Music Stars Making A Social Impact: Why & How Michael Nova of X: THC Is Helping To Change Our World
…we just completed an anti-bullying music video, called, No Fear, which speaks from the viewpoint of someone who was bullied and who overcame that experience in order to help someone who is currently experiencing it.
Prior to this, about a month ago, we released the music video, This Town, featuring people from 43 countries all over the world uniting, in order to inspire all of us to come together as one nation. We wanted to inspire everyone during this pandemic to realize that we are all in this together.
I guess you can tell there is a common theme here, huh? : )
As a part of our series about music stars who are making an important social impact, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Michael Nova.
More than just a music group, X: THC has a proven track record of making a difference in the world, not only with their music but with their message…Fall Down Seven Times, Rise Up Eight.
The worldwide community website, RiseUpEight.org was founded as the next level in the band’s musical and visual exploration of the human condition, featuring many people’s real-life personal stories of rising above challenges in life.
X: THC’s first release, the music and film multimedia project, X: The Human Condition went on to become featured on Amazon prime video in all English-speaking countries around the world. Tracks were selected to become featured on Continental Airways, the Dew Tour video series, and as the theme song for the popular Mexican TV program, Las Trampas Del Deseo.
X: THC is currently finishing up their follow-up album entitled, Fall Down Seven Times, Rise Up Eight to promote the website.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us a bit of the ‘backstory’ of how you grew up?
Thanks for having me, I appreciate it. Growing up, I was shy and didn’t make friends easily. I always felt “different”, like I didn’t fit in and couldn’t find my place in the world. It wasn’t until much later that I realized that everyone has this feeling to one degree or another, but for me, it forced me into my own creative world. That creativity found its way to music.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
I think it was probably in high school where during the high school talent competition I was almost booed off the stage. It was a known fact that white boys don’t compete in the talent competition because this was a talent show for a black audience. But I only heard a rumor about that, without knowing what I was getting myself into.
I was so naïve and shy, that I wasn’t aware of the school’s politics, or segregation. I just wanted to sing for people. All people.
During the song, I struggled to hear the pianist that was accompanying me, but somehow I got through it. And somehow at the end of that song, the crowd rose to its feet and gave me a standing ovation.
Maybe it was for having the guts to stay up there through all the boos, or maybe it was because I did a good job, I don’t know but from then on I was hooked.
I think it’s really interesting that the persistence I had on that stage, really, literally, “set the stage” for what was to come.
Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your career? What was the lesson or take away that you took out of that story?
Well, I’d say that was the story that led me to where I am now, where I am blessed to be able to inspire people. Over a decade ago, I came up with the idea of putting together a music and film multimedia project, entitled, X: The Human Condition.
It was going to be a film and an album that explored the human condition, and simultaneously send out a positive message to those in the world that felt like I did…alone, alienated and “different”. I want to make a difference to someone.
Once again, my naïveté, or idealism, or a combination of both allowed me to believe that this would be possible. Everyone I went to in the music industry said it would be impossible to pull off the way I envisioned in my mind.
With that persistence that I mentioned earlier, I could not take no for an answer. I really wanted to put out this “message in a bottle” that would reach people to let them know that they are not alone. I saw this is my mission in life.
Eventually, without any backing, I had to fund the project myself. During postproduction though, the stress got to me. I found myself on the brink of bankruptcy and became seriously ill. I almost lost my eyesight permanently and was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. But through all of this, I felt I still had a mission to complete.
I didn’t know if I would even be able to finish the project. I could not even see my computer screen, so how was I going to be able to edit the film? Once again, I persisted. I wasn’t going to let the fact that I couldn’t see stop me from making real the vision that I had.
It took over 12 years, but with the help of many people who volunteered to help, we were able to finish the project. The project received rave reviews, one of the songs became a TV theme song, and the film was featured on Amazon prime video in many nations around the world. We were also able to raise funds for several charities in the process.
I wasn’t expected to fully recover physically, but I was able to recover my vision and overcome chronic kidney disease through alternative medicine.
I proved the experts wrong several times over, through that same persistence. I realized that nothing is “impossible”.
So I then founded the worldwide community website, www.RiseUpEight.org, which features stories of people from all walks of life overcoming adversity, in order to inspire others to never give up.
In the most amazing part of this whole story is that with X: The Human Condition, I set out to send out a message to all the people in the world who felt alone, but with the website rise up eight, we have literally created a community of people from all over the world who felt alone in their fight against adversity, but who have now come together, to inspire others to realize that you are not alone.
See, the thing about adversity is that when you are going through it, you feel like you are alone. But the truth is that you are never alone. Others have also experienced something similar, and by sharing our stories, we feel more in touch with each other, and less alone.
So in this strange way, I fulfilled my original mission in a completely unexpected way.
