttaking that day. I was working
my butt up here and there.And then I realized, like, why,
you know what I mean, especiallyin the job, if I don't
if I'm busting my butt, bustingmy butt, and I make one mistake,
You're fired. So why Yeah,we live in New York City,
right, the sea that Ever sleeps? And then after the pandemic and everything's

(04:46):
virtual and zoom. It's almost likeyou have to hustle, hustle, hustle,
right, that's the way of life. Many pop songs and hip hop
songs are about that kind of life. And why do we have to keep
hustling? Why don't we get tohave a break. Why don't we get
to be able to take a dayoff and just not do anything right?
And like you said, especially afterthe pandemic, everybody and in this business

(05:08):
you want to be a step aheadand things like that, but at what
costs health? Then you're you're inthe hospital. Health. Yeah, you're
in the hospital. And then noweverybody bout pass you anyway. So either
you have to find that balance ornot even being able to enjoy what you're
doing. Right, you should beable to enjoy your work or whatever you're
working on and not feel like,oh my gosh, I have to get

(05:30):
the next one out. I haveto get the next one out. I
think Lauren Hill talks about that,right, like the producers were like,
you need to crank out the nextalbum. You're hot now, and she's
like, no, I need togo live life a little before right now
hotness? Yeah. Right. Alot of the artists get burnt out because
especially mainstream artists, they want toperform and perform a perform and then they
get burned out. Now they gota mental block. They can't write no

(05:53):
more now. Instead of pushing moreup, now they're going down. And
then what your manager says, Iain't dealing with this one. Let me
go with the next one, thenext hot one, right, because the
managers are hustling, hustling, soyour manager is gonna always hustle, so
don't stress it. You know,if you get sick, your manager's not
the one that's gonna go to yourhospital unless he knows that you're gonna get

(06:13):
better. Yeah. And there's aninteresting balance between physical sickness, right,
mental fit mental health, because wedon't really a lot of jobs don't have
mental health days. Right, wehave sick days, but we need to
take care of her into health.Just like we brush our teeth, we
need to like floss our brain alittle bit. Oh yeah, and that
leads us to take a breath.Yeah, that's why I like, you
know, we we need it,like take that sick sick to work and

(06:39):
then you you know, you enterto a new song to take your breath.
They both intertwined in titles. Iwant to get your information on song,
but in the title it does youknow you take your sick day.
I used to take a a hellof it day. I would like,
how many I got five? Allright, I'm taking one. You know.

(07:00):
Well, sometimes I even called myboss say I'm not trying not to
take a sick day. I'm notgonna come in today. I don't you
know, I just don't feel likeit. I used to tell the truth,
what's wrong, you're sick? No, I just don't feel like it.
Oh man, So now I needyou here because two other people called
off. This is a true story. Uh the last time that I worked
for a company, And I'll tellthem. I said, okay, and

(07:21):
what that has to do with me. You're the supervisor. It's your business,
not mine. Is I'm a worker? So he was like, oh
no, I said, okay,you know what, it's not good to
call off, So I'm gonna callin sick. I got five of them.
Right, I'm caught. I'm takingone now you can't do nothing about
it. So that day is whenI realized, I don't think I can

(07:43):
work for someone because I'm keep givingthem millions and them and when I'm not
healthy or and what's happened that samecompany. I broke my back, right,
they were trying to trying to getrid of me as I'm still in
the in the in the coma basicallyand move I can't walk, so you

(08:03):
know, I wind up suing them, thank you, and wind up over
yea, the money, so youknow it works. It works. But
at the same time that had tohappen. The job. The job was
easy. It was a fucking job. You know. I go here,
I do twelve hours, three daysa week, and then the next week
I'll do four hours. So itwas the moments. But I realized,

(08:24):
wait, as soon as you gethurt, what is it? Right?
That's why that's why this song whenyou when you said sick to work,
I was like, yeah, Andthat's what a capitalistic system is about,
right. It's not about the workers, it's not about the people, it's
not the employees, it's not evenabout the customers or the consumers. It's
about the money. And I feellike we can take a sleep back and

(08:45):
sip it down a little bit,take take a rest and just even take
a break, you know, likeand that's yeah, and celebrate love,
celebrate connection. I see each otherlike your boss, when you got hurt,
I'm like, oh my gosh,I'm so sorry. What can I
do? Nothing? Nothing the workersAnd it was so funny because uh,
shout out to my friends. Uhit was in Pennsylvania and one guy who

