Daily Inspiration: Meet Chaos In The GRDNOFIII

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chaos In The GRDNOFIII.

Hi Chaos, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Chaos in the GRDNOFIII (simplified as CITGO.III) is the frontman of the local Atlanta alternative music collective. The band is called GRDNOFIII and is a music collective that bends the barriers of genres with eclectic inputs from a creatives of many backgrounds.

Chaos was born on February 2, 1995, in Decatur, Georgia. He spent a majority of his youth in the Metro-Atlanta area before relocating to Kansas City, Missouri, where he quickly learned to navigate the intricate landscape of urban life. Fostered in alarming proximity to gangs, guns, drugs, and violence, he experienced political and socio-economic corruption at a young age that often overwhelmed him emotionally, yet his drive kept him aligned with his goals. This experience led to paranoia and introversion in his teens and early 20s, while music became an essential catalyst for finding clarity and social acceptance. He views himself as an ambitious songwriter, aiming not just to produce anomalous music but also to create a space that consistently challenges perspectives and encourage the audience’s individualism and humanity.
Chaos began his musical journey primarily as a producer in 2007 with a demo of FL Studio. Recognizing his aspirations at an early age, Chaos embraced a renaissance approach, by understanding various facets of the industry through firsthand involvement. Reinforcing his skills proved advantageous as his dreams turned into reality, driven by a relentless work ethic and a commitment to self-improvement, which eventually made him a standout figure in the local music scene.
By July 2010, he was working his first job as an intern than eventually an engineer at Enkore Studios. In light of that opportunity Chaos was soon poised for a significant advancement in his career after he crossed paths with the emerging producer DJ Kaui (formerly known as Kool-ID), who was beginning to carve out his signature sound. Recognizing great potential in both Kaui’s personality and his artistry, they decided to collaborate on something meaningful, a company focused on empowering artists through ownership and artistic integrity. That day marked the founding of Chao Pack Entertainment an independent artist-friendly record label focused on allowing artist to pursue music career la while retaining ownership and artistic integrity, but still being considered for opportunities that someone signed to a more commercial major label would get. Although the company produced some imperishable contributions over time, it ultimately faced challenges when DJ Kaui experienced life-changing health issues in 2020, compelling Chaos to confront a tough choice about whether to pursue his dream of establishing an artist-friendly record label with international aspirations or to lean into his own artistry and continue without the help of his good Friend DJ Kaui. This led to the formation of an alternative band and Chaos adopting a new identity in 2021, rebranding himself as Chaos in the GRDNofiii (Garden of Three), where all introductions now embraced the members of his musical collective. He collaborated with a fashion-forward, eclectic flautist and vocalist, O’Brie, who was at that time working on an EP serendipitously titled “Seven Stages of Chaos. ” This was no mere coincidence, but rather a manifestation of the lingering idea of blooming with a band that could express the rebellious “punk-rock” spirit inherent in both artists. Since then, GRDNofiii has continued expanding, and the seeds of their unique journeys have begun to flourish.

GRDNOFIII is a local Atlanta alternative music collective. The band started in 2023 and is a music collective that bends the barriers of genres with eclectic inputs from multifaceted and diverse creatives. The GRDNOFIII is where punk, metal, and soul meet reveling in the rebellious nature of their predecessor’s, while offering a unique perspective on life, love, and the human experience. Chaos in the GRDNOFIII (simplified as CITGO.III) is the frontman of the local Atlanta alternative music collective. His first offering as alln alternative rock artist was a song called “stoned in a glasshouse” that was Produced and co-written by a talented instrumentalist and songwriter named Kiko Garcia. This song is a self loathing and reflective introduction to the intense emotions the artist experiences while navigating love, friendship, and self-confidence while pursuing an ambitious goal like becoming a sustainable music artist, or achieving world domination.
This song is set to be a part of a project called “A Seedless Fruit” which is rumored to be the first full-length offering from the band.

Beyond his contributions in music he’s established himself in the community through leveraging his skills, network, and ability to organize and unity communities. Chaos became pretty well known in the jam scene around Atlanta doing extensive work organizing and performing with the Moon Jam collective. He’s helped to book and direct festivals such as Spookwood O4W MUSIC FESTIVAL, and Sweet Auburn Music Festival. Being actively involved, resilient, ambitious and unapologetically human are a high part of his brand. As a creative entrepreneur, in the past 14 years he’s been responsible for helping other creatives and business owners find their footing, whether in the music industry or any other creative industry. The duality of his personality as a Artist, community organizer, and digital marketing strategist all have contributed heavily to the achievements of him and the people he’s endorsed or assisted along the way.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The struggle was mostly internal. I’ve experienced instability in housing, financial hardship, depression—that’s a big one. A single lapse in confidence or hidden insecurity can drive you into self destruction and some people don’t recover from that. I learned to pay as much mind to the great I’ve done for myself and other than the hardships or harm caused in failed relationships. Focusing on the good days make the bad days feel less permanent.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Chaos in the GRDNOFIII” is the name of an Atlanta-based alternative songwriter and producer. The artist also goes by “CITGO.iii” an acronym that both introduces himself and also the alternative band/music collective he started in 2022.
CITGO.III creates “songs of resistance, existence and everything in between”, highlighting love, empathy and the struggle for power, compassion and sustainability under the siege of capitalism.
Citgo.iii has stated one of his goals is to “become one of the revolutionary artists of our time” and is not afraid to frontline uncomfortable conversations and build communities influenced by mutual beliefs.
What sets me apart from others is my optimistic beliefs in the intentions of humanity and my willingness to enact change in communities that yearn for that. Individualism within a community creates powerful, and diverse social infrastructures that are required for a community to flourish.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk, The Autobiography of Assata Shakur, PIMP by Iceberg Slim, lol. and no particular app or podcasts but I’m very interested in learning languages and experiencing art and music of different cultures around the world — so I seek out and study that fairly often nowadays.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://grdnofiii.us
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grdnofiii
• Twitter: https://x.com/iiichaos
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@iiichaos