Born and raised in New York City, Rick Rocker is ready to bring energy and meaning back to rock and roll!  Rocker, a singer and guitarist who writes all of his own songs, draws inspiration from classic pop/rock artists like Bon Jovi, Green Day and U2. Like those artists, the sound that he is generating is big and catchy as hell!

For Rocker, it’s gotta be real. It’s all about the music and sending a message. That message is made loud and clear on his debut full-length album “Spend the Night”.

In this interview spotlight, we chat with Rick about music, influences, the new project, and more.

Full Q&A, links, and streams below.

Where are you from?

Astoria, Queens, New York City.

Let’s dive a little deeper into You, the artist and your music. What attracted you to this genre(s) or style(s)?

I think it was the energy and hype of the performance that most rock music has that drew me in.  The pop side of my sound comes from my love of catchy tunes, I love writing catchy tunes!

Tell us about your story, and how you began writing music?

I unofficially started writing music in high school when I started to write poetry.  Some of my teachers took notice to my work and on several occasions I had my poetry read out to the entire class by the teachers.  I didn’t really start writing music however until I started playing guitar around junior year of high school.  My sister initially wanted to learn how to play guitar and she showed me one riff which was the intro to “Nothing Else” matters by Metallica.  I had no idea who Metallica was at the time or that the riff was even an actual song, but all that mattered to me at that time was to play the riff to perfection!  I practiced for hours until I was able to play it with a guitar pick and my fingers.  After that my uncle taught me a few chords and my sisters boyfriend(now finance) taught me some licks on the guitar but I’m mostly self taught.  I joined my h.s Jazz band during my senior year.  I had been practicing very hard during my junior year so I was able to solo pretty well and got to perform guitar solos at my h.s winter/spring concerts.  The 1st time I soloed was a rush!  I finally got some recognition in school as well which was nice, hardly anyone really knew me or took interest in me until then.  I was very quite and to myself in h.s mostly, music helped me break out of my shell and be more personable and social.

I made/joined a few bands that didn’t work out with friends from h.s and college after.  That’s when I decided to go solo.

How long have you been creating and sharing your music with the public?

About 5 years.

Who or what influences your playing and/or writing? Also, what motivates you to keep going?

Bands like Bon Jovi, Led Zeppelin, U2, Green Day, Journey, The Rolling Stones, Paramore, Imagine Dragons, Fall Out Boy and many others influence my musical style.  I really love performing and making music.  I truly believe I was put on this earth to make people happy and feel good through my music.  Anytime I think about giving up I just can’t.

Were you trying to accomplish anything specific on this new project? Creatively or otherwise?

I was aiming for a more modern Pop sound on this single “How Long”.  It’s still rock but I think the production and style of playing stand out in today’s Pop music realm because of the modern and old school rock elements combined.

What was the last song you listened to?

I’ve been listening to “Love Is Blindness” by U2 all day today! lol I listened to the Jack White version too!

Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?

Honestly, most of the music I listen to is from Youtube but I use MP3’s as well.

How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?

Don’t really have a strong preference but I suppose CD Baby because they have artist that help categorize my music and for people to have an idea of what it sounds like.  Eventually I’d love to sell solely from my website.

Other than the digital era overwhelming us with access to an abundance of music, what are one or two of the biggest challenges you face when trying to attract listeners to your music?

Finding great ways to reach the right audience and attract genuine interest.

Do you gig, tour or perform? Do you ever live stream? Where can music lovers see you live?

I usually gig about 2-3 times a month depending on the season but I’m currently focusing on building my Youtube channel and making more videos.  As a solo artist, the cost of touring is very high and I believe I will reach a greater audience via Youtube and making videos versus touring at the moment.  I’ve done some live streams for a open mic group called Eclectic and enjoyed it so I am considering doing this more!  I am looking into playing in Sept possibly for a “How Long” music video release show but we’ll see how things play out.  I’ll definitely be playing out sooner or later!  For all updates on my show dates and more sign up to my news letter at http://www.rickrockermusic.com/ 🙂

Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more of your music?

Twitter is by far my most interactive social media.  I talk to everyone who is nice and I love my fans! <3

Any last thoughts? Shout outs? Words of wisdom?

Thanks for interviewing me and featuring my song “How Long” on your site!  😀  I’m aiming to follow up with more singles and music videos about every 2-3 months and possibly put up some live performance videos and cover song videos 🙂  My words of wisdom are:  “Be yourself, it’s the only person you should be.”