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2020: Calvin Jeremy: “I’m a joker and straightforward”
Words Teressa Warianto Illustration Mufty FairuzCalvin Jeremy is gearing up for some very busy times ahead
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Words Teressa Warianto Illustration Mufty Fairuz
Calvin Jeremy is gearing up for some very busy times ahead. He runs his own management company with his sister and is scheduled to release his third album, Nostalgia, by the end of 2016. He hopes that working together with Universal Music Malaysia will bring him to a wider audience in Southeast Asia and give him an edge in Indonesia’s competitive music industry. “I want to be different. I don’t want to be just another musician releasing another song,” said the 25-year-old. Despite being happy to call himself a musician and an entrepreneur — or as he puts it, a “musictrepreneur” — Calvin says the one thing he doesn’t want to be called is a celebrity. “I’m not doing this just because I want to be famous, I’m a musician because it’s always been my passion.”
Favorite musician …
John Mayer.
Favorite John Mayer song …
‘‘Clarity’’.
If I could collaborate with any musician, it would be …
Paul McCartney.
I get inspiration to write my music in …
My bedroom.
If I could perform anywhere in the world …
Iceland, if they have a jazz festival there. Or anywhere unique and unusual.
My favorite subject in school was …
Microeconomics.
And the subject I hate the most …
Bahasa Indonesia, because I got a C for some unknown reason […] Thank God I still passed the class.
If I could date any girl, it would be …
I want to be anti-mainstream so there’s this American musician I admire so much named Mary Elizabeth Winstead, but sadly she’s married. So I guess I have to go with Jennifer Lawrence.
The most romantic thing I’ve ever done for a person is …
When I was in high school, I liked one of my juniors, so I learned how to play Jamie Callum’s song ‘‘But For Now’’ just to ask her out […] she said yes!
My dream holiday destination is…
I’ve always wanted to go to this guitar shop in Los Angeles called Norman’s Rare Guitar. It has been open since the 1950s and sells rare, vintage guitars. It’s my dream holiday destination for the near future because I’ve just never had the chance to go there before and I think it’s not an impossible dream!
My most prized possession is …
Right now I have a notebook where I write down all my ideas. It’s pretty new but I’ve been trying to write down all my thoughts and ideas in this book and I bring it every day.
My favorite guitar that I own is …
Well I currently have five guitars and my favorite is the red one. If you type my name on Google, I’m pretty sure you’ll find a picture of that guitar and me somewhere.
The proudest moment in my life is…
There was this one time when I wrote a song for my ex-girlfriend; we sadly ended our relationship on pretty bad terms and she really hated me in the end. I wrote a song called, ‘‘Tetap Setia’’ (Still Faithful) for her and after I recorded the song, I went to her house to give her the CD. But she didn’t even want to see me and threw the CD away without ever listening to it. So a couple of years later, after I released my first album, I heard from a friend that whenever I would appear on TV or on the radio, she would tell people to change the channel cause she just doesn’t want to see me. I know it’s petty, but I guess that’s my proudest moment in my life so far — that I went from having my songs thrown in the garbage to making it this far as a musician!
My biggest regret in life…
When I decided to involve my ex-girlfriend in my music video that ended up being for my best known song to date.
The best thing about being a musician is …
Meeting new people.
And the worst thing about being a musician is …
People think I have lots of money!
Me in three words …
A joker, simple, straightforward.
My pet peeve about others is …
People being fake.
The best thing about me is…
I always try to be true to myself so that everything’s clear.
My life motto is…
I’m here for a reason and that is so that I can be a blessing to others.
What I want to achieve in the next 10 years ...
I want to see my parents finally enjoying their life. I want to be successful enough so that I can take them travelling around the world without having to worry about anything. I know it sounds cheesy but if they’re happy, then I’m happy.
