Where are you from?
I am from Bloomington, Minnesota, USA, originally. That city is most famous for The Mall of America. …but that wasn’t around when I was a kid. It’s a modest suburb of Minneapolis. I grew up in a 3-bedroom rambler with my father, mother, and sister.
I had a pretty amazing childhood. My parents were very middle class. We might not have had the trendiest things, but we didn’t go without. My Aunt and Uncle owned land in a township near Stillwater, Minnesota, where they raised racehorses (among other things). My sister and I spent endless hours with our cousins exploring the land and building forts. We also got to explore the creative side of life by writing and self-publishing books (ok, to be fair, one copy bound in cardboard covered by wallpaper) and hosting cooking shows (we would “make things” and make our sisters eat it) well before either were a trend.
We traveled by car quite a bit as a family for summer vacations—mostly to the east coast. My parents loved the historical sites of the United States. However, my favorite vacation we took as a family was to Florida back around 1977. Disney World captured my imagination. I have been back a few times since.
What is your earliest memory of music?
It’s a toss-up between The New Christy Minstrels or my grandmother playing electric organ in my grandparent’s home.
My parents had very—specific—tastes in music. In fact, The New Christy Minstrels was my first-ever concert! It is VERY Caucasian music. VERY Caucasian music. It is probably one of the influences that set choral music into my DNA. I do love singing in a swing choir!
The other memory I recall was my grandmother (dad’s mom) playing organ at their house—an old Wurlitzer electric organ. She could play almost anything by ear (to my recollection). Grandpa and Grandma would drag us to their “Organ Club” meetings when they were babysitting my sister and I. I am not really sure where that influence plays out in my style now, but it was definitely a big part of my growing up. But I know I LOVED to play with the cheesy percussion beats on organ. In fact, in Superhuman, the breakdown is supposed to emulate that cheesy sound. Maybe THAT’S how it influenced me!
When did you start being an artist?
Interesting question. Start being or come into being? I guess I “started being” in college when I was performing a lot in all different kinds of genres—Jazz, pop, swing choir, classical. …more of an “ArtEEst” at that point.
I would say I came into being an artist in my 40’s. I found my comfortability on stage and my stage presence. But I didn’t find my SOUND until into my 50’s. Then the amalgamation of all the influences came out and my “sound” came into being. I think it started to emerge on “Superhuman”, but really solidified on “We Can B Free”.
How would you describe your style?
A lot of my music is reminiscent of the styles I grew up listening to. As I mentioned, my dad was really into 1940’s swing—Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman—so I have a strong influence of that swing band horn sound. My mom was really into The Carpenter’s and the “Easy Listening” sounds of the 1970’s, so that finds its way in. I RARELY heard what we call “classic rock” when I was growing up—that didn’t happen until later, but you’ll find a heavy influence of that rock guitar in what I do. I DID get into STYX and QUEEN in high school, so you hear that influence for sure.
Also while in high school I spent a lot of time with musicals. I, as a general rule, am not a HUGE fan of musical theater so to speak (so the irony that I play in a LOT of pit bands is not lost on me), but it definitely influenced me more than I might care to admit. I like the story in the song… so almost all of my music takes you on a lyrical journey.
While attending Coe college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, I got to work with Dr. Paul Smoker. He was an Avant-Garde jazz trumpet player who was also the director of our jazz band. He taught me the importance of knowing the rules before you break them… but by GOD, break them! I learned the importance of improvisation… the freedom in form. The beauty found in chaos.
Being from Minneapolis, Prince played an ENORMOUS roll in influencing me as a writer, arranger, producer, etc. That Minneapolis Sound is not always top of mind when I write, but the work ethic and desire to experiment with sound and ideas is there.
But I do get influenced by what I hear today—Robyn, The Teddybears, Walk the Moon, Lizzo—all find their way into what I am writing.
It think what sets me apart from other musicians is, first off as a drummer, I am a great sight-reader. That helps a-lot with the shows I drum for. As a composer, I am not limited to one style of music. There are always influences from many genres in one piece. What I write is hard to pigeonhole. My iPhone is full of multiple genres of music, why shouldn’t I create the same variety myself?
I also know my perspective is unique. As with every artist, I am using the same 12 notes in various octaves colored by the timber of instruments I chose. My words are composed of the same 26 letters as every other artist. It is just my perspective on how to combine those letters, those notes and those sounds that make me unique.
Are there any particular themes or messages that you often explore in your music?
I made the decision well after producing “Evolutions” to only write music with a positive message. My songs are about empowerment and have deep spiritual roots. My connection to Source Energy is very important to me and my musical journey has been strongly tied to that—a lot of that had to do with the majority of my musical output being performed in churches I worked for. But even my pop stuff has that sense of wonder and “what if”.
