The Power of Partnership

by Josue Gonzalez

Josue working hard in the boys dorm recording studio.

Reflecting on my project as a whole, there were many moments I learned valuable lessons from, but none compare to reuniting my project with my partner, Miller Galvis.

To give more context, Miller and I were originally partners with a goal of producing a music video. Miller and I split ways for a variety of reasons. For one, we accomplished close to nothing for our short film. To be fair, neither of us were as passionate about the film itself as we should have been.

We had been inspired to make a short film by the hip hop collective BROCKHAMPTON. They put out a short film that featured original songs called “Billy Star.” The way they managed to cultivate an entertaining narrative around the songs they made for their album was fascinating to me. Miller and I wanted to make something like it.

However, committing to the project was a lot easier than actually making progress. We simply were a lot more interested in the music aspect of the film than any of the visual parts. Therefore, when we had to get our end of the semester presentations together, it caused a lot of tension between us as to who did what. Coupled with different stressful things occuring in each of our lives, it compelled me to split off from our project and attempt to make an album by myself.

“Committing to the project was a lot easier than actually making progress.”

However, when we returned from winter break, Sarah attempted to have us regroup and work on an album together. I was hesitant to agree, but I’m glad I did.

We only had one quarter to put together the EP. Together, we were able to bounce off ideas and learn how to produce beats on Logic Pro X. I felt the time constraints compelled us to work faster and harder which actually helped us do a pretty great job production wise.

As for the lyrical side of the project, the time constraints caused us to improvise a lot of lines instead of giving them as much thought and meaning as they should have had.

Overall, Miller and I spent a lot of time on the project and I can say I’m fairly proud of what we were able to accomplish in such a short amount of time. This experience not only showed me the importance of staying true to what I’m passionate about, but also to make the most of the people and resources at my disposal.