(09:07):
had friends in the KKK and allthis other stuff and he was me and
him. That's a story for anotherday. Yeah, that's the sorry for
another day. But me and himkicked it off. He I only knew
him for a couple of months workingthere. He's the one that came after
work, working twelve hours to driveto my house to bring me, uh
cookies because I love cookies, tobring me some cookies. And he was

(09:28):
like, yeah, I just cameto check up on you. And I'm
like, you came to the neighborhoodat neighborhood like he was like, why
I got my shop. I'm good, you know, like he didn't care,
but something that yeah, you knowwhat I mean. So yeah,
take a sick Day, you know, and if they don't like it,
play the song. So now youknow you took take a sick day,

(09:48):
and we were just talking about howyou need to take your day off,
to need to relax. So itbrings you to the next song, Take
a Breath. Yeah. So thatwas actually one of my first releases,
and take a Breath. So youdid it open sa Yeah, okay,
so take a Breath. Actually Ireleased that first, and I wrote it
in twenty twenty at the height ofthe pandemic and what was happening on the

(10:11):
streets, which some people call itthe riots, I call it like an
uprising right of the community. Thestreets were literally like yeah, yeah,
I mean, I don't know ify'all remember this, but like remember all
that doom, scrolling scrolling and scrollingscroll and seeing all the things happening,
and then you know, Brianna Taylor, I'm on Aubrey, you know,

(10:31):
like just so George Floyd, youknow, I mean, like so many
people and those are just three namesof the many names, right, And
so my son, who was hisdark, skinting black he said to me,
dude, I can't I can't goon social media, that's my escape.
But on social media, that's allI'm seeing, and I just want
to do nothing. I don't wantto think about this because it's just it's

(10:54):
like reinjuring each time I see it, right, And so I think a
lot about people's psychological health. AndI said to my son, you know,
there is something you can do.You can just take a breath.
And he, you know, hegave me that side eye, like,
come on, dad, whatever,and I was like, no, no,
really, take a breath. Sohe took a breath and I said,
then take another. And so,by the way, this is a

(11:15):
famous breath that people do. It'scalled gake breath, or one breath.
You take one in and then beforeyou let it out, take another one
in to deepen it, and thenyou let both out. And after he
went to bed head night, feelinga little more calm, this song just
poured out of me. And Iwas thinking about how many times are we

(11:37):
hustling and how many times were watchingthe news scrolling and we feel like there's
nothing we can do. There's nothingwe can do about our own lives or
the various crazy systems that are outthere. And I'm thinking what can we
do? Well, we can alwaystake a breath and then take another and
then just let it out like youknow, it's I'm abroad. So that's

(12:00):
the one thing we always tell somepeople. What's the first thing that you
did when you came out of yourmom You took a breath. Yeah,
so that's the one thing you needto do, is take relax I have
the saying that always to a lotof people. Two be two tears in
the bucket and say epic m youknow, but with the with the correct

(12:22):
word. If you put those thingsto that, what I'm meant by those
things is if you can't do nothingabout it, why's stressing? Yeah,
put it those two tears away andthey say I'm out. And those things
come from learning, you know.Also, when I know from my experience,
when I am reacting to something,I'm not my best self. I'm

(12:45):
not getting the results I actually want. But when I take that breath,
when I bring myself to center,I'm not reacting anymore. I'm responding.
Right, I'm more likely to getmore of what I want out of that
situation. Right, I'm more relaxed. Tone, Like they say, you
know, you have to bring everythingdown even even like what couples, I
tell them the same thing. Ifyou're if you're going back and forth arguing,
take the breath, two tears inthe bucket, and say happened?

