Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicholas Dees.
Nicholas, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Hold On Hollywood formed at the very end of 2014 on December 28th when we finalized our line-up consisting of Ian Dartez (vocals/guitar), Corey Morgan (bass), Devin Holden (drums) and myself, Nick Dees (guitar/vocals). Devin and I had been playing together already for about five years, starting when we were 15, and had been without a steady band for about a year. We met Ian and Corey around local clubs, particularly BFE Rock Club, playing in the open mics and watching shows. Realizing we all had similar interests and musical goals, and we’re all looking for a steady band, we got together and jammed. The chemistry was instantly there and so we decided to book a show and run with it.
We played our first show April 24th, 2015 opening for Drowning Pool at BFE Rock Club. After that, we spent the coming months opening for as many more national acts as we could and building up to our own headlining shows. We recorded and released our debut EP “Save Me” in 2016 and our debut single “The Chase” gained a lot of popularity with our fans. After some internal strife, we took a hiatus from July of 2016 until March 31st of 2017, when we reunited for what was supposed to be a one-off show. We ended up falling back in love with what we were doing and realized how much we missed it. We got back into the full swing of things, and just under a year later, our so-called “big break” happened.
We won 94.5 the Buzz’s competition to open for Bon Jovi at the Toyota Center. After this performance on March 23rd of 2018, things started happening quickly for us. We met and became close with the people at 94.5 and got invited to be a part of their summer show at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, the Bud Light Roast. Before this show, they put our single “The Chase” into rotation on the station and played it like wildfire. Before we knew it, the show was upon us, and we played alongside hometown boys Blue October, along with AWOLNATION, Theory of a Deadman and Robert Delong. This was a huge success and led to us also being on the fall Buzzfest in October where we played with so many more huge, legendary artists.
We are now traveling around Texas and out of state more than ever before thanks to our amazing last year here in Houston. We’re also about to release a new EP, produced by Blue October’s own Matt Noveskey and are playing with them on their first annual Houston Music & Arts Festival July 27th at White Oak Music Hall. We are looking to push the band further than ever before and hope the remainder of 2019 will prove just as successful.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Definitely not. The road to anything worth having is always long and arduous. There have been many, many ups, but there have been just as many downs. When the band took it’s hiatus in 2016, it was because we felt we were spinning our wheels and not making any progress. Corey had been out of the band for almost eight months and Devin for about six months. We had gotten far from where we started and lost our way. Ian lived out of state and he just couldn’t do it anymore, and even he stepped away, so we laid the band to rest. Things weren’t pretty.
Ultimately, we found our way back and got things going again, and we have been running fairly strong-most of that time, but there are always setbacks. We do this all ourselves with the help of a very, very small team of people we don’t even need one whole hand to count. From booking the shows, running the shows, running our online presence, designing/creating merch and promotional stuff, trying to write new music and constantly evolve the band to bigger and greater heights – there is SO much that goes into this every day most people don’t realize.
Basically, being in a band is like being in a dysfunctional relationship with multiple people, in our case 4 + our team, and anyone whose ever been in a relationship knows what that is like. Being around people enough, there WILL be arguments, disagreements, moments of anger and such. Most of the time, we have a good time and laugh and things are great, but that definitely isn’t all of the time, and it can be draining. Traveling in cramped vans spending hundreds of dollars to travel to small out of town shows and recouping barely any cash, if any at all. Questionable sleeping conditions and meals lack sleep, you name it.
This definitely isn’t the easiest life, and there have been lots of sacrifices as far as a “normal life” goes for all of us. But we love what we do, and you have to love it to do it anywhere close to a serious level and on.
Hold On Hollywood – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Our name is Hold On Hollywood and we are a rock band from right here in Houston, TX. We play music we feel anyone could get into. At least, that’s our goal. We want you to be able to feel a connection with the songs and us, the passion we are trying to put out. I’ve always said, music should move you – either physically or emotionally. If it doesn’t make you wanna dance or sing, or make you feel something deep inside, it’s not worth listening to. So, with that in mind, that’s what we try to create for our listeners.
We’re best known for our debut single “The Chase” off our first EP “Save Me” which got a lot of airplay on 94.5 the Buzz for most of 2018. It won us a contest in March of last year to open for Bon Jovi at the Toyota Center. This show led to us being added to the Bud Light Roast in the summer and Buzzfest in October at the Woodlands Pavilion. We played alongside so many legendary acts we grew up listening to and some awesome up-and-coming ones like Badflower and Grandson. Over the years prior to that, we have also played some big shows around town at House of Blues, Warehouse Live, BFE Rock Club, the Wildcatter Saloon, Scout Bar and so much more, opening for big nationals and doing headlining shows of our own. These are probably the things we are most proud of. They are our crowning achievements as musicians and dreams we only imagined as kids to ever achieve.
I like to think our sound is unique enough to set us apart from others. We’re not doing anything groundbreaking genre-wise or anything, but we have an interesting combination of so many influences, spanning all types of genres and decades that creates some interesting musical compositions matched with Ian’s vocals that may not be exactly what you would expect over these types of songs. So, it’s familiar enough but just different enough to really catch your attention. We also just truly love what we do. We want to meet everyone and make that personal connection with as many people as we can. Not everyone does that, and that’s okay, but that’s how we do things. I know our fans appreciate it, they always tell us how much they love that we really take the time to get to know them as much as we possibly can and spend time with them, at the shows and even outside of them. I think this is one of the biggest things that has helped us grow and set us apart from those around us.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success to me is setting goals and surpassing them, no matter how big or small. Achieving those dream-level shows we did, landing our song on the radio, that was all success to us. Is it the ultimate level of success? No, but if you spend your whole life just focusing on one big goal, you’ll be very disappointed and probably fail. Life is about appreciating the little things, small victories, and growth. It makes the ride that much more enjoyable and helps you stay grounded. When I can look back and realize I have done the things I was wanting to do years, months, or even weeks ago, then I know I have succeeded in whatever goals I’ve made for myself. Seeing that makes me happy, and ultimately, the biggest success is just that. Being happy with yourself and your life. That’s what its all about at the end of the day.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.holdonhollywood.com
- Email: holdonhollywood@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/holdonhollywood
- Facebook: facebook.com/holdonhollywood
- Twitter: twitter.com/holdonhollywood
- Other: youtube.com/holdonhollywood
Image Credit:
Blake Ralston, Henry Santos
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