Whether you’ve seen him on Broadway, on screen, or somewhere in between, chances are you’ve already come across Al Calderon. But with his upcoming singles Make Me Wanna and Brokiii, he’s inviting audiences into a more personal side of his world. Blending English and Spanish with effortless ease, the music explores heartbreak, self-discovery, and the complicated emotions that come with moving on. Honest without taking itself too seriously, the songs balance vulnerability with confidence, proving that sometimes the best stories come from the moments we’d rather not relive. We caught up with Al to talk about his latest releases, embracing both sides of his identity, and turning life’s messier moments into music.
Al Calderon @alcalderon
Photographer GARA @gara
Fashion Editor Eugenia Gamero @eugeniagamero
What does this chapter of your life look like right now?
This chapter of my life right now looks like being fearless. Being afraid to do something but doing it anyway. I am very shy. I hate asking for help. I am pretty sensitive to rejection. I will actually brace of rejection before I even attempt to ask which deters me from ever asking. And it’s been quite a journey for me. So I think that this chapter really is leaning into trusting that I am worthy, that I am talented, that people like me, that regardless of what social media numbers say or streams say or whatever else there is to measure perceived “success” That I’m going to continue to put my art out. I am so grateful that I have incredible people in my life that uplift me and remind me that I am worthy. I do have a seat at the table. This is the beginning of the fearlessness entry but slowly but surely I’m making my way into putting myself out there more and more. And if I get rejected or declined then so be it. At least I tried. And it’s funny because most of the time, I get the outcome I hope for. Fear is a crazy crazy beast. The kind you have to fight and fight until you desensitize yourself because you’re so evolved! That’s where I plan on operating from. It’s been a long time coming.
What do you hope people feel when they listen to these songs for the first time?
I hope that people feel whisked away. For the 2 minutes and some seconds that I get to have your attention for, I hope you hear a lyric, a melody, a hi-hat, a baseline that makes you have an opinion. I’m getting more and more comfortable with the idea that not everyone is going to think your stuff is good. But that doesn’t mean it’s bad. The tale as old as time of the inability to please EVERYONE is a hard / tough pill to swallow. But I hope that when you add it to the rotation it makes you feel connected. The feelings that you might not have been able to place words to, I hope that comes through for you when you listen to these songs. Because we can’t minimize ourselves. We don’t get a lot of time here on this earth. Do whatever the hell you wanna do. (That’s not just for you that’s for me) Music takes us away from the toughness of the world for a few minutes. I hope my music makes you feel seen, heard, and everything in between. Makes you wanna sing at the top of your lungs or just take a relaxing late night drive and enjoy the breeze. You can take your pick. I also hope the shit makes you feel cool listening to it too. Like you can just pull up to a red light with the windows down and want everyone else to hear the fire music you’re listening to.
Switching between English and Spanish feels very natural in your music. Was that always part of the vision?
I grew up being a no-sabo kid. So sometimes my inner self critic will tell myself that I’m being phony or fear that if my Spanish isn’t perfect or tip top that I’ll come across as inauthentic. Growing up bi-ethnic – I like to say because I’m half Sicilian and half Puerto Rican – I’ve always identified and resonated with my latino side MUCH more. I was just immersed in it culturally a bit more. Music, food, parties etc. And so it wasn’t always part of the vision. Bad Bunny really inspired me. I mean I’ve been a fan of his since like 2018/2019 – I almost got run over by a bike at Coachella in 2019 trying to see him at like 4pm when he had his first album X100pre. The more I listened to his music the more inspired I was to really hone in on my Spanish. Luckily I grew up with hearing it so it was really easy for me to pick up. I was always nervous to make mistakes. But one day, I woke up, and I wondered what a Spanglish Pop/R&B vibe/project would feel like and sound like. My best friend/only collaborator I trust with my life, Joseph Tilley, is always down for my crazy ideas. I trust his taste because I know he’ll always keep it real with me. He was immediately down. We’ve just been playing around with different songs and ideas for the last two years and I feel confident in where the music is headed and I’m SO much more confident in my Spanish now than I’ve ever been. And I’m really proud of these songs that we created together.
“Brokiii” turns heartbreak into something catchy. How did that concept come together?
Brokiii is a cool one for me. Broki means bro. And I thought that there was something cool phonetically, about the way Broki and Broken sound together. And the lyric is “You left me broken, broki”. I thought it was a clever way to utilize both words. And like I said before, my buddy Joseph Tilley is truly one of one. I’ll come into a session and say “I wanna write a song called [insert song title here] and he will always tell me … Okay! Not to just go with it either, I really value his opinion and I think he’d tell me if something was terrible. I came into the session I think explaining to him writing a song basically about someone breaking your heart and you revert back to just being the homie. You traded the cute nickname “baby” for “bro” And that kind of stings. I’m a sad boy at heart, so tapping into my heartbreak is easy. It’s harder for me to write happy lyrics which, yikes, saying that out loud sounds pretty bleak, but I promise I laugh and joke and am funny. I swear! I just like to make music that his upbeat and you can shake your butt and cry at the same time! I love the juxtaposition of a song with a sort bright melodic journey with super sad lyrics that isn’t a ballad or a slower song. So to have some mid tempo / up-tempo songs that have heartbreaking concepts but have a musical composition that is bright is a cool duality to me.
Is there a lyric from the song that hits differently every time you hear it?
Wow, I’ve never thought about this. And this question really intrigued me. I actually had to just sing the song in my head and read through the lyrics real quick. I feel like it’s sort of so self involved or self indulgent to say that the entire song kind of hits differently every time I listen through it. Because I open with – “I forget to breathe, cause with you baby it’s always something” I think we’ve ALL been in situations where it’s almost as if you’re in the matrix trying to dodge bullets. My anxiety is on high alert at all times. I’m a people pleaser by nature, which I’m trying to unlearn but man. That opening lyric hits me. And so does “Gotta get over you holding me, forget about all you told me” That moment of letting go. Sometimes I sing it with that confidence of IDGAF and then sometimes I sing it with vulnerability and sadness. I try to write songs and music that describe the emotions that I need to hear in a given moment. It’s why we turn to the arts. To feel seen. We need that song or that show to help us put words to our feelings.