Interview with Edgar Everyone

Hey guys, today I got a treat for all you raDEO fans. This past week I had an amazing opportunity to talk to another great artist that’s rising and pick his thoughts on his journey in the world of music. Before I get started, I would like to again give a huge thanks to both Edgar Everyone for sitting down and talking to me and the agency 4 AM Indie Publicity for connecting the both of us to make this happen. With all that being said, let’s just get into it.

The Origins of Edgar Everyone

            I’m not going to lie, I was super nervous when it came to meeting Edgar Everyone. Even prepping for this interview made me feel a little worse because by listening to his music before preparing, I was also noticing how crisp his music was. There was a familiar yet unique sound that shone through each song I listened to, and while listening to his fourth track “Suddenly You Move”, I got the curiosity to ask to see where all this came from. Realizing it was time to call, I swallowed my nervousness and dialed the phone number.

            Edgar Everyone aka Jules de Gasperis picked up the phone and we immediately got along nicely. Usually, when I meet people in the music industry, my instinctive move is to act more formally than usual, assuming that I would be greeted with a professional demeanor. However, one thing I need to say right off the bat is that Jules greeted me right away with his authentic self, being super chill throughout the hour-long call.

            By asking the first couple of questions, I got a special story of how the French-American producer and multi-instrumentalist got his start in music. To say it simply, Jules was surrounded by music from the time he was a toddler. Having his dad be a musician and having access to a recording studio in the heart of Paris, Jules experienced his childhood in the same room where numerous artists came to record their sound. Because of this, it’s easy to see Jules growing up and later learning how to play numerous instruments as he kept going back to that location at a young age.

            Once hitting his mid-20s, Jules took off to study in business school and eventually landed an office job. However, he realized that this life wasn’t for him and decided to return to work at his father’s studio in hopes of finding something in the process. This led to him taking music more seriously as he became a professional instrumentalist and audio engineer. At the same time, Jules started experimenting on his own as he always wanted to make music for himself at some point. This want for experimentation grew yet his responsibilities in the studio became consuming as it took his time and energy. This left Jules lost for a moment in thinking about what the best move would be for him, and in 2016, he decided to follow his dreams by moving to LA to dedicate himself to making his music.

            On hearing this part of the story, I immediately had to ask, “So uh... Jules... who’s Edgar?” After sharing a laugh, Jules told me that Edgar isn’t a person but actually a representation of his alter ego in his quest for music. Edgar has always been a name that fascinated him and embodied the charisma and character that Jules saw in himself when made music. However, Jules later decided to add “Everyone” to the end of Edgar because he didn’t want this journey to only be for himself. He knew that while he was making music, he was also making it for an audience that would treasure his hard work. Believing that we’re all one and interconnected, Jules wanted to make a name that showed that by him being who he wanted to be, he’s able to serve both his want to follow his dreams and his fans. Hence, Edgar Everyone.

The Impact of the Pandemic

            After all of this, I had to ask what happened after LA. And the answer is… THE PANDEMIC. I don’t mean to take us back to the past for too long, but I’m sure you guys remember how crazy that chapter of our lives was. There was so much going on, and this created a huge wave of confusion during a turbulent time when almost nothing seemed certain. This happened to be the same time when Edgar Everyone was trying to see what was out there for him. His past experiences in producing and playing instruments came in clutch as he was able to use this to be involved in the industry during COVID, assisting artists such as Mike Stroud, Low Hum, and KUNZITE. While this was great, Edgar still felt like he was losing his way as he felt trapped through the countless lockdowns he experienced.

However, when he was talking to me on the phone as he looked back, he told me that this was honestly a good thing for him. The pandemic halted the pacing of how a lot of us lived life, and for Edgar Everyone, the pandemic forced him to think about his life. In a funny way, the pandemic actually gave Edgar what he was looking for: more time to focus on his music. The whole experience of living through 2020-21 taught him that nobody knows what tomorrow has, so you just got to enjoy the moment as you have it.

This is where his new single “Suddenly You Move” comes in to explain where Edgar Everyone is now. Creating this song off a winter retreat in the mountains, Edgar used this song to face himself, which encapsulates both the great things he acknowledges but also the shadows deep within himself. I felt like this was something a lot of individuals, including myself, have faced at some point in our lives, especially in the moments when society was starting to return to normal post-pandemic. Being fascinated by this topic and what he had to say about this, I asked Edgar how the desire to connect with our inner selves during turbulent times has affected how he’s made music. In response, Edgar took a moment to think about this and told me that music is a continuous art that never reaches an end. There’s never a moment that you feel like you’ve mastered everything, and this itself creates a perspective of wanting to be better for the sake of learning instead of conquering specific objectives.

Edgar also mentions that he’s grateful for the person he is currently, having his past in France help him create a character that never fools himself. Even when the truth is harsh to accept, Edgar made a point that he’s never had a problem with admitting the worst to himself, and this trait alone has helped him perceive music as a craft that can be enjoyed without the need for it to be bested.

The Takeaway

            With all this being said, you can see that Edgar Everyone’s journey is incredibly personal. Knowing all of this, I couldn’t help but look at his discography and notice that one of his songs, The Field, is an amazing track that talks about the idea of owning your life and promoting the significance of conscientious thinking. This subject of conscientiousness is important to Edgar Everyone as it’s a core theme to how he’s gone about his life and aspirations as an artist. All things considered, I had to ask Edgar for his thoughts on gaining this perspective. If it’s so important to where it’s a common theme in your music, how does one go about gaining this sense of thinking?

            At this point, Edgar Everyone took a deep breath. He told me that this was a great question and he wanted to take the appropriate time to think about a good answer as it’s something he doesn’t want to understate. Then, after a while, he talked about why this form of thinking is so important. People tend to resist the present moment, especially when it becomes difficult or ugly. There are moments when we as people need to face our own fears or our anxieties, and it can get incredibly difficult to do so. Edgar says the best approach to this is to just dive in because we all have to at some point. He talked about inner healing, and how life can be ironic in the sense that healing can be achieved sooner when addressing the issue actively instead of pushing it to the side. Edgar says this is why conscientiousness is important because it can allow you to address your shadows instead of pushing all of these emotions under the rug. It’s incredibly hard to do this, and Edgar acknowledges the challenge as he himself deals with this struggle daily. But he says that if you try to be brave to address what you feel, you’d be surprised by how fast you can change things.

            Finally, I wanted to ask Edgar Everyone one last question. What’s your dream as an artist? After a chuckle and some time to think, he said that his mission is to enjoy life. He wants to be joyful and be in spaces where he can express this joy through his music. Then, he wants to inspire others to be brave enough to tap into their own creativity. He dreams of a day when he sees his fans come to his shows and say that they’re chasing their own dreams because of his music. He wants to share that no one knows how long each of us is going to be alive, so it’s all about living every day to the fullest. Believe in yourself, and challenge yourself. It can be difficult, but he tells us that as someone who took on that challenge himself, he doesn’t regret one thing about it.

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            I want to thank Edgar Everyone and the people of 4AM Indie Publicity for giving me this opportunity. I also want to thank you, whoever you are, for reading my work. This is my 40th post on raDEO, and I know it’s not a lot, but this blog has done nothing but give me more reassurance in chasing my dream in the music industry, so I thank each person who reads this and took the time to read my work. I hope you guys have a great day, and I’ll catch you all soon.