Chris Ivan & Joe Lujan (Part I)
Unknown Speaker 0:00
You're listening to local programming produced in KU NV studios.
Unknown Speaker 0:05
The content of this program does not reflect the views or opinions of 91.5 Jas and more the University of Nevada Las Vegas or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education.
Unknown Speaker 0:16
You're listening to rebel radio with your host Malika Bella
Unknown Speaker 0:23
lyrics locals love on the rebel HD two
Unknown Speaker 0:39
okay, what's good everybody? Welcome back to rebel Radio. I'm your host Malika Bella here today with our guests, Chris Ivan and Joe Luhan. Welcome, welcome. Thanks for having me. Us, I should say us. Oh, exciting.
Unknown Speaker 0:55
So before we get started, we're just going to do a quick little word association game. And this is to let all the nerves out. Right? It's our very first word. I'll actually have you both. I don't know if I should have Chris answer first. And then we go to Joe.
Unknown Speaker 1:12
So just anything that comes to the mind? Yeah, it can be a word a phrase, there's no right or wrong answers. Okay. Vegas.
Unknown Speaker 1:21
Broke.
Unknown Speaker 1:25
explanation, but broke, broke. I like it. Hot. Hot. Nice. Nice.
Unknown Speaker 1:34
And then the next word identity.
Unknown Speaker 1:39
Love.
Unknown Speaker 1:43
Stuck. I don't know identity. But
Unknown Speaker 1:48
I don't know why. The word lost comes to mind. I don't know why. Lost.
Unknown Speaker 1:55
Like deep questions like it does know.
Unknown Speaker 2:00
Also, I love that when you answer your like, last question, Mark. Yeah, like, wait. It's okay. It's not locked in. It's not locked in. And we got two more words here. So it's kind of like,
Unknown Speaker 2:12
I don't know, abstract, right. I'm just trying to make you think so. We got creation.
Unknown Speaker 2:20
I think of God. That's like the first thing that comes to my mind. I That's funny. Mine's family. I don't know why think of family. Creation. Emily did create you.
Unknown Speaker 2:32
That's true. Mom and dad had a fun time. Oh, gosh. Way back when? I know. Back in the 1800s. Oh my god, I'm not that old dinosaur. No.
Unknown Speaker 2:43
I'm sorry. We actually got you in the UNLV history books.
Unknown Speaker 2:49
And then our last one, music.
Unknown Speaker 2:53
Perseverance
Unknown Speaker 2:58
is probably Britney, it's Britney. I don't know why I thought of Britney, when you said music.
Unknown Speaker 3:03
Like Britney Spears? Yeah, Britney Spears. Joe has his own music out just?
Unknown Speaker 3:10
Well, I actually might come back to these. So I'll hold you accountable to your answers. And you'd be like, can I? Can I switch? Oh, like, pretend I didn't say that. But yeah, just to start us off. You know, Chris, Ivan and Joe Luhan. Both of you. So who are you? Right? And it can you can answer this as like the artists perspective who you are in the daily, whatever it is.
Unknown Speaker 3:34
So, Chris, I've been I am an independent artist out here in Vegas. I have been working on my craft my whole life. But I took it very serious. Back in 2018, I was originally signed to label and that completely collapsed. Because industry.
Unknown Speaker 3:55
I has its flaws. And if we're being real,
Unknown Speaker 3:59
especially being a gate artists, sometimes they would want to take advantage of certain things. And I was not That's not who I was. So I got dropped and I did everything independently and released my first album in 2020 biggest battle. second album was on my terms in 2022. And then I just released my third self titled album. I've been and it's been a long time coming. I haven't is the biggest project I've done in most
Unknown Speaker 4:33
authentic album to to Ivan, which is my middle name. And I kind of wanted to have it a little bit more close to home because of the lyrics and certain events that had occurred.
Unknown Speaker 4:46
But I would say I am an raising independent Popstar that loves Demi Lovato ag and Kashia so if you guys hear this, I'm always open to like literally just take pics
Unknown Speaker 5:00
Here's where you like anything. Really? Yeah, that's who I am.
