A Dirty Dozen with DEZ MONEY – July 2021

According to a recent press release: “When Dez Money released “Lost” in April of 2021 he invited the listener into his new world, with his song “Trippin,” currently featured on Apple Music New In Rock and New In Alternative playlists he invites us into a technicolor dream, filled with hypnotic grooves. The multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and producer show’s his versatility and creates his own path as an artist on his new set of songs and upcoming album release. Dez released his debut album, Take Me Down in 2015, followed by his sophomore album, Blue in 2020, as well as touring with Eddie Money as the guitarist and the opening act. He can also be seen in the AXS TV reality series “Real Money,” which chronicled the Money family’s life at home and on tour. “Trippin” will be followed by more song and video releases this summer with a new album coming later this year.” We get Dez to discuss new music, influences, and more…

1. Tell us a little about your latest release.  What might a fan or listener not grab the first or second time they listen through?  Are there any hidden nuggets you put in the material or that only diehard fans might find?

My latest release “Trippin” I started off writing in my room with just an acoustic guitar. The visuals for the music video are very Beatles inspired. I was going for “Yellow Submarine” vibes, and we had a lot of fun working on the video and tying in the animation. The song is pretty simple when it comes to the production as it starts off with just acoustic and vocals. There’s a string accompaniment as well that gets bigger throughout. As the song progresses, I threw in more elements that you might catch the 2nd or 3rd listen. I think some things are more felt than heard when hidden in the mix and that is sometimes my favorite part of producing is throwing in elements that you might not even hear but they enhance the experience.

2. What got you into music, and can you tell us about the moment you realized you wanted to be a musician?

I’ve been playing music since as long as I can remember. My first memory was playing the drums and taking lessons at a very early age. I wanted to be in my dad’s band when I was a little kid so that I could always be with my family and do what I love the most. After I graduated high school, I was finally able to do that but also added my own music into the mix when I was opening up for my dad on tour and playing guitar in his band.

3. Building on that, is there a specific song, album, performer, or live show that guided your musical taste?

I’ve been a huge fan of all types of music. There is inspiration all over the place and I think there’s great things to be discovered when listening to different styles of music. Obviously, my main influence was my father as he taught us how to be professional and what it takes to be on tour. Also, he taught me how to treat others and that even though we need to take our work seriously, it’s also about having fun doing what we love and making people happy through the power of music.

4. If you could call in any one collaborator to do a song with, who would it be, and why?

There are a lot of great artists I’d like to work with. I think off the top of my head Kevin Parker from Tame Impala comes to mind. I love how he plays all the instruments and produces his own music. That’s also how I record my music and the way he creates the songs is very inspiring to me. I saw Tame Impala live 3 times in one year and already have tickets for when they come back to LA. They put on a great show.

5. What is your favorite activity when out of the studio and/or not on tour?  What do you like to do to unwind?

I like to go to the beach when I have time to relax and unwind. I live in Malibu, CA and I know some great spots that are more secluded when I want to get away and watch the waves.

6. How would you describe your music to someone who’d never listened to you before? What is the one comparison a reviewer or fan has made that made you cringe, or you disagreed with?

When someone asks me what type of music I make I just tell them I like all types of music. I think these days as artists we don’t have to stick with one genre of music and run with it for the rest of our lives. Each song is a new beginning and I try and do what’s best for each song when producing. The only thing I can think of when comparisons come to mind is when people say “you’re better than so and so” and I personally just think that each artist is unique so to compare me to someone and try to put them down isn’t really what it’s all about. I’m not here to hate on other artists. It’s all love.

7. When your band is hanging out together, who cooks, who gets the drinks in, and who is first to crack out the acoustic guitars for a singalong?

Well… I live with a couple people in my band since we’re family and we all do a little cooking and drinking together. Jess is a great cook but over the last year I’ve actually been getting better as well. Julian is very healthy and when he cooks, he does a great job and makes sure he uses all the best ingredients. Nothing too complicated but we’re getting better in the kitchen every day. Jess watches Hell’s Kitchen and a lot of those cooking shows and is always learning new recipes so we’ve been experimenting with some new dishes. We all have fun jamming together in the studio when we hang out together. It’s what we do for fun even though it’s our job as well. Music brings us all together.

8. When was the last time you were starstruck and who was it?

I don’t really get starstruck since I grew up around a lot of that but someone who I met recently that I really admire is Mac Demarco. I have seen him play live a couple times before and happened to meet him at the Tame Impala show and at a party recently. He’s very down to earth and it was great talking about music with him. He is another artist who does it all in the studio and I think it’s really cool when an artist can do a little bit of everything to make such great music.

9. What is the best part of being a musician? If you could no longer be a musician for whatever reason, what would be your dream job?

The best part of being a musician is making the music I want to hear. There’s nothing more rewarding than listening to a song that I made that I enjoy. All the work that goes into it pays off. It’s not just the work that went into that day in the studio, it’s all the work that has gone into my life that makes it rewarding. The more I put into it, the more I get out of it. If I could no longer do music, I would be working on films. Another skill I’ve learned over the past couple years is how to direct and edit my music videos. It’s something I did out of necessity because I have so many songs that need visuals and the more I got into it, the more I loved it. I have the same passion for the visuals now as I do for the music. It’s a great feeling when it all comes together. It’s just that much more work that pays off and it makes it that much more meaningful.

10. What is one question you have always wanted an interviewer to ask – and what is the answer? Conversely, what question are you tired of answering?

That’s a good question. To be honest I’m happy to answer any questions someone might have about music. Certain questions get asked more because of my background but it’s not like I get tired of answering those questions. I get asked a lot “What was it like growing up with Eddie Money as your dad?” And my answer is always something like “It was pretty awesome”. My dad was a great guy and people loved him because he didn’t go around thinking he was better than everyone else just because he was a rockstar. He was very kind and funny. He really loved to make people laugh with his jokes. He told those jokes on stage when on tour which made it even more funny.

11. Looking back over your career, is there a single moment or situation you feel was a misstep or you would like to have a “do over,” even if it didn’t change your current situation?

I think everything happens for a reason. There’s nothing I’ve done in my career that I regret to be honest. I’ve put the work in and have always stayed a good person throughout. We all make mistakes, but I can’t say I would change anything that I’ve done. I’m happy to be on this journey regardless of what turns I made to get to this point.

12. If you could magically go back in time and be a part of the recording sessions for any one record in history, which would you choose – and what does that record mean to you?

I think I’d like to be there for when Pink Floyd recorded The Dark Side of the Moon. That album is so great the whole way through and with all I’ve heard about what went into the music, I think it would be so cool to experience it firsthand. One of my all-time favorite albums.

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Category: Interviews