Spencer Arjang Plays by His Own Rules

Spencer Arjang spoke with 20 Watts Magazine ahead of December shows at Redgate and Mudpit.

Words By Polly Gilmore / Photos by Jeanisha Mariah / Graphic by Lior Edrich

Upon leaving Berklee College of Music after his freshman year, Spencer Arjang got his priorities straight. The 22-year-old musician from New York City has released six singles as a solo artist, each exemplifying his youthful sound and knack for truthful storytelling. Ahead of his shows at Mudpit and Redgate, Arjang sat down with 20 Watts to candidly narrate his journey as a musician so far.

Arjang began taking music seriously when he was inspired by “School of Rock” on Broadway to start playing drums. He then picked up the guitar, teaching himself via YouTube.

When it came time to apply to colleges, Arjang still wasn’t quite sure of what he wanted to pursue, “I was like what do I want to do? I guess I want to be a chef. And then I looked at colleges and I’m like, ‘Colleges don’t teach chef stuff. You would have to go to chef school. And that’s like, not a real school.’”

He ended up applying to Berklee College of Music for drums, “and I got in and I was like, ‘Okay, I guess I’m going to fucking Berklee.’”

While the musician appreciated his time at Berklee, he realized quickly that it wasn’t the right place for him. “Honey,” a song he had released as part of a band called AFTERxCLASS, had gained success on TikTok, prompting Arjang to take the plunge and leave school.

In the fall of 2022, AFTERxCLASS parted ways and Arjang began his solo career with his first single, “Dreamer,” with a chorus that aptly croons, “Let me be a dreamer, ‘cause I much prefer the things that I make up.”

Arjang clearly lives by his lyrics. While he forges his own path as a solo artist, he knows that the road not taken might’ve been smoother, “OK, it's real life now. Like, pay your taxes, get a job, and make money.”

Still, he is dead set on remaining authentic in all aspects. Writing only from his own perspective, traveling cross-country for shows and studio sessions, and working only on music, Spencer Arjang is hell-bent on making his own way in the world.

“I’ve tried writing songs that don’t have anything to do with me or just like make up a story about something but I don’t like them at all,” he says of his writing process. Every song of his, even “Piñata,” which laments Arjang’s brother breaking his piñata on his ninth birthday, draws from his life experiences.

He prefers to write from the retrospective, citing that it’s much easier to process emotions from the rearview. He recalls a conversation after a particularly rough breakup, “The day after, my friend was like, ‘Dude, don't worry, you’re gonna write a banger song about this,’ and I was like ‘Shut the fuck up’ and then, two months later, I ended up writing a banger song about it.”

Arjang’s inspirations – namely John Mayer, the Backseat Lovers, Mac DeMarco, and the Beatles – give way to his early 2000s grunge-rock-meets-bedroom-pop sound. Celebrations of youth, love, and making mistakes are at the forefront of Arjang’s music which, even at its saddest, has a tinge of optimism, often circling back to the motif of looking forward from youth.

When asked about future projects, Arjang kept his options open. He’s going where the music takes him and plans on being very intentional regarding any larger bodies of work.

“The reason I make music is because I love playing live on stage. Like, producing is fun, writing is fun, but the real joy for me is playing guitar on stage for people.” With guitar riffs and cymbal crashes galore, Arjang’s songs beg to be played live.

And play them live he does. On the first weekend of December, Arjang would play two shows at SU’s own Mudpit and Redgate, “When you’re playing at Syracuse, it’s kind of what music is all about. It’s all about energy.”

“I love challenges... I love just throwing myself in something and being like, ‘How’s this going to go?’” The singer’s can-do attitude is infectious, making every risk he’s taken seem like an adventure, every misstep or misfortune instead an anecdote of youth.

Wherever Spencer Arjang’s escapades take him, there’s no doubt that there will be a “banger song” telling us all about it, and we are all luckier for it.