Rising Stars: Meet Tony Chetta

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tony Chetta.

Hi Tony, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
When I was about 13, I was starting to write and produce my own awful attempts at instrumental electronic/rock music; mainly inspired by melodies and trying to shock the listener with the dynamic arrangement. But at 15 years old, I was asked by a couple of friends to record some of their acoustic guitar/vocal songs just for fun. After they left our small home studio, I decided to add a bunch of other instruments and surprise them. Listening back today, it sounded horrid but the way they got so excited about how an idea that only existed in their heads a few days prior now had a full band supporting it was incredibly inspiring and since then, I’ve been trying to figure out how to make a living doing that every day.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest challenges for me so far have always taken some form of financial issues, which seems to be the case with most musical careers this early on. There’s been times of taking 16-hour Greyhound buses from home to Nashville because my car broke down and I couldn’t afford to fix it or buy a plane ticket, there’s been eviction warnings, mountains of student loans, going to bed early instead of eating dinner, etc. All things that could either be taken as signs to slow down and pick up a different career that would make more money sooner or tests to see if you’ll keep going. I’ve always made the choice to view these things as tests and it hasn’t killed me yet so I’d rather see how much further I can go than give in to a safer, less exciting path.

That being said, I always respect people’s side hustles and have had many myself as well along the way. There’s definitely been times where finances weren’t an issue at all and other times where that wasn’t the case. I just think it’s very important for other people pursuing this kind of thing to understand that every obstacle or challenge that comes up will always give you the option of viewing it as a sign to quit or a test to keep going and there’s no way to distinguish which one it is beyond your own opinion, which you have complete control over.

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?
My work is probably best described as a producer/writer although I usually mix my own stuff as well and sometimes will end up only vocal editing for several days in a row. It really changes day by day which is part of what I love about this type of work.

There’s been a few times where I’ve been told I have a “sound” although I’m not exactly sure what that sound is… it’s definitely nothing intentional but could possibly be derived from different rock, pop, folk, and even a little bit of classical influences I’ve had over the years. For me though, I’ve always tried to work towards being a transparent producer; one that fully understands and feels the “sound” the artist is wanting to convey and provides a type of sonic environment for it while getting out of the way for the artist to really shine through. Other times, that sound isn’t perfectly defined at first and then it becomes a more collaborative effort to just create something everyone in the room is inspired by void of ego.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
Two books that I’ve been going back to for years have been “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie and “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. Obviously, these are very gimmicky titles and have absolutely nothing to do with music but there’s principles and ideas in these that feel timeless and are very well communicated. The Dale Carnegie book is excellent for learning not only how people operate psychologically but also preaches the importance of humility in recognizing another person’s needs and feelings above your own when you’re in any kind of exchange with them. The Napoleon Hill book teaches more intrinsic lessons, much less related to accumulating riches like the title suggests, but more focused on the mindsets required to make any kind of significant progress in life. Definitely would suggest these two books for just about anybody.

Contact Info:

• Email: tonychettamusic@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tonychetta/
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0xf6uBwUrYM3odNhZZ7F6E?si=4884858bb6264d13

Image Credits
Matt Gill Michael Dove