In conversation with Huber
Huber in front of one of his paintings in his family home. Huber in his backyard with his two brothers, Eliseo and Leon, and his girlfriend, Lily. Huber in the studio he uses to record, located in the basement of his girlfriend’s family home. Huber decorating his bathroom.
Who are you?
Huber Osvaldo Lara Vega. But yeah, I just go by Huber. I'm 22 and I'm from Louisville, Kentucky. I was born in Dallas, and I've lived in Mexico, Texas, and Atlanta, but most of my life has been spent in Louisville. That's my hometown.
First song you're playing on aux in the car?
When I hop in the car, right now on rotation is bigger thën everything by Yeat and then Violent Lullaby by BLP Kosher and Yung Lean. That's a good way to start the morning.
Most overrated thing?
Taylor Swift. [Laughs] No, no, no, don't get me wrong. I like some shit. But I don't think she should be the biggest popstar in the world. You know, when we think about the other person that had that spot before it's like Michael Jackson. You know? He did some crazy shit, but outside of all that stuff like the music was just better. Actually, nah, nah, nah, the most overrated shit is sparkling water, like flavored sparkling water. What do they call them? The shit that white people love?
La Croix?
La Croix. That shit is overrated. I don't like it. I've never understood it.
My mom loves La Croix [Laughs] Most underrated thing?
I don't know if it's underrated, but I think Vietnamese food. At least my homies ain’t know about like pho and like bahn mis. I took them to Paris Bahn Mi and now they love that shit. My girl doesn't like pho but I fucking love it, like, every time I'm hung over its either that or tacos or papusas.
Comfort food?
Pho. Actually, nah, I'll say this. I'll go to Double Dragon whenever I really just need some shit or because I live right next door to it and I've always loved it. I go to Double Dragon off Goss lane and I get me a small combination fried rice, a small shrimp lo mein, an egg roll and an order of the hot oil sauce. That's the best shit bro. And they always tell you 10 minutes and you can show up in five minutes and they'll have that shit ready bro. They're always on point.
Last thing you bought?
A tattoo. It's like a little fairy off of a piece of flash.
Top artist this year?
Dominic Fike. Only reason is though, he just had one song that I thought was fire. Number two was Paris, Texas. That's really who got it. That's underrated too, Paris, Texas. Heavily underrated. Best show I saw at Coachella.
Homie that inspires you?
Shit, my girl ain't my homie. That's like family. So I'll probably say Ali. That's the homie who inspires me. Crazy thing is we never liked each other in high school. Like at first because he ain't like me and I ain’t like him. And then we just like clicked. I call him almost every other day and we just talk. Right now he's living in LA trying to like become an actor. So you know, he really like inspired me to be like, fuck it, and just chase my dreams.
What are you most proud of right now?
The drive man. I mean, I'm not saying I never had it, but it was like for a while I was slacking. But recently, I've just been so locked in. And I've been actually putting in a lot of the work. I used to always think like, oh man, I'm getting overlooked. But then I realized I'm not putting in the work. But lately I've been putting in the work and I've seen that people don't overlook you once you start putting in the work so it's been nice to see that shit and it's been rewarding.
What gets you stoked?
Every time I make a song, the first person I send it to is my sister. It's always just nice to hear what she thinks because we have similar tastes in music and she's honest. Like if I'm on some bullshit, she'll say it. But if I'm doing good, she'll be like, “God, this is fire.” So that's what I'm most excited for is showing her music. Oh, that and jiu jitsu.
One sentence of advice for the youth?
It's not that people are overlooking you, it's just that you’re not putting in the work.
How would you describe what you do?
I think I've become like, an amalgamation of everything bro, but the thing I've really been recently focused on is music. That's like where I’ve been putting most of my time because I think that that could give me, like, a foot in the door…I know Kanye canceled but him and Childish Gambino really laid it out for people that want to do, you know, other things. And I guess Action Bronson does that too. Like where he raps and makes art and he makes like olive oil and shit.
My passions are like, I think the number one spot is between music and art and then I would say film, and then photography, and then clothing. My goal is like I just want to connect with more people. I just want a bigger platform. That's my only thing. Like, I don't care if I'm not making money off this shit, like, the money is good. You know, as long as I can sustain myself and take care of people around me, that's fine, but I don’t need to be fucking Jeff Bezos rich, or like Kanye rich. I just need enough to take care of myself, and the people around me. My biggest desire is just to connect with people because I think that's just what I want, you know, just the connection with others.
Was there a moment when you knew you wanted to get into music?
I think I wrote my first song when I was like a kid. It was like, to my dad, like, on Father's Day. So it was like some corny shit. Like, [singing] “I love you, and you and mom, like should get back together”, just some shit like that. In high school I was just so focused on partying and shit, I never really thought much about it but I always wrote poetry. Like I always wrote poetry. Like if you go to my Instagram, if you go down, like I used to just post on my main timeline, there's poetry that I would write for people, like legit people. I don't know, I just felt like that was a way of expressing myself.
