It is very rare that we see musicians having an all-around talent in their profession. They either sing, play drums, guitar, keyboard, record, etc. But in the case of 19 year-old math major, Andrew Reyes, that’s exactly what he is; an all-around music phenomenon.

Reyes’s music career started when he was only seven. He played the bass and drums, then after his brother bought him a book of guitar chords, he became interested in acoustic guitar. “After my brother bought me the guitar, I just started fiddling with it and went from there,” Reyes said.

Ever since he was little, Reyes has always been active in his church. He currently plays for his church ministry which has helped him evolve his musical abilities.

“Ever since I was little, I have always been active in church which allowed me to play for the church ministry,” Reyes said.

He helps out in church with the different aspects of music such as composing the songs, writing and playing the instruments.

“I do different things at church like the sound system, the music, writing, playing the instruments, so I do a lot at church,” Reyes said.

But not only does Reyes have the abilities to sing, play instruments, he also records his own music. There is a process to the way Reyes composes the music which is not an easy task. “What I usually do is I start fiddling with the guitar, I try to come up with a melody,” Reyes said.

After he is done figuring out the melody, he usually does a little soul searching for the lyrics.

“When I’m inspired I usually think of positive things to base my music around, then once I start doing the lyrics, it just flows from there, then I record it into the computer” Reyes said.

The music that Reyes produces are usually positive music. He wants not only himself but other people to feel happy and inspired.

“I usually write positive things, nothing negative because I want people to forget about their problems and feel the vibe of my music,” Reyes said.

Another type of music he likes to produce are songs that are based on friendships and love. One of the songs he produced, titled “same old story”, is a song about a girl that gets mistreated by a guy and he is wishing that he could be there for the girl as a friend.

“It’s called “same old story” because that’s how girls usually get hurt is when a guy mistreats them”, Reyes said. “As a friend, I just want to be there for her and comfort her.”

Reyes’s music is often positive because that’s the kind of person he is. Bass guitarist, Arland Gaskett, says one of Reyes’s strong attributes is that he is always willing to lend out a helping hand. “Outside of our band, whenever we need help with something, (Reyes) is always there,” Gaskett said. Whether it’s helping with homework, or assisting with chords and notes, Reyes is always there. “We have the same political science class and whenever I need help, he’ll stop with what he’s doing and help me out with homework,” Gaskett said.

Since he is a full time student at EC, he rarely has time to practice at home by himself. Homework has dominated most of his spare time. The only time he gets to practice his music is with his pop/punk rock band called, “Suckerpunch 405.

” “We’re called “suckerpunch405″ because suckerpunch sounds cool, and 405 because that’s the route I take to practice which is the 405 freeway,” Reyes said.

His band gets their style from the group blink 182. Since his first passion was playing the drums, that’s what he plays in the band along with being a backup singer.

When needed, Reyes is talented enough to adjust within the band. Since he can also play keyboard, there maybe times when he’ll play the keyboard, or the bass and acoustic. “(Reyes) is just so talented,” Nate Leathers, lead vocals said. “Whenever I’m sick, or the other bandmates are sick, (Reyes) can go from drums, to bass and acoustic, because he’s very flexible in that aspect,” Lathers said.

Although his band name might sound funky and cool, he wants to let it be known that they are a Christian band because it is important to them as a group.

“We usually perform at Torrance New Life church in Sepulveda Friday nights so it is important for us to always carry our identity which is being a Christian,” Reyes said.

When they have time, the group usually practices for about four hours a week.

The challenges that are presented in front of Reyes are not having enough practice time with his bandmates being busy as well. “It’s tough because we all go to school, they have work so it’s hard to schedule practice, so we aren’t able to build any momentum,” Reyes said.

As a student, Reyes is a math major and he plans to transfer to UCLA, get a bachelor’s degree to be a math professor.

“I’m trying hard to focus in school so that I can help my dad at the church since he is a Pastor,” Reyes said.

Even though his passion is music, Reyes puts education first above everything else. He says that although he wants to be a musician, it is a risky business to be in and not very reliable. “That’s the drawback of music, it is very unreliable. But if it will support me, then sure, but right now, I want to finish school,” Reyes said.

In his sparetime, Reyes enjoys playing volleyball, snowboarding and surfing. But his favorite hobby, which he enjoys more than anything is being active in church.

“Church is very important to me since I am a devout Christian and it reflects my personality,” Reyes said.

HIs father has influenced him greatly in the sense that Reyes feels that he needs to give back to the people and most importantly, give back to God.

“God gave me the talent to demonstrate to others this ability to play music. So I want to use it in his will and return to others what he has given me,” Reyes said.

He thanks his dad for pushing him to practice when he was just a little kid because without that motivation, Reyes didn’t think he would practice enough.

“While other kids were outside playing, or in the house playing Nintendo, I was practicing on the drums and on the guitar,” Reyes said.

His desire for music, is for his group to be successful and tour around the U.S. Although it is challenging and requires a lot of hard work, Reyes thinks that it is possible because of his work ethic and dedication.

“I’ll be consistent, I’ll never give up because if you love to do something, stick to it, be true to yourself,” Reyes said.

Reyes’s band, “suckerpunch405” can be seen on myspace.com/suckerpunch405. Because Reyes said, “practice makes perfect.”