In
an on-going effort to help you encounter God through great music
with a good and positive message, we're taking it to a whole new level!
We're
connecting you with the artists who sing that music
you love in our special feature we call Ask The Artist.
You'll
be able to visit this page as often as you'd like and see what artists we're
connecting you with next,and then submit any question you'd like us to ask them!
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ASK THE ARTIST FOCUS Ivan Diaz Award-winning recording artist Most recent album: Canciones de Paz "I just
want to serve...through my music...that's my life!" |
| Chris Wills recently sat down Ivan Diaz in a God Squad Ask The Artist Q&A session. Here's what Ivan had to say... | |
| Q (Chris): What was it like to create RadioPazMusical.com? | |
| A (Ivan): We started in Dec. '06 as a tiny project for Pax Catholic Communications with the desire to spread the word through Christian music in Spanish. We have between 400 - 800 listeners every day. | |
| Q (Chris): What's the typical RPM listener like? | |
| A (Ivan): We have people all over the world. It's people that love music. Our station is very open. It's for different denominations. We believe in the same God, and we need to be united, and we need to use the music for that purpose. We have people that are studying or working, and they just want to have a good time listening to good Christian music. | |
| Q (Chris): How did you get started with Pax CC? | |
| A (Ivan): Everything started when I started as the music director at St. Francis de Sales in Miami Beach where Fr. Albert Cutie is the pastor and also he is the C.E.O. of Pax Catholic Communications, the company that (operates) Radio Peace, Radio Paz, Pax Net, and La Voz Catolica. Fr. Albert asked me to work with Radio Paz as a "promotions guy." But my career is music, and I was very concerned with the promotion that stations are giving to Catholic music. There are alot of people trying to build their career on Christian music. I presented the (RPM) project to Fr. Albert and, at the beginning they were kind of afraid, but after a couple of months they decided that it was a great idea for Pax Catholic Communications. | |
| Q (Chris): Why drew you to Christian music? | |
| A (Ivan): Basically, it's a family thing. I started asssisting mass when I was 6 years old. My mom invited me all the time to be part of the Church. When I turned 12-years-old, I started as a guitar player and I found passion playing Christian music instead of another genre. My first job was singing at mass when I was 13-years-old. And I started to study music. I started taking piano lessons, (and) voice lessons. When I finished high school, I went to one of the best Catholic universities in Colombia for music, and I studied (there) 8 semesters, and then I moved to the United States and I finished my education at Florida Atlantic University. So everything has been involved with music and my faith. That's what I'm doing right now...I'm so grateful that I work for a Catholic Church as a music director and I also work as the Creative director for Radio Paz Musical. | |
| Q (Chris): What influences your musical likes and dislikes? | |
| A (Ivan): I'm very open. I started as a pop singer. But when I started studying music professionally, I started to love classical music. I can listen to a sonata from a great classical composer, I can listen to jazz composers, and I love listening to Christian music. So I have alot of styles (that I listen to) everyday. I listen to alot of secular music...I love listening (to) secular songs. I know alot of composers and producers that work here in Miami, and they compose and produce music for commercial artists, and they love God and they go to Church every weekend. I think this is a call...if you want to sing about the love of God, that's a call, that's a ministry, that's a service...that's the thing that I think I have in my heart. | |
| Q (Chris): Do you perceive the RPM is having an impact internationally and in the local community. | |
| A (Ivan): I always think local. I never had expectations to become a huge international artists because that wasn't my dream...I just wanted to serve with a good purpose. That's my best blessing every Sunday, when I wake up in the morning and sing (at) 5 masses. That's basically my life and RPM is the same. I want to show the world the type of music that this generation likes with a good message...the message of Christ. I think stations like God Squad (Radio) and RadioPazMusical.com are doing a good job. I just want to start in my local community, because I think that's the first call that God is giving me. | |
| Q (Chris): How are you measuring the success of RPM? | |
| A (Ivan): The new generations want to hear music. Sometimes you just need a minute to put a good message, and they're going to be connected with that. That's a good thing about RadioPazMusical.com We have a good balance. | |
| Q (Chris): Do you think stations like God Squad Radio and RadioPazMusical.com can help unite Christians around the globe? | |
| A (Ivan): That's our goal. We need to start finding people that have the same vision that we have. | |
| Q (Chris): What do you think about everything you've been able to accomplish over the past 28 years of your life, and what would you like to accomplish in the future? | |
| A (Ivan): 28 years...I think I am so blessed and so grateful. I am recording my second album and am trying to create a marketing company to promote Catholic music. Hopefully at the beginning of 2008, I'll be releasing my second album. | |
| For more
information on Ivan Diaz visit
www.javierivandiaz.com For more information on RPM visit www.radiopazmusical.com |
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