(13:09):
Then you find out why am Iupset about? What's the real reason behind?
You know, I didn't do thedishes? You know, like,
what's the real thing? Why,what's the real reason why you pushing for
me to do the dishes when Icould do it? The day is not
done yet, you know, like, what's the real reason? So you
know, like I said, Ilearned from the hard way of not stressing

(13:31):
something because you had to have thatfull right. You know, even psychologists
would agree that. You know,when we're stressed out, we're in that
fight flight of freeze mode right whereour brains are not fully functioning. Our
prefrontal cortex, that front part ofthe brain isn't doing our good thinking anymore,
and so doing that breath allows usto think more carefully. Now,
I just want to be clear,one cave yacht, you can still go

(13:52):
back and yell at the person,Oh yeah, but you're choosing to do
that versus you're just overreacting that.I mean, you can choose. You
know what, I am going togo yell at that person and make a
choice to do that versus your brainis making the choice, you know how
Like you get hungry and you getangry, right, you don't have to
be angry. You can choose tonot go all over the place just because

(14:13):
you're hungry. We choose not toeat all the time, right, especially
when we're diet or whatever. Right, So it's a uh yeah, I
just say it's about a choice.It's about uh you knowing your limited Yeah,
because I can't as a person,I can't be out there arguing with
someone and then expect to fight becausethen I know I am a fighter,

(14:37):
you know, professionally. So ifI go there and start arguing and want
to fight someone, I might hurtthem. And what that's gonna lead me
to to somewhere maybe because get youwhat you want, right, it's not
gonna get me my So that's manytimes people like I'll punch in your face.
I'd be like, Okay, that'snice, and then I walk away
and try and people be like peoplewere like, wait, did he just

(14:58):
walk away? Yeah, because ithappened to me in the train. The
guy was like oh, you needto move out of my way. And
I'm like wow, I said,just tell her you love her. I
always confused them that way and theywere like why, I'm like yeah,
and then I walk away. NowI left them all confused, like wait,
they don't want to argue with youno more because now they confused.

(15:18):
They don't know, like well,sometimes I'd be like, yeah, that
dog ran across the street like that, Like they'd be like, what the
But you escalated everything, yea,with just just I mean de escalate,
sorry, just with some simple thingthat sounds funny, but then it sounds
weird to them, but they don'tknow how to handle it. So now
they took that breath to just tolike wait a minute, what just happened,

(15:41):
you know? And I'm walking awaysafe and everything, you know what
I mean. So they're all certainnow it's not gonna work. All the
time. They'll be in the traintrying to do that and you still get
punched and then even come to meand be like work, I heard an
interview with identity didn't work. Butsometimes you just need to walk away,
you know. I think, likeyou said, take that breath, go
home, and then call and sitto work right right right. That breath

(16:06):
allows you that moment. Not everythinghas to happen right in that moment,
but when we're frustrated, it feelslike it has to happen all in that
moment. And a lot of times, again, this was twenty twenty,
this was the height of that,the pandemic. Oh, I was scared,
my son was scared. And thenBlack Lives Matter, which has been
around before twenty twenty, but Istarted getting more popular and all the news

(16:27):
reports. It was like feeling likewe couldn't do anything. I couldn't do
anything for my son. My soncouldn't do anything about his social media,
we couldn't do anything about the world. And it was like, you know
what, let's just breathe and behere. We can just be sad together.
We can just be frustrated together andjust feel those feelings. And a
lot of times we're taught we can'tfeel our feelings. And I want to
say to y'all, just remember yourfeelings are valid. You don't have to

(16:48):
act on it, but your feelingsare valid. Yeah, And even even
acting is a feeling, you know, it's a feeling of anger. Oh.
So that's why I when when peoplewould say, oh, man,
can't be having feelings. Did hepunch you? Yeah, well he felt
angry. Yeah, a feeling.So everyone has the feeling, you know.
And the song came out not whenthey're supposed to, you know,

(17:11):
when you wanted to. It cameout when it was supposed to come out,
and it got you know, ontwenty twenty two when we posting it
up there, that's when it gotthe attraction and needed to at that moment.
Yeah, And that's why I wastelling people there are some songs that
people hold on and then they said, you know what, I'm gonna send
this out. I'm gonna bring thisout. You know, I made it
in eighteen hundreds, but it's twentytwenty three. But I'm gonna bring it

(17:34):
out now. You know. It'sa funny story because when I wrote it
in twenty twenty, I wrote iton a piece of paper in my head,
right betweenty two and I had alittle guitar, but I didn't know
how to put music together. Andit wasn't until the late twenty twenty one
twenty beginning of twenty point two thatwas like I found a producer, I
found a math book, I foundwas it logic pro garage band? Oh?

(17:55):
I was like, oh click,click click, Oh, now I've
got a song. Yeah, Sothat's how it came out on two.
That is so cool man. Yeah. Like I said, it's a catchy
song and everything. So you knowyou're doing uh, we got a couple
more minutes. You're congratulations uh forbeing award winners. Yea. Yeah.

