admiring excellence and there are so
many ways to interpret that word right
brilliance distinction value worth
talent but my question to you is once
you know why you’re excellent how do you
become successful in other words our
topic our subtopic is okay you’re
talented now what so I’m going to run
you by some of my steps for
understanding how to bring your
excellence out into the world we start
up here your ideology and your belief
now I want you to throw away all
previous notions you have of success and
understand with me for a second that
success as a word is extremely
problematic what does it mean to be
successful has anyone ever heard of
Icarus he is a character from Greek
mythology and long story short he flew
too close to the Sun and got burnt out
so the moment you feel like you’ve
reached your pinnacle your soaring in
the sky leaving everyone beneath you is
probably a moment you’ve left out an
opportunity you’ve left out to better
yourself success is a process of
progress for me I think success is
something I’ll achieve probably once I’m
on my deathbed I look back and I realize
maybe the Ronna you’ve you’ve done what
you wanted to do in life maybe life was
in the journey of it maybe success was
in the journey of it that brings us here
to the heart why do we as artists do
what we do why do artists make art what
makes us special and the answer is so
simple it’s almost brilliant it’s love
my relationship with music is probably
the purest form of love I can even
understand music saves me from my demons
it to further that responsibility it
makes me want to do the same for other
people
so I feel like when I write I’m trying
to help other people I’m trying to
uplift other people as a child I faced a
lot of family issues which translated
into social anxiety from school through
college I felt like a complete misfit
i isolated myself outcasted myself
really drove myself into a corner
but music gave me a creative voice music
taught me discipline music taught me how
to respect other people and their time
music taught me that I could have
friends and a family and some of my
family is going to be speaking after me
today when I compose I feel like I’m
attaining a certain level of
spirituality sometimes I feel like it’s
not even me that’s writing that’s not
it’s not me that’s composing it’s
something that’s external an external
force that writes through me and that
force that strong force is something I
want you to be able to tap into which is
why I can’t stress enough how important
it is for you guys to do what you love
you must love what you do and do what
you love and you must love your art and
art doesn’t have to mean music art can
be engineering art can be medicine art
can be cooking art can be cleaning the
philosophy remains the same love is the
strongest life force in the universe and
love powers art isn’t that perfect
isn’t that beautiful this brings me to
my next step which is in persevering and
this is a word my father taught me when
I was six or seven years old that’s me
looking like a complete idiot I was six
years old and I was performing a song
called fury release it’s a Western
classical piano piece I performed in
front of thousands of people at Tom Lee
Auditorium in Canada my father used to
take me out for walks and tell me there
are now if you want the entire world to
know who you are there are no if you
want the world to know your voice
there’s only one way to do it and ask
them what what
what do I have to do and he told me you
have to persevere what does that even
mean what what what is perseverance mean
does it mean hard work is that all that
perseverance is he told me stories of
girls who slept with violins under their
pillows he told me stories about boys
who loved music more than food and then
I realized that if you want something
and if you love something you have to
really really push yourself and
challenge yourself for it and I did that
I’m 22 now it’s been quite a bit within
a long time and I know that I have
pushed myself through some of the most
difficult times in my life probably even
more so when I felt like things were
chaotic and things were unbearable and I
failed many times and I’ve learnt and
I’ve healed but at the end of it what
I’ve understood and what I’ve learned is
that you have to keep trying
opportunities are not going to present
themselves to you you have to run after
them you have to want them you have to
really really really want them you have
to ask for what you want because it’s
not it’s it it’s actually quite amazing
and this is something I’ve learned
throughout the years when you ask for
something it doesn’t matter how big a
person is or how much he’s achieved or
who he is in the world if you ask for
something even as you even as University
students or a school kid or or a budding
musician if you ask for something and
you really want it and you’re willing to
work to get it you will get it you have
to start with that belief you will get
what you want if you ask for it this
brings me to the fourth step and this is
probably the most important step in
understanding success and understanding
how to get there
and that is originality what does it
mean to be you who are you what is your
voice what is your story Cobain was
depressed the Beatles were druggies
