Meet Brandon Dominguez | Independent Singer Songwriter, Guitarist, Aspiring Personal Trainer

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

Hi Brandon, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
I think the building blocks of success are dictated by a small, but profoundly impactful handful of habits: the perpetual pursuit of discipline, relentless gratitude and giving, and submission to God. Moreover, I firmly believe that these tenets and habits also naturally foster genuine authenticity and keep us from stagnating. I was very fortunate to be raised by a very close and loving family that exemplified these things well, and I try to take all of the lessons my parents instilled in me and put them into practice everyday.

Discipline is a cliche term that gets thrown around a lot nowadays, but simply put, I would say it’s the process by which we are consistent in a given progressive pursuit or daily act, whether we “want” or “desire” to do such things. I also have a hot take about discipline that I don’t hear echoed very much: it’s not just about “doing” something everyday until you tolerate it or necessarily “grinding” and casting the aspiration of happiness to the wind. I hear a lot of artists and musicians talk about “setting aside *period of time* daily” to work on a skill and only half-heartedly agree about that prescription. The best “practice” or exercise of discipline can just flow sometimes and be a spontaneous thing where you just “get lost” in the skill you are trying to develop and that detour in itself can teach you more than sticking to a rigid schedule or series of videos of instruction, for example. Thus, I tend to view discipline as a daily dragon that we must make sense of amidst our own existences to slay. We face the same beast, but perhaps with a different sword day-over-day.

Gratitude and giving are the next pillars of sustainable success. These are two things I am constantly trying to improve upon. Every day is a gift and everyday we get to exercise our unique traits and talents is truly a beautiful thing. It’s easy to lose sight of this when we’re “dialed-in” sometimes, so I always try to reflect on the ephemerality of our lives and how the most sustainable legacies are the ones built on a strong foundation of self-awareness and reframing context from “what more do I need” to “what more can I give or exercise today?”. When I was younger, I would think of this from a “karmic” lens: “I give a homeless person a dollar? I should receive *this good feeling* back.” Instead, I feel giving and expressing gratitude for all we have should not warrant a response, as our ability to articulate such things and continue to build upon what we already have is the ultimate gift in itself. From a pragmatic level, I think gratitude and giving are also some of the most powerful drivers of successful and effective discourse in our current society.

Submission to God is, in my opinion, the greatest of all habits that naturally lends itself to success. While I try to remain driven by my faith and maintain it as my North Star, I understand not everyone is about religious or spiritual connection in that way and I would implore them to instead initially conceptualize this concept in what I call the “Star Wars lens”. In Star Wars, The Force permeates everything around us and has “given” us everything we see and currently experience. Submitting to it is not some alleviation of personal accountability and free will, but rather a concession that the things we can’t control will not stop our noble or progressive pursuit of things that are good. Submission to God is also humility, which I could wager is the beginning of wisdom and true learning. It doesn’t matter if we’re in the gym, at a day job, or learning an instrument; there will always be bigger fish we can learn from. As an ancient proverb asserts: “God will steer the boat, but you must row.”

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m an independent singer-songwriter, writer, and guitarist. A lot of people don’t know that my first artistic love (and still primary passion) is actually writing. I’ve also loved hero journeys and archetypes that have stood the test of time. Some of my fondest and earliest memories as a kid were my dad reading the “Chronicles of Narnia” and “Harry Potter” to me before bed. I’d say the “Lord of the Rings” is one of my biggest influences. I was always that eccentric guy who was fascinated by history, complex film plots, and re-articulating it in my own way. My older brother’s affinity for Japanese RPGs further trickled into my obsession with storytelling and cohesive narratives as well. Through this osmosis, I guess you could say I developed a natural edge and propensity for writing and presenting ideas. In school, I was that guy who could easily procrastinate an essay in an hour and get an easy A and bodied both AP English exams with high marks.

I was also always exposed to a diverse plethora of great music. Being the youngest and the “baby” in a musical family meant I experienced soundscapes across generations . My mom, being a professional vocal coach and Bossa Nova singer, always made it a point to make sure I listened to a wide array of different music and learned how to identify why things sounded like they did. My dad is a classic rock guy and my older brother indoctrinated me with throwback RnB and pop. We’re talking everything from Joe Pass and Led Zeppelin to Colin Hay, Pharrell, and Japanese RPG soundtracks. Nothing was off-limits and I’m so grateful that aspect of “seeing the best in everything” was instilled in me from such a young age.

I would wager this foundation of exposure is also what differentiates me from other artists. I was always “homeless” from a genre perspective and got used to thinking for myself and creating things that only I really “got”. All that being said, it took me a while to really gain the confidence to go from “quiet, fat guitarist in the background” to someone writing the music he wanted to write and performing it without hiding behind the “face of the operation”.