My friend Chancel used to always talk about like, “Ah, man, we should rap and blah, blah,” and we used to always just hang out at my house and play beats and freestyle, but I never really got too serious into it. Then he passed away, and that just like, sparked something in me where I was like, man, like, it's not like I was doing it for him, but it was more like, I need to do this, I have something to say, you know, and I had to tell that story about us. And I was like people just have to hear our story. And not because of us, it's just I think it's a story worth listening to, and not because like, we're the characters, but it's because I think there's good lessons in there. So that kind of got me back into music. And that kind of like was just a spark and I felt that I had something to share.
How did your most recent album come together?
So, I didn't even want to call it an album first because I get the beats from like internet producers and shit. So I'm not really producing it myself but I mostly just work more on the mixing of the vocals and the full sound itself and then once I get the beats, I do it all myself. It's not as perfect as I want it yet. I think I'm pretty good with getting it to the point where I’m like, alright, this sounds good. So I didn't want to call it an album. But I feel like it was gonna be too long to explain as a mixtape because it's also kind of conceptual. So I was like, fuck it, I'll just call it an album bro…At first, I always wanted to make music where I could sing. Rapping is cool too, but I wanted to make songs where I could sing on them. But I couldn't sing at first, and then, I don't know, man, I just started practicing more and like working on my voice and I got better…
As the songs started coming along, and I had all the songs start piling up, I was like, okay, it just clicks because, like, all the fucking music sounded like some of my favorite soundtracks to movies, but like coming of age movies, you know, like, Seventeen Again. Just movies that had, like, The Strokes in them. Stuff like that was just so nostalgic, at least to us now that we're in the 2020s. But like, in the 2000s, it was just like music at the time. So I started making all the songs and they kind of told a story in a way, like, a very rough story, and then that's when I was like, alright, cool, I like these four songs. That's when I kind of knew I needed to find out how they all fit in and I started making songs more based on these ideas and these themes because it was mostly based on my life. And that's why also, it works so perfectly as a film, because these are all based on moments in my life…So yeah, and that's why also the title of some songs are so long, because each song title is supposed to sound like a movie...
So the real story in it, and it's not obvious, I think, but it could be if you like, pay attention, but it's me, I am Señor Tonto which literally means Mr. Dummy. It's a lot based on me, like, right after I graduated high school, and like high school days…The stories are of this kid in Trump’s America…and, you know, he's going through it with like, all the open relationships that he has, and like all the girls that he's fallen in love with and then he's also fighting to love and then he realizes the hypocrisy in his ways. There's like a song dedicated to my mom and I'm talking to her about being saved from my dad and there's a lot of parallels between my dad and myself. So, you know, as I'm doing all this, I’m telling the story of this kid who can't seem to figure out why he's fucking up in all these relationships and then at the same time you realize that him and his dad share some parallels. So in the second to the last song, he's talking to his girl and kind of realizing some of his mistakes and apologizing. And at same time, it could also be interpreted as his dad apologizing to their mom. In the end it's about growth and like, just being a better person.
What do you do to support yourself when you’re not making music or art?
I paint houses. I do construction, my dad did that my whole life, so I just do that now and it gets good money…It's a bitch because sometimes you gotta wake up at seven to get to the job at eight and then you're there from like, eight to six. My family was in Mexico for like, two or three years because they had earned enough money and my parents wanted a break from working, so they were just taking time off. So my brothers, like every moment they get, they just want to spend it with me. It's also hard because I have to make time for family, make time for my girlfriend, make time for, you know, just eating. And I'm trying to get healthy so I gotta make time for just getting in shape and then also time for the studio…
You don't think you'd have time for it all, because you know, you get home and you're like, oh fuck all this, but you really just have to have a positive outlook…But, you know, I make time for it. I'll go home after work and get there at six, my mom will usually have dinner made or I’ll like, make myself something and then I'll shower…play with my brothers for like an hour or two and then come here, record in the studio and then go to sleep at my girl's house and try to make time for everybody else somewhere in between. Sometimes, you know, you have to make that sacrifice, like I’ll tell the kids like I'm going to jiu jitsu today, you know, like, I can't spend time with you guys. Or like, I'll tell my girl like I'm staying at home tonight so I can be with my brothers more. So yeah it’s really just prioritizing. But it’s tiring you know, there's some nights where I'm like, fuck, like I want a break, you know, but it's worth it.
I feel like a lot of people create this illusion that they don't have to work a job and that you have to be able to just make it through music and stuff at first. So I feel like it's really respectable to be working on something and have a job and still make time to work on art and that shows that you really love it. I guess you talked about how having a day job affects what you're doing negatively, but do you feel like it has any positive impact on your art?
