#UpgradeMe with Dana Leong

People always ask, what is it like to work in the music industry and how do artists make a living? Can you survive from making content for YouTube? During the pandemic, that question has become much more complex. However, they still say, ‘slow and steady wins the race’. Over the past 6 years I’ve known her, I’ve watched Minami grow in every way while relentlessly releasing songs and music videos on her duo CREAM's YouTube Channel as well as going out and making it happen live on tour throughout the year. Her story is one that drives home a healthy reminder of the fundamentals of persistence and courage. Courage to go against expectations and the beyond the obligatory and at times around the seemingly very operational practices in the Japanese entertainment industry. From working with some of the biggest names in Japan’s music industry to her hilarious stories of humble beginnings, I am honored to share the #UpgradeMe story of Minami from CREAM.

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Welcome back to #UpgradeMe. It’s a podcast about the never ending self improvement journey, ideas and life hacks to help you level up and the people who make it happen! Hosted by Dana Leong, a 2x Grammy Winning Musician, a US Music Ambassador and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

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Today, we dive deep into the world of a true virtuoso, Jordan Rudess, whose journey from being a classical pianist at Juilliard in New York to the keyboard wizard of Dream Theater is nothing short of extraordinary. Imagine a young prodigy, trained in the hallowed halls of Juilliard, choosing to abandon the predictable path to explore the uncharted realms of progressive rock. Much like an artist swapping the traditional canvas for the digital screen, Rudess embraces synthesizers and innovation, crafting soundscapes that transcend the ordinary. His story is a symphony of bold decisions and relentless pursuit of musical excellence. From his early days in the electronic space music band "Complex", to transforming into a titan of the prog-metal scene with Dream Theater, Jordan's career is a testament to the power of following one's passion. He seamlessly blends the precision of classical training with the experimental edge of rock, much like a master chef blending the most unexpected ingredients to create a culinary masterpiece. Join us as we explore the mind of a man who doesn't just play keyboards — he redefines them. We'll discuss his groundbreaking work with Liquid Tension Experiment, his ventures into software development with Wizdom Music, and his role as an educator shaping future generations of musicians. Ready yourself for a journey through realms of music innovation and creativity with the one and only Jordan Rudess.

#JordanRudess  @JordanRudessKeys  #DreamTheater  @dreamtheaterofficial  #DanaLeong #Grammy #Juilliard  @JuilliardSchool  #Piano  @PianoteOfficial  #Keyboard #Korg  @KorgOfficial  #ProgRock

In a world of hustlers, bustlers and innovators, we all seek balance. Combining classical realism at the urban edge of hip-hop and street art, Justin BUA balances being a forward thinking artist while reinventing the classical brush on canvas medium through original caricatures from his colorful youth, statement pieces of pop-culture icons and his one and only globally top selling posterized painting “the DJ”. Even if you haven’t heard of him, you’ve most likely seen his work as it can be seen at The renowned Los Angeles County Museum of Art, on the TV shows he has hosted, music videos, major brand campaigns and gracing the walls in the homes of Hollywood and NBA royalty. It’s my pleasure to speak with the artist, the trailblazer, the OG, Justin BUA. If you enjoy today’s episode, please don’t forget to hit the subscribe and like buttons, connect with us in the comments and on your favorite platforms to stream audio and video. We’ve also got a Patreon page, where you can subscribe to, support new creation and receive that very exclusive content and merch. You won’t regret it. ------

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We often take certain things for granted, especially when it comes to the autonomy of how a restaurant works. If designing and running one of the biggest and busiest restaurants in the Bay Area isn’t a big enough task for you to underestimate, imagine conceptualizing and running sixteen of them. Maybe it would take someone with the business sense of a Wall Street banker, the mental fortitude of a China Town Big Boss, the connections of a million-miler doing deals from Shanghai to San Francisco and someone who sees and jumps at opportunities to improve their industry on an artistic and systematic level. I am thrilled that life brought us to this juncture where that person has agreed to sit down with us on #UpgradeMe. It’s my pleasure to share with you, my conversation with restauranteur and business mastermind, Chef George Chen.

