Meet Moe Gustus of Moodi.

Today we’d like to introduce you to Moe Gustus.

Moe, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I started making music around five years ago. I’ve been a singer since childhood, but I was always super shy about my voice growing up. Some friends of mine jokingly asked if I would be the singer in their band and I lit up because it was a sort of hidden passion of mine. So I agreed and we made a song together and I didn’t necessarily love my recorded voice but I didn’t hate it either. My biggest conflict was with the type of music being made with the band which just wasn’t really in line with the way I envisioned myself as an artist. Once I was introduced to production software from the band, I made it a personal goal to figure out the software enough to make my own music, mostly because I was writing a lot of songs that couldn’t come to life without instrumentals. I was always full of ideas but they were put on hold because I didn’t really understand anything other than singing which, for me, was enough to learn.

Fast forward three years after countless hours spent teaching myself to produce my own music I made a song called ‘Almost Over’ that felt right. It was like everything I was trying to say and do just happened with this one song and that gave me the confidence to keep creating. I decided that I would attempt to create an entire body of work from scratch as a sort of debut and introduction to moodi. which is what I currently go by. I got some help from a friend for the cover art and decided to start putting this body of work out beginning in the fall of 2018. Fast forward again to now and the project has almost been out for a year and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. I’ve since put out two singles one of which will be on an upcoming EP.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I would say the road has been everything but smooth. The thing I struggle with the most is being too critical of myself. I was and at times still am full of doubt about my ability. I think it just comes with the territory of putting your feelings on the line as an artist in any capacity. Thoughts and feelings take shelter in other people in ways that don’t always make sense to the artist or their audience. Thats been the scariest part for me. Also being a smaller artist trying to make a name for yourself without the help of anyone or a head start of any sort can be discouraging. Especially when you’re simultaneously creating and learning it can be hard to find and feel real confidence in your work.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I am a singer-songwriter known as moodi with the period included for stylization. To me my music is so many things and finds influence everywhere but I would say it is blend of pop, r&b, and electronic elements. I think I am most proud of my ability to do everything on my own from scratch. Every single piece of music released by me is written and composed from the ground up by me. I also think that is one thing that sets me apart. It is quite common in music to enlist the help of others for particular parts of the process for instance: producers, engineers, or even songwriters. I think the reason I choose to create it all myself if due mostly to the scope of my ideas. They rarely ever make sense until they are done or fleshed out so it makes it hard to communicate them to others. Recently though, I have been working with artists on collaborations and it has opened up a new world of possibilities that are so exciting to me.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I would say authenticity. Writing music for me is a must, sort of like a journal or something. So everything that I make is honest and means a great deal to me. I’ve learned that the less I try to emulate and change myself for others the more refined and concise my ideas become.

Contact Info:

• Email: moodiidude@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moodidude/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moodidude
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/moodiidude
• Other: http://smarturl.it/moodi.deathof

Image Credit:
Personal Photo: Sara-Anne Waggoner; Performance Photos: Kirsten Barnett

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