What would you advise a young person who wants to emulate your success?
I always say, “don’t look at adversity as your enemy, look at it as your ally”. Life deals us curveballs all the time. Our lives never move in a straight direction. There are always twists and turns, but when you are offered a detour on your road, take it. You may think that you want to stick to the map and keep moving forward in the direction that you want to go in. Many times though, the roadblocks we experience are overwhelming. It is at those times, that we need to take the detour. That detour may lead you someplace completely unexpected, but in the end, it makes your life richer.
Believe me, I’m the one with persistence, the one that never gave up. But even then, I was faced with roadblocks that I could not breakthrough. I had to take the detour. One of them led me to rise up eight. I would never have gone there had I not experienced the horrors that I went through. But in the end, it was worth it. It was worth it because I became a stronger person and a better person because of it.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you explain how that was relevant in your life?
I always liked Theodore Roosevelt’s, The Man in The Arena…
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
I love this because as a musician, this is very appropriate. We will always be criticized, but it’s not the critics who count. It’s those of us that are able to create something that makes a difference to someone out there. Even if it’s just one person. If we can make a difference to someone, somewhere, then it’s all worth it.
Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview, how are you using your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share with us the meaningful or exciting social impact causes you are working on right now?
Yes, we just completed an anti-bullying music video, called, No Fear, which speaks from the viewpoint of someone who was bullied and who overcame that experience in order to help someone who is currently experiencing it.
Prior to this, about a month ago, we released the music video, This Town, featuring people from 43 countries all over the world uniting, in order to inspire all of us to come together as one nation. We wanted to inspire everyone during this pandemic to realize that we are all in this together.
I guess you can tell there is a common theme here, huh? : )
Can you tell us the backstory about what originally inspired you to feel passionate about this cause and to do something about it?
Well for This Town, a few years ago, we started creating music to inspire people to overcome adversity and never give up. Over the course of over a year, we collected and compiled hundreds of images and clips of Hurricane Katrina, 9/11, the Boston bombing, and other disasters.
When COVID hit, we shifted the focus to how people are coping. We reached out to friends and friends of friends worldwide to join this project, asking them to send shots of themselves from home. Responses quickly flooded in from 43 countries, showing a common human experience of compassion, and a vision for a better future. We were overwhelmed with the response.
What came out of it was a shared experience of unity, regardless of our skin color, politics, religion and superficial differences. It’s not “us” versus “them”. We’re all brothers and sisters and should focus on what is common between us, not what divides us.
For No Fear, anti-bullying is something that we believe in. There is something to be said for standing up for yourself, but not everyone can afford the luxury of taking martial arts lessons as a small child. :-)
My own personal belief is that should be mandatory for all kids due to the bullying that goes on, but that’s just me, LOL.
Regardless, we know that bullying goes on, and in this day and age, we should be past that. Unfortunately, we are not. Some of us are still locked into the old ways of thinking. It’s important for kids to have knowledge about bullying and about what they can and can’t do to protect themselves and others from those that want to take advantage.
Our music video is an empathic hug to those that are currently experiencing bullying, and an encouraging message that they will get through it.
Many of us have ideas, dreams, and passions, but never manifest it. But you did. Was there an “Aha Moment” that made you decide that you were actually going to step up and take action for this cause? What was that final trigger?
All my life, I have wanted to make a difference in the world. I always thought that on my death bed, I didn’t want to think, “I should’ve tried harder”. I wanted to do something that someone would appreciate. I wanted to make someone’s burden a little easier because I know what a burden is.
When I was told what I was trying to do was “impossible”, that turned out to be a trigger for me. Maybe as I look back to that high school talent show, maybe I didn’t listen to the warnings, because I wanted to prove them wrong. When I see injustice in the world, I’m not the kind of person to turn a blind eye to. I’m the one that opens his mouth. I’m the troublemaker.
That’s why the music we write explores the human condition. Chris backs me up on this. On our new album, we discuss issues from bullying to economic inequality, mental health, and, of course, overcoming challenges in life. :-)
Music for me is not about pretty sounds and fancy, vocal acrobatics. For me, it’s about exploring something deeper. It’s about exploring what it means to be human.
Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
Yes, it’s encouraging to receive feedback from people that tell us that our music is making a difference in their lives.
As an example, one person wrote…
To whom this may concern,
I just wanted to let you know that I now have three friends liking your music. :-)
I love listening to your music when I’m feeling down or hopeless. Inspires me to stay strong and not give up on life. I’m so different from many people that’s I sometimes wonder where I stand on this earth. Luckily, I have this said three friends who are definitely different in every way along with me. We can be unique together. :-) I had to share that with you. Nothing more. Thanks for reading.
