As I wrestled with the idea of leaving my hometowm Chicago in 2007, my Dad’s words were the deciding factor. He said, “just close your eyes and go”. The only way I was going to find out if there was more to my life and my family was by taking a chance, and I did.

Yesterday when I picked up my boys from school Zion met me at the door of his classroom and showed me the amazing work of art he made. In “that moment” It felt as if Zion’s simple art piece spoke into my soul.  There is always more! There is always something new to be made! There is always a brand new day!

I am learning to stop measuring my future by my past. I am learning to stop comparing myself to who I was 5 yrs ago, to who I am today.  I am learning to think with a fresh approach, work with a blank canvas, and work my a$$ off for the life of my dreams, the life God designed for me and my crew to live. We can talk all day long about how screwed our past is, and why we don’t deserve _______________,  and for what!?  But we can talk about, where do we go from here?

So today I remind YOU! Your routine is temporary, but you gotta work for your dreams! Your past is done and over with.  You were created for more than that. So because of that I give you the Bird! It is a new day.

Has anyone given you the bird lately? Tell me about it!

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The other hats I wear are as an actor, producer, filmaker, writer, leader, musician, Campus coordinator, songwriter and editor…to name a few. The constant battle I have is which one to wear the most of. There are a few that I wear often and others I’ve kept on the shelf. I’ve been on a journey discovering more of who I am, and what I was created to do. I am very passionate about the hats I wear, and I am sure as this journey continues I will find others. My creative process of hat decisions is very chaotic…But after all is said and done, I can’t have one without the other.

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What hats do you wear?

Many times we are driven to surround ourselves by talent rather then passion. As if being around talent, will make us talented.  I always get star struck when I meet people  I am a fan of… Until I am up close and realize they are just like me, a human being with wrinkles and pimples. The only difference between them and me is probably millions of $ and tons of fame. Not much eh? Ha!  Some of them are not approachable at all. Some are just letting me live in their world… I always thought, how cool would it be to be friends with ______________. You are a total liar if you have never thought the same thing or said the same thing! We just don’t ever admit to it. A year ago I was hoping to meet certain people in town. I wanted to connect in a new city. I wanted to meet “cool” people…That got old really fast! When you are new, nobody cares about what you do, other then you and maybe a few of your family members. It’s the unwritten culture of a town that breeds innovators and visionary’s. Don’t get me wrong, this is where I belong…Why? I am constantly challenged!   From being a better artist and innovator, to being a better husband and Dad. To starting a life here and everything else that follows.  I learned the hard way that if anything was gonna happen it had to come from me. Nobody will pave the road but me. There is no way around hard work and dedication. At this  point, the best thing I could be, is ME.  I have a story and a journey. I have a voice and an idea. I have tons to offer and tons to give. Until then, let the journey continue…

So be confident and know that, nobody can succeed and fail, the way YOU do. Someday down the road, someone will take notice of the noise you are making…

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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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This dude continues to inspire and make dreamers like me dream even more. Here is one recent post…I can relate to in so many levels when it comes to growing up, being poor, immigrant parents, but a dream outweighing all odds… I just hope to have a great ending to this story that I, Reina, Diego and Zion are building together…

“hasta la victoria siempre”

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I recently saw the movie Inception — it’s one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. In fact, it’s in my top five movies of all time.

Okay—I admit—there are now 358 movies in my top five.

My closest friends such as Les Clairmont kid me mercilessly when I exclaim yet once again, “That is the best _________ (insert almost any drink, food, book, movie, song, day, moment) I’ve ever had!

Fortunately, my dear friend and neighbor Michael Hyatt has taken some of the pressure off me. He is one of the few people I know who also celebrates every moment as the “best.”

By a twist of fate (and great parenting) I was able to grow up in the desolate poverty of coal-mining towns in the Appalachians and somehow emerge a millionaire in optimism. As Loretta Lynn says, “We were poor but we didn’t know we were poor.”

My parents did not graduate high school and had three children by the age of 21. They were children raising children—and yet, somehow I learned to savour, and yes, celebrate the magic of life.

Consider this, I am the first person in the entire history of the Elrod family to graduate high school. I am the only person to graduate college.

My parents have never been on an airplane, never been to a movie theatre, never learned to swim, and have rarely if ever traveled outside the Southeastern United States—they have never been to California, never seen the beauty and majesty of Yellowstone, Yosemite or the Grand Canyon. Ofttimes when I am enjoying an adventure that will ultimately be one of my “best”, I wistfully wish my Mom could join me and see through my eyes.

I helped teach my grandpa Elrod how to read and write. I distinctly remember his primer notebook with the three big lines, you know, the one in the middle with dashes and his Dick and Jane reader. In return, he would regale me with his adventures to California and the insatiable call of the West.

