Isaiah Rubio: Putting passion to practice

By Avonlea Brown

Isaiah Rubio is a sophomore Broadcasting, Digital Media, and Journalism (BDMJ) major specializing in Audio Production. While some students are signing up for internships and just beginning to plan their futures, Rubio has already begun his career as a music producer and performer. Currently, he is getting ready for his third concert showcasing his musical abilities. 

Rubio knew as early as middle school that he wanted to be in the music industry and began uploading songs to Soundcloud during that time. In high school, he began experimenting with music styles and even did a solo concert his senior year.  His growth has been a gradual climb since.

“When I started working on music, I was in early middle school, but it was nothing serious. Then in high school, I started to take it more seriously,” Rubio said.“I did some DJing, once for homecoming and another for a birthday party, which was interesting. I only just started posting my stuff on Spotify this past year. Then I did an underground concert last year with a couple of other student artists at Cedarville, that was my first time doing something like that.” 

Rubio describes his music style as Hip-Hop and Pop influenced, with a mix of slower and fast-paced songs. He makes clean music that draws from his Christian foundation but also deals with topics such as relationships, working hard and personal experiences. 

“People ask me what my musical inspirations are and I say ‘I don’t know,’” Rubio said. “I just listen to so much music in general that it is hard to identify specific people I model myself after. And if I do name someone, people’s first reaction is usually ‘You don’t sound like them,’ so I try not to say anyone specific.” 

For the past three months, Rubio has been planning a concert where he can showcase his new music and develop his performance skills. He will be presenting songs from his latest album, previous albums and a couple of unreleased songs.

Rubio is able to put on this show with the help of several different people. One of his supporters and partners is his uncle, Jesse Rubio, who has helped Isaiah purchase the equipment needed to make the concert possible. 

“It kind of just happened, it wasn’t because I wanted it to be a family thing,” Isaiah Rubio said. “The first show was just me and it was terrible, but my performance had potential and my uncle saw that and got involved. It’s more of a passion project for him, he has an interest in music but not as an occupation.”

Another family member of Isaiah’s that has been a part of his performances before is his younger cousin, Mason Rubio. Mason, who performs under the name DJ Rubio, participated in Isaiah Rubio’s underground concert and has been a source of information for Isaiah. 

“He is one of the more musically involved people that I know,” Isaiah Rubio said. “He understands the current trends, because he is younger than me and knows what kids his age like, and has provided opinions that have been helpful.”

Isaiah Rubio also is getting help from fellow BDMJ students Logan Howard, who will be doing photography for the concert, and Payton Burdette, who will be doing videography. Burdette worked with Isaiah Rubio before, doing photography for his underground concert last year. 

“It was a cool environment. I got to be behind stage and see the rehearsal and get the general feeling of how it was going to go,” Burdette said. “It was my first experience doing something like that, I was glad for the opportunity and that it turned out so well.” 

“To me, it’s not so much about a publicity builder,” Isaiah Rubio said. “The show is about building relationships with the fan base, instead of trying to tour with bigger artists and trying to make a name for myself through that, I’m doing these smaller things to solidify who is rockin’ with me. The goal for this show is for people to tell their kids down the road about this concert they went to, that it’s something they look back on and have good memories of, it’s really all about the experience.”

Link for tickets is below:

Photos provided by Isaiah Rubio

Avonlea Brown is a sophomore Journalism student and writer/editor for Cedars. She enjoys traveling, reading, and watching movies with friends.