In this special season of the Virtual Campfire, we’re sharing stories from folks who have helped us facilitate Blaze Your Own Trail to Self-Love and community members who have been through the program about it has impacted their lives and how you can get involved. Our next class starts on February 19, 2023 and we’d love to have you join us!

This week we sit down with Derek Waldmann, aka Man of the Forests.

The violin has always been a part of Derek’s life. As a young child, he was influenced by John Tesh and the partnering of Charlie Bisharat on the electric violin. He attended their Live at Red Rocks show in 1995 and when the violin shimmered in, he knew it was his life’s journey to create the magic that comes with this mystical instrument. The sounds quickly captivated him. His mother and father gifted his first violin at 6 years old and he would soon learn to improvise and play by ear, rather than learn to read music. It was evident that this instrument and Derek belonged together.

Not long after, Derek was introduced to reggae/rock artists such as Bob Marley, Sublime, and 311. He couldn’t stop digging into their sound and he fell in love with the lyrics, instantly transformed by the sounds. He continued to discover artists such as Slightly Stoopid, John Brown’s Body, and Stick Figure throughout his teenage years.

As he began to attend live concerts, he noticed the lack of violin integration in reggae. So it became his mission to do just that.

With prolonged connection in the music scene, Derek eventually met and started collaborating with one of his favorite artists, Alific. They released their first track "Hotep” in May of 2020, a mysterious and high energy jam. Their second track “Deep” released September 2020, portrays the concept of sinking underwater through soothing melodies. Their third track and the biggest to date was a cover of the classic hit “Bittersweet Symphony”, featuring Johnny Cosmic. With the blending of Alific’s instrumental layers, Johnny Cosmic’s vocals, and the violin swirling between it all, this gives an effervescent and upbeat approach to the original song. Another early feature he collaborated on was with Aaron Wolf, in February of 2021, a powerful track titled “Create Positive” and produced by E.N. Young. A project he was proud to contribute to was Trevor Hall’s “Blue Sky Mind Extended Remix”, mixed and produced by Johnny Cosmic, as well as Trevor Hall’s “2009”, a glorious tribute to Mac Miller. Derek was able to visit Sugarshack Sessions to perform and record live with both Vana Liya and KBong & JohnnyCosmic, for a total of 9 tracks that he was a part of. A recent contribution was on Alific’s newest hit Stardust, with a tasteful violin solo, and sprinklings of strings throughout. Derek’s last addition to song is on the brand new song “U Don’t Know Me’ by The Movement. With help from the magical producer Johnny Cosmic, they added layers of swirling and dynamic string arrangements to this final song on the album.

Derek continues to collaborate and release songs with many artists in the reggae scene, and has shows and tours planned with his friends KBong, Johnny Cosmic, Vana Liya, and Alific throughout the summer and fall of 2022.