Check Out Xander Calhoun’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Xander Calhoun.

Hi Xander, can you introduce yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
My musical journey goes way back to before I was born! Genetically speaking, my sister and I inherited a good portion of those music genres, but my mother also exposed us to various music styles as we grew up. So my mother went to college for saxophone performance and music education and currently works as an elementary music teacher. Fast forward to second grade, I enrolled in piano lessons and played for a brief two years before finding the trombone, where I excelled from the jump and still play it. There was one kicker: I never cared to apply myself and practice trombone because it always captivated me more. It wasn’t until after I graduated college that I opened up a DAW and started producing my music, and that’s where I found that musical avenue to which I wanted to apply every ounce of effort.

You wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been smooth?
When is chasing your dreams ever a smooth road? Interestingly enough, the biggest challenge I’ve faced is myself. As someone with a very in-depth understanding of music, it wasn’t easy to get out of my head and let go of chasing perfectionism. I’d constantly compare the music I was making to that of the top artists in the industry, getting upset that my music wasn’t on par with theirs. So I’d go back into Ableton and work on this new crazy idea, show all my friends, blow them away, then get upset it wasn’t “perfect, ” and ultimately leave that song unfinished in my files. Repeating this cycle over and over killed my confidence, and I fell into a trap that my music wasn’t “good enough,” which hindered me from ever releasing music.

Thanks for sharing that. So, you could tell us a bit more about your work.
I am a multi-genre electronic music artist, producer & DJ. Ultimately my main goal with this xndr.project is to produce a wide variety of styles/genres in EDM with a high level of musicality and production. Pigeon-holing yourself to a specific style is silly when there are endless possibilities to push creative boundaries! Being so versatile is something that sets me apart and can open a ton of opportunities down the road.

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I’m a gigantic Formula 1 nerd; it’s a slight personality trait. I got into the sport accidentally by watching it on TV when I was sick at home one day. What’s weird is that I never liked racing or Nascar. It never interested me, but after watching F1 once, I got hooked. The engineering, aerodynamics, how fast the cars can corner, and the dynamics of it being a team yet individual sport all fascinated me! Now I’ve gone down the rabbit hole and read books, studied onboard telemetry data, analyzed races, binge F1 podcasts, and watched every race, and I love every second of it. Also, I run my own videography business, which allows me to have a different creative expression aside from music. Both worlds often intertwine, giving me a ton of creative control over branding my artist project.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://xndrmusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsxndr.music/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/itsxndrmusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@xndr.
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/itsxndrmusic

Image Credits
@716nick @tritt_visuals