Monty Guy
Known as a pop artist with an enigmatic side, Monty Guy's new single ‘The Beautiful Magic Of You’ has exploded on radio and put this pop artist on the world map.
BLAKE: Let's just get this out in the open- What is the craziest thing that has happened to you in your music career?
MONTY GUY: Quite frankly, everything. I have always been a huge music fan. I never expected to create music that other people would enjoy. Starting with an out of the blue audition at the Cotton Club in Harlem with the Pazant Brothers; they supported me in the idea to create original popular music. Then there was my appearance on the Joe Franklin TV Show, and the Dick Roffman Radio show in New York. Following those events were my acceptance into ASCAP membership, and inclusion on various GRAMMY Awards celebration entry lists. Recently, I received a couple "Best" music awards from the Akademia Music Group for creating 'Pop/Alternative Rock Albums'. In addition, I found out that my song "What You Do To Me" received a number one radio listing; while that song and another, "The Beautiful Magic Of You II" received heavy rotation playlist privileges from Program Directors in International Radio all around the world. Now I am being interviewed by the Marquix Global Network. I would say that all of this is pretty crazy for a guy who was real happy buying records and going to concerts and parties.
BLAKE: Your song’The Beautiful Magic Of You’ is receiving a positive listener response on radio. What was your initial reaction when you first heard your song playing on radio?
MONTY GUY: It was surreal. Totally unbelievable. I was humbled, and elated, when Hoppy Adams, a radio celebrity in Annapolis, Maryland played one of my early songs on his radio show. Along the way, Program Directors and DJs have been very kind to include my material in their playlist sets. I have to thank them for supporting my efforts in music during the early days, and up to today. I am now flabbergasted to hear that my songs are being played in heavy rotation at many radio stations around the world, and on internet radio. I greatly appreciate the many Program Directors who heard something that they enjoy and want to share the music through their radios stations.
BLAKE: What was the inspiration behind your radio single?
MONTY GUY: First, we would like to create and be a part of a music production that radio listeners enjoy. I, too, listen to music on the radio. We feel that the song content should be interesting and uplifting, while being kind to the ears, the heart, and the soul. It would be great if listeners have a pleasant listening experience and want to share good news about the music. We enjoy songs that speak to the inspiring nature and healing ability of love in healthy relationships. "The Beautiful Magic Of You II", in our opinion, attempts to speak to such elements by expressing "From the depths of a beautiful dream, I awaken, feeling deeper in love with you...and the best gift of all is the Beautiful Magic Of You". We try to support our words with a good musical arrangement and a wonderful melody.
BLAKE: It is often said that great art arises from difficult experience. Is there something in your life experience thus far that you would describe as the ‘catalyst’ or ‘fuel’ for your desire to create music?
MONTY GUY: First, let me say that I have heard that Life itself, is the great teacher. No one of us has a monopoly on hardship. Unfortunately, each person gets a chance, or an opportunity to endure. Sometimes, the course has multiple stages, or repeats. Yes, there was a time when I was on the verge of giving up...throwing in the towel. I couldn't see a way to make "it" work. I had no job; I was alone..."the end of it all" appeared to be the only certainty. This seemed to be the final and darkest moment (it did not help that it was raining that night, and I was in the rain as it filled my eyes). I asked myself, if this is it, what would I like to have done, before it all ends? Well, I always wanted to find out how a record was made. Of course, in that position on a rainy night, such a notion seemed ludicrous, and was an absolute impossibility! But if it could work, how would it? Surprisingly, the morning arrived. With the last few dollars in my pocket, I bought a guitar, and entertained myself like there was no tomorrow. Next, I would go looking for a song, then a band, and...who knows... Fortunately, fate was kind...I made it through the rain. My spirits were raised, and I scored some more tomorrows.
BLAKE: How would you characterize yourself as an artist/musician?
MONTY GUY: First, I am a music fan. I want to hear a nice tune. I want to hear nice lyrics. I want to hear a dynamite band in action. I guess that would make me a fussy musician who likes originality, precision, and thoughtful quality musical productions. As if that's not challenging enough, fresh, exciting inspiration needs to be flowing constantly. New music compositions are both fleeting and arduous. That's one of the reasons why I admire musical artists. I don't know where that music stuff comes from, and how they get it...and how they get me to understand it. So, I'm amazed that I've been able to create some music that people enjoy hearing. I'm surprised, lucky, and very appreciative.
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BLAKE: What has your experience been like working with the other people on your team?