Unknown Speaker 5:06
Well, for me, I would say that I'm,
Unknown Speaker 5:09
what am I?
Unknown Speaker 5:12
I'm wondering what was Joe Luhan. I'm a film director, and a writer.
Unknown Speaker 5:18
Those are my main titles. That's kind of what I've dedicated my entire life to.
Unknown Speaker 5:23
On top of that, though, I do get involved with all departments when it comes to film. So I've dabbled into like costume designing, and prop designing and all that all that good stuff. I've been doing film making and, and as a whole for about 23 years now.
Unknown Speaker 5:42
I'm originally from El Paso, Texas, that's home. So much love to El Paso. And I moved out to Vegas.
Unknown Speaker 5:51
I moved to Vegas about 10 years ago, a little over 10 years ago. And I kind of just went straight to working from set to set. And that kind of led me to do my own films. And I just became a full blown filmmaker, director, writer, and I've been doing it nonstop. Now that's kind of who I am. Beautiful.
Unknown Speaker 6:13
And I know it's kind of a tough question, too, because that's why I'm the interviewer in this instance, because I do not want to answer that. It's a lot to think about. You're like, how many hats do I wear? Yeah. Do you wear a lot? Yeah. And in the studio today, I know Joe is wearing a hat. But that's just one it's not. Although that's true. It's because of a mistake that happened to my hair a couple weeks ago. So we're letting stuff go back
Unknown Speaker 6:39
a part of life, that's part of life. So that self titled album, right? A lot of times people have like a letter to themselves, or they write something with their name on it. And they're like, this is for me in the future to come back. And like a time capsule of sorts. Is that was that your intention with this album?
Unknown Speaker 6:59
Yeah, you can definitely say
Unknown Speaker 7:03
that, that it is an album, that in five years, I'll listen to and see all the growth that I've done, but also, when I listened to it, and
Unknown Speaker 7:16
even now, because it was recorded throughout a span of two and a half, three years
Unknown Speaker 7:22
of just growth that I've already done in where I've already seen in some mistakes that you live with for the rest of your lives. And
Unknown Speaker 7:32
sometimes you don't get second chances at love or finding
Unknown Speaker 7:39
yourself or even someone that you connect to on a relationship like sadness of any sorts, like, even if it's friendships, like, I feel like even sometimes the most the worst heartbreak is a friendship because you tell that person everything. So it goes on so many different levels, but it is definitely going to be a time capsule. When I listen to in five years where I'm like,
Unknown Speaker 8:03
a part of me I'm gonna be like, Damn, you shouldn't have said everything because you you release everything. You don't get that back certain information.
Unknown Speaker 8:12
So, yeah, well, we'll see in five years, I'll probably cry because the album was really deep.
Unknown Speaker 8:19
It's a really good album. Really, really good. I enjoyed it. Yeah. Joe wasn't featured on this. The first album I was not featured on, but I heard it before anyone else I think yeah. It to me.
Unknown Speaker 8:31
And yeah, it's a very deep album. It's I think it's his best work yet. He's not on this album only because he's on the next project. Yeah, I'll be on the next one.
Unknown Speaker 8:45
That's coming later this year, but now will be announced. Yeah, later, good. Things take time. And it's okay.
Unknown Speaker 8:53
And speaking of working together, so I know that, you know, with your different industry experiences, right. So I did a little digging, and I saw like some music videos and some different like features and stuff like that. How long has this collaboration happened? You know? Um, well.
Unknown Speaker 9:12
I'm sorry, I jumped in right away. I'm so sorry. Go ahead. And
Unknown Speaker 9:15
that's actually how we met me and Chris, we met.
Unknown Speaker 9:20
So my agent had started telling me that I need to dabble in more music videos. So that's what I was doing. I was doing music videos. I was like, I wasn't doing I hadn't done any music videos at that point. None. None. So it was I ran into him. And I was like, Hey, you do music. We could collaborate. Let's meet up. We can talk about you know what we can do? And
Unknown Speaker 9:40
yeah, then we did I think it was time I think time was the first music video that we did. Then it's like our the way we worked and collaborated, just clicked. And we were like, Let's, oh, we're doing this or doing that he was performing and he would do what he had to do and then I'd be like, Okay, do it again. But I'm doing this angle. We just worked well together.
