My earliest memory is being in my Grandmother‘s house in the countryside in Southern Spain with all of my family, every Sunday. My father has 8 brothers and sisters, so there were many aunts and uncles, cousins... Around 50 people having lunch together and playing in nature until sundown.
I grew up completely surrounded by the sea, always in the streets playing with friends and spending entire summers at the beach. Most summer nights, my parents and their friends from the neighborhood would sit on chairs in the street to play cards and we would continue playing games nearby until well after midnight. I really loved that!
From my Mother I learned to be warm and not to feel pressure to rush in making decisions. From my father, I have the knowledge that we’re each just a small part in the fabric of a universe moving at an amazing pace. We have such a short time to live here and our only mission is to appreciate life and to love the experience.
The best piece of advice I’ve been given is from my father who taught me to always give the best that you have, especially when it is difficult.
As a teenager I struggled with the feeling of not being accepted I had to overcome the self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy.
One time I was crying alone in the street because I had just heard about a friend of mine having a terrible accident. There was a man who approached me and offered me an incredibly paternal hug. He told me that everything was going to be okay, and then he left. I still think about him and I recognize him as an angel.
The book that touched me very deeply was Yogananda’s autobiography. He had experiences in his life that would seem simply not possible. Reading his book, you are able to see that through living a life following one’s intuition rather than the push of society’s direction, one can encounter experiences that are not only in fact possible, but also necessary.
The film that has most influenced me is ‘La belle verte’, an independent French film. It is absolutely sweet and at the same time, critical of our society. It shows us just how far we are from a point of living in peace with the planet and with the others.
The album, song or band that most inspired me is Camel. Maybe it was the first song of their first album.. For me, it was the point of entry to symphonic rock, a music style that gave me the desire to be a musician, have a band and seek new ways of expression.
The person who shaped me as a musician was Carlos Rey, a flamenco guitarist from San Fernando. I met him when I was fourteen and he was around thirty. He trusted me even more than I trusted myself as a musician, and he treated me like an adult, which gifted me a lot of confidence.
When Camarón died it had a huge imact on me. He was the best flamenco singer that ever existed and he was from my town. I remember waking up one morning when I was six years old and seeing my street packed full of people. My house is very close to the cemetery where he is buried, and this mass of people from all over the country congregated there, crying. The love for him from so many, was incomparable.
A few weeks ago a video went viral of a man sitting with his small daughter on the sofa. He was telling her that the noises they were hearing from the street were fireworks. They were laughing together with each explosion. The truth was that the sounds were bombs near their house, and he was taking the most incredible, courageous approach to saving her from fear.
Right now I am taking so much pleasure from finding myself in places close to nature, knowing that I can spend time giving space to my creativity and following my own desires. It’s important to find balance through reprieves from external circumstances.
I find it taxing when others lack empathy and compassion for those around them. One of the most important things in this life is the practice of having and displaying compassion for those that don’t necessarily make it easy. I think it’s crucial to recognize the blindness that challenges people sometimes, instead of being quick to judge only the behaviors we see.
As humans we harm ourselves by being overly focused on having “more”. Being so goal-oriented, we often don’t give ourselves the ability to rest in knowing that we are “enough” from the beginning. People often spend their lives chasing an elusive ideal, which can mean missing out on our innately-deserved happiness.
The thing I’ve learned with age is the importance of genuine friendships: those few special connections that are resilient and underscored by deep understanding and support of the other. I have also realized the supreme need to remove fear, in order to be able to love without limits.
I would tell my younger self…You don’t need to be worried about trying to be like somebody else, you only have to focus on being the best version of yourself.
A motto I live by….Focus on what you are, not on what you do.
I strive to conquer the inner demon that tries to tell me, “You are not good enough”.
I believe in…The impact that each person can have in the world.
What disappoints me…is pride in ignorance.
Someone who still inspires me is Alejandro Hodorovski (Chilean-French filmmaker and artis). He is an example of how to age with increasing clarity and expansion of your creativity. He is always discovering new aspects of himself despite becoming older and I find that extremely empowering.
Antonio Lizana's fourth studio Album 'Una Realidad Diferente' is out on Warner Music.
