Name: King Dawidalle
Grade: Sophomore
Major: Writing
Minor: Music

King Dawidalle has been playing the upright bass since he was 10 years old.

“My dad put the bass in my hand,” Dawidalle said. “I didn’t want to at first, because I was more into drumming. Then I started to realize I was really good at bass. It just came easy to me so I started playing and got more into it.”

In high school he joined concert band for his first year, Dawidalle said. When sophomore year came, he joined jazz band and has stuck with it ever since. However, things could have turned out very differently for Dawidalle.

“If I did not switch school districts, I would be a violist right now, so I’m kind of glad things worked the way they did,” Dawidalle said.

Now that the bass is his main instrument, Dawidalle said it’s very important, especially in a jazz setting.

“It’s very melodic and you’re pretty much the leader. You have to play a lot of root chords,” Dawidalle said. “Without our stable guidance, the rest of the band can’t follow. It’s a very important responsibility and I’m grateful to have the ability and discipline to do it.”

Dawidalle said he takes inspiration from many big names, including Ron Carter, Charles Mingus, Cecil Mcbee and Marcus Miller. However, one of his greatest inspirations is his dad.

“My dad’s the reason why I play a lot too. He’s a musician….Every day he’s emailing me something new to listen to. He plays guitar, he used to play saxophone, and he’s a singer/songwriter,” Dawidalle said.

Dawidalle has dabbled in composing his own music as well.

“I have a band back home called Dysfunction and all we do is originals,” Dawidalle said. “I’ve pretty much named 99 percent of our songs, and I guess that comes from my writing creativity to be able to express my ideas through words if I have to.”

Last year at a combo concert, Dawidalle played a song he wrote titled “Vision.” He said this piece was inspired by wanting to go to Italy and watching his dreams unfold in a certain way.

“That was my vision. So that’s just an example of how I get my ideas when I’m writing a song,” Dawidalle said.

Dawidalle pulls from various styles in his musical journey.

“When it comes to music, I like grooves. I like dark stuff…. Stuff like that is very appealing to me,” Dawidalle said. “I get a lot of hip-hop influences too. I like anything that sounds good. I use it to my advantage.”

Music has become such a staple in Dawidalle’s life that he said he can’t do anything, including homework, without music in the background.

“It pretty much tells the story of my life. It’s always been a part of me. Ultimately, I want music to take over when I’m done with school and going into the big world of things,” Dawidalle said. “Without music, honestly, 75 percent of the world’s entertainment and life and how we view things wouldn’t exist. I just find it’s a very powerful thing and it needs to be continued and I want to be able to implement that.”