From dream to reality

Many people have dreamed of doing something unique with their life. Maybe they dreamed of becoming an athlete, an actor, a model or a youtuber.

Matthew Louis also had a dream — a dream to make music. Unlike many others, Louis turned his dream into a reality.

U.S. Air Force Airman Louis, 86th Logistics Readiness Squadron inventory apprentice, grew up surrounded by music. His mother played the piano. His father played the bass guitar and taught him to play both instruments starting at the age of eight.

“Growing up with music is what led me to my passion for making music of my own,” Louis said. “My mom taught me the classical side and my dad taught me a more Caribbean style of music.”

Louis’ favorite genre of music is electronic dance music. He grew up listening to this kind of music and decided that he wanted to make some of his own.

“EDM resonates with me,” Louis said. “It has a lot of feeling to it because of the jazz influenced chords and a good beat.”

Starting at the age of 15, he worked diligently to grow his social media presence and develop his skills. Only two years later, Louis sold his first song, “Julia,” for approximately $30,000 to a band called Stray Kids.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Louis said. “I felt so good knowing that my hard work paid off and that others would enjoy my music as much as I do.”

After reaching this peak, Louis found himself in a valley.

“I quickly became complacent after that,” Louis said. “With college coming up and my other responsibilities, I put my passion for making music on the back burner and slowly lost sight of what was important to me.”

Looking back, he says that he regrets the “poor decisions” that he made and wishes that he would have taken advantage of the success he had.

Five years later, Louis made a huge leap of faith, one that he says gave him the necessary skills to better fulfill his dream of making music. He joined the United States Air Force.

“I knew the Air Force would teach me how to be disciplined — but it taught me more than that,” Louis said. “The Air Force taught me how to be timely, how to set goals and accomplish them, how to work hard and finish what I started.”

With the values of the Air Force instilled in Louis and mentorship from his supervisor, he is finally back on track with making music and said he couldn’t be happier.

“He has always expressed himself regarding his hobbies and the things he likes to do,” said Tech. Sgt. Ivan Rivero, 86th LRS inventory and inspection section chief. “But, I could tell he was lacking some confidence as far as starting these things. It was important to me to tell him to ‘Do what you love.’ He was very receptive and has been sharing with me some of the new music he has been making with me and it is really good.”

Louis began making music again in January of this year and will be ready to release his new extended play, “City Lights,” this summer.

“Joining the Air Force is one of the best decisions I have ever made,” Louis said. “It gives you a stable career, education benefits and the time to chase your dreams.”

There is a special lesson to be learned from the life of Louis. When someone falls down, they can always get back up and try again.