My name is Steve Young, I'm a music producer, DJ and music educator from Scotland, currently residing in Hawaii. My main music project goes by the name Hedflux, I've been touring the world and releasing records professionally for the last 10 years.
In 2015 I obtained an O-1 "Alien of Extraordinary Ability" Visa for the USA, and moved to Hawaii where I co-founded the Audio Alchemy Retreat (@audioalchemy) - an annual gathering for music producers to power up, collaborate and dive deep into their craft. Our next one is from May 2-13th 2018 at Kalani Oceanside Resort on the Big Island (see http://audioalchemy.io)
Ableton Live and Push are my primary weapons of creation. I make electronic dance music with groovy beats and a shimmering psychedelic aesthetic. I'm also an avid researcher of esoteric knowledge and I love to write on the subject of science and spirituality. My last album was called Soul Science - a term which nicely sums up the journey I've been on.
Music has always been the golden thread that has led me through life, however in high school I became rather interested in physics and maths, and decided to pursue further studies at university. I spent 4 years at the University of St Andrews studying for a Masters Degree in theoretical physics, then went on to complete a PhD at the University of Surrey, specialising in quantum mechanics.
However my youthful enthusiasm for theoretical physics did eventually dwindle in the final years of my PhD. Exhausted, stressed and depressed, and without any clue what I wanted to do with my life, I finished my thesis, and joined the legion of the unemployed. It quickly became apparent that my newfound scientific knowledge was so specialised and academic that job options were in fact extremely limited.
With debt mounting up and the pressure to get a job increasing, I did what all dispirited physics PhD's do; I got a job in the financial sector. I spent 5 years working as a technical consultant and project manager on various projects relating to smart cards, NFC, digital money, digital identity etc. I did a lot of work for MasterCard, creating specifications and applications for contactless payments (PayPass).
It feels like a lifetime ago, but it was 2005-2010. During this period of life I was very unhappy, I felt like I'd sold out, lost my way, taken a wrong turn. I was doing a lot of soul seeking, a lot of research, and a lot of partying! Music was my meditation, my medication, my inspiration! I eagerly worked on music every opportunity I got.
My first record Music is my Weapon was released in 2008 on Sinister Recordings, and it created a wee bit of a splash! I ended up getting invited to do a mix for the Annie Nightingale show on BBC Radio 1, and I started getting DJ bookings outside of my home town, and then outside of the UK.
I pressed on with my day-job, while doing occasional DJ shows around the UK and Europe on weekends. I lived for the weekend! And during the week I was battling with myself about whether I should give up this job to pursue music full time. It was all I could think about.
In 2008 I was introduced to the shamanic plant medicine Ayahuasca, a powerful hallucinogen that induces profound healing, visions and insights. My first ceremony was a huge awakening! It was the experience I had been waiting my whole life to have - a major turning point - it answered all my questions (and led to hundreds more), opened my mind to the spiritual dimensions of reality, and inspired the sound of my music ever since.
Ayahuasca has catalysed several major transformations in my life, always for the greatest good. It helped me to see that all my suffering was just a consequence of fear-based decisions, and that the way forward was to consistently and persistently act from love.
During a series of ceremonies in 2009 I was shown in no uncertain terms that music was my soul purpose, my highest excitement, my Ikigai!
In spring of 2010, the company I worked at was buckling heavily under economic pressures, and it's collapse was almost certain. My wife was pregnant with our first child and we were both ready to leave the rat race behind. My 3rd record "Mindcell" was released on the same week as our daughter was born, and it went on to be one of my most successful records ever!
It held the number 1 position for nearly 3 months in the Beatport Breaks charts, and even won an award for best track at the 2011 "Breakspoll Awards". So needless to say, things got off to a very encouraging start! I ditched my corporate job in June 2010 and never looked back.
Over the subsequent years I said YES to every music opportunity that came my way, I remixed my favourite artists, played to crowds all over the world, made sample packs, patch banks and library music, kept evolving my sound and learning what it is to be a musician. I began teaching people Ableton via Skype, and hosting workshops at festivals, and at music schools while on tour.
Music making can be a profound transformational force in our lives, but it's about much more than simply making the music. The conditions for creativity have to be right. There are a lot of ups and downs to contend with that greatly affect creativity and motivation. It can be a feast or famine kind of situation, both in terms of ideas and finances.
There are dizzying highs and crushing lows, sometimes only hours apart, there are never any guarantees in anything you do, opportunities can dry up suddenly, or a lucky break can drop in your inbox at any moment.
You frequently put yourself in vulnerable situations, and absorb a ton of other peoples energy. Everyone has an opinion of you and your music. Half the challenge is learning to alchemise all that raw emotional experience, to harness the nonsense and the chaotic uncertainty of your life and transmute it into a 5 minute chunk of sound that makes people light up!
But probably the biggest issue faced by musicians is the lack of any significant return from sales, a problem that has been getting worse every year since the turn of the century. You see we rarely get paid to make music, we get paid to play music. If you wanna make music, it's on your own dime. And most musicians don't have a lot of dime!
Playing and performing music is a whole lotta fun and I still love it with every fibre of my being - but the real 'work' of it is in getting to and from the shows! You have to travel a lot, and very often have to stay up all night, catch your sleep on airplanes and in airports, in cars and at festivals, or on some strange couch. It takes a few days to recover from a big show. All the travelling to and from parties eats into your music making time, it can dull the mind, lower the immune system, and lead us into energetically draining situations.
In general, as we tour more we create less music, and as we create less, we get more jaded. It's a common problem for musicians. For many of us we want to spend more time in our studios, just making music, but because the only viable way to deliver music to people and get paid for it, is on large dancefloors, we are pressured to make music dictated by the demands of the dancefloor, and we cant really say no to a show.
A consequence of all the travelling is to drive down quality and diversity, leading to heaps of formulaic, same-sounding beats the world over. Huge amounts of people drop out of the music business once they've done a few years touring. It's a tricky balance to maintain, satisfying both the fans and the inner artist while supporting a family and making ends meet.
Enter Steemit
So when I first heard about Steemit - just one week ago - it was as if all my prayers were answered at once. The idea that I could potentially make a living from sharing music, and quality related content online, is totally revolutionary. It has turned my world upside down in the most pleasantly disorienting way! You mean our content is actually worth something??
Steemit, and the wonderful community here have shown me how these incumbent social media giants have been sucking the value out of our work all these years, and really holding us back creatively because of it. The scale of the swindle is actually staggering.
For example, I have about 1.3 million plays on Soundcloud, and yet I PAY THEM $100 per year, and have never seen a dime for any of those plays.
And I daren't even think of how much money I've put into facebook just so that I can reach the people who "liked" my page! Facebook takes so much time and money, and gives so little in return. It's the cocaine of the internet!
Steemit, DTube and DSound have opened up a brave new world for digital content creators, one where quality and authenticity is rewarded, where true creative freedom is possible, and where people who naturally produce quality can make a good business doing so.
I could not be more grateful to be a part of Steemit. Thank you to everyone who has worked so smart to make this a reality! Truly a game-changer!
It is my intention to share music, videos, and thought-provoking blog posts. I intend to document my research, my travels, and I hope I can use Steemit to drive and support the creation of higher quality content than ever before.
I hope you will join me on this journey
Much love and Aloha
Steve