(18:18):
I was gonna say also toolders thatare out there that are to these songs
that are like, Okay, Ilike this, it's catchy. You know,
I'm I'm anna click on it.You know, I'll give them a
little hurt. You don't like it, you don't click? You like it?
You click? That's right, it'snot you stroll and move forward.
If you don't, you know whatI mean, go to the next artist.
It's not that you've seen what's goingon. So cor Foia Part two

(18:41):
is now on this year's and you'reyou're hitting number one again. It showed
up last week and it hit numberone, and this week it's number one
again. And I'm super excited aboutthat because it's about spreading queer joy.
Yeah, so you're you know again, that's us a heckup of thing to
be there, especially in the topten. I think you're in the top
ten for a while last year,uh for the last number seven, so

(19:04):
hopefully eight we can see the topten, top ten, top ten.
Yeah, you know, and you'reon pop this time right this cufois underpop
if you want to vote on theirour identity. And you know, part
of my reading writing that song isbecause there's over hundreds of anti LGBTQI plus
bills out there right now. Someof them actually became laws. It's kind

(19:26):
of scary out there and I wanta lot of U and then people are
saying things there's so many handies andI just want to be like, listen,
we don't have to listen to that. We can listen to ourselves and
spread our own joy. Show yourshine and shimmer is one of the lyrics
in the song, because we can'tlet that dim our light, right yep.
It's just uh, you know thisis off not music wise, but
check me out on speak Out,I spoke about this how they planned it

(19:48):
people on Black Lives Matter to destroythem. They are planning people and I
can and I get into details onwho these people are that planning planet people
to bring down the trends and tohave the trends arguing with the LGBs,
you know what I mean. Sonow LGB is arguing with the t and

(20:12):
it's getting crazy when they're arguing witheach other now and when they were supposed
to be. But listen to that. It's on speak out on For one,
I'm straight, but I do,like you know, identity knows.
I go out there and I speakto people and I try to understand.
We love our allies. Yes,so it's you know, it's fun to

(20:33):
do comedy at the music to themto get them away from the news.
But uh, music no matter whoit is who sings, Uh, it's
it's it's good. But you gotthese two songs now that on the records
in history because even though uh toWork didn't win, it became a nominee.

(20:53):
Yeah. So being having the nominationfor a song means that you have
to beat hold a lot of peoplejust to be up on the oh,
because we do the top, yes, my fans. I owe it all
to my fans for real, yes, and I do you know, as
you know, there's forty part twothat you can vote on now, but
there's also a new song coming out. It's about relationships and the differences between

(21:17):
them. You know how like whenyou first meet someone, their weirdness,
their difference is like so cute,it's like ah and then again right.
And so this song is called bethe Cloud. It's about the differences in
a relationship. And I wrote thisnot for a public consumption. I wrote
this for my partner as a Christmasgift years ago. And he's like,
you gotta make a song song outof it now, So I did,

(21:38):
and it's coming out on August thirteenth. Oh wow, I gotta definitely listen
to that, and maybe I cansubmit it to EL Yes, yes,
because it is funny, like yousay, because y're hole sweet the way
he laughs and then again, ohmy god, and this guy's laugh you're
still breathing up to me. Andand it's really talking about like, right,

(22:00):
and how do we how do wecelebrate those differences right, because there
was a reason why we attracted themin the first place. And maybe I
grow because we're different, right,We don't want to all be the same,
right, But I kind of forgetthat. Do you forget that?
In a relationships? Sometimes you're likeuh yeah, Sometimes you're like you look
and they're like why why why didthat? Why why did I do that?

(22:21):
Like and then you'd be like,oh, that's why, you know,
because they wind up doing something likeoh oh, now that's the reason,
right, And their difference actually sometimescan be a strength. But a
lot of times we forget that andwe're like this again, Yeah, I
believe Like when some people are like, I gotta find the right person that
that fits for me, they forgetthe word fits. Fit is a puzzle?