Yeah bro, when I get messages from people who are like, “This shit is amazing.” You know? Like when they love my music, especially people that I've never met, through social media or like posting on Tik Tok. I've had people who aren’t even from here text me, like this one girl posted on her story and I was like in her top five [Spotify Wrapped] this year and she texted me literally when I dropped the album and was like, ”Best day of my life,” or something like that…I don't have too many fans but with the fans that are there I like to follow them back to stay connected because this is how you build a fanbase, you know, show love to the people that are showing love early. I really appreciate stuff like that, or when I have a showing at a gallery and everybody shows out for me and people come out and support it and I get to see my pieces get so much love from different people…
Other day at the movies, one of your homies dude, he works at Baxter right?
Oh shit, yeah. Aidan?
Yeah, Aidan, and he was like, “I love the Pretty Love video.” And then like we didn't pay for the popcorn or something. Actually we did pay for that, yeah we paid, we paid, we paid. [Laughing] Don't fire the guy, he's the best employee at Baxter, actually yeah, I paid twice for my ticket. But yeah, I mean just him recognizing that and at the time I was with my brother and, you know, I'm walking with my little brother to the theater and he's like, “Oh, he knows you, like he listens to your music.” Like moments like that, you know, they make it all worth it.
What does success mean to you?
Impact. I've said it a million times, I told it to the lady today, when we were talking about my art at the gallery. She wants it, but she knows it might be hard to sell, because of the controversies that come with the type of art that I make. But I'm not here to get rich. As I said, I just want my family to be straight, so we don't gotta be rich. I don't even want to live here, I want to live in Mexico. That's not too expensive, you know, so if I can start making a career out of art or music I'll be well enough to live good or like, normal. I don't need a mansion or none of that stuff, I want an impact. Like, one of my favorite artists, Nick Drake, died young. He never got to get recognition for any of the music that he made and that shit has impacted so many people, you know, it's touched so many lives. I don't want that though, like, I'd be fucking sad, that would suck…I don't care if right now maybe I might struggle. But lets say like 20 years from now people are like, “Nah, he was doing some shit,” you know?
What would your dream scenario be in five years?
I'd be on tour, my family would be taken care of, and I'd just be connecting with people. I don't care to be number one, you know, whatever. Obviously it'd be awesome, like everybody wants to be the fucking Beatles, if you can get the impact on the world and also the fame and all that shit that comes with it. But if I don't get that, as long as I'm just able to be on tour, share my experiences, and just my stories, that's all I need.
How are you going to get there?
I put out this project this year, and I had the band here last night. We're trying to get going with recording some live versions of different songs…so we can do a fun, like kind of, live album where it's a little bit different from old versions of my songs. I want to keep getting together with them so we can eventually have a show, you know, start doing some stuff here in Louisville. By next year me and the homies are planning on moving to New York. So if I'm over there, I mean, just the same shit I'm doing here, but it's over there. Hopefully, there's more opportunities. So I’ll just keep grinding it out. Meeting musicians…to get some shows going and play over there. You know, show people my music. Continue with the art, show my work at galleries and just stuff like that.
I feel like a lot of people, especially everyone who's grown up here, can tell that Louisville is a pretty special place…
I tell the homies that all the time, not to cut you off, and people are saying like Louisville and Kentucky are considered the south but Louisville is a midwest city. Like it feels more like the Midwest than it feels like the south, and on top of that we’re part of the drug highway…The BMF, like the Black Mafia Family used to run drugs through Louisville…so like with Louisville lingo, there are people talking like Atlanta, people have Chicago lingo, people got New York lingo. You know, it's just so crazy. I tell my friends all the time, especially when we talk about moving out. I'm like, I love Louisville, if I could make it here, I would stay here. But I know I gotta get out just so I can try to make it, but I love it here...Yeah, it's a fucking special place...Was that the question?
That was perfect. To wrap up a little bit, what’s next for you?
Yeah, so in a bit I'm about to show you, but I'm actually working on three projects. I'm working on the live versions of a couple songs, I think we've narrowed it down to like five or seven hopefully. So it'd be like an album with like live versions of songs that are gonna be like alternative versions. I'm working on a collaboration with my friend Diddy, (on the album he goes by Romar.) And then at the same time, I'm also working on an R&B inspired album. So yeah, I got literally three projects on the way. And I'm in contact with the gallery right now so hopefully we also get like an art show going…oh, and now I got the band. So I’ll try and book a live show, I think it'd be fun.
Any final thoughts?
Get good friends. I think a lot of people think having good friends means having “yes men” around you. That's not good friends…Don't get people around you that are never going to question your bad decisions…Like my friends, right? If I make a bad decision, they'll judge me, you know, they'll give me their honest opinion. They're not gonna stop being friends with me, you know, because that's also shitty friend, a friend that like as soon as you do something bad, leaves you, that's fucked. But you want somebody who will question you and like, really put your values to question and like actually make you question yourself and make you better. So yeah, just get good friends man, and try to find that balance and people who make you better.
@huberosvaldo
December 2023
Photography & Interview by Isaac Barnett
@iebcam