“I couldn’t have waited,” he tells EW.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: You are a multi-instrumentalist and you do everything yourself.
How much of a learning curve was there betweenJardinandAguita?
GABRIEL GARZON-MONTANO:It took me like two years.
I had to give myself permission to do all sorts of things.
This is a new way, you know?
That’s just one day.
JardinandAguitaare very different aesthetic-wise but also visually and sonically at times.
What was the decision behind that?
In terms of the style of music, I just wanted to experiment.
I felt a little bit stuck at the time.
Visually, I used to not give myself permission to just look like two different people.
I feel powerful in both of them as a straight man.
So-called straight man, you know, in a world that demands categories.
Was that feeling of being stuck coming from personal struggles or the music industry or elsewhere?
I wasn’t happy with the work I was making, that’s pretty much the bottom line.
So when you’re not proud of yourself, you don’t really have much else left.
“Someone” is one of my favorite tracks.
It tells the tale of a classic heartbreaking love story.
/ It hurt me, had to double take / I went ahead and did it anyway."
Is this song from personal experience or just an idea you built on?
No, that happened, that’s an ex-girlfriend of mine.
No, it’s not that difficult.
I always feel privileged to sing that kind of lyric that matters to someone.
That, to me, is the exciting part.
I’ve known that vulnerability is key.
It’s why people trust me.
It feels very intentional and honest.
Can you explain how he has further influenced your work?
The cover forAguitais a nod to Prince’sLovesexy, like down to the pinky.
Prince is a figure who is really the book on how to do it correctly.
He owned his business and created a literal factory.
Prince was able to embody femininity in his presentation that didn’t feel like a gimmick or a schtick.
They’ll answer questions about their sexuality but say a lot to say nothing.
Earlier you identified yourself as a “so-called straight man.”
What does that mean?
It means that I love women…
I’ve had experiences with men and they don’t feel the same way.
I fall in love with men and women.
My experiences have been mostly with women.
I made the choices I made, I continue to and I do it easily.
When people say, “What… do you identify with?”
Well, I feel like an outsider until I get to school.
My friends who are guys, definitely in that context.
The numbers in terms of critical mass on this planet are so insignificant.
It’s just like, man, people don’t even have memory.
The idea that everyone’s watching every change you make is just ludicrous.
It’s just like to be who you are to that.
And like, no one’s following that.
It’s just so far from what would make a great artist in the future.