(22:42):
Why love that? But they alwayswant to be like, oh I
love uh to watch horror movies.That person needs to watch horror movies.
Then you don't want a puzzle.You want you want you, So then
just put a mirror next to youwhen you're good, you know what I
mean. So that's what I'm saying, like you when you say it has
to be that puzzle to fit,and even a mirror is an opposite of

(23:04):
you, right right, because everythingit does, it does the opposite.
Yeah, So that's why I say, like, you know, and and
plus do you really want another you? I don't want one another? You
know, only the world could doit. Like I'm sitting there like,
can you stop with the jokes?I'm trying to watch this movie, you
know what I mean? Like,no, but it's good that you know
you're doing this. Uh, you'reperforming on the stages now more and more.

(23:26):
How does that feel like? Nowthat you're on stage more? It's
nerve wracking. I still don't knowwhat I'm doing. I mean, this
is all just like a blur forme. I don't know how I'm doing
it. But uh, I don'tfeel like I've got the vocal capacity to
really sing yet. I want tosound like Homage hero G. Like there's
like I feel like there's so manymuch so many artists are so much better

(23:48):
at singing, and I'm you know, I'm doing my little YouTube video fish
that up. But I'm having fun. I can't believe people invite me to
places. So like the saying Coachoat the end of the Rainbow is happening
on August in the Bronx. It'sactually on Canal Street. You're in the
Bronx. And then I'll be performingin Syracuse on September thirtieth. So I
just I don't know how people aresaying, hey, yeah, come along,

(24:10):
because I'm thinking, God, myvoice still needs to do a little
work. But you know, Charlesis the performance wise. I was trained.
I was trained to be an edgittainer. That's what I'm saying. And
so if you listen to my music, there's all these like portmanteau or these
fancy vocatalry words because I'm trying toeducate, but I'm doing inter music.
They listen, and I think peopleare enjoying that. You know, a

(24:33):
couple of people, that's what wemissed. Especially I'm not a hip hop
lover now, but back in thedays, they used to use different words,
big words like lloj with throw abig word in there people who really
didn't notice, but they know whatit meant because when he put the word,
he'll sing something about that word.So the education wise is there.
And the hip hop originally grew outof the bronx Right We'll get down,

(24:56):
which was really an uprise against thesystem, and it's been co opted by
white folks. And I'm not talkingabout the artists. I'm talking about the
people to sign the checks, righthear me? Like at the end of
the day, it's co opted byso independent artists. Independent radio stations are
super important to keep our voices goingbecause our voices are really what matters.
Yeah, we who was it?Two years ago? They were trying to

(25:17):
shut it down. Radio stations likemyself. Oh really yeah, because you
know, well not shut us down, what I say, shut us down
because they were trying to make usas FCC rules. So no reason why
I want to be my own radiostation because I don't want people to get
me rules. I'm a rule breaker. I've always been like that, Like

(25:41):
you tell me coming at eight,you have to come in, I have
to walk. Okay, we're gonnasee if we're gonna come in at eight,
you know what I mean, Likeyou're gonna tell me what I have
to do it because I already knowwhat I'm doing. I guess I was
always like that. So I didn'twant this radio station to be let me
not let the artists speak about hissong, or let me not let the
artists be who they want to be, you know what I mean. So

(26:04):
I think that's why our station picksup so much, because people were like,
wow, I've never seen the dislidened. The artists like to be comfortable
to talk, you know, justto relax, And that's Charles you bring
up, really your point. Ithink that's how identity was born. I'm
a year and a half old rightnow, because part of it is identity

(26:25):
is something we want to continue toexplore because right and if we keep putting
confines on social constructs of like thisis who you are, this is who
you should be, that doesn't tellus who we are. It's about digging
and finding right and the more wefind out who we are, like I
use day them pronouns, right,so and we all know how that works,
right, Like if I'm like,oh, they went that way or
they left their phone, right,And so by doing that, I think

(26:47):
we're allowing ourselves to be more authenticallyourselves versus letting those rules tell us who
we are. You are a man, you must do this. You're a
woman, you must do that.It's these rules are not real. So
yeah, I like how you saywhen using day that you use the day
just to say I identify U andI can be myself versus I feel like
I'm a day. No, thatdoesn't sound right. If you feel like

(27:11):
a data that means you feel likeso many people. No, you know
what I mean. But that's whatI'm saying, Like, you know,
I see what she Yeah, youknow you saying it. It's totally any
difference between the way the world istrying to say the world is trying to
say, like you have illness.Oh my gosh, aren't they saying that,
yes, logical disorders all that stuff, because who who the heck in