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https://chinalivesf.com/

Whether you know it or not, you KNOW Nathan East. Not only is he “A” bass player, he is THE bass player.

You can mention pretty much any important figure from music in the last 5 decades and it’s a solid bet he’s been involved with a collaboration.

From the smooth grooves of Barry White to the innovative beats of Daft Punk, Nathan’s bass has been the backbone of countless hits. His collaborations span genres and generations, making him a true titan of the music industry.

But Nathan’s talents extend beyond the bass. He’s also an accomplished amateur magician as a member of The Magic Castle and the Academy of Magical Arts. His love for magic “and” music began in his childhood, studying cello in his junior high school’s orchestra, much like… uh.. me (Dana).

Today, we dive deep into his musical development and life experiences that which have shaped him into the man he is today.

Buckle up and get ready for a magical musical ride with the one and only, Nathan East on this episode of #UpgradeMe with Dana Leong.

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#UpgradeMePod #DanaLeong #NathanEast #Grammy #Bass #PharrellWilliams #DaftPunk #Goat #MusicHistory #PlatinumRecord #EricClapton #MusicIndustry #YamahaEntertainmentGroup

Welcome back to #UpgradeMe. It’s a podcast about the never ending self improvement journey, ideas and life hacks to help you level up and the people who make it happen! Hosted by Dana Leong, a 2x Grammy Winning Musician, a US Music Ambassador and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

Support #UpgradeMe:

Join our communities online at:

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Upgrade Me is sponsored by https://www.TEKTONIKmusic.org (Harmony Heals)

Very few people have attained the level of innovation in their craft as DJ Qbert. The saying “If You Build It, They Will Come” was written about guys like him. Years before rising to global fame, he had already been discovering and perfecting a huge number of turntable routines and tricks that would become standardized scratches, staple sounds in hip-hop, pop culture caricatures in TV/Film/Video games, a focus within numerous music and sound production schools and the absolute metric of talent at the famed Disco Mix Club aka the DMC International DJ Competition. Qbert has bravely and pridefully straddled the line between commercial successes as visible as TV commercials for Apple and his own deep dirty break beat cuts such as ‘Galactic Butthair’, pioneering scratch music film scores for psychedelic animated movies such as ‘Wavetwisters’ and founding his own Qbert Skratch University. There is no way to ever be fully prepared for the freestyle music and comedy extravaganza that is the master DJ Qbert, and I’m honored to say we tried today on #UpgradeMe.

https://www.DJqbert.com

https://www.youtube.com/@thudrumble

TEKTONIK Music Workout Diary by Dana Leong #TKwork

A free workout journal curated by Grammy Musician & Wellness Enthusiast Dana Leong - Tag @TEKTONIKmusic #TKwork, Share, Tweet, DO IT!

bit.ly/TKWORK

Welcome back to Upgrade Me. It’s a podcast about the never ending self improvement journey, ideas and life hacks to help you level up and the people who make it happen! Hosted by Dana Leong, a 2x Grammy Winning Musician, a US Musical Ambassador and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

Support #UpgradeMe:

https://www.patreon.com/UpgradeMePod

Join our communities online at:

https://www.Instagram.com/UpgradeMePod

https://www.TikTok.com/@UpgradeMePod

https://www.Facebook.com/UpgradeMePod

https://www.youtube.com/@UpgradeMePod

https://www.soundcloud.com/UpgradeMePod

https://x.com/PodUpgrade

https://www.linkedin.com/in/DanaLeong

Subscribe to Upgrade Me:

https://bit.ly/upgradeytsub

#UpgradeMe is sponsored by https://www.TEKTONIKmusic.org (Harmony Heals)

