Say Solos

By day, Carlos Valdes is a graphic designer for the Department of Labor. Outside his nine-to-five, he’s Say Solos, a modern R&B crooner. Growing up in a Latino household in Woodbridge, Va., Valdes developed an ear for melodies and rhythms early on. But he started taking his music career more seriously about four years ago at a turning point in his personal life: His mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and he was in the midst of a breakup. A friend at the time asked Valdes what he’d most regret not doing if he was on his deathbed and he said “making music.” Since then he’s been building up beats and backing tracks armed just with a loop machine, a microphone, and his voice, although his latest EP, Three Tune Kid, features background tracks from his friend and fellow musician TF Woo. - DCist

By day, he’s Carlos Valdes, a graphic designer for the Department of Labor. But in his spare time, he’s Say Solos: an R&B-influenced singer-songwriter based in Alexandria, Virginia.

Growing up in Woodbridge, Virginia, Valdes comes from a Puerto Rican and Cuban household where music and dancing were fixtures at every family gathering. But he began creating music seriously more recently.

“About four years ago, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer,” said Valdes. “At the same time, the girl that I thought I was gonna marry, she had cheated on me.”

A friend inspired Valdes to turn his low point into a turning point: He began making music. He didn’t let his lack of instrumental training get in his way. Instead, he turned to a loop station, which he first saw while watching Reggie Watts’ Tiny Desk concert from 2012.

Now, Valdes enters NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Contest hoping to land the same big gig behind the small desk. In his submission video, Valdes is all calm focus, carefully mixing his vocals with sound effects and overlaying them to create a cohesive track. It takes two minutes before Say Solos can begin crooning in his smooth soprano, but the performance isn’t just about the song — it’s also about the journey. - NPR