(27:32):
the mind thinking for many people andin carforia. In that song, there's
a lyric that says, it's calledidentity, not identity? So who gets
to decide who we are? Wedo you get to decide, Charles,
how LDM radio is gonna go?Right? You don't need other people telling
you how it's supposed to go.And I like that. And again with
the voting, we don't decide whovotes. You decide, you know,

(27:52):
the people out there decides who winsand stuff like that. But I'm glad
you guys that are voting out thereand listening voting it and listened to the
correct music that is going on.This year. We're We're happy to say
that maybe three four or the nomineeswere like mm, there was someone oh,
you know what I mean, versusevery other year were like five six,

(28:15):
We're like move, how you gotthere? You know what I mean?
But this year was your song wasgood, but there was someone better,
you know, not not not forthe jazz. The jazz. They
they had spot on. They hada spot on with all four nominees R
and B spot on country. Ithink one or two one of them that

(28:37):
was someone better, you know whatI mean. So but their song was
still good. Yeah, that's whyI share. All the songs were good,
but there was still that one thatcould have been better and could have
got that boat. And plus alot of the categories were so tight.
So I think we were just like, you know what, I can't even
decide, and you know when yousay they're better, right, It's a
lot of it has to do withthe producer I've got. I'm working with

(29:00):
Evan and Mason right now. They'refabulous. They they're one of these people
that's like, what do you want? How do we make your vision happen?
And I think that's super important becauseif an artist gets told what they're
going to do, like you asAltrio, if you're told the rules,
then you don't get to be creativeand try new things, then you're not
gonna have to love you like I'mjust doing to have to do and love

(29:21):
you Mason. Yeah, I'm notwhat I have to do. Okay,
take a breath, you know whatI mean? Like and I literally had
that emotion with it, you know, So that is true, you know
I like, like you mentioned hBarrow g we have Jay Sam. So
these are the people that put thepast, especially Jay Sam, for the

(29:44):
past two years, have grown inyou know, uh, the ability of
singing songs where you want to danceto it. Even when I played outside,
people don't know the lyrics, butthey still want to dance to it.
And he performs. So these arethings and because he's doing it for
the law at the right moment,because before he said he didn't perform because

(30:07):
he didn't feel it. Yeah,So it takes that right moment. So
like you said, once you knowyourself, you have that identity of yourself
of what you're gonna do, there'sno stopping you. Yeah, And I
think that's important for any in thepart pennant artist, whoever you are.
You have to do what's right foryou. There is no form. That's
why I learned in the last yearand a half. It's not like you
this step and this step. It'san art. All of it is an

(30:29):
art, the whole writing, themusic, promoting it, performing it.
You don't have to do any ofthose bits unless you're feeling like maybe I
want to try it. Yeah,because I mentioned when you first was on
the stage, which was when Apolloniasevent. So the first time I've seen
the nervousness in your face, Iwas like, this guy's gonna fall,
He's gonna flop, heasy like,but you kept it going. You kept
it going. You know, youcan hear the nervousness and stuff like that

(30:52):
versus a couple of weeks ago.You can see that the growth, like
you're more comfortable on the stage.Yeah, you still need to polish here
and there, but that comes withexperience. That comes with you know,
watching yourself or watching others. Andthat's what success is, right, It's
not it's not giving up. It'skeep going, right, and the more

(31:15):
you keep going, the more youshould fall. You get back up.
That leads eventually to success. Ohyeah, because people are like, oh,
Charles, you're a great host upthere. I was like, yeah,
you should have seen me when Ifirst started. I was like,
uh, yeah, okay, sowe're gonna go keep this going all right.
Let let's you know. That's howI was like I didn't know what
to say, I didn't know how, I didn't see if people were really

(31:36):
But now I know how to pickpoint who's who's having fun and I'll keep
continue with that and if they're nothaving fun to change it. Yeah,
it's about connecting with the US asyou're a host. You know, it's
funny because you make me think abouthow when I think about not being good
at English, or not being goodat science or whatever, sometimes I think
about someone like Shakespeare or someone likeEinstein. They had to go to school

(31:57):
at one point, right, liketo remember and humanize these people and not
put them up as icons that can'tbe touched. They were all human and
at one point we were putting onpants and or right getting dressed and you
know, learning all the skills weneed to get to where we end up
going. Yeah, you know theone thing I tell a lot of people,
even for independents business people, whereeverybody don't get stressed out of what