me that’s me my project is called
komorebi it’s a Japanese word that means
sunlight that filters through tree
leaves as a child I used to watch anime
with my brother anime is a type of
Japanese art it’s has anyone seen anime
does anyone watch anime there you go you
guys are your the nodes in the house I
used to watch a lot of anime with my
brother and we used to watch anime
beyond our bedtime before sleeping and I
was so so blown away by the soundtracks
I was just I would sing it going to
sleep I would wake up in the morning
humming it I would follow it on my
parents and keep singing it all day long
and irritate everyone and then I
realized that you know this is something
I might want to get into later and
komorebi is a product of that it’s a
product of my childhood it’s a product
of things I used to listen to it’s a
product of everything that shapes me I’m
weird I’m quirky my music is also weird
and quirky it’s electronic minimalistic
music based on Japanese animation
because I’m so obsessed with Japan I’m
actually going to share a slight bit of
my music with you right now
it’s a song called Miyazaki’s dream and
it’s my interpretation of what does
anyone know Miyazaki he’s also a
Japanese director he writes beautiful
animated movies one of which is called
spirited away I think it receives the
most acclaim out of all of his movies he
just retired but this is my
interpretation of what Miyazaki’s dream
would be like
okay great sound system you have guys so
that’s my voice and it’s so so important
to know your voice because the minute
you feel like you need to tune into what
the masses are thinking the minute you
feel like you have to stick too much to
formula the minute you worry too much
about what other people want is a loss
for you I think the people who have been
legends and not sensations are people
who are not afraid to embrace their
excellence there are people who are not
afraid to tell their stories there are
people who really really worked on
themselves they work on what they fed
into their brains and spat out to the
world they worked on their voice so my
last my what the thought I want to leave
you with today is that if you’re going
to stick to formula great one good job
but if you’re going to be unique then
you must be so impeccable that the form
adapts itself to you thank you I believe
teaching is a fascinating profession
I’ve had so many teachers in school and
college and we had this horrendous joke
back in school you know that we this
small group of us thought of ourselves
as outstanding students to these
teachers because we spent most of his
time standing outside class because you
were thrown out for either talking too
much or either not paying attention
during our classes and I think the
primary reason that this happened with
us is because I never really felt a
connection with what these teachers are
trying to convey to me during the
classes I can however think of maybe a
select few teachers and I can count them
on one hand who have truly touched me
let me rephrase that sorry who have
this list includes my mother who I had a
wonderful fortune of studying under when
I was in college in first year and my
newzik teacher mr. Manoj merveilleux and
this got me thinking you know why is it
that there are only a few people only
few people who I can count on one hand
who has taken me on a journey through
the lectures and the teachings who have
managed to paint pictures with their
words and who have managed to open my
eyes to something that I never thought
you know I would be able to think off
and I realized that the reason that this
happens is because these people have
managed to embody what they do they
managed to embody their craft they’ve
managed to take something like teaching
and in other words make that lecture
into a form of art I think this truly
inspires me as an artist because I have
now come to believe that artistry can
exist in any form of profession in any
professional Avenue and it’s the process
of unraveling that artist within
yourself that you truly you know you
truly find your uniqueness and your
my father was well he used to love music
and I remember when I was five or six
years old he used to sit me down and
used to play some of his favorite music
and he was in love with a lot of
different kind of music like he used
used to listen to afro-cuban music and
Latin music and used to listen to reggae
and Indian classical music and I loved
it all I think my I think my connection
with music actually started there that’s
when I that’s when I actually fell in
love with many different kinds of music
and unfortunately my father’s health
began deteriorating very soon after that
and when I was in India he was in
England that’s where he was teaching he
decided to send me of a very personal
gift he made me a little mixtape in
those days you could you could you know
play CDs and in the same in the same
music system you could record on two
cassettes so my father sent me this
cassette all the way from England which
is filled with some of my favorite songs
and in between each of these songs he
recorded his own voice explaining to me
why he had chosen these songs and why it
is that those songs reminded
of me I was obsessed with this cassette
because it not only had my favorite
