Episode #26

Paul is a phenomenal operatic singer who came to America when he was 12. His thoughts of the genre as a whole and his transition between styles was a fascinating conversation and I hope you enjoy it as well!

CHAPTERS

0:00-Intro

0:30-How we met / acting

3:28-His story

13:40-Embassy to America

17:30-Getting serious about music

25:10-Transition from pop/emo/rap to classical

27:45-Listening to operatic / Gospel music in the gym

32:14-Progression of old music to future styles of sacred / music taste standards

38:50-Musical style equals attitude

42:10-Operatic genre and its progression

46:40-AI isn't eternal / souls are

52:02-Story Behind "It Is Well" and its continued impact

53:55-Doctorate and beyond / hindsight

56:28-Outro

Episode #25

The controversy of this topic can be felt among many circles regardless of which side you land on. I felt this conversation was an immense blessing with a fantastic end goal of how the church can still rally around the Gospel and Jesus Christ. I couldn't have spoken with anyone better than Serge as a friend, as a musician, and as a representative of certain lines of thought. I hope you enjoy this episode and walk away with some solid takeaways!

CHAPTERS

0:00-Intro

1:10-Serge, his music, and philosophy intro

7:55-Mutual history

8:35-“Nothing New”

12:45-Writing process / variety of subject matter

17:05-Being labeled / categorizing / exploring

19:35-The divide between sacred and secular

23:03-Branding

25:15-Secular to sacred and vice versa

28:28-Artists leaving the faith

31:25-Sacred and secular (an intro)

36:52-Redemption of certain contexts

40:10-History of Christian Hip-Hop

44:00-Common grace / universal innovation

49:00-Association / separation debate

57:20-Conscience and music

59:45-Denomination hot-take

1:02:35-Unification within the church

1:06:20-Energy of non-traditional music

1:08:50-Music is like food

1:10:35-Concern for fellow Christians

1:11:30-Outro / final thoughts / music plug

Episode #24

I loved digging into Josiah's experience and getting to know his perspective on vocal technique. I hope you enjoy this episode!

CHAPTERS

0:00-Intro

0:34-Story of getting into music

7:48-Switching major nuances

9:40-Growing in music / singing technique

14:05-The value of specializing

17:20-Becoming a tenor

19:20-Nitty gritty of singing technique

21:03-Singers are athletes (in a sense)

23:00-Handling practicing lows

24:30-Recording behind a mic vs. singing live

30:00-Pros of classical vocal technique

32:15-Venturing into other genres’ vocal styles

35:50-Open throat in a breathy singing style

38:40-Technique of singing “forward”

39:50-The work that goes into effective expression

41:00-"Budgeting” vocal health

47:20-Emotional effect of singing in various genres

56:30-The different feel of different genres

58:50-Editing vocals

1:01:40-Outro