Category: 18th st.

The Newness for 2011

The New Year is here! 2010 was one of the toughest but most adventurous years ever in my life…So far. Through the good and the bad, God has remained so faithful in our lives. I will admit, I don’t think I’ve ever  trusted God like I did this past year. The whole year has been a huge life lesson and a stepping stone into a new one. We were also so blessed with our great families and friends that have supported our journey since day 1.  I am really excited to be stepping into a New Year and a New Seasons for the Santoyo’s.  So here are a few of the projects we will be taking on this new year!!!

First and foremost let me just say that I am so humbled that our home church would embrace us the way they have since our arrival in Nashville. Finding a community of faith was on our #1 list when we moved here.  We totally connected with Crosspoint, Reina loved it, our kids loved it and I loved it. What’s hilarious about the whole thing is that I’ve been reading Pete Wilson’s blogs for a few yrs now and  followed the church via the internet. Never did I imagine being part of the church, serving and being connected with this community. So here we are, 1 yr later… The things that I love about my church is how passionate they are about the city, it’s people and engaging it’s culture…So having said that,

As of today, 01.01.11 I have accepted the role as campus coordinator for the new Crosspoint Downtown campus launching on 01.16.11 at Rocketown in Nashville TN. Reina and I are so excited about me taking on this role and it’s challenges. The Campus will target College students and we feel deep inside our hearts the campus will do well.  Our hearts beat super fast for young adults and artists with a passion to do something great with their lives. I will admit, I am a bit nervous, but we’re taking it in one breath at a time. I am so freakn excited to be part of an amazing leadership team at Crosspoint.

In 2006 Reina and I founded “the living room sessions“in Chicago, A community of artists with a heart for the city. Since then it has been in our hearts to continue to grow that community we were part of. So Reina, myself and a few artists friends will be putting together our first annual “Living room sessions” conference in Chicago, this fall. This is going to be an amazing opportunity for Chicago artists to network and engage in full conversations with other artists pursuing their passions and living out the life they were created to live…It’s going to be an amazing time.  If you want to learn more about what we are doing please contact us!!! We want you all to join us! More info coming soon.

The Saturn Project is working on a new Record as we speak. We will be hitting the studio in the next few months to begin tracking what will be an EP or our follow up album to “anthems for a broken world” released in 2009… Which will finally be available on itunes with some new art work as well.  The band will also be heading to Chicago to shoot a video for our track “Chicago”. Be on the look out for that and more on live performances and a new site.

Fuser EP. I will continue to write away for what will be my first ever Solo EP. I am really excited and nervous about it. The project is coming together in ways I could have never imagined. Lots of music being made! I’ll be sharing soon!!!

Misfortunes make Giants…I have been journaling for many years now. I am constantly sharing stories and memories with friends and family.  And everyday I feel is another story in the making. From Chicago to Miami and now in Nashville…So much has gone down and up. Good, bad and ugly…I have been trying to record these stories into a video blog series and possibly a book format, but it has been a mission to get it started. Reina reminds me everyday to get started, my family encourages me to start it… I MUST start it. It’s a project I have been trying to get off the ground for about 4yrs now…So this new year I will attempt to get the engines going and get it done.

So much more is in the making behind the scenes, but for now Please keep us in your thoughts, prayers and support as we take on this new year with all we’ve got. Reina and I will also begin training for a half marathon…she believes we can do the full marathon…we’ll see. Time to get to work!!! If you are interested in teaming up with us on any of this projects please, please don’t hesitate to contact me! It’s amazing how God orchestrates life around us… I wish you all an amazing 2011!

Hasta la victoria, siempre

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Elia…

A new musical journey…

Who’s with me?

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American dream of a Latino…Part 3.

The road has led me here to  Nashville TN, where I am taking on  a crazy and wild journey with my amazing wife Reina and my boys Diego Alexander and Zion Max Santoyo. What am I doing? Pursuing the things I am so passionate about. The things I was afraid to chase when I was just a kid in Pilsen. This journey has not been easy in any way, shape or form. I have faced some of the toughest moments and challenges ever, but it’s brought on some of the greatest memories that I will carry on in our family. I’ve been inspired, frustrated, rejected and encouraged. I know what it is like to win and to lose. I know what its like to have your heart broken to pieces, but I know what it’s like to have it rebuilt. I am 31yrs and the party is just getting started…
Being here in Nashville has been great. Seems this city is full of aspiring artists. One thing I have learned quickly  is you either get better and be the best at what you do, or just quit. Sometimes it feels like we’re the only Latinos, which is not the case. But coming from Chicago and Miami where the presence of a Latino communities are very strong, it is not the direct case here in Nashville TN. In the end  it is all about pursuing the dreams in our hearts no matter what. Maybe this is what my father felt when he first came to the United States. We love this town and plan on making this city our home.

I am proud to say that I am a Latino, born and raised in Chicago. I realize that times have changed and the Latino voice is being heard and listened to more closely then ever. Though we are becoming a majority in this amazing country, I realize many  still refer to us as minorities. I realize I may still have to work harder then anyone else to prove myself. I realize that I come from parents that were not natives in this land, but are from Mexico. I know almost all the stereotypes attached to being a Latino.  I still eat rice and beans and tortillas. No matter how  long I’ve spoken the English language, I still have a noticeable accent. My birth name is Jesus Santoyo, my nickname “fuser.” The part that out weighs any difference is that I, like every other human being on this earth,  am a child of God. Designed and wired for a specific purpose while here on earth.

I am working on becoming the best husband, father, son and friend. I am working on becoming the best Latino song writer and performing artist I can be. I am working on becoming the best well crafted Latino actor and screenwriter I can be. I am working on becoming the first Latino author in my family. I am working on making a difference in this world through all my creative endeavors. I am working on giving all the glory, honor and praise to God, the one who made me as I am. I am a proud Latino with a dream, a dream my father probably could not see for himself , yet still  had enough faith and a  courage to pursue  for me…

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Me, Reina and Alex are featured on the main page of the BNA talent group representing Latinos in TV and Film here in Nashvillle!