Glossy artist and producer Christian Ruiz has shared Miss You; an effervescent slice of soothing electronic pop out now. A track detailing unexpected connections alongside calm hooks and airy vocals, as well as Christian’s debut single as a solo artist, Miss You is also accompanied by a music video to dynamically transport you into Christian’s magnetic creative world. We caught up with Christian for a quick Q + A

Hi, thanks for taking the time to chat with Hear 2 Zen, what have you been up to today?

I started my day working at a company that I produce video content for. It’s a 9-5 job I have. Then I came straight home from work and made a beat in my studio. I always make a minimum of one beat per day and on top of that will work on my own songs and practice guitar. 

Tell us about yourself, how long have you been performing/creating music for? 

I have been creating music for over 15 years! I started writing songs when I was very young once I began learning the guitar.

Who are your greatest inspirations?  Why?

The Weeknd, Michael Jackson, Santana, Justin Bieber, Ryan Tedder. They all have influenced me with their own unique flare. The Weeknd’s music production and high voice have inspired me as I have a similar range and like his sound. Michael’s unique voice and technique and the way that he uses his voice as a percussive instrument has inspired me very much so, I can hear that he’s not always thinking of his voice as a human voice but as a drum. Santana has so much feel and emotion in his playing and that started inspiring me back when I started playing music. Justin Bieber’s breathy low range and music production has inspired me in a big way. Ryan Tedder’s fast paced writing and production in the way that he tries to quickly capture inspiration and not overproduce anything has inspired me too. 

How do you create music?  Are you lyrics/story driven, or does the music/melody come first?  Explain your process.

I always have a story to tell in my music that is very truthful and close to my heart. I will start to sing gibberish and let the melodies that fly into my head flow out of me. Sometimes I sing lyrics for the story I’m telling in that gibberish and I keep them in the song. Sometimes I change all of the gibberish into lyrics that suit the story that I’m telling. This is the best way for me to write as I’m not restricted by syllables or words. 

What has been your greatest challenge so far in performing/creating music?

My greatest challenge so far has been not throwing myself in the deep end and getting really comfortable with performing live. I tend to want to stay in my comfort zone as a producer and keep myself in the studio. This is something that I’m already working on as we speak! The best thing for us can be to get out of our comfort zones.

Tell us about your new release, how did it come about?

It was after I met a special person and I almost didn’t know if I should write about them or not. But as I always do, I kept true to myself and I wrote what was on my heart even though I was very apprehensive about doing so at the time!

What advice do you have to artists who are just starting out?

Believe in yourself, back yourself, look to other artists who are ahead of you and try to learn from them, set short term goals. It’s great to get a good understanding from people in the industry of what it takes to have success in the music industry. Keep working on your music every day in some shape or form. I would strongly advise you to invest as much of your money as you can into your own music. If you can put off the desire of having a nice car, nice clothes, a nice watch and any other material possessions and instead put that money into your music you can go far! Try and be your own label, there’s a reason labels spend money on their artists. It’s really the only way of being a successful artist. Invest and believe in yourself.

Tell us your favourite Zen practice.

To relax I like to drive somewhere with no plan in mind at all. The drive itself helps me to relax and wind down.