Rising Stars: Meet Frank Abraham of Los Angeles / OC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Frank Abraham.

Frank, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My story has never followed a straight line. I started in music as a DJ and producer and eventually ran my own record label, working in the dance music world during an incredible period of its history. Along the way, my career expanded into technology, where I’ve spent more than 35 years working in IT, implementation, project management and emerging technologies. I also created Cooking Hawaiian Style, which became another way for me to connect creativity, culture and community.

Music, however, never really left me. In recent years I returned to it with a completely different perspective. Instead of trying to recreate who I was earlier in my career, I began making music that reflects who I am today. I call it Emotional Electronic Music, or EEM, because I love combining electronic production with songs that actually say something and make people feel something.

What has surprised me most is how much this new chapter has grown. My music is now reaching listeners around the world, I’ve become a Voting Member of the Recording Academy, and I’m continuing to release new music while collaborating with artists and producers internationally. At 61, I’m also working in AI and technology while building this second chapter of my music career.

I think the thread connecting everything I’ve done is that I’ve never believed you have to be only one thing, or that there’s an age when you’re supposed to stop reinventing yourself. Sometimes the experiences that seem completely unrelated eventually come together and become the very things that make your story your own.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No, it hasn’t always been a smooth road. I’ve had periods in my life when things were incredibly difficult, including struggling with drug addiction and ultimately finding my way back. I don’t share that for sympathy. I share it because it taught me something I’ve carried into every chapter since: your life is not defined by its lowest point, and it is never too late to rebuild.

I’ve had to reinvent myself more than once. Most recently, after years of building my IT career and business in San Diego, my life changed when I needed to leave and relocate to help care for my mother. It meant stepping away from the life, routines and professional network I had built and figuring out what the next chapter was going to look like while taking on the very real responsibility of caregiving.

What I’m proud of is that I didn’t stop creating or moving forward. I continued making and releasing music while caring for my mom, and that music began reaching more people than I ever expected. At the same time, another unexpected door opened professionally through artificial intelligence. After decades in technology, I’m now doing work in AI that has challenged me to learn again, ask better questions and see my experience in an entirely new way.

I think adversity has taught me that reinvention isn’t something you do once. Sometimes life takes away the version of the future you thought you were building, and you have to create another one. Recovery taught me that. Caregiving has taught me that. Music continues to teach me that. And at 61, I’m still discovering that some of the most meaningful chapters of your life can begin much later than you ever imagined.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a music producer and recording artist creating what I call Emotional Electronic Music, or EEM. My work lives primarily in electronic and dance music, but I’ve never been particularly interested in making music that exists only for the dance floor. I’m drawn to melody, emotion and storytelling, and I want a song to mean something whether someone hears it in a club, in their car, through headphones or during an important moment in their life.

What I’m most proud of is that I returned to music later in life and built a new chapter rather than trying to recreate an old one. Earlier in my career, I worked in the dance music industry as a DJ, producer and independent label owner, and those experiences gave me an understanding of music from both the creative and business sides. Today, I’m applying everything I learned then alongside decades of experience in technology and the possibilities created by new tools, including AI.

I’m also proud that the audience is growing across countries and cultures. Songs I created here in California are now being heard by people throughout Latin America, Europe and Asia. Becoming a Voting Member of the Recording Academy was an especially meaningful milestone because it represented recognition from the community I returned to after so many years away.

What sets me apart may simply be that I’m not trying to follow anyone else’s timeline. At 61, I’m making some of the most personal music I’ve ever made, reaching the largest audience I’ve had as an independent artist, and still experimenting, learning and taking risks. I think there’s something powerful about being able to say that your most creative years don’t necessarily have to be behind you.

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Collaboration has always been a huge part of how I make music. I love working with people who bring something to a song that I couldn’t have created on my own. I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with DJ/producers including Eliad Cohen, Eran Tal, Macau, Rafiro, LÜXO and Yan Bruno, as well as vocalists including Jeanie Tracy, glasscat, Sol Feige and Stacy Barthe. Those collaborations have connected me creatively with artists and producers around the world, and that international exchange has become an important part of my music.

I’m always open to working with vocalists, songwriters, musicians, producers and remixers when there’s a genuine creative connection. Sometimes I begin with a very specific idea, and other times the most exciting thing is handing someone a song and asking, “What do you hear?” I don’t believe collaboration should simply mean putting two names on a record. The other person should leave a fingerprint on it.

People can also support my work simply by listening. Save a song that connects with you, put it on a playlist, share it with somebody, follow me, or tell me what a song meant to you. For an independent artist, those actions are incredibly meaningful. Ultimately, whether someone wants to collaborate creatively or simply discovers one of my songs and connects with it, that’s what I want the music to do: create relationships between people who might otherwise never have found one another.

Contact Info:

• Website: Frank Abraham on Spotify
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/frankabraham.music/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankmabraham/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@FrankAbrahamMusic
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/frank-abraham-111195953?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing