PJ VEGAS IS READY FOR HIS CLOSE UP

PJ Vegas

is Ready for His Close Up

PJ Vegas quickly became a master of his craft and is certainly at the start of carving out his own genre of retro-bending R&B. After just dropping a new single from his upcoming album, he’s out to prove he’s made for the spotlight. Vegas is now ready for his close up.

BY KELLY HOLMES PHOTOGRAPHY BY GABE SACHS DESIGNS BY VOSQ

Over the few weeks leading up to my interview with PJ Vegas,

much of my time is spent reading up on the constant mentions of and comparisons between his career and those of his dad and uncle, Pat and the late Lolly Vegas. While it would be a much easier story to tell you that Vegas followed in his father's footsteps to become an award-winning singer-songwriter, that wouldn't be honest. The truth is that Vegas entered the music industry and quickly made a name for himself, all on his own terms.

When I interviewed him, I hardly noticed that the person I'm speaking with is a superstar in the making. "Thanks to everyone at Native Max Magazine for showing support to so many Indigenous artists!" he states at the beginning of the interview. He speaks with ease and is straight-to-thepoint with his answers. Not at all did he emit an ego typically seen from the privileged and pampered kids of celebrity rockstars.

As the son of Pat Vegas–the legendary founder of Native American, Billboard Top 100-charting band REDBONE–music has always been at the forefront of Vegas' life. He's quickly become a master of his craft and is undoubtedly at the start of carving out his own genre of R&B. His first mixtape, "Priceless: The Free Album," released in 2013, received rave reviews from numerous music critics, further solidifying himself as a force to be reckoned with in the music industry. His upcoming LP, "SMOKE," will only continue to add momentum to his career.

Despite pursuing a newer music style than that of his father and REDBONE, which was a mix of funk, swamp rock, and soul, you can still hear the soul's infusion by Vegas. The LA-based melodic and retro-leaning musician is best known for his sultry and smooth vocals. Though most of his music is soulful R&B, Vegas' fluidity between R&B and hip-hop is a feat that few up-and-coming artists can execute—yet he manages to pull it off quite effortlessly. His music's flow is also fluid, with some of his tracks featuring hard-hitting tempo that has more of a hip-hop sound to it, while the rest are slow and steady. Even incorporating a variety of sounds into his music makes him undeniable: guitar, synth-pop samples, and gunshots, to name a few. But don't be fooled by his unique mix of music; Vegas' lyrical subject matter contains raw and gritty content that always tells a story. And when he gets the chance, Vegas mixes in his traditional Native culture into his music. Vegas' work connects well with the millennial audience, all of which will only add to his star power.

Dressed in exclusively-designed tees and bandanas by Payómkawichumowned Vosq Clothing, Vegas stars on the cover of this month's fashion & art issue. His signature ultra-hip style transfers onto the feature, where he combines California-cool vibes with a retro flair. This is thanks to the man behind the camera—film and tv writer Gabe Sachs, who loves photographing people with vintage film cameras. Fitting, since Vegas is into classic vintage.

Vegas represents the Yoeme (Yaqui) people of the Río Yaqui valley in the Mexican state of Sonora and the southwestern United States. Nonetheless, Vegas is a true California kid–born and raised in Los Angeles, CA, and growing up in the San Fernando Valley. This inspired us to host the cover shoot somewhere in LA that best represented Vegas' style and story while honoring his upbringing.

As the son of Pat, music has always been at the forefront of Vegas's life. This can really go without saying, but I'll say it anyway: music is a family affair for Vegas. Music is not just in the name, it's in his blood. Aside from co-founding REDBONE, Pat is also known to have inspired many Native American artists to succeed in mainstream musical genres, including his son. "My father has inspired me in so many ways, but the main thing I'm thankful for is showing me that anything is possible." Being an Indigenous man and reaching the heights he did, his father gave Vegas all the inspiration he needed. "I look to him for advice when creating because I know he'll always keep it real with me." Though he's found success in his own right, too—it isn't surprising that Vegas grew to be a professional multi-talented musician and singer-songwriter like his old man, but he did have to make his way into the industry.

This was sort of why Vegas actually tried to keep away from being an artist at first. "In the beginning, I did kind of shy away from music, but that was only because I knew I had such big shoes to fill," he explains. "I knew that if I was going to do it, I wanted to make sure that I could give it my all." Vegas remembers the moment he thought, "I'm a musician, also." Eight years ago, he was sitting in the studio as a spectator with his friends when he randomly got the opportunity to record one of his original songs he had been hiding. "Once everyone heard what I had been holding onto, their reactions

“I remember telling myself: I’m willing to work one-hundred times harder than the next man forever until I’m heard.”

let me know that I had something, and I haven't stopped since."

From then on, Vegas has produced a handful of tracks with accompanying music videos, all of which you can check out on his YouTube channel. He's proud to be one of the first Native American R&B singers to be recognized in the industry by MTV, having won the Video Music Award for "Best Video With a Message" in 2017, and since then, has continued to make waves as an Indigenous artist. In 2018, Vegas won the award for Best Independent Single at the Native American Music Awards–like the Native American Grammys–for his song "Tears." Vegas is also a loyal advocate for his community, merging his passions for music and social justice constantly. He helped plan the inaugural Indigenous People's Day in Los Angeles for the past two years.

This past July, Vegas became the first-ever Native American artist co-signed by west coast artist, multi-Grammy-nominated rapper, and actor The Game. His musical talents and dedication to supporting minority creatives recently caught the well-known rapper's attention, who personally reached out to Vegas to collaborate. He told Vegas he was putting a compilation of mixtapes and wanted to feature him. "Growing up listening to his music and then getting a DM on Instagram from him telling me that he likes my sound was something special," says Vegas about working with The Game, which was an experience he will never forget. "Pesos" was featured on a compilation mixtape that The Game curated this summer.

The strength of his ancestors inspired the "Pesos." "The music industry, just like life, has a lot of ups and downs, and sometimes you feel your hard work goes unnoticed," Vegas explains. "I remember telling myself: I'm willing to work one-hundred times harder than the next man forever until I'm heard." Then, Vegas dove deeper and thought about his ancestors facing the same hardships to this day. "There are so many hard-working people that come to this country like my ancestors did and find a hundred different ways to survive doing jobs that most don't want to. This song is meant to inspire." He released "Pesos" back on July 4th. There has never been a more significant time to celebrate diversity and amplify minority voices in America, which is why Vegas has chosen this memorable holiday to drop the first single from the upcoming LP. "Pesos" comes from Vegas' up-and-coming album, SMOKE, which is set to drop at the beginning of 2021. The title itself embodies and evokes many meanings and ideas. "I titled my album SMOKE because, for me, it represents healing, 'the smoke' or 'the smudge' is a way to release negative energy." The name is also an acronym that stands for "still my only known enemy," which, according to Vegas, speaks to the battle between ourselves and our insecurities, and how much that limits our growth. "I've dealt with that a lot and still do at times, but this album is a constant reminder that it's all in my head," Vegas tells us the process of putting together the new album has been fun. "I'm bringing in a lot more moving parts in this time, and I'm creating a bigger sound and definitely collaborating with my father a lot, so it's really good." Much of the inspiration for the tracks on SMOKE derives from the significant uprisings within the black and brown communities from this year. Vegas sees all peoples of colors have been uniting to stand up for racial equality, and that's something unique and important to Vegas, all of which inspired "Pesos" and his upcoming album.

Do you know what else is suave besides his music? His style, of course. I tell Vegas that since this was the Fashion and Art issue, we wanted to highlight his fashion style, which we thought was fresh and unique. "Thank you! My style switches a lot, but right now, I'm definitely into the classic vintage look." I asked Vegas to describe his personal style, which is unquestionably unique from other California R&B musicians. "Something about fashion from the '50s and '60s is cool to me," he answers. Vegas also incorporates Native beadwork and retro shoe styles with his signature vintage look.

Just like the rest of us, Vegas dealt with the pandemic lockdown. "To keep me busy, I've kind of became a producer overnight," he laughs. "Been working hard on trying to elevate my skill when it comes to engineering, and it's been going pretty well." Obviously, what comes with lockdown is the creativity drain. The way Vegas feeds his musical creativity is by way of hunting for new experiences that will give him something cool to write about.

Spending time in solitude would only help Vegas create more dope music for his upcoming album. Quite honestly, I can’t wait to listen to SMOKE once it drops. More importantly, I can’t wait to see Vegas go up in the world.

Follow PJ Vegas on Instagram: @ therealpjvegas.