(32:22):
other people are doing because they canprobably be blowing up right now and you're
still in the bottom in your mind, but it's not your time, right
and also maybe you haven't done whatyou want to do yet, And you
know, once you push yourself,you're gonna go up there and they you
know, and they're probably falling downand you're going up. But I tell
everybody, I said, you know, if you ever feel like someone is

(32:43):
above you or doing something, closeyour eyes, what what do you see?
Nothing? That's exactly what they see. Everyone sees the same thing.
So relax, do what you haveto do when it's your time. Like
you said, you wrote it andthen you're just like, how why I
put this all together? You know? So I needed, like I needed,
like your manager vi G to belike, hey, this is how

(33:06):
you do it. Yeah, welly'all have to someone back then. Well
that's how because even on the interviewwas with dumb, I told them it's
when it's supposed to be, notwhen you want it to be, right,
And that's why a lot of thingsyou ever had those that day,
like like my god, not justworking, I'm trying to do this?
Why because your day? Why areyou just didn't take a breath, you
know, take that breath. Relax, like he said, it's not your

(33:28):
day, right, you know,And that's why things are bolting apart because
you're trying to push it when it'snot supposed to be, you know,
so it happens. I should giveone more shout out just to say that
part of the song was also connectingto a group that I'm running, which
is Queers that meditation we meet everyThursday's on Zoom and yeah, and so
part of take a Breath was becauseI was with this group leading these meditations

(33:51):
on a regular basis. I thinkthat's what really started the spark of like,
you know what, let's put itinto a song that is so good,
but you don't mind. I actuallywhere were you born and raised that?
I was born in Hong Kong andI came to the United States when
I was two two. Okay,that's good. That's good Chester, you
know, rocking the East. Seenow everybody's like, yeah, Charles is

(34:12):
always around the Asians. Yeah,ever since I was a kid, I
was alway around Asians. So youknow, but uh, that's good.
That's you know, that's one placeI haven't gone yet. Yeah. I
have to go there. I haveto go there when I'm trying to touch
every Asian part well, and uh, the gruntries and yeah, the countries
and the Green Wall and the GreatWall, yeah yeah, and the Great

(34:32):
Wall, like I haven't touched HongKong. Uh. There's another city in
Japan that I'm I forgot the nameof it. It's towards the Wood area
where they said it's beautiful when it'ssnows and and in the summer, all
the pink flowers. It is sobeautiful. And they still have the old
Yeah, they still have the oldhuts and old ways. So you know,

(34:54):
I'm I'm always in love with thosethings. The Great Wall. China's
in my bucket list, you know, were to China? Never go there,
you know, Like I hate whenI go to a country or to
a city that I know I wantto watch something, but I never get
to, like time go so quick, like oh man, I didn't get
to see what I really came for. We'll have to do like an L

(35:14):
d M concert tour and do afew places and all over the world,
including China. That's what Tony.Do you have to go? We have
to go. But again our identity, thank you for coming today and let
you know, lighting it up onthe reasons of these songs. So again,
lady, do you know if thejob is stressing you? But like
listen, I gotta take a breath. So that doesn't work. I'm gonna

(35:37):
have to call in sick to worktoday, so you know what I mean.
And they get mad and be likeno, no, now you need
to take a breath. But wherecan they find you? I like,
where is it? Instagram? I'mmostly on Instagram? I D e N
dot t or sorry, it's Idot d e n dot t dot T.
I also have a website. It'sI D e n T T dot

(35:59):
b. I z as in businessas in business. Yeah okay, uh
so again, ladies and gentlemen,here is the seventh LDM Music Award Jazz
Winner of the Year, So anythingis possible. He thought about it,
they never did it, and thenall of a sudden he made a song,
bring it out and became a winner. So yeah, sky's the limits,

(36:22):
guys, Kay's limits. But thankyou guys for listening to real music.
Real Uh I'm sorry, real talk, real music. And uh,
we're gonna be bringing more autists likethis so that we can listen up and
into talk about who's on top ten. Sorry every Friday. Let's see if

(36:43):
Identity will staying top He did Yeah, maybe maybe they will. Who knows,
We never know, so check youguys out and enjoy more music right
here on the LDM Radio. Nowlisten to this song by today's guest.
Let's begin with a breath. It'sbecome up for some to take a breath.

(37:10):
Then taking up rife and lit