We’re looking forward to introducing you to Madz. Check out our conversation below.
Madz, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
The thing that is most misunderstood about this business is how much sacrifice it takes. You are going to give an unimaginable amount to make this career happen. Everything in your life is going to change, and you might lose the things you never thought you would. You will completely leave and change everything you’ve ever known to evolve into a new person. Most people, who aren’t in the business, don’t understand how many times you have to reinvent yourself. Sometimes you will be unrecognizable to yourself and others. This career will try you and change you. The biggest part is if you will accept or reject the change. If you will refuse to let this career take from you, or you will accept what it is going to give you. There’s a cost. There’s unimaginable pain along with extraordinary highs and rewards. Many think it’s just music. It’s just performance. It’s just learning and playing the notes, but this is real life. Playing is just a part of it. I think it’s the smallest part. What the industry really is about is pouring your heart out on that stage because it’s all you have. You have to live and die for it and allow it to take whatever it demands. You will become new and mold into what you need to be.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I hate to call myself a “drummer in Nashville” because I feel like that isn’t the half of it. I feel like it’s a broad term but also very uniform. That’s a part of what I am, but it’s not all that I am. My mind and my passion and my vision is much deeper. That is a subconscious status that I think has gotten me to where I am today. It has made things move so quickly for me because my mindset was unique. Stop thinking of it just as performance, as what you do to pay your bills, consider it as an extension of yourself. Make it real. Bring people into your world. When I am playing Alli’s music, I almost “pretend” that I am her in a way. I try to put myself in her head when she is writing the song, maybe where she was at the time and what she was thinking when she was creating this art. “I Saw The Devil” is a very important song to me because it pertains to the parts of ourselves that maybe we don’t like so much. Maybe our downfalls, that drag us down and we try to fight. I have plenty of those, we all do. I go up there and make it real every time.
When I first heard the demo for “Hell or High Heels.” (I was learning it for an audition) I was driving through town and immediately broke down in tears. I heard the song and it captivated me, I screamed the lyrics as tears ran down my face and I had to pull over. It just brought something out in me. It was the feeling of wanting something so bad and so deeply that nothing would get in your way. Nothing would stop you. That was my mentality before the audition, I had to do or die.
That’s what makes me unique. Making the show and the music real for the listener. Don’t just stand there and play the notes, get a connection. Make it real and make the audience feel your pain, your happiness, your demons, your energy, your sacrifice, and how badly you want to connect with them. Being real will take you where you want to go. It makes me what I am.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who taught you the most about work?
The person that taught me the most about work was my drum mentor/teacher Lindsay Martin. There are endless great things I can say about her and all she has done for me, even in my darkest hours. She’s been there for every aspect of life and every part of my journey, even from when I was a random college kid who wanted to try to start taking the drums more seriously.
I first saw her when she was playing with Lilith Czar, on tour with Halestorm (which is one of my favorite bands) in Detroit, I think it was. I remember seeing her energy and watching her play and just being so blown away. I didn’t know her, she didn’t know me, but she struck some kind of chord with me. I immediately admired her and found out who she was.
About 2 years ago, after facing my first major rejection from a band I auditioned for, I wasn’t sure where to turn to or if I even to do drums full time. I messaged her out of the blue asking for lessons and if she would work with me consistently. She agreed and we began to meet weekly to work on some of the fundamentals of drumming, but it quickly became much more. We have had a lot of similar life experiences and aspirations, and she understood me in a way not many people do. She supported me and picked me up, and I’m not sure if I would have a career without her.
She taught me about how focused you have to be, how hard you have to work, and how you have to be the last one standing in a way. You have to be able to outlast everything that this life is going to throw at you when you are chasing a career in the industry. It’s going to get rough, but you have to persist. She taught me to focus on the details, don’t just walk away with “good enough.” Get the job done, do it right, do your best, and be disciplined. Practice even when you don’t want to, even when motivation fades away. Hold yourself accountable and do your very best every single time.
She completely changed my outlook on this career, and brought my dream to life. I can’t thank her enough for believing in me and taking a chance on me with her time and effort.
Thank you, Lindsay.
When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
I wouldn’t use the word “power,” I would call it more of a connection. Using pain as a “connection.” Pain is one of the inevitable experiences that bring us together as a human race. It is the one thing that is uniform in our human experience, we have all felt pain, and many of us have had similar pains. Relationships, love, heartbreak, grief and loss, rejection, abandonment, and so much more. You can read the words I have listed and immediately have something pop in your head of the experience you’ve had with it. That’s where the “connection” is. That is what music is created for, so we can all feel less alone.
Linkin Park was a big influence for me, because every time Chester would sing you would watch him embody this immense pain and suffering. You saw his pores drip with sweat, his face turn read from screaming his fears, his eyes empty as he sang into the sea of people who felt the way he did. He put his heart and soul out there and made the songs real. He didn’t fake it, and unfortunately he couldn’t win the battle against his demons. It was soon to be TOO real.
But that is where the connection was, that was the spark, to see someone who feels the way you do. I stopped trying to hide my pain and pretend like everything was perfect all the time, because I found that people started to appreciate how honest and real I was; an open book. I would write a few paragraphs about how I felt and what I was going through on social media, and people should start to respond. They’d tell me they feel the same way or have a similar experience. That’s what music is really about. It’s about using pain as a connection, and bringing people together.
I never fake it and will be honest about every step. That is my power.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
I think the biggest lie I ever believed about this industry is how once you began to succeed, you would never feel alone or lonely. Everyone would want to be your friend or date you, be with you or know you. You’d be spending so much time around other people, you’ll be at big parties with the A-listers and everyone will want a part of you. It’s a huge lie. It’s a lie because you end up feeling even lonelier and disconnected from others than you did before. As a natural extrovert, I love connection. I love people. I love life, and chase new experiences I can have with other people. I love my job, but I never knew how lonely it would really make me feel; I expected the opposite.
You lose friends, you’ll maybe lose or leave the love of your life, you won’t see your family or parents, and many people just won’t understand you. They won’t understand why you do what you do or what it is you are trying to chase. You’ll feel crazy, and disconnected from anyone and everything. You’ll sit alone in hotel rooms, spend hours and hours alone practicing your instrument or getting ready for the show, coming home to a quiet and empty room after a weekend of running your ass off. The stage and the show is the only thing you’ll have waiting for you, but for some reason it feels like it’s worth it. Your moment and your wins in your career make it all worth it. The hours of travel and preparation you do for your 30 minute set, opening for Shania Twain, that then makes it worth it.
But like I said earlier, there’s endless sacrifice. If you are in this business because you don’t want to be lonely, you’re in the wrong spot; in my opinion.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I hope that people will tell how happy I really was. I know this interview has been a bit dark, and maybe that’s the particular place I am in at the moment, but I am genuinely positive. I am excited for life, I have a positive energy and an uplifting aura. I want to be real about my experiences and the things I am facing, but am not negative and angry at the world or anyone. I hope people see me for my love for life and tell others how much I enjoy it. I wake up every day with hope and energy in my eyes. Even if I’m tired or having a hard time with life at the moment. I am beaming with gratitude and excitement for what my life will bring me.
That’s who I am and what I want to be known for. A clear and positive mind, captivating aura, and an encapsulating spirit of love and determination to achieve.
Contact Info:
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