We recently had the chance to connect with Marco Antonio Santos Santos and have shared our conversation below.
Marco Antonio Santos, a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: What is a normal day like for you right now?
A normal day for me usually involves walking the cats in the morning (yes, they walk beside me, it’s great), answering emails, writing contacts, preparing lessons, learning music for upcoming shows, and writing arrangements for things that are coming up. Lunch, then it depends on the volume of work I have—I might keep working, run errands, or just watch a movie or something.
Then around 4 to 6 pm, I make sure the cats are inside the house, close the cat door, and leave home to play somewhere—a jazz club, a hotel, a restaurant, it depends on what I have booked that day.
Then I come back and, guess what—fun times with the cats before sleeping!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi everybody, I’m Marco Antonio Santos, a guitarist, arranger, composer, and music educator based in Austin, TX. I’m originally from Brazil, and I’ve been living here for almost 10 years.
My work life is all music, basically divided into three parts. I perform almost every day somewhere — sometimes it’s a jazz club, a restaurant, a wedding, or another private event — as a guitarist and/or music director. My second main role is teaching jazz guitar and jazz combo at Huston-Tillotson University, a traditional HBCU, where I have incredible students. And I also run a music booking company with two other friends called Prime Entertainment Collective, where I do music direction, talk to clients, write contracts, and take care of many other things.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
I believe one important moment in my life that really shaped how I see the world was when I was auditioning for my undergrad university in Brazil. That was the first time I found myself in a room with so many people who had similar dreams and aspirations as me. The waiting room had a piano, and seeing around 60 people playing, singing together, and talking about music really helped me feel situated in the world. In that moment, I felt I had found the people I didn’t even know I’d been searching for. That experience announced what was to come in the next years, when I expanded my view of the world and of myself.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
If I could say one kind thing to my younger self, I would say: you’re brave for taking risks. Don’t think of it as risk — if it’s something you know lines up with the person you want to be, then it’s just part of your path. And honestly, you can risk even more. Say more yeses.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
Is the public version of me the real me? I believe the older I get, the more transparent and direct I become. Not that I used to hide much, but now I care less about what other people think of me. It’s not that I’m an island who believes I know everything or that I’m the final version of myself, but at least I don’t freeze because of other people’s opinions. I’m much more comfortable with my ideas and positions.
So yes, I think my public persona is very close to my true self. That’s been a defining mark in my career, especially in the last few years. I know this can be tricky for colleagues who prefer to avoid long or deep conversations, or any kind of conflict, but more and more I find myself surrounded by people who appreciate the transparency I bring to my work. And deep conversations don’t have to mean heavy or dramatic talks — they’re just about making sure everybody is heard, and that I can also speak up and share my thoughts.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days.
About being excited about my work, I truly still feel amazed to be a professional musician. I came from a city and a family where this is not considered a standard career — for most of my life I didn’t even know how people could do it full-time. Now I see myself making my entire living through performance and music-related work.
Yes, I’m still in love with this. That doesn’t mean I don’t get frustrated sometimes, but most of the time I’m excited about what I do. And I also know there are still many things I want to achieve — or at least be part of — that I’m not even close to yet. So, I have plenty more work ahead.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.marcoantoniosantos.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/musician.marco/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@musicianmarco
Image Credits
1 – Izel Gaitan
2 – Kim Yarbrough
4 – Zoe Otey
5 – Ligia Francisco
