Interview Questions
LMF: Why don't we start off with you introducing yourself?
AG: Hi, my name is ALAN GUNO (that's pronounced goon-yo), and I'm a pop singer. I'm originally from a little town in northern Michigan called Gaylord, but now I live in the Los Angeles area. I just released my debut album, EVOLUTION, and the album's first single THE RIVER - and I'm very happy to be getting out there and sharing my music with people. And I'm really happy that Laurent has invited me to do this interview so I can share my thoughts and music with all the fans at LMFanzine!
LMF: What made you become a singer?
AG: Well, I've always loved to sing. I've loved music since I can remember. I started when I was in high school when my drama club teacher took a chance on me and put me in the school musical and it just took off from there. Since then, I've done a lot of work with performing groups but eventually found that my real interests lie in singing and writing pop music. There was actually one day that I knew for sure that this was what I wanted to do. I was fortunate enough to see the Backstreet Boys in their very first US tour. And after that concert, I realized, This is what I want to do! And from then on, I started to build a plan Of course, it was little steps at first but that's how it needs to start. Eventually, my plan started to come together, I hired great people, I found a way to finance my goals, I continued to train and practice really hard, and tried to meet as many people as possible. And now, here I am promoting my first album! It's been a great journey so far.
LMF: When was your first performance?
AG: The first performance was in first grade in the annual Christmas pageant at school. It was an odd little play where I spoke on a toy phone and asked St. Joseph for a bicycle for Christmas Still no idea what that was all about, though! My first "real" performance as a singer was in high school when I had a role in "My Fair Lady." I sang "On the Street Where You Live" Definitely not pop-dance music, but it was a lot of fun and it helped me build my confidence as a singer.
LMF: How would you describe your music?
AG: Basically, the music is pop. If you like radio-friendly pop music, this music is for you! But to tell the truth, I think there's more going on in the music than how it's classified. The music on my first album tells a lot of the story of how I got here and what I believe about life. I hope that people will see that there is a story to the music and that's my story I'm just an ordinary guy who has a dream. I cannot honestly tell you that I'm the best singer, or the best-looking person, or the most talented but what I did do is try and live my dream. And I had enough strength inside to take those steps to do something about it. And if there's something that I hope the music to be I hope that it will allow people to hear my story and maybe find it in themselves to pursue their dreams, too.
LMF: If you could do a duet with any artist out there right now, who would it be and why?
AG: I'm going to cheat a little bit and name two people. First is JC Chasez from N Sync This guy is so talented. As a writer, producer, and of course, a singer, I think JC is amazingly creative and really tries to push his abilities and come up with great stuff like he did on his first solo single. If you ever watch him dance or hear him sing, you see he's been really well-trained and has been working very hard at this for a long time. I admire that, and would love the chance to see what I could do with him and learn from him.
I would also choose Aretha Franklin. Have you heard this woman sing? She's just amazing and it's impossible to describe what she can do. And to tell the truth, I don't think I would want to duet with her because I would be blown off the stage by her incredible talent! But I would be totally honored to be a backup singer for her. Although backup singing is not what I'm concentrating on now, I would gladly make an exception for her!
LMF: Describe a day for you, from waking up to going to bed.
AG: If it's a weekday, I will get up between 6 and 7AM. I'll workout, and then get ready for work. I have a day job at the Walt Disney Company and I work there usually until 6PM. (By the way, it's a great place to work!) When I come home these days, I spend a lot of time working on the marketing for Evolution working on new press kits, responding to fan mail, attending to the publicity needs of the marketing campaign. Then I usually get to my song-writing later in the evening. Were currently working on the next two albums, both of which should be completed recording by the end of the year.
If it's a weekend, I usually spend Saturday morning and afternoon in the recording studio The new albums are coming along, and I'm also experimenting on some other things like country and some rock. Saturday evening usually finds me at Church and then spending the rest of the night with friends. I love to go dancing, and usually end up at a dance club after dinner. Sundays are entirely spent attending to more of the production duties reviewing the work from the weekend recording and planning the next session. I also work on my songwriting for the music that is not yet in production. That's actually the most creative part of my time where I can just play around and experiment with new ideas.
LMF: Where do you see yourself in five years?
AG: I still expect to be singing and recording and trying to get my message out there in five years. I can't tell you more detail than that because who knows what can happen? Why should I guess when I know real life will be much more interesting! And while it's great to have goals, I think at this point in my life, it's also important to be flexible but to stay true to those goals every day. Tomorrow isn't guaranteed and you have to live life now.
LMF: If you could open up for any artist out there now, who would it be?