Unknown Speaker 10:00
One music video turned into two to turn into three. Then we ended up doing a whole visual album. I think we shot a music video for every song on his first album. Yeah, it grew very fast. And then for the second one, we were so busy with some other stuff that we had already signed on to. We weren't able to do music videos for all the songs only for a few singles. Yeah, don't sign on to anything if you don't see it on paper. That is
Unknown Speaker 10:27
true statements, true statements. And yeah, that's how it works. Right? Not only music videos, like we've worked on so many of your films, we started working on films, then I would cast Chris, I did cast Chris in a few films. So we would jump from music, video to film, and back to music, video, and then film, it was kind of going back and forth. And we've just stopped doing that. And then after, after a couple, like acting stuff, I went into aiding some of your friends. Yeah, he jumped on to be my assistant director for a few projects. Wow. Now Chris jumped into the film world. It's hard. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 11:04
It is definitely though. It is. It's a lot of fun. But the film world is a lot. It's completely different. It's obviously you using your creative juices to create a project.
Unknown Speaker 11:18
But it is it. I think it's harder than the music industry. So hats off to you.
Unknown Speaker 11:26
It's a it's a very demanding industry. Yeah, no, it's you were talking about six, seven months of production on one project that your life is consumed by you know, so. And then when you're doing five, six movies a year, then? Yeah, they can catch up to. So.
Unknown Speaker 11:46
Yeah. And going back to like when, in the at the beginning, when we had that question for creation, right that in of itself, like that project, it could be a song, an album, a whole production, anything? It is that creation, it's like baby of sorts that you've been birthing this whole time. And when once it's out there, as you said, Chris, it's out there. So it's very scary. It's very vulnerable, very Oh, yeah. It's a, I think that's personally for me, I take it to when I'm working on a film, it's in my hands, in the duration of the entire project, you know, from when I write it to when we shoot it, and we edit. And I'm the first to watch it. And I watch it probably a million times before anyone else. At a certain point, it's like, you have to then be like, alright, the creating part has to stop. It's not the business part. You have to let it go. It has to be everyone else's. When it hits that point. For me personally, I'm like, I'm done watching and I will watch it again. Like if we when we do a premiere for a film, I don't sit in the theater and watch the film. I've watched it too many times already at that point. So it's like, at that point, it's in God's hands, and
Unknown Speaker 12:49
you just pray for the best. Everything was good.
Unknown Speaker 12:52
I know we just had a red or green carpet premiere. This was it past Tuesday. It was on Tuesday, we had the world premiere for the immortal worst case paradox at the palms. Yeah, so that was a very big project that we started back in 2020. Right when COVID hit. Yeah, that was a project that it took us four years to finish and complete. And we had our world premiere in Vegas. And it was it was a very
Unknown Speaker 13:20
stressful, yet fun type of event.
Unknown Speaker 13:25
Great turnout, we sold out, which was really exciting. We sold out like
Unknown Speaker 13:29
70 Yeah, it was over 100 seats, and we sold out.
Unknown Speaker 13:33
And it was a it was it was an experience for us to see all of our hard work that we had worked out for those four years. The collaboration between me and Chris and all the other actors, because Chris actually is the lead actor of the film. So he led the entire film. On top of that he also did the theme song for the film, in which we also premiered the music video that same night, so it was a big events for both me and Chris. It was a and Lindsey. Lindsey Cruz. Yeah, for everyone involved. It was a very big project and very big event for everyone involved with the film that we shot here locally in Vegas, you know, so it was we did we shot and also El Paso. My hometown. Yeah, for sure. And then the premiere is on on a press tour. So we're going to have red carpet in El Paso, which is his hometown, and I'm bringing it to Stockton, California where I was born. So
Unknown Speaker 14:24
yeah, it's gonna be fun. For those who are wondering why green carpet is because the one of the main characters powers is green. Her name is TK. So instead of doing the red carpet, I figured let's do a green carpet. So it catches attention to immediately as soon as you said I was like, Oh, what's that? Like, why is it green? Yeah, we wanted something different. Something, you know, change it up a bit. Yeah. And is the music video that you're talking about? And like theme song is it heroine? Yeah, yeah. Do you want to talk more about the creation of that song, and really the whole production. So the creation of that song.