I was a professionally active guitarist from the age of 16, accompanying my Mom (vocalist) in her jazz trios and took on lead guitar duties in several bands and pit orchestras. It wasn’t until my freshman year of college where I finally buckled down and wrote my first song. Even then, I still shy’ed away from the stage and didn’t have the blind confidence that I could sustain my own material, let alone be a “singer-songwriter”. After I graduated college among the death throes of COVID, I decided to uproot everything in my comfort zone and take a risk moving to San Diego with nothing but myself, a fresh econ degree, and a guitar. For the first time, I would be completely away from my loving and supportive family, the safety net of a place where I was already well-connected and set up with a solid job, and all I had previously known. This would be the turning point for my music career as well as my faith.

In just under three years, I went from the fat, shy guitarist shredding in the back to a self-sufficient, independent singer-songwriter who was finally in front of audiences and singing and playing the songs I had written. Naturally, this wasn’t without some pretty intense growing pains and falling on my face many times. The biggest change has been my approach to the future. I’ve learned to enjoy the journey and continue to refine my craft in a sustainable way while maintaining my North Star and beacons of light to share my music in an authentic, but grounded way. I would argue that it took putting myself out there and taking a large risk like completely starting over to grow and find the internal validation and blind faith needed to accomplish what I have recently done.

All-in-all, I would have to quote my Grandma Jo: “Be yourself, it works”. The facades of safety and “compromising” are often devious detours to creative death and stagnation. My brand is the amalgam of my experiences and I strive to always create art that is derived from my faith, historical and anecdotal observations and learnings, and the inter-machinations of myself. I feel I’ve done my job when I’ve expressed myself and done the best I could to convey a song as a time capsule of where I was at a given moment. More importantly, I’m beyond blessed to have had the most amazing and supportive and loving family along the way on this journey. I’d implore everyone to not approach the creative process or art as a series of green-lights to find, but rather as a complex web of “being at the time at the place”, and making sense of those moments.

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.
Off the bat, I’d like to give the disclaimer that I’m a total dichotomy: I don’t drink alcohol, but I love the “secret bar culture” of San Diego. These “hidden” spots (often hidden within other bars or breweries) are, in my opinion, some of the highlights of San Diego’s nightlife, so I’d start by taking a visitor to some of my favorites. I’d first highly recommend Prohibition in the Gaslamp Quarter. It’s named after its corresponding historical era and features a chaotic deluge of noir- sophistication and old-school music (blues, jazz, etc…) with some pretty unique drinks (though I always opt for sparkling water or non-alcoholic custom-made orders) . They book live music most nights and also house some packed and fun blues and jazz jam nights on select Mondays, Wednesdays, and Sundays. Another great secret bar is “Realm of the 52 Remedies” on Convoy street, AKA Home of the best Asian food in San Diego. You need to book a reservation quite a ways out, but it’s definitely worth it. Inspired by historically significant Kung-Fu flicks and Asian cinema, the bar offers super cool decor and great food and drinks.

The next highlight of San Diego is obviously its weather and “beach town legacy”, so I’d make sure we went to my favorite hidden gems (sorry to all of the locals for giving out the goods). Windandsea in La Jolla is hands down my favorite beach. It’s a low-key spot tucked in the scenic Bird Rock community and features gorgeous views of the water. There’s an awesome path that connects the beach end-to-end and offers a great vantage point for sunset and sunrise. The next spot I would take a friend to would be San Eljio State Beach in Cardiff (a suburb of Encinitas). There’s plenty of space and you can always find a great spot to swim or wade into the water. The surrounding area is popular among runners, joggers, and bicyclists, and the RV park where travelers stop in itself creates a distinct ambience.

Lastly, San Diego is definitely a foodie city, so I have my share of my favorites I’d take any visitor to. For poke fans or seafood enthusiasts, I can’t recommend Hawaiian Fresh Seafood (locations in Mira Mesa and Point Loma) enough. They offer some of the freshest and best tasting fish you’ll get in a poke bowl anywhere. For my non-fish lovers, I’d recommend Goodonya in Encinitas. As a health-conscious eater and fitness fanatic, I love that they don’t use any seed oils in their cooking and appreciate their diverse menu of modern American-fare and unique coffee or matcha drinks. Lastly, for Mexican, I’d send anyone to tacos el Gordo in the downtowwn Gaslamp Quarter (or TJ Tacos in Escondido). You can find amazing adobada (marinated pork) or essentially any other protein. Be sure to order grilled pineapple with the adobada!

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?
I’d like to first and foremost shoutout Jesus Christ for all he has done in my life and all of the incredible things he has blessed me with: my loving and always supportive family, my close circle of friends, and moreover, the gifts of health and fitness, music, and art. I’m just a man trying to do the best I can and all glory belongs to God.

Instagram: someguybran

Image Credits
Kyle Park

Randall Williams