Today we’d like to introduce you to Exel.
Hi Exel, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Taking it from the beginning, my childhood was tough. My mom was working 80hrs a week at a factory job and my brother pretty much took care of me. My dad was in and out of the picture and we never really clicked even though I tried hard to make that happen. That was my first lesson in you can’t force anything to work out for yourself. I never really fit in anywhere that I went and so my friend group was pretty small. As the years went by, my dad started getting sick. He passed away four years after his illness and it tore me up because we were never able to get it right. My mom and I then ended up moving around a lot and I was constantly here and there.
Our main spot was the Lone Star State of Texas. Music kept me busy and occupied. Actually, Rockband and Guitarhero is what sparked my music interest. My dad bought me my first actual guitar after I got hooked on BYOB by System Of A Down on the easy difficulty. When I actually started playing guitar and singing, I found that I loved putting music together and making something from nothing. I was hyper-focused daily on making a new song and just putting it out. I got with some friends of mine and they told me to start doing covers, I did a few covers and they went viral on Facebook.
For the first time in my life, I had recognition and I was no longer a shadow to everyone else. This is when I met multi-platinum Atlanta based producer, Sauce Lord Rich from FKI. He’s worked with the best of them and he’s an incredible artist and producer. He brought me to Atlanta to really hone in on my sound and push me. We’ve been working together ever since and that’s something I’m forever grateful for. Everyone tells you it just takes that “one person” to recognize you in music and you’re golden. For me, that’s Sauce Lord Rich. I owe it all to him.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
The win just doesn’t feel like a win if it doesn’t take a lot out of you. There’s been a ton of challenges along the way. They vary in range too. At first, it was, “Okay, how can I get people to notice me?” and then it was “Okay, people notice me, but now trolls notice me too and they’re going hard.” After that it was, “Okay, cool, trolls are gone, but now how do I get my foot in the door of the music industry?” It’s always something. Still is sometimes. When Sauce Lord Rich told me to get to Atlanta, I had about $100 saved up. I came from a poor family and the jobs I worked were never the best and physically taxing. That was an obstacle until a great friend of mine offered me a ride down to Atlanta. She ended up paying for everything and the hotel for a month. I’ll never forget that. Life ends up working for you and not to you. Every obstacle and challenge that I’ve faced ended up having an answer to it. Sometimes it took months to get an answer, but all of the knots worked themselves out with much less stress than there needed to be on my end. My biggest advice is let life happen. Show up, be willing to put in the work, but let life answer everything.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a singer/multi instrumentalist. My genre, I call it campfire trap. It’s a blend of modern beats with some acoustic guitar. These are songs that you can play around a campfire and everyone there will love it. What makes me unique is that I blend a lot of genres in my music together to create a new feeling. I grew up on everything spanning from Jimmy Hendrix to Megadeth to Outkast with Johnny Cash in between and rounded out by Young Thug. I’m most proud of where I’m at right now and where I’m going. I’m on the horse riding along right now, stopping for a drink every now and again, but the horse and I both see that sweet, sweet, end of the tunnel coming ahead.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
I love supporting others and collaborating with others. In fact, I’d just love to have some conversations with others about what they’re working on, or their business, or what they love! We all need that. The best way is through my Instagram @exeltheking (new song is in my bio on there too).
Contact Info:
- Email: schumacher6994@gmail.com
- Instagram: @exlwolf
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/1NcGon8UAVhXaNhPIkpodI?si=3SosTBwPTYyfmhOjYDT5Fw
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/DDogbFnctQ8
Image Credits:
Hipp Trousley