MONTY GUY: Overall, the experience has been wonderful. There is a small core group; but the "team" is constantly growing and evolving with each project. This is a characteristic of growth. As we improve, we require input, skills, perspective, and contribution from many more talented people. There is a lot of harmony in music and its production. Therefore, it is imperative that the fluid and growing team operate harmoniously. Fortunately, a great deal time, effort, and planning is put in on the front end of our productions. For example, song arrangement and soundscape design in the pre-recording stage is probably the most time consuming and physically challenging stage of our process. We approach our pre-recording sessions as final sessions knowing full well that they are not. So we expect to rehearse and re-do until there is nothing more to fuss about. Then we record; expecting the possibility of doing multiple runs. Of course, by comparison, recording time is short and much more fun. The point is, when we approach the other members of our team, they see a more or less finished product. They clearly see the placing, value, and relative importance of their input. Consequently, they tend to enjoy contributing their best effort. The results so far support our production planning method.
BLAKE: Did you come from a musical background? Are there other musicians in your family?
MONTY GUY: My first Cousin loved to sing. He was a well regarded baritone vocalist in our neighborhood. He even won a few contests. My Father loved to sing lines from Nat "King" Cole songs around the house. I hear that he was a featured lead vocalist in the church choir. Later on, we had a piano in the house that I played around with. However, there were always records being played in the house; different genres. On the whole, music artistry was always appreciated in the house.
BLAKE: What do you find most rewarding about being an artist? What do you find most challenging?
MONTY GUY: Most rewarding would be the appreciation expressed by others for our musical creations. It is still a glorious surprise to hear that we have created songs that people enjoy hearing. That kindness of expression from others makes the creative struggle and arduous production process seem worthwhile. Most challenging is coming up with something new and different that is of equal or better quality than the previous effort. Creating new material is possibly the biggest on-going challenge.
BLAKE: Who are your role models in music?
MONTY GUY: As a music fan, there are so many. There are singers, instrumentalists, composers, arrangers, engineers, producers; so many people engaged in the process of music production. A few names would be Sam Cooke, Johnny Mathis, Miles Davis, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, The Beatles, Otis Redding, Luis Miguel, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Yalil Guerra, Nelson Riddle, Quincy Jones, Ricky Kej, Brent Fischer, MASA, Ennio Morricone, everybody at the Motown, Stax, and Parlophone labels, Mary Dawood, Sophia Agranovich, Rupam Sarmah, Fats Domino, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Tommy McCook, Cab Calloway, Sparrow, Lord Kitchener, Bill Rogers, Lord Canary, Earth Wind and Fire, Chicago, Shadow, Grant Maloy Smith. I could go on.
BLAKE: Describe your best or most memorable performance.
MONTY GUY: Hopefully, the best is still coming. A most memorable performance occurred as a teenager with my band The Cosmos in our first contest outing. As lead guitar player, I was encouraged to switch my hollow body for a fancy solid. My strap gave way during the solo. I fell to one knee, catching the guitar on my other thigh. We held on to the song without missing a beat. At the end of the performance, the crowd was very kind; the band got a terrific round of applause. Another performance turned out much better. While performing an original song on stage with Gordon Jackman, an acoustic guitar player, the steel pan (drum) orchestra in attendance caught the melody and joined in. We worked in an extended first pan section solo at the appropriate point. No errors that time. The presentation was fabulous.
BLAKE: What advice would you give to young, aspiring artists out there who are unsure and need guidance?
MONTY GUY: I am not sure that even seasoned artists are ever totally confident. I imagine that they are confident in their experience. Perhaps that's a magic ingredient in the formula for success; persistence. Decide what you want to do, and keep doing it for the love of it. Success is relative. It comes at different times and in different measures. Enough attempts at the thing you love will result in success. Learn to not hear "no"; or "I don't like that" when it comes to your art. Remember, this is your thing that you are doing for the love of it. Many successful artists heard "boos" along the way; still, they kept showing up and playing their music. Be happy with what you are doing, and be in love with it. Just make sure that your tune does not go away unsung; and practice singing/playing it the best way you can. Someone else will hear it and love it too. Remember, it has been bringing you pleasure every time you thought of it and played/sung it. It has to be pretty good, otherwise you would have done something else a long time ago...right?
BLAKE: What's next for you as an artist? Is there an album in the works? If so, what can you tell us about it?
MONTY GUY: Thanks for asking. We have been crafting new material for almost two years now. The new collection is in the pre-recording stage. We expect the release date to be in early Spring 2018. We will present vocals and instrumentals. We are very excited with the quality of the project so far. We'll have to alert the rest of our project team shortly.
BLAKE: Very exciting! It's been a blast talking with you. Thank you for your candid answers and we can't wait to hear your new music.
MONTY GUY: Thanks for your time, interest, and enthusiastic support Blake.
http://www.theakademia.com/artistkit/MontyGuy-TheBeautifulMagicOfYou.html
http://m.facebook.com/montyguymusic/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnaQAnD4jR4&list=PLa6IhMaSZL72O4FbiS952EVzbWLok6x1h&index=58