Maverick Profile: Dustin Gill is Drawn to the Sky

One of the most famous quotes by Bob Marley is that when music hits you feel no pain. Music enlightens your spirits no matter what it is you may be going through. It is without a doubt a piece of art that goes into the ears straight to the heart.

Dustin Gill alias Drawn to the Sky is an upcoming musician with dreams of making it big in the industry someday. The story of how he really got into music is truly humbling, yet very straightforward.

“In 5th grade I asked for a guitar for Christmas from my mom and she gave it to me,” Gill said. “I had a friend who also played guitar and he started teaching me. After that my dream of being a professional musician just kicked in.”

Dustin says that his inspiration for wanting to become a professional musician was mainly ignited by his parents who have a good taste in music and always shared it with their son.
“Music is my main priority career wise as I feel there are a number of opportunities in the music industry,” Gill said.

The first time he actually performed original music was in the Centennial Student Union during an event.

“It is nerve wrecking yet exciting when you put out original music, and whenever you’re performing your left to wonder what are people thinking about your lyrics,” Gill said.

Gill plays the acoustic guitar when he sings but he also plays the electric guitar which he feels he is more proficient with. Gill says that the genre of music he plays can generally be classified as alternative rock or punk rock.

“Composing my own songs makes me stand out more as an artists and boosts my confidence whenever I am on stage,” Gill said. “Playing on campus is good as you get to reach a broader audience and connect with other students, but booking your own gigs is more rewarding since you get to showcase more of yourself rather than just have a laid out plan ready for you.”

Gill is a senior majoring in Music Industry with an emphasis in song writing. Gill’s stage name Drawn to the Sky. According to him, this means having a burning passion to reach a higher altitude of love, laughter, success and adventure in life.

Gill believes that the competition in the music industry is always getting stiffer and for any musician to get their big break is truly hard to come by. However, Gill has a very positive attitude toward music in general and also believes that consistency, hard work and pushing through all obstacles will bear fruit in the end.

“Although there are many artists doing it themselves in today’s music industry, publishing their own music, promoting their names on social media platforms, I believe that being consistent in music and preservering through hard times will definitely pay off,” Gill said.

In addition, Gill also believes that technology has really changed the music industry, as in the 21st century an artist does not need to sign with a huge record label or do over 1,000 shows to be known by the public. Most artists today rely on social media, YouTube and the Internet generally to guide them to prosperity. Gill says this is an advantage to all artists as it broadens the playing field and allows more artists to be recognized.

Gill also listens to other types of music during his spare time to get his creative juices flowing or to get some inspiration to compose songs.

“Sometimes listening to a different genre of music can really help me in composing or just coming up with something new I can use in a song or while performing,” Gill said.

Gill feels that the main challenge with being an artist is basically surviving off of music alone.

“The pay that comes from being a musician is hardly enough to survive on, therefore one has to get a day job or venture into something different and balancing that with music becomes stressful,” he said.

Gill says that one of the best perks of being a musician is that one gets paid to express themselves and share with the world their deepest thoughts through the spectrum of music. One also gets to travel the world, meet new people and learn new cultures. Gill dreams of becoming a professional composer as his major has a strong emphasis on song writing.

Gill is currently signed with a student recording label; Mav House Records which is a Recognized Student Organization. Mav House Records is similar to any recording label but it is run by various students who have different interest in the music industry from marketing to management.

Gill will be releasing three songs this semester through Mav House Records and is really looking forward to the experience. Gill also hopes to collaborate with other musicians on campus and continue building his network.

“I am really pumped up about recording these demo tracks and I will be posting all of them on my social media,” he said. Anyone can follow Gill on any social media platform through his stage name, Drawn to the Sky.

Music is undoubtedly a tremendously powerful tool that has the ability to change the globe. The sky is the limit would not be an understatement to describe the spirit of Drawn to the Sky. Gill shows no intent of slowing down and Mav House Records is probably just a stepping stone for him to greater heights. Gill resilience and outstanding work ethic with true belief in his dreams of becoming a successful musician will certainly guide him to an amazing future.