On The Line W/ deion Gill
Conditional x Wasteland
Deion Gill has been diligently honing his craft, and the result is a collection of infectious pop songs poised for a major breakthrough. This is evident from the very first track, 'Conditional,' which immediately got our attention. We caught up with Deion for our 'On The Line' series.
Hometown (or where you are currently based)?
I’m from Medford, MA originally, but I’ve been based in LA since I was 15 which has been a journey to say the least.
Who was the person that got you into music? Are you still in touch with them?
There’s two people that got me into music in completely different ways. The first was my grandfather Ron Gill, who was a jazz singer for the majority of his life. That was the first person I ever knew that made music, long before I even understood what it meant to do that. He passed about 5 years ago but was always supportive of my creative journey throughout my entire life. The second person was my cousin Darius, who when we were about 11 or 12 years old had an uncle on his Mom’s side that owned a studio and a local record label in Boston called Casolo Records. He went to visit his uncle one day and got a tour of the studio, and even got a chance to get on the mic to see what it was like. He came back home that day inspired and immediately called me. He asked me if I wanted to start a record label and start making music. I immediately said yes, and we got to work. We were in the 7th grade. I still haven’t stopped.
What's been the biggest non-music inspiration for you lately?
Well right now I’m actually typing this from my hotel room in Bangkok, Thailand where I’m producing for and writing with an extremely talented friend and artist who’s gonna be dropping their music this year. The culture shock from being here has been one of the most eye opening things I’ve experienced in my life. Before coming out here for the first time last year, I had never traveled overseas. I didn’t truly understand what life could be like outside of growing up in the states. Once I started spending time here, I realized how big the world really is, and how many different ways of life there really are. It’s opened my mind in ways I couldn’t really comprehend before. Even now I’m not sure if I’m capable of explaining it properly.
Your videos/visuals are great! Do you have a background in video direction/production?
Thank you! I’ve been behind the camera for a few things along my journey, but I have to give the credit for my videos to my friend Maximo Zhang and his production company MID AIR that he started last year. Me and Max have had great creative chemistry together, and it’s always been super easy working with him. Sometimes I’ll bring an idea to him, or maybe we’ll sit down and brainstorm a concept or two. There’s even been times where we’ll just go outside and catch whatever we can think of at the moment. He’s got a one of a kind eye and I truly believe he’s going to do really special things in his career and creative path.
What do you think is the biggest challenge that artists face?
In my opinion the biggest challenges are the ones faced on the inside. Comparison, self judgement, perfectionism, all the things that sum up to the crippling self doubt that so many artists face. Those are the same challenges that made me stack up hundreds of songs and never release anything for a long period of time because of the fear of it not being good enough. I’ve gotten a lot better with it and I’m still working on my mindset of doing my best and letting the art go into the world even if it’s not perfect, but I see these challenges in a lot of artists that I work with and I do my best to talk through it to help them see the other side of things. It’s crazy to think how much art the world is robbed of by false ideas that hold creative people back from sharing their work.
Is there anyone you'd like to collaborate with? Other artists to appear on a song or even a visual artist for an album cover or merch?
When it comes to the music, I’m a really big fan of Junior Varsity and would love to work with them on something. Their SIDE B EP from 2022 is one of my favorite projects in the last 5 years, and their new music since they’ve added Brooke to the band is something really special. I also had a chance to see the band bby live when they were in LA in December and it was electric. I really want to produce and write for them. What they’re doing is really important to me. It’s something that you can feel, the way they center everything they do around bringing people together. It’s really beautiful. Now as far as visual art, my main inspiration for my graphic work and favorite visual designer is Chris Ashworth. His work is so raw and emotional to me. Any graphic work you see across my socials and my website is work that I’ve done that is directly informed and inspired by him. With that being said, I really want my first full length album cover to be designed by him.
What's been the best thing that's happened since you started releasing music?
Man I don’t mean to sound cliche but as far as what really matters, it’s between this interview and the clarity I’ve gained knowing that I can just put whatever I want out into the world. Having a chance to tell bits and pieces of my story to folks outside of my own sphere of people is really important to me, and this interview is the first chance I’ve gotten since I started releasing my music. I’ve been through a lot in the 14 years I’ve been in LA since I was just a kid, and I have a lot to share that I think someone out there could find useful. Part of that is, like I said, the clarity knowing that I can really just put the art I care about out into the world and I have no one to answer to for it. I spent so much time dealing with cluttered thoughts that kept me from sharing my work, and the moment I released my first song tiburon, something in me clicked and I realized I have full control over what I want to share with the world. It’s hard to describe, but it's seriously improved the overall quality of my inner life.
Have you had a "it happened for a reason" moment in the recent past? Something you weren't happy about at the time but turned out to be a good thing?
My entire early twenties is essentially that lol. Things have started to really come full circle in my life the past couple years and I’ve really been able to reconcile with the idea that I wouldn’t be who I am today without the mistakes I made and the person I was back then. I went through some strange times, and I’m realizing now that it was never in vain. Even at the very least, a lot of the music I’m about to release has so much to do with that time in my life and what I experienced. The next chapter of my artistry is really reflective on those years now that it’s all starting to make sense to me.
What platforms have been the most helpful with getting your music heard? Bandcamp, YouTube, IG etc.
Instagram has been the best so far! I’ve been able to connect with some really dope people who have shared my music with folks they know, and even just the people that are finding me and commenting how they feel about the music really means a lot. The fact that anyone is listening in the first place is already something special, but to see the different ways my music connects with people through messages and comments is wild.
How would you define success?
Peace of mind man. However and wherever one achieves it is up to that person but that’s the end game to me. Quieting the mental storms and knowing you can ease into whatever moment you’re in is the ultimate win for me.
Can you share one of your lyrics from your songs that sums up your state of mind RN / feels representative of you?
This may be a bit long winded, but here’s a piece of a song that I’m dropping later this year that sums up where my head has been at lately:
Every flower grows from a seed
Sunlight, water and breeze
Baby bird one day flies, flies
Long as he tries
We all got the same 24 hours in a day
So rest your weary heart
One day you’ll be okay
AMEN! Thank you Deion!!!
Learn more about Deion Gill at Instagram: @deiongill X: @deiongill YouTube: @deiongillofficial