Unknown Speaker 14:59
I always write
Unknown Speaker 15:00
about, like life experience, I am not an artist to just create stuff. And that's why maybe I don't like rap music, because a lot of those rappers B's rapping about X, Y and Z, and anything we got that day like they did not have a if you don't pay it in cash, maybe it is not yours.
Unknown Speaker 15:20
So I always talk about life experience. So I read that going through
Unknown Speaker 15:26
some troubles with family relationships, and
Unknown Speaker 15:30
and then I showed it to Joe, thinking that it was just gonna be another song that I showed him.
Unknown Speaker 15:36
And then he ended up falling in love with it, and asked if he could have it for one of his movies. And we didn't know which one yet.
Unknown Speaker 15:47
And then the case paradox came about forgot about it. And then he was like, let's see if this fits. Originally. The mortal wars a case paradox wasn't even supposed to be a movie it was supposed to be. It's gonna be a TV series, a TV series.
Unknown Speaker 16:03
And just because of COVID the filming gaps and different length of hair and changing the nails. It started to get a little hard because when COVID Things were closing and people were getting sick, someone got Corona and and we we all got it. It was just awful.
Unknown Speaker 16:23
So it came down to like, do you want to have the song as the theme song? I said, Yes. I didn't really expect
Unknown Speaker 16:32
what was going to come with it. And we ended up shooting the music video on the pontiff. Like like place. Yeah, we went to my hometown, and I'll pass it to shoot the music video. And it's like one of the most haunted, I believe one of those haunted locations there in downtown El Paso. So it was very, it was creepy. It was weird as I kept on hearing. He thought he was see stuff and make me nervous. So yeah, even even we had the like, the police escorts that were with us. You know, like, just taking care of us out there. They were themselves also like, you heard that and I'm like, nope, might not hear that. Keep going. Don't even look back. don't acknowledge it. Just keep going. Like what on my head wasn't because I was running a bit late that I was Chris was really just perspiring, because I was nervous. I was. I was laughing location. That was I think it added a lot to the music video. The music video itself is like a short film. It's part of the whole universe. I have a whole cinematic universe called the Ravager and universe. So all the immortal Wars films, all of my comic books, they all tie in, including the music videos for the theme songs. So it was really cool to see him and his powers. And we also use local talent for Malpaso as well and the music video So Jerry Walker. Yeah, Jerry Walker, and Peter Stone because they were the ones who you know, were there for us. When it came to filming. It was fun. It was cool project. It was when
Unknown Speaker 17:58
I was doing like a little research and do you have a history in horror? I do. Yeah. So I was wondering if that would be like Kismet. But you were like not having it when you're there. And it's kind of haunted and
Unknown Speaker 18:10
he does horror, but like if he hears a crack he's he's the first one to screen be calling me out like that. Like, it's true, though.
Unknown Speaker 18:19
Like that the aspect
Unknown Speaker 18:22
of it. I mean, I think you like horror in the aspect of watching it on films, if it's actually real horror stuff. Because I'd be on Twitter, I can see X, Y and Z. And I show him as I can see that, like, he can't do all that stuff. I can't do the real stuff. Like, yeah, no. Little sounds of stuff. I'm like, I'm not gonna go to the dark and figure out what that is.
Unknown Speaker 18:44
I like the fake stuff. There is a difference. Yeah. Actually the first project that before?
Unknown Speaker 18:52
No, yeah, even before the music videos was rest three, press three with which is like his biggest horror franchise.