music but it reminded me of him and I
hadn’t seen him in years so I used to
take this and my little Walkman walk
around the place you know holding my
mom’s hand in the market completely
zoned out I almost got hit by a truck
once because I was sitting there with my
headphones and you know walking down the
road and didn’t realize what was
happening around me don’t listen to
music guys while walking on the road or
crossing the road never do that that’s
when I rode in the field of arts began
my mother and my stepfather now are
extremely supportive people and I
remember shortly after this my obsession
or my you know complete craze for music
slowly turned into a budding interest I
was and this this interest kind of
manifested itself in in rhythm and in
percussion I don’t know why but I was
totally obsessed with what drums could
do to music not only what drums could do
to music but what drums was doing to me
and I realized it’s a very primal form
of expression you know you hear a
drumbeat and you automatically want to
move you can’t really help yourself you
know what I’m saying so at the end of
the day my mother was always has always
been a very supportive very open-minded
person so I remember when I was a little
kid she used to take me to a lot of
Chinese restaurants and this one time I
remember I was sitting there and I
finished my meal and right beside me
beside my plate I saw this these two
little chopsticks and so I picked up one
chopstick in one hand and the other one
on the other hand and for a second I
just had this flash where I saw myself
sitting on this massive stage you know
absolutely captivated by my audience and
that was that was it for me you know as
a kid I just decided to do a quick view
of the room I took those chopsticks put
them into my pocket and bounced I went
back home is late at night my mom was
asleep and I just arranged a few pots
and pans a little bit of CD covers
something whatever I could find around
me and I started playing some of my
favorite music and trying to trying to
replicate what those what those
drumbeats were and trying to trying to
do what I could to do justice to those
beats and on one very embarrassing
morning my momma
– Nani no English and being the
sweetheart that she is she decided to
play along with this little ritual so
every time she’d go to Chinese
restaurants she would flick a pair of
chopsticks and she would bring it back
to me as a souvenir and she’d say here
now you can take it with a really weird
family clearly but that stemmed into
something which you know which drove me
forward drove my interest in music
forward and my mom started realizing
that and that’s when she realized that
my interest had become more of Italian
she was he was able to she was able to
tell that I had a certain knack for
rhythm and that I was I was very
interested in actually pursuing
something like that so my mom bought me
my first drum set and that was it that
was it for me I’ve never looked back
I’ve been playing obsessively constantly
trying to figure out how to make myself
do things that other people can’t on the
drums and that’s something that I’ve
I’ve always been obsessed with trying to
make not only drums but music sound a
little different a little unique
something that other people aren’t able
to do so I used to you know be obsessed
with trying to hit the drum a certain
way or trying to you know play with my
hand or do something that makes a sound
that’s unique which I haven’t heard in
all these you know your your typical
rock albums or your typical pop albums
and you know that was basically a
stepping stone to how I got into what I
do now today it’s essentially what
drives my art what helps me focus on
drumming is the fact that I am able to
produce something that is unique to me
and that’s why till date I haven’t
gotten bored of this instrument it’s
something that keeps me going and keeps
my heart pumping and what I’ve learned
from being an artist is that you you
essentially need to stand out you
essentially need to be the best possible
you you can be at that instrument you
know people people actually have a
really really weird misconception when
it comes to the artistic and the
creators here
I don’t know about you guys but a lot of
people that I’ve spoken to have to have
this really strange image of artists as
these you know these really grimy really
like competitive people who are you know
right at the bottom over there who
have no idea where they’re going in life
but they’ve kind of chosen to do
something like painting or you know
music and so they’re just a bunch of
these long-haired guys who don’t know
where they’re going or clueless girls
who don’t know where they’re going it’s
become this weird stereotype and now
I’ve never considered myself part of the
stereotype or I’ve never seemed to have
embody the stereotype that’s me in case
you guys have no idea but despite what I
look like back then this is I think
three years ago but despite what I look
like back then there wasn’t a single
moment when I questioned what I was
doing when I questioned the fact that I
chosen this as a profession or when I
questioned this when I thought of myself
doing this I never I never hesitated
even once I have also worked
I played throughout college I started
playing semi-professional shows and
