Today we’d like to introduce you to Maestro Robinson.
Hi Maestro, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
The music hit me like a ton of bricks as a very young kid in church, like so many of my peers and colleagues. At two years old, you can’t even comprehend what’s happening around you, but you fall in love with it immediately. That’s when my journey as a musician and entertainer began.
I was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. Getting to a “touring musician” status never comes easily. After a couple of years of living in Boston to attend Berklee College Of Music, I moved back to LA to begin my career.
In doing so, I was fired from a job as a bank teller, before taking a job as a leasing agent at an apartment community synonymous with burglaries, violence, and squatters. If that weren’t enough, I was newly married with a very young daughter, and a son on the way-all before I was twenty-one years old. I made choices, but those choices didn’t afford me the luxury to couch surf or spend my days ONLY doing what I loved.
Following my spiritual intuition, I gave my notice to the apartment community and braced myself for the next adventure. By chance, I overheard a conversation amongst a couple of musicians at a rehearsal for a local gig I was playing. They were talking about an audition happening the next day with famed music contractor, Barry Squire. Barry was hosting musician auditions for a national recording artist named Benny Marchant.
Through some prying, and desperation to find a new job, I was penciled in for an audition, and thankfully, I booked it. After Benny came several opportunities to work with some of the busiest entertainers in the industry-including American Idol’s David Archuleta, Eric Hutchinson, Chanel West Coast, Hailee Steinfeld, and Selena Gomez. But it wasn’t until I moved to Nashville that I began to build a name for myself, separate from the megastars who temporarily signed my checks.
In July 2016, my wife Danielle packed up our SUV and three kids, met me at LAX during a break from Selena Gomez’s Revival Tour, and we drove cross-country to begin a new chapter in Nashville. It was a faith move, that we knew needed to happen. I was on Selena’s payroll until the end of 2016 a blessing, because we had no jobs secured in Nashville yet.
Over the next couple of years, I had the opportunity to work on the hit ABC/CMT television series ‘Nashville’, and play the largest country music festival of all time with Lil Nas X, Keith Urban, and Billy Ray Cyrus. I was working all over the world with Liam Payne (of One Direction) in 2019, with a promising 2020 ahead. Unfortunately, the global pandemic had other plans.
Yes, I lost a lot of work in 2020 like many others, but there was a silver lining. I HAD to get off the road to jump into my true potential. Content creating never crossed my radar before, but 2020 forced me to become one. It was the greatest thing to ever happen to my career.
Today, I have over one hundred thousand TikTok followers, and over eleven thousand Instagram followers who look forward to the content, I make right from my home studio in Murfreesboro, TN.
That audience has made it possible to team up with brands like Clif Bar, Moises, and Ahead drumsticks, the manufacturer of my artist series drumsticks sold all over the world. I’ve also been cast in a couple of short films here in Nashville that has enabled me to keep my passion for acting alive!
I’m currently producing an online course that teaches creatives the ins and outs of building partnerships with brands they love, without a big Hollywood budget. It’s geared toward those who have a passion for their art but are stuck on how to expand it to bigger audiences, sponsors, and additional income.
It’s going to be awesome!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t been the absolute smoothest road. There are moments when the roads are smooth, but you only truly appreciate them after being on roads full of potholes!
For me, the biggest struggle was pursuing a career as a creative while having a family to provide for-monetarily, both physically, and mentally. I was constantly battling with myself on what the “smart” choice is or was, especially when it regarded taking a regular job, or staying independent. Thankfully, my wife, Danielle, made every road as comforting as possible.
Also, when the only money you make is what you’re paid for gigging and “creating”, and you have to chase money around-that can REALLY make you wonder if you’re on the right path. Even with major names and credits to my names, I still found myself following up on payment for work done a significant time ago.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a musician, producer, actor, and content creator. As a musician, I’m known for my work with Selena Gomez and Lil Nas X, and my collaborations with brands in the drumming community. Lately, I’m known more as a favorite creator on the TikTok app-in addition to Instagram.
I’m most proud of my ability to separate myself from “the gig”, and build my own audience. It’s hard to do, especially when it’s so simple to attach yourself to big names you worked for once upon a time. Building your own audience is what it’s all about these days!
What set’s me apart is that I’m probably one of the only creatives of my kind with my specific work history. I’ve experienced so many things as a member of the entertainment community while wearing different hats. I don’t put myself in a box. I’m always looking for something wild to get into in our industry.
What do you think about luck?
I tend to not rely on “luck”. I firmly believe in the spirituality of purpose, and destiny. If something is for YOU, it’s for YOU. If it’s not, well, it’s not.
That said, the difficult part of this mindset is that you don’t know what’s for you until it’s yours… or until it’s not. I auditioned for Demi Lovato a few years back. It was a time when I REALLY needed a gig like that one. I’ve never bombed an audition, but I bombed this one BADLY. I was mortified.
It wasn’t until I booked the Selena gig a year later, that God revealed that I wouldn’t have been in a position for Selena if I had booked the Demi gig. That gig wasn’t for me at the time, and I was reminded in the worst way that it wasn’t. Haha.
I also believe we have the power to create our own success. It won’t happen overnight, but positive thinking will ALWAYS produce positive results.
Contact Info:
- Email: MaestroMusic922@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maestrorobinson/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StevenJRobinson22
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MaestroLaVille
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@gomaestro?lang=en
Image Credits
Headshot photos by Danielle Robinson