Unknown Speaker 19:00
We shot that out here in Vegas. In Las Vegas, Hans haunted houses. They're located in metals mall,
Unknown Speaker 19:08
where the only film crew has been allowed to film and we shot the entire film in the haunts. So yeah, so we shot part three. In 2019. Actually, yeah, it was right before COVID hit. It just got released, or it's gonna be released this month. I believe on attitude. Yeah, full. Wow. I can't wait.
Unknown Speaker 19:27
Yeah, I tend to be a horror junkie. And it's when it's fiction, for sure. Oh, yeah. I'm the same way. Yeah. And I know like with this theme of creation, right. And going back to you recently saying, actually both of you saying, you know, leave it in God's hands, it's out there. And then also, when I said the word creation, you're like, I don't know. I feel like biblical defense. I remember that. Like looking at your checklist. Do you have a song called Genesis? Right?
Unknown Speaker 19:56
Yeah, I feel like before you talk about it, and I could
Unknown Speaker 20:00
Be like way off, right? And this is just one person's perspective. But with your name being Chris, I feel like it does have like this Christian sound. And it does have like, I don't know, it's very upbeat to me and very like healing. And I don't know if it even has like, some biblical like church bells that I pick up on. I don't know if that was all intentional. But yeah, I want to talk about it. So for the first album, I was really kind of like sticking to my roots. I grew up singing in the church. So a lot of stuff. Like, I learned how to belt by those crazy sopranos that would be taking all the parts. So
Unknown Speaker 20:39
Genesis was actually
Unknown Speaker 20:42
came about, because I asked, I wanted to work with my youth pastor at the time. And that's who Petone is, he's actually born and raised here in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Unknown Speaker 20:54
And it just, it's a fine line, because I don't always want to take it to biblical like, kind of like references because the same time it's kind of, I want everyone to connect to my music. So if you say certain things,
Unknown Speaker 21:13
it just blocks people off. Just same thing about politics, religion, you just, it's like a small little dabble. But that's who I am. So at the same time, like, you don't have to like me.
Unknown Speaker 21:24
And that's okay. So with that song, Genesis definitely had to have the bells that reminded me of church. And the lyrics is definitely biblical, because I feel like, whenever especially the song, Genesis, I started first album, so it was the start of a creation, for my just music. And I just felt like, I started the song off in the beginning, because I thought in the beginning, everything was gonna be so easy. It was hard.
Unknown Speaker 21:54
I was foolish. But I was also young. And now I look back.
Unknown Speaker 22:01
Genesis is also like a time capsule, because I look back and I see how naive and young and I was. But also, I also have to remember how much he was in love with music at the time, too, because sometimes he let the business and other artists and just the side effects of doing music, which people don't see is the long hours at midnight, and then you gotta go to work and, or you lose jobs. I've lost jobs because of filming or not filming recording times, because the project had deadlines. So everything has a beginning. And Genesis is definitely one of my favorite songs. And ketones rap verses like, amazing. But yeah, Genesis is so beautiful. I actually don't listen to it anymore.
Unknown Speaker 22:53
Again, you're like it's out there. I don't want to look at it anymore. I've spent all these hours all this energy, blood, sweat and tears. And you're like, that's all I can do at this point. Yeah. I think a big reason behind that, too, has to do with our worst critics. And we really something where our worst critic, so when it comes to, for me, I when I release something, I'm more like it's done. I did the best that I could at that time, and it's out there. If I go back and watch it, I'm gonna be like, Oh, I should have done this. I could have done this differently. I could fix this. But then in the line of once it's out there, it's distributed to the whole world. You can't go and take it back and fix it. It is at that point. It's it is what it is at that point. Yeah. So you have to learn to just be like, alright, it's in your hands. God, I did all I could and that's it, you know? And that's okay. Just having peace with that. Yeah. To be okay with that. That's part of it. Yeah, for one of the words we said identity and that one was stumping y'all. You're like, Oh, no.
