We had the good fortune of connecting with Ancira and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ancira, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
Drew- Coming from a very dark childhood with a family that revolved around mental illness, drug addiction, alcoholism, and everything that is a product of that; I struggled to find healthy ways to cope with these struggles. I did unfortunately fall into some of these crutches myself at a very young age but as I grew a remembered that my music was the one thing that was always there to help me through dark times. I wanted to be able to be real with the world and accept my personal demons and help others that are or have gone through similar situations or emotions.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Drew- 1. What I am most proud of with “Ancira” is the full transparency that we are going by. We are not trying to be someone that we aren’t. Society has this mold where everyone is afraid to be honest and real. People consistently worry about who is going to judge us, what people think, and what our physical appearance shows. We ignore what’s really going on inside.

2. There’s a time and place for everything. I think that has been the biggest factor in how far we have come in such a short amount of time. Sure it took years and years of practice, repetition, and gaining experience through every opportunity in music; but also realizing you cant force art, you cant expect to shoot to the top of the charts in a week, you cant expect everyone to support and love you and what your doing etc. In a short 6 months we have had to vet numerous producers/studios/band mates and even after thinking that we found the perfect team something always comes up causing us to change plans and part ways. Its very seldom that things go completely to plan. We have realized we cannot rely on others to get our music and message out there. We have to make it happen ourselves. If your not careful you can become very pessimistic and quit. If you care enough about what you believe in you will find ways to get past road blocks and show your worth through adversity. That’s where we show our true colors. THIS IS NOT EASY!!! I have had plenty of times where I look in the mirror and just want to quit not only being a musician but want to quit life in general. Learning to accept that my brain is playing games with me and that it would eventually pass and forcing myself to get back at it after giving myself the short mental break that is needed at times, helped keep me going. That and the support of my wife, kids, band mates, and our fans of course!!! I cant say thank you enough to them. The comments, messages, and support we get from our fans all around the world is amazing and gives us the inspiration that is needed.

3. All we want the world to know is that its ok to be real with yourself and others about who you are as an individual. We all have things we struggle with and instead of trying to show others your perfect and continuously trying to live in this perfect bubble of the American Dream, we should all be truthful with one another and support each other when they are going through their personal struggles. No one is perfect. We all have our flaws and demons. The world would be a much better place if we learned to forgive and support to be better and heal as a whole. Mental Illness is what has plagued me personally my entire life. It took me countless years and nightmares to figure that out. Once I figured out the root of my struggles it then allowed me to clearly look at what I was doing to myself that made my life and mind state worse and make needed and difficult changes. It doesn’t stop with how it effects me. What we go through effects our family’s and friends. That’s another tough pill to swallow. Just because we are going through a hard time does not give us an allowance to bring everyone else down with you. Unfortunately I had to learn that the hard way in many instances. I do not wish that on anyone. Trauma is real people! Face that trauma, overcome it, and help others to do the same. Realize the world we live in will not help this. We have to be a force against what naturally comes to mind and battle our own ‘2WOLVES” that live in every single one of us. We also want to let everyone know that our new single “11:59” will be released everywhere on 12/9 and is written about self-vindication not being noticed by others and still continuously being treated like the person you used to be and being judged by others from past mistakes. There is freedom gained by making changes that are needed as long as you don’t allow others to hold the key. This is the first single from our debut album “2WOLVES” that will be released early 2023.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Drew-This is a tough question as San Diego is truly one of the most amazing and beautiful places to live. If I had to choose my basic favorite things to do it would be visiting Petco Park for an awesome baseball game (amazing stadium), Id hit up Bully’s for some awesome BBQ and Las Olas for some Mexican Food, for music Id hit SOMA, House of Blues, or the observatory, and of course we would have to go to our beautiful beaches. My fav is Mission Beach, PB, & Encinitas. We also have so many amazing places so close to our beautiful city. Big Bear and Glamis sand dunes have always been my fav.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Drew- in general I could not be anywhere close to where I’m at right now as a person of society, husband, father, musician, friend, etc without the full support of my wife and fellow band members. I went from someone completely confused, angry, depressed, and inebriated everyday to a person with conviction, goals, sobriety, and a better understanding of my mental health (not healed) and what people go through on a daily basis. Thank you so much I Love you all!!!!

Website: www.anciraband.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anciraband/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXjdmAmWBRdB4_wOIkAxz7g

Other: Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/artist/3sx7F2caUYWhfHV2xIaUEJ Apple Music- https://music.apple.com/us/artist/ancira/1500352646

Image Credits
(All Photos) Pamela Stone Photography (All Artwork) Squarefrog Designs

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutSocal is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.