From Bullied Busker to Festival Headliner & 3.42m Fans | LAERZ

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ABOUT THE EPISODE
Can busking turn into a real music career? I sat down with live electronic artist LAERZ, who took up beatboxing in high school to fit in while he was being bullied, and now builds every song from scratch on stage with no prerecorded tracks.

He shares how treating street performing like a science took him from a couple of dollars a show to $1,200 on one Mother's Day at Universal CityWalk, the eating disorder he hid for years and what changed when he told the people he loves, and the stranger named Lou who cried through a song at Horizon Music Festival. We also get into whether big DJs just press play, why his 3.4 million followers don't add up to a community, and filming sets on a Utah cliff edge and in Dubai.

He ends with what he would tell the bullied kid he used to be.

CHAPTERS
00:00 Beatboxing his way out of bullying
02:39 From In-N-Out to street performer
04:36 Treating busking like a science
10:19 The eating disorder he hid for years
14:54 What changed when he spoke up
17:06 The men who suffer in silence
19:06 Making music for strangers
20:37 Why every sound he plays is live
23:45 Do big DJs just press play?
25:47 When Ableton crashed in Denver
29:01 The stranger who cried at Horizon
33:55 Why he used to hate festivals
35:55 Why followers don't equal fans
43:39 Sets on a Utah cliff and in Dubai
48:22 Proving it's live at TEDx Portland
53:18 How he makes a trumpet with his mouth
59:58 What he'd tell his bullied teen self

FOLLOW LAERZ
Website: https://laerzmusic.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laerzmusic/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@laerzmusic
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@laerzmusic

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Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1657317674
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ABOUT THE SHOW
Each week I explore the pillars of a full life - health, wealth & wisdom - through interviews with the world's leading experts, thinkers and operators who embody one or more of these pillars on a world-class level. Hosted by Adam Metwally.