Omar Apollo: Up Next Interview | Apple Music

Some of Omar Apollo’s earliest memories are of being in front of a crowd, performing in ballet folklórico classes and singing in Spanish mass at church. His parents—who emigrated from Guadalajara, Mexico, to Hobart, Indiana, where he grew up—encouraged him to explore his heritage through song and dance, and by the time Apollo was in high school, he was writing 30 songs a month. But he sensed tension with his traditional, religious family. “I knew [my household] wasn’t going to be a great place for me to develop the way that I wanted,” he says in his Apple Music Up Next film. “So I left.” It was while living out of a friend’s unfinished attic that the indie-R&B phenom inked his first record deal and assembled what would have been his debut album. But days before he was set to shoot a music video, he pulled the plug and started over. Watch the film to find out why Apollo made “the hardest decision” of his life, and hear about his project 'Ivory'—the clear-eyed, heart-on-sleeve album produced in its wake: https://apple.co/-UpNextOmarApollo Subscribe to Apple Music: https://apple.co/AppleMusicYT Follow Apple Music: Instagram:   / applemusic   Facebook:   / applemusic   Twitter:   / applemusic   Watch more Apple Music: What’s New: https://apple.co/2VFatTU Apple Music Up Next: https://apple.co/2MLktXE Interviews: https://apple.co/32WnrPV What’s Trending: https://apple.co/2Meq89t Apple Music lets you listen to millions of songs, online or off, totally ad-free. Create and share your own playlists, get exclusive content and personalized recommendations, and listen to radio hosted by artists streaming live or on demand. http://apple.co/SUBSCRIBE #OmarApollo #UpNext #AppleMusic