Meet Chavez Parker of Big Vezy Productions in Smyrna

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chavez Parker.

Chavez, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was born and raised on Freeport, Grand Bahama in The Bahamas and my entire upbringing was surrounded by music. I started music lessons around the age of five learning both piano and drums and later became a church musician. In my high school years, at age 15 I started a cover band with some of my friends and we got hired to play numerous gigs around the island. In addition to this, I was apart of the Grand Bahama Youth Choir where I served as the junior director of the choir that had the amazing opportunity to travel to Atlanta and Washington DC for performances sanctioned by the Bahamian Government. It was during this time when I grew a strong love for music and decided that this was the path I wanted to take. It took me no time before I dove straight into songwriting and music production.

After completing high school I pursued a degree in Music Performance from the University of The Bahamas. Initially, I was rejected from the program because my skillset did not meet the requirements of the music program. As a result of this, I had to register as a Business major, minoring in Music Performance. Thankfully, I had a professor who allowed me to prove myself during the first semester. This was a defining moment for me. I had to shift gears and go as hard as I could because I only had one semester to make it happen. I worked tirelessly, practicing about four hours a day to improve my skills and before the end of that fall semester, I had reached my goal and was accepted into the Music Program as a Piano Major. Not only did I completed that degree program but I graduated top of the music program in June of 2015.

Later that summer, I attended Full Sail University for Music Production. It was during this time where I got the awesome opportunity to work under amazing industry professionals that not only taught me everything I needed to know about music and how diverse the industry is but I gained valuable information that helped me develop my sound as a music producer. While attending Full Sail, I worked with many local talents in Orlando as well as playing piano for a local jazz band. Just months before graduating from Full Sail, I applied for my dream school and to my surprise, I got accepted.

Summer of 2017, I packed everything up and moved halfway across the world to Valencia, Spain to begin my Master’s in Music Production at Berklee College of Music. I had a lot of amazing experiences before this, but going to Berklee was a dream come true! During my time there, I worked as a studio assistant on campus while outsourcing my time to others who needed a session recorded, production work or just to play the live piano when it was needed. I made amazing connections during this time and some that I hold dear to my heart. Berklee challenged me, but it was a fun challenge that I thoroughly enjoyed. I learned a lot about digital coding and video mapping which lead to my thesis project which consists of a series of instrumentals accompanied by 360 music videos all designed by yours truly. The extent of this project is so intense that it’s still a work in progress but I will share with the world very soon!

At this time Berklee has been the highlight of my life but it was time to move on as the graduation date quickly approached. After receiving my Master’s in Music Production in the summer of 2018, I decided to follow my girlfriend who is now my fiancé to Shanghai, China for one year. Shanghai was an interesting and amazing experience all in one. This experience carved out the best version of me and I am grateful for that. Over that year, I worked as a freelance producer in the day, English teacher in the evening and a jazz musician at night. I had the amazing opportunity to work with talented musicians all over the city playing at all of the top jazz bars in Shanghai. In addition to this, I did production work for a few artists in Shanghai also.

As we know, all good things must come to an end eventually, and it was time for me to leave Shanghai. Not knowing where I was going after that, I got the opportunity to move to Atlanta where I have been now since July 2019. Being here has been nothing short of amazing and it is evident that the opportunities are endless. I’ve been blessed to connect with some of the cities top producers and managers in the music industry. Since living here, I have worked with a few local artists (both signed and unsigned) in hopes to have an amazing 2020 when all of the releases have the green light. In addition to this, I have been working on a Lofi Hip Hop EP that is to be released soon on all streaming platforms.

As I reflect on my story and how I started to where I am now, I can only think of one word; persistence. No matter where I went or what I did, I tried my best to stay determined and push through no matter what obstacles I face. The good thing is that I am only getting started, and my tolerance for obstacles are high! I am excited that Atlanta is my new home and I look forward to building a strong foundation here that will lead to an amazing future.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Some of the struggles I’ve faced along the way started when I decided I wanted to do music. It was rough not having full support from friends and family when I made it clear that this was going to be my livelihood. Being from the Bahamas, doing music as a career is somewhat to look down upon and is not accepted by many. As a result of this, I struggled with doubt and just wondering if what I was about to do make any sense whatsoever.

Another struggle I faced was not getting accepted into the music program at the University of The Bahamas initially. I had a feeling that I was so good that I would do so well on the audition but to my surprise, I failed it with flying colors. After asking what I can do moving forward to eventually become a music major, I was given one semester to work hard to bring my skill set up to a level that was appropriate for being a music major. Although I failed to get in, I did not let that stop me one bit but I had to work extra hard to ensure that I reached that goal of mine. Another struggle I faced was while I was working on an album for an artist, my hard drive crashed and I lost over three years’ worth of music. To see all of my work and growth disappear like that was heartbreaking and it took a while for me to recover from that. After getting back on my feet, I worked tirelessly to build my portfolio back up and I also completed that album which is now available on all streaming platforms.

Please tell us about the company.
Big Vezy Productions is a full-service music production company. Not only do we work with artists and provide instrumentals and songwriting services, but we also work in the advertising and the film industry. Big Vezy Productions have created music for over 25 commercials and counting. In addition to this, we composed and scored an entire documentary titled, “For the love of Conch” scheduled to be released soon. On the artist side, we have worked numerous rappers and singers both locally and internationally, providing a signature sound that is like no other for all of the mainstream genres. In addition to this, we offer piano services, vocal tracking, and mixing. At Big Vezy Productions, we specialize in creating custom instrumentals for the artist that best suits their sound and style. We won’t send a large catalog for anyone to chose from instead, we set up meetings to discuss the project and by this, we can lock in that artist”s vibe, vision, and overall sound. We are most proud of our ability to wear multiple hats in production. We have not allowed ourselves to stick to one way or one style but reaching to many and working with many to develop a worldwide brand and we believe this sets us apart from the competition.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start over, I would take my education more seriously in high school and practice my piano more than I did anything else. I believe by doing this so early, I would have already developed a work ethic that would have just transferred with me to my college years, but instead, that is when I began to build a strong work ethic.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.bigvezy.com
• Phone: 4074056105
• Email: bigvezy@gmail.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/bigvezy
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/bigvezy

Image Credit:
TC Filmz

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