I want people to leave my songs and compositions with hope—with a sense of inspiration. “We Can B Free” is about realizing things aren’t what we’ve been told. If we all get along and stop giving power to “the man” we can change the world. “Superhuman” is a fun confection about embracing your cocky, wonderful self and just having fun. “Artist’s Prayer” is about knowing inspiration comes from Source Energy and getting yourself in a space for that. “Stardust Once Again” is about the “what if” after we die.
Each of these compositions are meant to be fun but inspire the listener.
What is the story behind your most famous song?
Superhuman began as a challenge to write a simple three chord rock and roll song. See, being raised on jazz and classical music in school, I fell in love with the sound of the 9 chord and the major 7 chord. They find their way into EVERYTHING, which gives it a more jazz/show choir sound than just rock and roll.
When I set out to write Superhuman, I wanted the simplicity of Rock and Roll—and mostly accomplished it (the bossa nova section is an instrumental version of “Will I Let Myself” off my first CD..that has those jazz chords in it).
Lyrically, I wanted something fun and with very lighthearted. I decided a braggadocio song about how great I was would fit the bill (awfully big word for a simple song). I wanted it to be a dance song that made you want to go to the dance floor.
The line about “Don’t like my hair? Quit your bitchin’!” is from an experience at my corporate day job. I had dyed a couple of purple highlights into my hair at the time and one of the “powers that be”, when talking about promoting me or not, said something to the effect of, “Can you imagine me taking him to a meeting in New York with purple hair?” They say life imitates art… well, in this case, art COMMENTED on life!
A lot of the asides (What’s the square root of pi”, “Let’s all bosa nova”, “The square root of pi isn’t pumpkin, it’s apple”) were very B-52’s influenced. I wanted something quirky and fun to go with the notion of I’m not from around here.
To work with Matt Fink (Dr. Fink of Prince and the Revolution) was a dream come true! I had been a Prince fan for decades…he got me through the 1980’s and me becoming a self-sustaining person. So to get to spend time with the Doctor, was truly amazing. A consummate musician with great advice and stories. He is the Bella Lugosi voice on the song!
What is the hardest thing about being an independent artist?
Distractions. There are so many amazing experiences to be had here on earth, and a lot of them are really fun! I allowed myself to be distracted away from my craft by life—which I do not regret—but it set me behind on my artist’s journey. Then there is the distraction of “I’m not good enough” which needs to be overcome. Then there is the distraction of paying the bills and eating—enter the day job.
Let me be clear: there is nothing WRONG with distractions. They just take you on a different path for a while. It’s when they take over you have an issue. Sex, drugs, gambling, binging Netflix…all are distractions. None of them are inherently bad in moderation. But just remaining aware of them is important.
The hardest distraction is probably the “I’m not good enough” one. It’s so easy to compare ourselves to other people or other artists. The self-talk of “I’ll never be as famous as (fill in the blank)” or “I am not as handsome/pretty as (fill in the blank)” are hard things to overcome, especially when it’s not popping for you.
Always remember, you are YOU. You have your OWN unique voice—a voice no other artist has. You do you, boo. Don’t worry about anyone else. Be who you are boldly and create what YOU hear. Your voice is important in the world and your art needs to be shared.
The distractions will always be there. Learning to manage them and live with them can be your biggest challenge. It was for me (and continues to be).
What’s the best thing about being an independent artist?
I get to create whatever I want to create. No one controls me and there is no pressure to write “the next big thing”. Of course, we all want to write the “Next big thing” and I would not say “No” to a licensing deal for sure!
It can be challenging to do all your own creation and promotion but the freedom of doing what you want to do, when you want to do it is pretty amazing.
What are your goals for your music career?
When I was a kid, I wanted to be a rock star. Now, I just want to reach people with my music and my message.
I am going to keep writing and releasing music. My real goal is, and always has been, to touch as many people as possible with my art. I plan to continue to do that.
I am also finishing up the writing of this very cool big band influenced track, “Gotta Un-F*$% Myself” which I am hoping to collaborate with Matt Fink (Dr. Fink of Prince and the Revolution) again (we worked together on “Superhuman”) and Michael Bland from Soul Asylum.
It’s a track about how when I was younger, I was more in touch with myself and my gifts and how I need to unlearn the things that made me feel shame about those things and bury those things down deep to appear “cool”.
It’s a high energy, up tempo, romp with killer horn parts and the vocals done Andrew Sisters style… should be a BLAST! (clean version will be called “Gotta Unwind Myself”)
I also have been sitting on a super important song called “Affirmation.” It just needs a final mix (and maybe a few recording tweaks). It’s the most positive song in the world. VERY much inspired by Glee, it starts with just a piano but grow to the end with 100 PD’s (and a good friend Justin Vaughn) chanting “I am beautiful. I am powerful. I am loved. Nothing you say can take that away from me.” I am very excited for that track to come out.
What do you like to do in your free time (outside of music)?