professional shows and when I started my
post graduation it became even more
intensive so I was basically dividing my
time between these two things playing
shows and you know recording at studios
and also working a job and there came a
time in in those you know that massive
period of eight months in my job when I
realized that I was I was doing too much
and I put one foot into something and
one foot to the other and I wasn’t able
to give my all in one specific place and
that’s when I realized that I had to
make a choice and the reason why I chose
music over what I was doing before that
was because I realized that the artist
in me was just not satisfied in that
space was just not satisfied with what
that allowed me to do and I realized
that the artist in me truly belongs in
music music is where the artist inside
me essentially felt comfortable and
that’s what brings me to my topic today
that’s what inspired my topic today
which is whatever you do whatever your
profession is however much you know you
want to pursue something always make
sure that that artistic side of you is
there because at the end of the day you
want to be something extraordinary and
what what is that what is essentially
what is extraordinary mean it means
something that is beyond ordinary it
means someone who is able to bring
something new to the table something
that no one else has ever seen
you know you need to keep pushing your
boundaries and you need to keep
motivating yourself to do that and keep
pushing and pushing unless it’s illegal
that’s when you stop pushing but
essentially what you need to do is
understand that regardless of what you
do you’re always going to have a set of
boundaries you guys agree you will
always be working under someone you have
a boss you’ll have a designation that
you know even in the music industry you
have record labels that constantly keep
tabs on what you are doing you
constantly have to make music for people
so you have to be it you have to be
attentive to your audience but at the
end of the day that is exactly what as
an artist you have to deal with those
boundaries are things that are in place
now how you manipulate those boundaries
and how you figure out how to deal with
yourself within that to make something
new and create something new within
those boundaries that’s what makes you
unique people people think of artists as
like I said before these these highly
you know eclectic almost untrained group
of people this highly competitive space
like I said but when you think about it
what sphere in your work or what what
profession is not competitive where do
you not have people constantly trying to
climb that ladder for success it’s
everywhere you cannot separate those two
things if you want to take up an art or
something that you know a profession
that we don’t consider quote-unquote
mainstream you still have to work hard
you still have to go at it with
everything you have and you have to you
have to be passionate about it you have
to plan you have to know exactly where
you want to go with it you can’t go into
it and you know people just go and you
neighbor comes to your house in their
leg up a beta cat the doctor Wow
engineer amazing lawyer even better
startup salata oops
that’s when you start going downhill
musician a arranged marriage – Coolio
that’s gone down the tubes it’s not
going to happen but why we are all of us
every single one of us has put in and I
am talking about professional artists
here there might be some of you here I
am Not sure but all of us put in so much
into what we do it takes years of
training I have been I’ve been playing
drums now I’ve been playing I’ve been a
percussionist a musician for over 10
years now I’ve been playing in the
professional circuit for eight years and
I’m still not close to where I want to
be and no one is but the fact that I am
able to achieve small successes every
day a lot of people have spoken about
this today even tirana spoke about this
how success is something which you know
you can’t quantify it’s something that
keeps coming at you in those bits and
pieces and that’s what I wanted to
that’s what I want to highlight here I
mean mysic every success that I’ve ever
achieved in whatever years I’ve been
playing now has been small things like
being able to interact with the crowd
being able to see people move to what I
am doing that is a success to me and
those successes keep getting whatever
bigger in that’s a subjective thing but
at the end of the day if you are able to
do something that you love and you are
able to convey that love to other people
I think you I think you’ve achieved a
level of success in whatever you do and
finally basically what I wanted to speak
about was how in this artistic sphere
wherever you are whatever you are doing
be it you are all students here and at
the end of the day if you’re not doing
something you’re passionate about there
is no way you can unlock that artist
within yourself there will always be
people putting designations on you
people telling you that your job is X so
you have to do why but that’s that’s
something that society has forced us to
do I’m going to end by telling you that
you need to not be defined by your work
but you need to define what you do thank
you so much [Applause]