AG: N Sync. I would love to be on a tour that has so much going on! Big venues, tons of screaming fans, and some really talented people to tour with. I'm sure it would be an amazing learning experience, too! But I think I would be very happy to open for any artist out there who has a lot of younger fans. I think it's really important to encourage young people and show them that they are not alone that there are other people out there with dreams who are no different from they are. If I can reach young people and inspire them to follow their goals, that would make me really happy.
LMF: What CD would we find in your CD player right now?
AG: I guess I could come up with some really amazing answer but nah, I'll just tell the truth. I have the new Ricky Martin CD. It's called Almas del Silencio and it's really very good. I can't imagine what it must be like to live up to Livin La Vida Loca and all the hype that surrounded him. But I think this album is very well done it's very intimate and it shows that he's not just a great star, but he's a great artist as well. He was well known in other countries long before he hit it big here in the States, and I think this album shows why he's had a lengthy and successful career.
LMF: If you weren't singing, is there something else you could see yourself doing as a career?
AG: Recently, I've had to answer a lot of questions about what it is that I'm trying to do with my music. And I think I can summarize it in this way. My mission is to try and share, to inspire, to motivate The music is the vehicle for that but as much as I love it, it is not the sole reason I believe I'm here. It's not as much about the music as it is about the story behind it and its ability to inspire others That being said, any other career I choose would have to allow me opportunities to inspire and motivate as well. So I think I would really want to be a teacher So maybe you should check out your teachers at school tomorrow some of them may also be future pop stars!
LMF: What message would you like to send out to your fans?
AG: When it all comes down to it, it's not really about music or being a pop star or anything like that. It all comes down to this: Live, live, live! Be alive and be bold about it living every second as fully as you can. Go out there and follow your dreams no matter how crazy they may seem. If you want to be an actor or a singer or dancer or a farmer or doctor or mechanic go out there and at least try. Life goes by too fast and you don't want to ever regret not taking a chance or not taking the risk. Happiness comes from a life fully lived You may not always get what you want, but nothing hurts you more than not trying. So go ahead and join that club that feels a little comfortable, wear the clothing that may seem too weird to others, don't do things just because everyone else is doing it, and ask out that boy or girl that you think is cute. Life is about trying to be the best you can be every day, and in every moment. The time is now - Don't let the next moment slip by you.
© LMFANZINE.com
LMF: Why don't we start off with you introducing yourself?
AG: Hi, my name is ALAN GUNO (that's pronounced goon-yo), and I'm a pop singer. I'm originally from a little town in northern Michigan called Gaylord, but now I live in the Los Angeles area. I just released my debut album, EVOLUTION, and the album's first single THE RIVER - and I'm very happy to be getting out there and sharing my music with people. And I'm really happy that Laurent has invited me to do this interview so I can share my thoughts and music with all the fans at LMFanzine!
LMF: What made you become a singer?
AG: Well, I've always loved to sing. I've loved music since I can remember. I started when I was in high school when my drama club teacher took a chance on me and put me in the school musical and it just took off from there. Since then, I've done a lot of work with performing groups but eventually found that my real interests lie in singing and writing pop music. There was actually one day that I knew for sure that this was what I wanted to do. I was fortunate enough to see the Backstreet Boys in their very first US tour. And after that concert, I realized, This is what I want to do! And from then on, I started to build a plan Of course, it was little steps at first but that's how it needs to start. Eventually, my plan started to come together, I hired great people, I found a way to finance my goals, I continued to train and practice really hard, and tried to meet as many people as possible. And now, here I am promoting my first album! It's been a great journey so far.
LMF: When was your first performance?
AG: The first performance was in first grade in the annual Christmas pageant at school. It was an odd little play where I spoke on a toy phone and asked St. Joseph for a bicycle for Christmas Still no idea what that was all about, though! My first "real" performance as a singer was in high school when I had a role in "My Fair Lady." I sang "On the Street Where You Live" Definitely not pop-dance music, but it was a lot of fun and it helped me build my confidence as a singer.
LMF: How would you describe your music?
AG: Basically, the music is pop. If you like radio-friendly pop music, this music is for you! But to tell the truth, I think there's more going on in the music than how it's classified. The music on my first album tells a lot of the story of how I got here and what I believe about life. I hope that people will see that there is a story to the music and that's my story I'm just an ordinary guy who has a dream. I cannot honestly tell you that I'm the best singer, or the best-looking person, or the most talented but what I did do is try and live my dream. And I had enough strength inside to take those steps to do something about it. And if there's something that I hope the music to be I hope that it will allow people to hear my story and maybe find it in themselves to pursue their dreams, too.