Unknown Speaker 23:51
I know that, you know, at least you're bilingual. i You may be like trilingual or something else too. But I saw one of your songs me a mod, but really identity like, how do you bring, you know, even just the language like Spanish and English and different things, like different parts of being from Cali. You know, all your routes. And also Joe, you know, El Paso filming. So how do you bring different parts of your identity into your projects? I'm going to go first. Yeah. Oh, gives you more time to think. Yeah, more and more intrigued to see your answer when it comes to your hometown. I don't know. I feel like
Unknown Speaker 24:29
so I'm very proud of El Paso where I was born, and I was born in Las Cruces, New Mexico. But I was raised in El Paso, Texas. And I learned a lot growing up, you know, it's,
Unknown Speaker 24:37
especially with my family, all my families back home. So we're very close knit family. We grew up together. You know, I'll pass it was just home for 23 years. And I went to school there and I studied and I always wanted to. I never got the opportunities to do the things I wanted to do when I was living in El Paso because there really wasn't any
Unknown Speaker 25:00
Film Industry is much out there. So when it came to when I decided, Okay, I'm going to pursue the line of business of film and all that. Anytime I do any project, I want to pull up paths into it. And that's always been my thing. You know, it's like, if it's an actor or if it's a if I could show the city somehow I'll incorporate the city into my work my art. And that also comes with a culture that's back home in El Paso. You know, we believe it or not, since I've lived out of El Paso little by little, for some reason I'm forgetting to speak Spanish, I'm forgetting to understand it and write it. I used to read and write it. Like, second nature. Now, I don't know how to do that. So when it comes to Spanish, specifically, even with like Chris's song me, I'm owed. Like, because I'm on the remix. I don't know that I'm on the remix. I didn't know that I am. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 25:49
It was like, Yeah, I love the whole Spanish thing. I think I started off the song in Spanish, right? Yeah. Yeah. It was just kind of like, let's bring that Spanish in. You know, I'm trying to bring in Spanish even in my films, and yeah, one Spanish.
Unknown Speaker 26:03
Did my alone. I mean, a lot of Hispanic Hispanic culture, you know, and that whole culture of Mexico and Hispanic all that it's an in the in the, the Harris has Leona? Yeah, I incorporated Leona to one of my other recent films, the Harris. And then for the mortal wars rebirth. I also brought in and shot in El Paso. It's just something with my hometown, I love my hometown.
Unknown Speaker 26:28
So it's like, try to bring the opportunities that I wasn't given when I was living there to those who are trying to expand or break into the industry. That's kind of why I did it. And I'm just keep on going you better interrupt me because I can keep on going.
Unknown Speaker 26:41
I feel like the only thing that I want to say because I really do. Joe's like my best friend. Not like he is my best friend, whether he like it or not.
Unknown Speaker 26:51
I love El Paso. I love it because of their food. Oh my god, well, but because I wasn't born there. Super close to water is I love Mexico.
Unknown Speaker 27:02
I just wish El Paso would support the people that are actually working their butts off.
Unknown Speaker 27:09
Because it feels like sometimes their hometown does it wreck, like recognize who you are, and like how much you're doing and you want to put up is on the mat. So yeah, I'm basically calling out I'll pass it because they don't do. Like, I mean, they support him, but like,
Unknown Speaker 27:26
he has done a lot and he came out of a city that
Unknown Speaker 27:30
doesn't have a lot of film industry. And he's put them on the map. So you gotta give credit where it's due. And as you know, I have a big problem with Hispanic culture because they are so accustomed to the old ways that they do not give any room for the new generation. Or like to give credit when
Unknown Speaker 27:54
El Paso would have been put on the mat on the map.
Unknown Speaker 27:59
It has been on the mat, let me let me take that back. But for the amount of stuff that you've done for it, I mean, they don't give you credit. And that's just that's that's why I feel like I'm
Unknown Speaker 28:12
just got to put it out there. Yeah. I have the question I haven't attended to as far grade you know, and people out i That's why I have so many issues.
Unknown Speaker 28:22
And that's a wrap on part one. Thank you so much for listening, and be sure to tune in next week for part two please folks on Instagram at official Chris Ivan Joe Luhan official and carcass studios peace.
Unknown Speaker 28:37
Thanks. Thank you for listening to rebel radio with Malika Bella lyrics locals love on the rebel HD two
Transcribed by https://otter.ai