#DJQbert #dmc #DMCworldchamps #DJ #HipHop #WaveTwisters #ThudRumble #MixMasterMikeOFFICIAL #d-styles530 #88rising #TheOFFICIALDMCUSA #invisiblskratchpiklz #grammy #danaleong #motivation #comedy #DJcityTV #Fuse #reorena884 #boilerroom #Diplo #djsararyusei #IMOKDILLA #DJKhaledOfficial #dubspot #vestax2650 #NativeInstruments

Welcome back to #UpgradeMe. It’s a podcast about the never ending self improvement journey, ideas and life hacks to help you level up and the people who make it happen! Hosted by Dana Leong, a 2x Grammy Winning Musician, a US Musical Ambassador and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

Join our communities online at:

Subscribe to Upgrade Me:

https://bit.ly/upgradeytsub

Upgrade Me is sponsored by TEKTONIK Music (Harmony Heals)

There are a number of sayings in business that ring true and are constantly repeated like a broken record. ‘Time in the market beats timing the market’, ‘location location location’, ‘A lot of it (business) has to do with luck’, ‘know thy customer’ and the list goes on and on.

In as many ways as we can count, Dr. Ta-Lin Hsu has played a most impressive game of career chess. Joining the Hambrecht & Quist Group as a general partner in 1985, then founding H&Q Asia Pacific in 1986, there have been a series of household names incubated under his wing such as MTV’s migration into Japan and Starbucks into China, not to mention over 2.7 billion dollars in committed capital. His achievements read like a rolodex of headlines from BusinessWeek’s “Stars of Asia”, one of Forbes magazine’s Top 25 Tech Deal Makers, Top Deal Maker in 2008, Fortune Magazine’s top 100 People Influencing China and the World’s Capital Flow and he now sits on numerous boards for the advancement of technology as well as Charing philanthropies improving quality of life in underserved areas of the world and the furthering of global harmony through international music collaborations. I’m honored to have spent an hour on #UpgradeMe, learning from and growing with Dr. Ta-Lin Hsu.

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#TaLinHsu #Billionaire #Investor #Motivation #LifeHacks #DanaLeong #Grammy #Motivation

For as long as we have existed, hand to hand combat has been a vital measure of our tribal value and the purest metric of our rank. Dominant alphas have been decorated in spoil and treasure, conquered borders and later wore gold on their fingers necks and waists.

Cung Le is a multi-disciplinarian martial artist, an actor in Oscar Nominated Films alongside actress Zhang Ziyi of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, the head coach and mentor for Ultimate Fighter China and the founder of his very own “fight or flight” school where he makes “Rambo First Blood” look like child’s play. He is a father, a husband, recently a grandfather and a devout man of god, but don’t let that fool you, he is still every bit combat ready. Today he shares his life’s story, his philosophies for training and elevating success and how he is passing on his legacy and craft to his sons.

Follow Cung Le:

https://www.cungleofficial.com/

Filmed at https://www.punchkingfitnesssj.com/

Support UpgradeMe https://www.patreon.com/UpgradeMePod

Welcome back to Upgrade Me. It’s a podcast about the never ending self improvement journey, ideas and life hacks to help you level up and the people who make it happen! Hosted by Dana Leong, a 2x Grammy Winning Musician, a US Musical Ambassador and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

Join our communities online at:

https://www.patreon.com/UpgradeMePod

https://www.Instagram.com/UpgradeMePod

https://www.TikTok.com/@UpgradeMePod

https://www.Facebook.com/UpgradeMePod

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UpgradeMePod

https://www.soundcloud.com/UpgradeMePod

https://www.Twitter.com/UpgradeMePod

https://www.linkedin.com/in/DanaLeong

Subscribe to Upgrade Me:

https://bit.ly/upgradeytsub

Upgrade Me is sponsored by TEKTONIKmusic.org (Harmony Heals)

#UpgradeMe #DanaLeong #Grammy #Motivation #PunchKing @CungLeOfficial @danaleongmusic #MMA #Champion #Kickboxing