#92 Zach Simon-Alexander, musician, songwriter

Zach had a lot of music around his house growing up, as his mother is a musician and music teacher. He focused on sports when young, but then his parents got him an acoustic guitar when he graduated from high school. It was in college in the mountains near Boulder, Colorado, he says, when he "really started writing from my heart and my soul." It helped him get some peace and tranquility in his life and he committed to music in a way that was real and deep. Zach says, music allowed him to find himself; "It allowed me to step past my own confines and barriers because there was something bigger than me on the other side of it. … Just letting go … and honoring this craft is my conduit. … It's transformed my perspective." He also says, "I will tell everyone and their mother that they would be good at some musical instrument or singing."  "What I think we are doing as musicians, as artists, is finding a way to double down on who we are, believing that if we're ourselves, if we invest in that, if we really live that fully, people feel that, they see that, and a lot of people need that, and I needed it for a long time, I was inspired by a lot of musicians and artists." His current band is Lunar Eclectic in Austin, Texas.