I will never forget the awe I felt watching him swim, hoping one day to emulate that extraordinary feat. It was in the Atlantic Ocean on a once-in-a-lifetime family travel vacation to Florida. We drove ten hours to Daytona Beach, stayed one day, and promptly drove ten hours back home—my brother and I watching the beach fade away in the rear window having barely touched it. But I loved every short minute of it! Yep, you guessed it, it was the “best” vacation I ever had.

My Mom often tells me in her beautiful southern drawl, as I regale her with my tales of adventure and insatiable calling, “Randy, I wouldn’t believe I birthed you, except I can’t deny you ’cause you look just like me.”

Miraculously, I managed to graduate high school, earn a full tuition academic scholarship and college degree (B.A. in Music from Palm Beach Atlantic University), and even complete a few graduate level courses.

As I grew older, I took my first (I’m now a million-miler) of many airplane flights, have a love affair with movies (I’ve been in a couple), finished a triathlon (a third of it swimming, sort of), traveled to far eastern ports of call, enjoyed African safaris, climbed the world’s highest mountains, and reveled in the cultural centers of London, Paris, Sydney, San Francisco, Florence, New York and Rome. I’ve savored the vivid contrasts of the dusty Australian outback and verdant islands called Virgin.

Why do I tell you all this? (Oh, I could tell you more—much of which you would not believe.)

To brag. No.

To influence. Yes.

Decide that every new day will be the “best.”

Decide that every new adventure (no matter how mundane or exotic) will be the ultimate.

Decide that every new sight, sound, smell, taste and touch will be in your top five.

Am I deceived? Do I live in denial?

Jimmy Dean said it this way, “I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.”

But this Maria Robinson quote really captures the essence of this post.

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

Thoughts?

Leading from the back of the line may be your only option at this moment in time, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. That could possibly be the best thing in this present season of your life. You see,  some people are extremely talented but feel they just can’t get that break.  Some people just seem to get all the doors closed in their face. Some people just can’t get the support they need. Some people can’t seem to land the job they really desire. Some people feel they are worth more then what they are settling for. The reasons can go on and on.

So you feel you’re at the back of the line? Maybe you are last in this line, but in front of the next line that will follow? You probably never considered the fact that  many people follow you. People are listening. People are reading. People are inspired by your life. People care about what you are doing. Most importantly than anything, God believes in you. He believes in you enough to let you face life’s toughest challenges in order to build you for the dreams and desires you have deep in your heart. Serving is a huge element that composes the fundamentals of great leadership. When you learn to serve, you begin to lead.

I say start leading from where you are. You are not gonna remain there forever. If you bicker and complain enough about your present situation, job, status etc… there is a better chance moving forward towards your destination will never happen.   Maybe you are cleaning toilets to pay the bills, in order to eventually ____________________. Maybe you are working in a job that requires non of your creative input but hope to eventually __________________? Maybe you are waiting tables and washing dishes by day, in hopes that one day you can be  ___________________ and get paid for it. Maybe.. Just maybe….

Lead from the back of the line means to be the best at what you are doing now. Be the best waiter that restaurant has ever employed.  Be the one out of all the cubicles that can lead, inspire and unite the office. Before you know it, everyone will take notice and see you!  Not as your present role but as what you are destined to be. See you for what you deserve to be.  Who says a revolution can’t be lead from the back of the line?  Embrace your present, be hopeful of a better future and act on it.

paz

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Who’s with me?

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What do you think of the design?

How would you describe the art work?

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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!

We grew up in the traditional Mexican home. Had the traditional meals and customs. We spoke only Spanish at home. My parents wanted us to learn our native language, because we would eventually learn English in School.  Because I was a latino I always felt that we had to work harder to get good jobs. We had to work harder to be recognized. We had to go above and beyond to succeed in the United States. This was just the way it was. We were different.  I grew up with the mentality that it was all about having a good paying job, owning a house, a car, having a wife and many kids in order to be viewed as a successful Latino in America. Had I shared the dreams I am pursuing now, I am not sure of the response my parents would have given me.

I grew up in a part of town where having big dreams just wasn’t possible. We had to dig for inspiration. It wasn’t something we were surrounded by or could find in the streets or even in our homes at times. If I landed a job at a factory then I was a man, because I could now hold my own. I started working when I was about 13yrs old. I had a job of passing out flyers for a Chinese restaurant in town. We would walk from block to block passing them out. After about 5 hrs we’d make about $25.00.  My sophomore year in high school I landed a job working as a bank teller. It was quite the experience.  I would be in school till about 3pm then work at the bank till about 730. I got made fun of alot by my friends because I wore ties to school. I wore them not because I was trying to be stylish but because I was ready for work. Everything was about having a job. It carried some kind of credential of respect, especially at that age. I loved music and I loved film and acting, but I couldn’t tell my family it was my dream…I was a Latino from Pilsen and the odds were already against me.

to be continued...

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