At age 4, with a nudge from his father, who grew up as a musician, Carlo Redl picked up his first guitar. But it wasn’t until Redl became a teenager that his passion for music really began.
When Redl and his family relocated from Tokyo to San Francisco, he quickly became surrounded and inspired by rock artists, like the Grateful Dead. Growing up classically trained in guitar, Redl focused on playing covers of his favorite songs and bands.
“After living in California, I went back to Tokyo, and I met songwriters for the first time. I realized, ‘Oh wait—I can do this, too,’ ” said Redl, a junior studying music business at the University of Miami.
Still, he never considered himself a singer, songwriter, or even musical artist until two years ago when he arrived at the University. That creative energy within him flourished.
His singing and songwriting path unfolded early in his collegiate career. Redl recalls sitting in his room in Hecht Residential College during his first year, playing and creating music with his friends.
Little by little, the budding artist started testing his new music with his peers. He shared his music online and performed at small-scale shows and events, growing his audience with each performance. By age 20, Redl co-wrote two hit singles. One for Japanese boyband “Deep Squad,” which hit No. 1 on the R&B Japan charts, and the other for Japanese boyband “Be:First” hitting No. 1 nationally in Japan across all genres.
Now, Redl writes and sells his own music while playing to audiences across the globe. He signed record deals with music agencies internationally, including MNNF, an independent creative agency based in Tokyo, and Sony Music in the United States, in 2020.
In October 2022, he released “Empty,” his first extended play (EP) recording, rich with smooth beats, catchy lyrics, and jazzy guitar licks, that he wrote and performed himself. Redl has amassed almost 20,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, and more than 100,000 plays on Apple Music.
“I’ve never been this serious about my music-making in my life,” Redl said.
Last week, Redl was selected as the student opening act for Florida-born rapper Flo Rida on Thursday, Nov. 3, during the annual Homecoming concert at the Watsco CenterRedl describes the opportunity as “iconic.”
“I’m really hyped about the opportunity to open for Flo Rida,” he said. “I’ve never played in a full arena before, so it’ll be a great learning experience for me on stage.”
Homecoming concert student performers are selected by their peers from Hurricane Productions (HP), the student-led entertainment and programming board, based on self-submissions.
“Since we’re bringing in Flo Rida, we wanted someone who wasn’t just a rap artist. We wanted a student who would bring in a different audience, and really get the audience hyped for the main act,” said Grace Altidor, chair of the HP Concerts committee. “We found someone who matches that vibe, who is a great performer with great stage presence. He’s really going to bring that energy to the stage and crowd.”
Redl and his band, comprised of several other jazz musicians, are preparing to perform a combination of well-known pop songs, as well as Redl’s originals, to engage the audience. Redl even plans on trying to write and perform a song live on stage to engage with the crowd.
“It’s going to be so fun—I can’t wait,” he said.
Tickets to see Flo Rida and Carlo Redl on Thursday, Nov. 3, at 7:30 p.m. are free for all students.