LMF: If you could do a duet with any artist out there right now, who would it be and why?
AG: I'm going to cheat a little bit and name two people. First is JC Chasez from N Sync This guy is so talented. As a writer, producer, and of course, a singer, I think JC is amazingly creative and really tries to push his abilities and come up with great stuff like he did on his first solo single. If you ever watch him dance or hear him sing, you see he's been really well-trained and has been working very hard at this for a long time. I admire that, and would love the chance to see what I could do with him and learn from him.
I would also choose Aretha Franklin. Have you heard this woman sing? She's just amazing and it's impossible to describe what she can do. And to tell the truth, I don't think I would want to duet with her because I would be blown off the stage by her incredible talent! But I would be totally honored to be a backup singer for her. Although backup singing is not what I'm concentrating on now, I would gladly make an exception for her!
LMF: Describe a day for you, from waking up to going to bed.
AG: If it's a weekday, I will get up between 6 and 7AM. I'll workout, and then get ready for work. I have a day job at the Walt Disney Company and I work there usually until 6PM. (By the way, it's a great place to work!) When I come home these days, I spend a lot of time working on the marketing for Evolution working on new press kits, responding to fan mail, attending to the publicity needs of the marketing campaign. Then I usually get to my song-writing later in the evening. Were currently working on the next two albums, both of which should be completed recording by the end of the year.
If it's a weekend, I usually spend Saturday morning and afternoon in the recording studio The new albums are coming along, and I'm also experimenting on some other things like country and some rock. Saturday evening usually finds me at Church and then spending the rest of the night with friends. I love to go dancing, and usually end up at a dance club after dinner. Sundays are entirely spent attending to more of the production duties reviewing the work from the weekend recording and planning the next session. I also work on my songwriting for the music that is not yet in production. That's actually the most creative part of my time where I can just play around and experiment with new ideas.
LMF: Where do you see yourself in five years?
AG: I still expect to be singing and recording and trying to get my message out there in five years. I can't tell you more detail than that because who knows what can happen? Why should I guess when I know real life will be much more interesting! And while it's great to have goals, I think at this point in my life, it's also important to be flexible but to stay true to those goals every day. Tomorrow isn't guaranteed and you have to live life now.
LMF: If you could open up for any artist out there now, who would it be?
AG: N Sync. I would love to be on a tour that has so much going on! Big venues, tons of screaming fans, and some really talented people to tour with. I'm sure it would be an amazing learning experience, too! But I think I would be very happy to open for any artist out there who has a lot of younger fans. I think it's really important to encourage young people and show them that they are not alone that there are other people out there with dreams who are no different from they are. If I can reach young people and inspire them to follow their goals, that would make me really happy.
LMF: What CD would we find in your CD player right now?
AG: I guess I could come up with some really amazing answer but nah, I'll just tell the truth. I have the new Ricky Martin CD. It's called Almas del Silencio and it's really very good. I can't imagine what it must be like to live up to Livin La Vida Loca and all the hype that surrounded him. But I think this album is very well done it's very intimate and it shows that he's not just a great star, but he's a great artist as well. He was well known in other countries long before he hit it big here in the States, and I think this album shows why he's had a lengthy and successful career.
LMF: If you weren't singing, is there something else you could see yourself doing as a career?
AG: Recently, I've had to answer a lot of questions about what it is that I'm trying to do with my music. And I think I can summarize it in this way. My mission is to try and share, to inspire, to motivate The music is the vehicle for that but as much as I love it, it is not the sole reason I believe I'm here. It's not as much about the music as it is about the story behind it and its ability to inspire others That being said, any other career I choose would have to allow me opportunities to inspire and motivate as well. So I think I would really want to be a teacher So maybe you should check out your teachers at school tomorrow some of them may also be future pop stars!
LMF: What message would you like to send out to your fans?
AG: When it all comes down to it, it's not really about music or being a pop star or anything like that. It all comes down to this: Live, live, live! Be alive and be bold about it living every second as fully as you can. Go out there and follow your dreams no matter how crazy they may seem. If you want to be an actor or a singer or dancer or a farmer or doctor or mechanic go out there and at least try. Life goes by too fast and you don't want to ever regret not taking a chance or not taking the risk. Happiness comes from a life fully lived You may not always get what you want, but nothing hurts you more than not trying. So go ahead and join that club that feels a little comfortable, wear the clothing that may seem too weird to others, don't do things just because everyone else is doing it, and ask out that boy or girl that you think is cute. Life is about trying to be the best you can be every day, and in every moment. The time is now - Don't let the next moment slip by you.
© LMFANZINE.com