At sixteen years old, junior Aiden Mathiasz is proving he can “go the distance” in the music industry, according to boss Adam Richter.
“I’ve seen what he can do, he seems to have a nice knack for taking an idea and making it better,” Richter said.
Mathiasz is involved with creating sound ideas and designs. He has three official jobs, but has a variety of different responsibilities as he explains, is all “encompassed around creative production.”
“I handle all audio and live stream stuff for City [Rockford] churches across our campuses. [I also] play guitar for worship, and I do background vocals. On the side I also do music production for clients.” Explaining further, Mathiasz adds, “I’ll make any type of beat or backing track they might want, then they buy it right off of me.”
During the pandemic shut-down, Mathiasz took advantage of the free time he had by taking on more responsibilities in creative production. Now that he’s back in school four days a week, Mathiasz is still working three jobs, though sometimes being back in the classroom is intense and crazy.
“It definitely [has taken] up my time, and now I have to figure out how to do all of it,” Mathiasz said.
Most of his time goes into creative production, and that challenge is being reflected in his ability to keep up on his schoolwork.
“Throughout middle school, up until 9th grade, I got straight A’s. I was a great student, [but] when I started taking [music] a little bit more seriously, I had to sacrifice all of my time that was going into school,” Mathiasz said. “I don’t recommend doing that unless you know exactly what you want to do and you know you can do it.”
Although sometimes draining, Mathiasz loves the music industry and knows he’s made the right decision for his future.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t take back any of the decisions I made. For me, the benefits outweigh the cons,” Mathiasz said. “People around me, [and in] my life, are really supportive. My parents support my dreams and want to see me succeed.”
Richter also believes that Mathiasz made the right choice, and sees how he continues to improve himself every day.
“He’s really talented, he has a desire to hone in on his craft and get better every day. I could totally see him being a top music producer someday,” Richter said, “I think that’s why, even though he’s relatively young, I wanted to invest in him to show that I believe in him.”
Mathiasz’s sacrifices and decisions haven’t been in vain. He appreciates the opportunity and the ability to create a name for himself while he’s still an adolescent.
“I see people my age, [who say] ‘I wish I could do this, I wish I could do that,’ but they don’t go out and do it, whereas I’m like, ‘I have the resources, I can do this. I can build a legacy while I’m still a teenager,” Mathiasz said. “It’s [just] a matter of kicking things into gear.”
Even though he’s still young, Mathiasz knows music production is what he wants to do in life.
“I want to do what I love, and I’m gonna do [it] in a way that I feel proud to do it,” Mathiasz said.
Loving everything about music helps Mathaisz put his effort into production. Richter sees this zeal for music and hard work translating into exceptional talent, of which both are important for the music industry.
“I’ve seen his passion for music production. What really stands out is that he’s always always working on it and learning more. I feel like every time he shows me something, it’s better.” Richter said. “I’ve seen him do that with tons of different projects, ideas and songs, and it’s really shown me this kid has what it takes. For Mathiasz, I think the sky’s the limit.”
