Today we’d like to introduce you to Moe Zoubi.
Hi Moe, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
I was born in Texas but was raised in the Middle East, so my first language was Arabic. My father was a musician that left the music scene to pursue a business degree. he played a little bit of guitar, and I always thought that it is the coolest thing in the world. I attempted playing more than three times when I was growing up to play by taking lessons, and it never worked. I gave up because I didn’t have the thing that they call “talent” people are born with it, and I wasn’t. but I still loved music so much. I moved to back to Texas alone when I was 18 to get my finance degree. it was the scariest thing I have ever done. I had an uncle that lived in Dallas, and my dad wanted me to be near him because he trusted him. He helped me out a lot, and I considered him like my father as I have never met him before. months after I moved, he needed surgery, and he, unfortunately, passed after it. I was alone, and I had no one. I felt lonely all the time. my English wasn’t good either, so communication was difficult. had no friends for years and was so depressed because of it. My parents came to visit, and they brought me a Table which is an Arabic drum instrument. I used it because I was tired of hearing silence. fortunately, my neighbor heard it and called the cops. the cops asked me never to use it again, so I put it away. I had my dad’s beat-up guitar that he had bought from toys are us before I was born and I was like, let me try again. it worked I learned on my own, and I was addicted. I would play for hours, and it became my only friend. later on, I was like, let me try to sing… the good news is that I didn’t have anyone living with me, so no one can judge me. I was bad, but I loved it so much, and I thought I was good. a year later, my dad visited, and I wanted to take his opinion since he is the only musician I know. I played all of me by John legend, and he was like “you might have potential,” and that’s all I needed. I was playing and singing 24/7. I was asked to sing at my brother’s engagement party (in the middle east), and when I watched the footage, I was like, this is so bad I am never going to sing again. I went back to America and I was lonely again so I did it again; I started playing again. I met a few musicians at the university, and I started making friends because of music. At that point, I felt unstoppable I wanted to “make it.” I was so driven and determined. I was getting better and better, and I started getting gigs to perform, and people liked it. years. years later, a bought a few production equipments and experiment with songwriting. later on, I got my finance degree, but the only thing I wanted from life was to be a successful musician. I wrote a song that I really liked at the time, so I wanted to try to go to a recording studio and do it professionally. it took me months 4-6 to make a song that I hated by the time it came out, but it was something. 2020 came, and I was still driven to make music all I do in life. I was driving to work, and I got into a car accident that almost ruined my life. it was the lowest part of my life. I had 6 desks that made it physically hard to move, but more importantly, I had a “mild-brain injury” that made life look so different. without getting into details, I learned that I need to slow down and enjoy life. becoming a successful musician might not happen, but I wanna still enjoy music for me even if nothing comes of it. I made a lot of videos singing while I was going thru the car accident drama. they are all on YouTube, and you can hear how depressed I was. at this point, I gave up on music, and I want to enjoy my life. I only do it when I’m in the mood rather than forcing it. it is something that I can’t stop doing because I tried it many times in my life, but it’s literally like an addiction. it gives me a voice when no one is listening. I will still try I’ve not attached to the outcome anymore.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I don’t know where to begin. It was always difficult I started playing later, so I felt like I was battling with time. I have been booed off the stage; people make fun of me, my voice, and my music all the time. It’s hard to explain to people how it feels…it’s like I have a need to create even if someone mocks me for it, I still feel like I have to do it. I also never took lessons, so I’m self-taught everything which is another challenge to deal with. also, most days I create something and I dislike it, but when that one thing I create that I actually like, it feels like a high even though months later I sometimes look back at and realize that it was also bad. It’s a battle and a challenge between me and myself and the others, and that’s what makes it fun.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
If anything, people knew me for my drive. I always wanted to be the best at anything I love doing. I always try new things just to see what I can do. I have my own studio now that I have clients come in, and they basically can feel the love I have for music. I was told that when I sing life (mostly passed 2 years), it feels like I wrote the song as if I’m singing a cover. I like to write songs that might necessarily sound deep but they are. I also like to write songs where the tone sounds dreamy and calm. I’m known also to be able to tell a story and evoke an emotion. It’s horrible to see someone cry, but when you see them cry for a song you wrote it just brings a whole other connection. I’m most proud of the song “try” it tells a story of what happened between me and my girlfriend at the time of the car accident but I wrote the song months before the car accident even happened. she was there when I was writing, and she asked who am I writing about and I was like I honestly don’t know. I never write something imaginary it is always something that happened that I feel a certain way about. It was the first song that I wrote and produced all alone.
So maybe we end by discussing what matters most to you and why?
If this question was asked me years ago, I would have said making it. In all honestly, I don’t know what makes it is…it’s something that a made up in my head that is not real. What matters to me now is to be authentic. To enjoy making music for me and not for anyone. To be free to create from me and others. At the end of the day, the journey is never just about the destination, and we can see that in music. We never listen to a song to just finish it.
Contact Info:
- Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/moezoubi/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moezoubii/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MoeZoubi
