Meet Juan Carrillo | Musician/Drummer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Juan Carrillo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Juan, what do you want your legacy to be?
I always try to be a person with whom everyone wants to share or with whom everyone wants to be. As a musician I want to be remembered for my sound and my rhythm, I want everyone to always have a good time with me. At the end of the day it’s about creating a memorable experience… that’s the real goal.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I started playing drums at a very young age, when I was 4 years old. I started playing in the church and it was hard for me because I was the youngest of all the drummers and they hardly let me play. My development as a musician started at a very young age, I started playing professionally at 15 years old with Christian music artists, I had many ups and downs during my musical development, I am a left handed drummer and most of the drummers were right handed, in concerts always had problems to place the drums on the left side. Over the years I studied music and continued to prepare myself, I continued to create and develop relationships with musicians, producers, song writers and artists, everything began to change for the better. Little by little I was developing my sound and creating my brand, Today I am known as EL ZURDO (means lefty), I have had the blessing of traveling the world playing drums and having recorded in the studio with several people who have allowed me to leave my footprint through my instrument. I am currently an artist for the brands PAISTE CYMBALS, INNOVATIVE PERCUSSION, AQUARIAN DRUMHEADS, HUMES & BERG and TNR PRODUCTS. This is a perfect example that if you work hard… you achieve it and enjoy it.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I live in Puerto Rico, a spectacular place in the Caribbean surrounded by beautiful beaches and many places to eat delicious food. When my friends come to visit I take them to Old San Juan, it is the capital. I also take them to the kiosks of Luquillo in the eastern area of ​​the island, those are a series of restaurants facing the sea with fresh fish and fried foods such as Alcapurria and Bacalaitos. El Yunque Rainforest cannot be missing and the Guavate area in the town of Cayey, that is in the mountains. Everyone who comes to Puerto Rico will have a memorable experience… I guarantee it!!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I like to recognize all those people who day by day trying to reach their goals without surrender to themselves.

Linkedin: Juan L Carrillo

Twitter: juanluiselzurdo