Quotes to Love
“I’m not talking about getting 360 deals when I say I hate labels. I think when we call ourselves something specific, we run the risk of boxing ourselves into a category and limit our creative freedom.”
~On Titles in the Music Industry~
Can we turn it up for Royal Oak, Michigan?!!!!!!!
Yes, because with about 10 shows (or more) under his belt and a passion for versatility in styles and genres of Pop and Rap we see that he is running at full speed. Illezo stopped for a moment to share a little bit about his love for music and we are thankful! So, let’s check it out…
His current project is called MATURA, and it’s really an exploration into more of the pop side of his music. He’s been working on singing and production more so it will show more of his versatility.
When it comes to writing music, that responsibility isn't just on Pat it’s also shared with his team. Since starting to compose more instrumentally, he’s worked with members of his team “much more talented than I am” says he.., to help him build out the best music he can. One day he will write all of the lyrics, then other days he makes the entire instrumental, but then again there are times when he writes the vocal melody, so there isn’t just one thing that he always does and the collaboration definitely makes for better Art.
When Pat was in high school, he had a very motivating English teacher by the name of Jason Jones who encouraged him to continue writing poetry. He enjoyed it as an outlet. He didn’t share much of his work, but he learned a lot about himself in the process. Which opened the door for him to become a band kid and his mom talked him into taking a course at the local community college at night where he learned more about video editing and some basic music production.
After putting a few songs together and falling in love with the process, he bought some equipment and started writing and recording with a few friends. He continued to work on music and moved more into working on his own individual journey. He found his voice and began collaborating with other incredible artists and meeting different creative people to work with has been one of the best parts of being involved with music. He really loves the whole process because there are no rules and you get to paint any picture you want on a canvas of silence.
When Artists create they have at least one song that they really were feeling during the process. Of course for Pat this song changes day to day, but his favorite song right now is from his upcoming project called: Autumn and he worked with Billy Famous to create it. Billy is an incredible creative force and he handled most of the production on the song. We work very well together and can grab the baton when one of us is stuck on a portion. He’s another member of the AGiLE SOCiETY family, which is the collective of brilliant Artists that he works with.
When you finally have an opportunity to step out on a stage in front of people that love and support your music it’s tough to tell which performances you really loved but Pat has vivid memories of every show he’s done. He did a show at Bleu Detroit where he met JR and from there really started taking music seriously. The crowd was incredible that night. He also did a show at PJ’s Lager House most recently and, again, his crowd always shows off for him. At the PJ’s show, he also had a full camera crew making him feel like a Rockstar. He also performed a few songs with Kobierich which were unforgettable. The energy at each show is something he is forever grateful for and he appreciates everyone always coming out and having a great time with him.
When challenges arise, there are many different ways to approach them, but with Pat he feels like every day has a new lesson to impact his career. It’s been a long journey so far and he’s loved every minute of it. One experience in particular that impacted him greatly was when he started performing live. It changed everything, from his approach to songwriting to his production. He writes now to account for crowd interaction, connection and engagement. He includes more builds and breaks in his productions as that creates a special type of energy that fans can really feel.
Most Artist don’t just sing or rap they also have other ventures. As a creator and someone who has grown up in a business-focused family of entrepreneurs, he is always up to something. He has a side project for design, social media, branding, PR and video content called the Nebulae Agency. He is also working to build out a course with an incredible engineer Rudy Youmans through Studio 221B. He has a new idea every day so he tries his very best to stay focused on the things he’s doing. But, he’s really a utility player on every team he’s on so if they need something to be successful, he learns what he needs to or he finds someone who is a good fit to fill the role.
ILLEZO Advice
Catch more of him and his music here:
Instagram at @Illezo
You can also find him on Facebook YouTube SoundCloud TikTok and pretty much anywhere else by searching:
Pat Polzin (Illezo)
