If you visit any of the largest music blogs around town (which I would surmise at least a few of you do), you’ve no doubt heard about Florida native Mike Diaz, more recognizable as dreamy electronic artist MillionYoung. Appearing on the web last fall seemingly out of nowhere with his Sunndreamm EP and going strong ever since, MillionYoung is becoming an artist to watch this year. He’s currently on tour and took a few moments to answer a couple of questions for us.

How did you first start making music? Did it start out as a hobby or were you hoping to make something out of it?

I started playing music when I was 15, and up until last year it was mostly a hobby. I never dreamed of even getting to this point but now that I am, I’m feeling much more driven to pursue it further.

Tell us a little bit about your successes over the past year. How did you get discovered and how do you feel about everything that’s happened?

For a while I was just recording songs in my room, mostly just things for me to listen to while studying or little songs I thought my girlfriend would like. Most of the songs I recorded for her ended up being on the EPs, and when I put the first one on my tumblr some people from other blogs came across it and kept passing it on till it became what it is now. It’s been really exciting to see how everyone has responded to what I’ve made, and I’m really grateful to live in a time where I’m able to share it so easily.

I know that you’ve released most of your music as free EPs which wouldn’t have really been an option a few years ago. How do you feel about the way the internet has changed the music industry as a whole and how it’s helped you personally?

Although I don’t know if I agree with a lot of what’s been happening in the music industry, I’m excited to be a part of it at such a pivotal moment. A lot of times I feel that music journalism plays way too big of a part, with blogs often deciding which bands do and don’t make it. On the other hand though, it’s never been easier to really connect with the people who appreciate your music and to get that music to them. Everything just moves incredibly far, incredibly fast.

Now that you’ve been on the road for a bit, what’s the craziest thing you’ve seen?

Whataburger.

For those of us like myself who haven’t seen your live show yet, can you describe it to us?

I’ve gone through a few different line ups in the last few months with different friends all pitching in to help bring the songs to life on stage. It’s sort of been an uphill battle cause I didn’t write any of the songs with the intention of performing them live so it’s been a lot of trial and error. We’ve finally settled a little more. My friend Eric came on the last little tour and it worked out great with him playing bass and keys. We were in a few bands together in high school for a while so it’s a pretty natural fit. It’s been cool seeing people even dancing to the slower songs we didn’t think they would.

What are some up and coming bands that you’ve been feeling lately?

I’ve been really into Brothertiger and a friend of mine plays under the name Sumsun, his stuff is really great.

Last but not least, what’s next for MillionYoung?

We’ve got a few great shows coming up, and we’ll definitely be at CMJ this year. At our shows we’re selling this limited CD-R with a few new songs on it, and the full length will be out in January of next year on Arcade Sound Ltd. About half of the songs on it were written during the time I wrote the songs on Sunndreamm, so it’ll have a lot of that vibe. We’ve also been listening to a lot of Doo Wop and old 60s surf rock so i’m certain that’ll manifest itself somehow on the record.

Special thanks to MillionYoung for taking some time for us. And for those of you who aren’t familiar, check out a killer remix he did here and some of his original tracks below plus a recent Erik Satie cover.

MillionYoung – Day We Met

MillionYoung – Mien

MillionYoung – Gymnopedie no.1