By Crystal Harrell
19-year-old guitarist Jason Zembo and 18-year-old bassist Gavin Lopez have been making the world their stage throughout their teens—playing at prestigious venues like the Whisky a Go Go and Pappy + Harriet’s. Other venues include the Indian Wells Garden Jam, the Indio Tamale Festival, as well as an acoustic performance of original songs in Nashville, Tennessee, at the Commodore Grille.
Their former band Pescaterritory received global attention when two of their songs “Better Off Dead” and “King Street” debuted on the Barry Tomes US10 radio show in Birmingham in July 2019. With the release of their self-titled album Pescaterritory in October 2020, the band received radio play in the USA as well as the United Kingdom, Spain, Scotland, and Australia.
Now the young rockers have landed the music video appearance of a lifetime in chart-topping rock band Extreme’s alternative video for the song “Rise” off their newest album, Six. Coachella Valley Weekly’s head feature writer Crystal Harrell caught up with Jason and Gavin to talk about their experiences behind-the-scenes and getting to meet Extreme.
Crystal: You guys had an amazing opportunity to appear in an official music video for Extreme’s newest album. How did that opportunity come about?
Jason: The people at Atlantis Entertainment heard the album that Gavin and I released with Pescaterritory, so last November, our manager informed Gavin and I that they wanted us to be in the video. Within a couple weeks of being contacted, we were in Hollywood shooting the video. They ended picking us out of all the young musicians they could have chosen. It’s so cool.
Crystal: What was the shooting process like filming your parts for the music video?
Gavin: So there were two different shoots, but the first day, it lasted from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., and then we had to come back a couple months later for another shoot. But overall, it just was two days of shooting. And that was the first time we had done something like that, you know? It was my first time regarding acting. I had to play the lead singer, which is very not me
Jason: We had a a music video for one of our originals, but we never really got to act. But for this one, it kind of made us step out of our comfort zones a little bit. We had to act the parts that they wanted us to do and kind of listen to their direction and play along with what they’re telling us. We had to be able to follow their rules instead of our own.
Crystal: The music video turned out great. Did you get to meet Extreme or were you on a different shooting schedule?
Jason: Yeah, we had some time to meet. We spent most of our time with Nuno (Bettencourt). He was basically directing us through the entire thing. So that was great, especially as a guitar player— getting to spend so much time with a guitar legend as himself. We got to spend a little bit of time with the rest of the group, but not too long.
Crystal: That’s awesome. I know your former band isn’t together anymore, but do you have any current musical projects that you’re working on?
Jason: I’m doing a lot of solo gigs, so acoustic and singing, and I’m also starting a new project that should be coming out pretty soon. I’m starting to play with some other musicians and we’re getting sets together to have upcoming gigs hopefully pretty soon, and I’m planning to record new music in the studio.
Gavin: I’m planning on going into a studio within the next few months and getting some original stuff released.
Crystal: You guys have grown as independent artists over the years while finding your own sense of creativity. How would you describe that growth? Would you say that the way you approach your musical craft has changed?
Jason: I know a lot more stuff now than I did before. Regarding everything musically, you learn from your mistakes. I’d say I’ve grown intelligently just in all aspects. I’ve spent a lot of time learning a lot of the ins and outs of music theory. I’ve also been working on singing. Since I’ve been doing all the solo gigs, I’ve been teaching myself a lot of singing technique to go alongside my guitar playing.
Crystal: And with both of you being on the set of that music video, did it open your eyes to new possibilities of wanting to shoot your own music videos in the future?
Gavin: I think it was really cool being able to see the how the professionals do it, and seeing how rock stars get their stuff done. Witnessing how they interact with each other, seeing how they interacted with us, and in a sense, that was very inspiring to see how down-to-earth they are —even with such a big name.
Crystal: You are both very young, successful musicians. What advice would you give to any aspiring musicians that want to pursue their their craft?
Jason: I would say don’t give up when times get harder or when you feel like you might not be able to make it. It can come off as a daunting task being a musician and trying to make a a career out of it, but don’t give up. Even more importantly, don’t give up on who you are. As a musician, if you got a voice or any message that you want to be heard, put it out into the world, because that’s what our jobs are.
Gavin: It’s important to have a vision that you keep and strive for. Just push through and anything is possible. Just believe in yourself.
Extreme’s music video for “Rise 2.0 (Alternative Version) ‘Generations On A Mission,’” featuring Jason and Gavin, can be viewed on the band’s official YouTube channel.