As for Rise Up Eight, I know the website is frequently visited by thousands and thousands of people, and I’m so happy that people keep writing in with beautiful words of encouragement for us to keep sharing these wonderful stories of overcoming challenges in life. Our community grows daily. This is what it’s all about. This is why we do this.
Are there three things that individuals, society or the government can do to support you in this effort?
Well, I don’t think people realize that independent musicians have it tougher than ever right now. The only way we can make money is to sell product. In our case, we are not selling merchandise. We only sell our music, and it’s very difficult for independent artists like us to survive on what we make from our music.
So “support your local artist”! Buy their music, because just by buying their album, you are really making a difference to an indie artist, where each individual sale means something, as opposed to some major-label artist where it means a couple of numbers.
So 3 things…
1. Download free music from our website, https://x-thc.com. We are giving away tracks from the upcoming album for free, to promote not only the album but the website, RiseUpEight.org
2. If you like the free music, please support us, and our work with Rise Up Eight, by purchasing our new album directly from our website before it’s publicly released. You can check out clips from the new album here.
3. Tell your friends about us because our music was created to inspire people. It’s not about the money. It’s about making a difference, especially in this time when people need inspiration.
Fantastic. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or an example for each.
1. As I stated before, there will be many setbacks.
“Fall down seven times, rise up eight” means getting up every time you get knocked down. There were times when I became severely depressed over the lack of progress in my career. But you have to take whatever successes you get and celebrate them because usually, you will lose more than you will win. This is a tough industry, and you will be rejected many more times than you will be accepted. You have to realize that going in, and not take it to heart. This is tough to do as a sensitive creative person. Many people are broken by this simple fact. They give up.
Don’t give up.
2. It takes many years to achieve success.
From the outside, it seems like people suddenly succeed out of nowhere, but that’s usually not the case. 99 times out of 100, they’ve been slaving away for years behind the scenes, before anyone knows that they exist. With each musical release, you can build your audience, but that takes place over a number of releases. How many depends on different factors. One of them being luck…
3. Luck is just as important as skill.
Unfortunately, you have to be in the right place at the right time to achieve success. More importantly, you have to meet the right people will help you in your career. Which brings me to number 4…
4. It really is true that who you know is more important than what you know.
It’s extremely important to make friends with people in the industry. One way or another, you’ve got to get the help of people. While you can win them over with your talent, this is becoming more and more difficult due to the immense amount of competition out there today. Developing relationships with people in the music industry is more important than ever. This means doing favors, and being a help to successful people. It means developing friendships over time, which can be a huge time investment. Getting people on your side though is crucial.
Now having said that, it is possible to achieve success without knowing anyone. People are doing everything by themselves, with their bandmates, on the road, and selling albums and T-shirts by the carload. Sometimes, the word-of-mouth gets so strong that major labels actually pay attention and make an offer. This takes years of effort however, and a persistent mindset that you want to do it on your own and that you don’t need a record label to support you.
Which brings me to number 5…
5. Many, many talented people in the music industry earn a living making music.
As I just mentioned, it’s possible to earn a living in the music industry and never become very well known to the general public. People are earning a living playing gigs and getting paid without huge public recognition public notice. If it’s your goal to earn your living through making music, you can do it. Just realize that might not come with fame or critical acclaim. In the end, “getting noticed” isn’t that important. What’s really important is how you feel about your career and yourself. If your music makes a difference to one person in the world, then it’s worth doing.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
I think we are doing that with our website, www.RiseUpEight.org. We’ve created a worldwide community of people inspiring others to never give up. I can’t think of anything better to inspire people. :-)
We are blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Politics, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them :-)
I’m always happy to connect with anyone interested on the subjects of exploring the human condition, and overcoming adversity. I want people to understand that overcoming adversity is a great part of the human condition, and by coming together and connecting, we can help each other.
Thank you so much for these amazing insights. This was so inspiring, and we wish you continued success!
Thank you, Edward, I appreciate the opportunity to make a difference.
About The Interviewer: Growing up in Canada, Edward Sylvan was an unlikely candidate to make a mark on the high-powered film industry based in Hollywood. But as CEO of Sycamore Entertainment Group Inc, (SEGI) Sylvan is among a select group of less than ten Black executives who have founded, own and control a publicly traded company. Now, deeply involved in the movie business, he is providing opportunities for people of color.
In 2020, he was appointed president of the Monaco International Film Festival, and was encouraged to take the festival in a new digital direction.
Raised in Toronto, he attended York University where he studied Economics and Political Science, then went to work in finance on Bay Street, (the city’s equivalent of Wall Street). After years of handling equities trading, film tax credits, options trading and mergers and acquisitions for the film, mining and technology industries, in 2008 he decided to reorient his career fully towards the entertainment business.
With the aim of helping Los Angeles filmmakers of color who were struggling to understand how to raise capital, Sylvan wanted to provide them with ways to finance their creative endeavors.
