The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Rap artist, singer is chasing his dreams
Jonah Barrios shares the joy, pain of the human condition in his music
TORRINGTON — Jonah Barrios is chasing success as a rapper and singer, and, with his latest project, “By Any Means,” is sharing a message about the commonality of the human experience.
In an interview Monday, the Torrington native said he became interested in music at a young age. He picked up the trombone in elementary school, continued through Torrington Middle School, and began to play the snare drum in the band at Torrington High School. Along the way, he learned to play guitar, bass, harmonica and a bit of keys. It’s in his blood.
His sister, Sarah Barrios, is a singer-songwriter who was named the New England Music Awards’ “Best New Act of the Year” in 2014. She was nominated for “Best Female Performer of the Year” in 2015 and 2017, according to her website, sarahbarriosmusic.com.
Jonah Barrios began to listen to rap at 13 or 14, when “Get Back” by Ludacris — a track from the movie “Tropic Thunder” — drew his attention. He began to rap a few years later while attending Torrington High School, making
an album in a closet studio with an inexpensive mic, handing it out to his classmates.
At the time, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to pursue rap beyond that, but he continued and now wants to make it his professional career.
In the midst of studying finance and marketing at Northwestern Connecticut Community College and working as a jeweler, Barrios is on the grind, squeezing in time working on his craft. He goes from work to school to the studio, funding his own efforts and performing, he said.
The performances are fun, he said — a bit nerve-wracking at first, but ultimately a pleasure.
“I’ve met a lot of great people through playing the shows, and on top of it, it’s just fun to get up on stage and scream and sweat and see people having a great time,” Barrios said. “It’s cool to physically see people having a good time listening to what you have made. You feel like you’re paying yourself back a little bit when you’re up there.”
In the process, he said he has found his sound, and released “By Any Means,” his first full-length album.
Proceeds earned from the album will go to charity. He plans to donate the funds in honor of a friend who committed suicide and another friend with epilepsy, he said.
The varied nature of hip-hop appeals to him, Barrios said there’s all kinds of room within the genre, which allows him to explore and pursue what he wants to do without constraint. He is starting to receive attention and earn a bit of money.
Making music is a chance to share his thoughts and view of the world — his ego, his fear, his anger, he said. He said he values his listeners, in part, because they’re acknowledging his efforts and making them a part of their lives.
“I think that’s a beautiful thing — that someone can take my words, my thoughts, my creative ideas, and completely apply them to their own life,” Barrios said. “It’s very nice to know that a random person anywhere could hear a song and feel comforted and relate to it.”
He hopes his listeners can find comfort in the songs on “By Any Means” — a universal message about the varied nature of life, our struggles, and the value of positive energy, he said. It starts off brash and with bravado, but over time, he works in vulnerability and ends with reassurance about the value of it all.
“No one’s invincible. I think that was the big, grand scheme of things — that no one is completely protected. There’s always going to be that unprotected side of you,” Barrios said. “Everyone’s got vulnerabilities, and I think the album was a cool way to explore that for myself, and hopefully, when other people listen to it, they can explore their own psyche in that way . ... I just wanted people to understand that, just like the music, I myself have highs and lows — and it’s OK to have highs and lows.”
People have responded to his efforts so far, which feels good. Messages on his Twitter account are complementary about his music. The city supports people with talent, and people trying to do good, he said — he has seen it with his sister.
“It feels great, especially when you have people in your hometown who really, really enjoy the music, and really see potential in it,” Barrios said. “When you have people telling you, ‘This stuff really means something to me man, don’t stop,’ why would you?”
If he can pull it off, he said he would like rapping to be his career — a chance to do something good for people and earn some money at the same time.
“My dad, he told me throughout my life, that ‘When you get a job, you get a job where you can help people. And that’s all I care about,’ ” Barrios