Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Pinho
Hi Daniel, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I’ve been a musician my whole life, first learning guitar, then drums, piano, & cello and playing them throughout my childhood. Pretty much as soon as I got good enough at guitar to play the songs that inspired me, I found that I really just wanted to write my own songs. Back then my dad used to buy discount computer hardware and build or mod his computer at home, and he’d always come back from the computer store — CompUSA, remember that place?! — with those free demo versions of software on CD’s. One day he brought home Cakewalk Magic Music Maker Deluxe. I installed it on the computer, and that ended up being my first DAW. I would record myself playing 2 or 3 guitar parts to a song, program the drums in Guitar Pro (guitar OG’s will know what this is), convert the MIDI drum track to an audio track, and mix the whole thing together into a “fully produced” song. I still have these recordings on my hard drive actually, and that’s why I put the air quotes around “fully produced,” hahaha. They were ROUGH, but that’s where I learned the basics of music production. Before YouTube and all that.
Anyways, I went off to college and then spent a few years in the army paying off my scholarship, so music-making took the back burner at that point, but I was listening to music non-stop throughout it all. I always dreamed of being a professional musician, but due to some complications in my upbringing, that life never really seemed like a realistic possibility in my mind. I thought it had more to do with luck than with hard work, and I’m a pretty pragmatic guy so I didn’t really wanna stake my dreams on luck. Eventually I finished up with the army and transitioned careers, and through the transition I rediscovered songwriting and music production, but this time I was a lot better equipped to figure it out, both intellectually as an adult vs. as a kid but also financially–I invested in learning about professional music production and how to navigate the music industry, and it really opened my eyes to the possibilities.
I launched my current artist project, Daniel Pinho (that’s just my name haha, but the project is generally a melodic house/techno project), in 2022 and have been working at it since. It pretty much blows my mind how much progress I’ve been able to make over the past 3 years, but it’s definitely not just me. I’ve been really fortunate and blessed to meet good people who’ve been extremely helpful throughout the process–some through teaching, others through sharing their connections, and others through just supporting me emotionally as I figure this whole thing out. I’ve been maintaining a full time career (day job) throughout it as well, so basically all I do is work, but for me music is hardly work–it’s my passion and I love it.
I’d love to say “this is what I will accomplish in the next 5 years” but to be honest, I don’t even know what’s possible. Back in 2022, I would have never dreamed to be playing my first festival — Dreamstate Socal — in 2024 or to have worked with the artists, record labels, venues, etc. that I’ve been able to work with to-date. So who knows, the next 5 years may vastly outshine my wildest imaginations or they may be the hardest 5 years of my life yet, who knows. I’ve got big goals, strong mechanisms, and good habits, but I’m a “show, don’t tell” kind of person, so maybe just keep an eye out and see what happens. 🙂
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has definitely not been a smooth road. That said I think we all face our own barriers and obstacles, and that’s just life, regardless of whatever it is that each of us is pursuing. I don’t think my struggles are any more or less troublesome than anyone else’s, even if they’re unique to me.
I could list off a bunch of struggles, but I think the one that is most worth noting is how psychologically difficult it is to *be* an artist. I kind of started this project just out of my love for music, but it’s really evolved into this super existential experience about getting to know myself and learning if, when, and how much to trust myself and my creative instincts. Like I definitely question this entire life path at least once a day, and I’ve found that, for me, being an artist is basically signing up to exist in a space of constant uncertainty, to fight every day to maintain the confidence, willpower, resolve to not give up. But that said, I’ve also come to terms with the fact that I actually cannot live my life without making music, so, since I’ve recognized that, there really hasn’t been a choice. It’s somehow simultaneously the most fulfilling and meaningful thing I’ve ever undertaken and the most difficult and taxing experience of my life. I love a challenge though so I’m here for the long haul.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I was an infantry officer in the army and most recently have worked in big tech doing corporate strategy planning, so I’d say I’m a planner. I really like tackling big picture problems and creating mechanisms to solve them. I think this is partially why I really enjoy the business aspect of the artist project, because it requires all the skills I’ve developed through my professional careers but is applied to something I care about above all else — my music.
What’s next?
In the near term I’m really looking forward to playing my first festival, Dreamstate Socal, in November 2024. Past that I’m really excited to put out the music I’ve been making most recently. Not sure what happened this year, but I think I unlocked my next level of creativity, and I feel really great about the music I produced throughout the year. Inevitably it takes some months for it all to reach Spotify and Apple Music due to contracting and release schedules and all, but I’m really excited for everyone to hear it in 2025!
More generally I’m just going to continue to make music and try to connect with as many people as I can — add value to their journey and build connection that way. I think the biggest contributing factor my success this far has been OTHER people. I work really hard, but I would be toiling away in a vacuum if some of my biggest allies hadn’t offered a helping hand at some key moments. So I’m going just keep doing my thing and do my best to be that helping hand to as many other people as I can too.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.danielpinho.us/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danielpinho.us/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danielpinho.us
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/danielpinho-us
- Other: https://lnk.bio/danielpinho