I am an avid tarot card reader. I have quite a little side business doing readings in person and online. You can read more about it (and book a reading) on my website, https://PaulDavidMusic.net I am really quite good at it.
What is something that people would be surprised to know about you?
I am 57 years old.
What does a typical day look like for you?
I start my day at 4:30AM. I brew my coffee and make my way to my office. After checking email and doing any promotion I need to, I grab my singing bowl and sing my prayers of gratitude. Then, I begin my breath-work and mediations. I will then go back to my computer and study my Spanish for a while or work on my book (yeah, I am writing a book) or practice guitar, or work on a song… depending on the muse.
I will then get on our indoor bike and bike for 20 minutes followed by calisthenics before I shower and head to the day job.
Day job is usually 8-10 hours. Getting home (depending on the time of the year), I walk and feed the dog and start dinner for my husband and I. We eat dinner and chill watching TV until about 9PM, then I head to bed where I waste far too much time on TikTok or You Tube until I fall asleep. Rinse and repeat.
Do you have any upcoming projects we can be excited about?
My current single is called “Show Me the Sizzle”. It started as an idea at my day job: how can you improve the customer experience. The powers that be were toying around with “Show me the money!” from Jerry McGuire, and the owner (or his son) came up with “Show me the sizzle!”. I loved the idea of that—it’s the je ne sais quoi—that thing you bring that you can’t quite put your finger on but separates you from the crowd. It’s that unique thing that each of us has that makes the ordinary extraordinary.
I had a couple of different ideas in mind when I started, but recently had listed to Beyonce’s “Get Me Bodied” in my car. I liked how the claps were the division of the beat and her chant-like delivery of the opening lines drove the story forward. So I laid down an electronic kit beat similar, but not the same, then recorded acoustic claps.
I then laid down some finger snaps on the 2 & 4 and I liked the acoustic feel on top of the electronic drums. I dropped in the 808-kick drum and augmented the electronic snare with a sample to give it a better high end.
I then set out to get into the song… and that’s always an adventure: how do you start? What story drives the song and sets up what follows? I loved the idea of walking into a club and this groove making everyone want to dance. “If y’all don’t know, I’m gonna tear it down” felt like a Beyonce thing to say, so I wrote it! Then it struck me to kill the groove there and “Build it back up right from the ground”.
But the vocals felt thin, so I went back and layered the harmony underneath the lead… it sort of felt Andrews Sisters like, and I grew up in swing choir, so that felt natural (and layered vocals have become part of my sound). I loved the feel… however, it was no longer a Beyonce feel, but I liked it.
The chorus came next. I needed to define what “sizzle” meant. I really liked “takin’ hold the ordinary making it extraordinary”, which I think is really the essence of it—it’s adding something special to the ordinary to make it pop. But what to continue with? I knew it was making things better—elevating them—not settling for less than. It was probably on a rhyming dictionary where I stumbled across the word potentate, which is a ruler and I liked the idea of elevating the cream of the crop. Then finding a word to rhyme with elevate brought me obfuscate—which means to make something less clear. So taking things that are second-rate and classing them up—or hiding their flaws and making them sparkle in SPITE of their imperfections—worked of me. And I have put obscure words in my works before—“Superhuman” has soporific and sudorific in it, so it’s not a first for me.
I then went back for verses two and three. Still thinking in the Beyonce mode, I though a little shady sass would be fun for verse two and it sets up the chorus well.
Then for verse three, I thought I should teach you steps to bring the sizzle yourself—basically, dig deep and just do it.
The bridge/chant section I had early on. The idea to do the BG vocals all relaxed and laid back came at the moment I was recording them. I liked the effect then stacked it in layers. Some are processed, some are dry to give it texture.
What are your favorite topics to write about?
Growth. Personal, spiritual, it doesn’t matter. But I like to write about things that inspire people to become more than they were when they started out this grand adventure.
How do you deal with creative block or artist block?
Breathe. Put it down and come back at it another day. I mean, you can stay there and hammer at it, but often you need to get out of the way of the block to have it release in you. There is a reason Google or Apple have playgrounds at their offices—it’s to get the “monkey mind” out of the way. Same applies to blocks… just let it go, it will work itself out. Now, hard to do if you’re on a deadline, agreed. But worth the try.
What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?
You do you, boo. Be who you are, do what you do for YOU, not for fans, or a label or anyone else. Do your art for YOU. Ignore those that don’t “get” you.
Where can people find your music online?
While I am on all social media and streaming platforms, the best way to stay abreast of the new music coming out is via my website, https://PaulDavidMusic.net or really, just follow my linktree: https://linktr.ee/PDStanko
And I also want to say, we independent musicians appreciate your support of our music from our websites. We make NOTHING from streaming. Your support at our websites are what allow us to create and release more music for you. And know how VERY much we are thankful for you and your support of our music.
