Toney, D-Zire´s album "The Awakening" is really one of the best hard rock albums I have heard lately. A main feature is your truly professional songwriting and performance. What is your musical and personal background that enables you to record such great rock and roll?

First of all, I would like to Thank You for your kind words…

…that really means a lot to us. Its good to know that people still appreciate good Hard Rock and Metal. Europe has always been receptive to our music and I will always be grateful for that.

My musical background is very diverse. I grew up listening to the Beatles, the Stones, Hendrix, the Doors, CCR, Ray Charles, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Janis Joplin, Zeppelin, The Who, Steppenwolf, the Beach Boys, Elvis and stuff that my parents would turn me on to like Neil Diamond, Tom Jones, Bobby Vinton, Olivia Newton-John and other obscure stuff.

My Father was a decent vocalist himself and was offered a record deal in 1964. I think it was a subdivison of RCA, anyways he didn't sign it cause my Grandpa said that musicians didn't make any money. My Grandpa owned his own business and was very successful. He had maids and servants and things of that nature.

Around the age of 10, I started buying my own albums and discovered some new stuff that I really liked: Kiss, Alice Cooper, the Scorpions, Aerosmith, Elton John, David Bowie, etc. A couple of years later it was: Van Halen, Boston, Journey, Black Sabbath, Rainbow, Deep Purple, Foreigner. My first concert was in 1977, when my aunt took me to go see Kiss and Cheap Trick at the Forum in L.A. They recorded Kiss Alive II that night.

It was without a doubt one of the best shows that I have ever seen in my life. They were ahead of their time. In the 80's, the music scene was awesome. I was into Motley Crue, Dokken, Ratt, Great White, Vain, Iron Madien, Dio, Metallica, Guns & Roses, L.A. Guns, Y & T, etc. etc. etc. Then in 1987, I was playing the Strip trying to make it, just like everybody else was. Hollywood was the place to be. I don’t think that there will ever be anything like it ever again. My direct involvement with music started with the piccolo at age 7. At age 8, I took piano lessons. At age 12, I started singing. At age 13, I bought my first guitar. It was this crappy Schaffer guitar. I've always liked Acoustic Guitar better than electric.

I really enjoy Spanish Flamenco and Gypsy Music as well as some Arabic Music. There is so much passion in it. I dig it! Around the age of 17, I decided to give music a shot and it was then that I realized that I had to be the frontman in the band. This became reality at age 19, when I joined my first band Torn Image. My songwriting blossomed right away but my vocal ability at first needed some work. I guess the 12 years of Catholic School and 1 year of Military School in College, paid off-as far as being able to express myself with words. This album was a collaboration of all four us getting together and creating these catchy songs with good hooks. Byron was responsible for coming up with all of the music, I came up with vocal melodies and lyrics, T-Man came up with the tasty solos and Billy added the back beat. We are all basically influenced by a lot of the same stuff but have managed to find who we are and play it well. Thats what makes it D-ZIRE!

You can hear that on "The Awakening". We may disagree about certain things but when we put all that crap aside, we rock!

The chemistry between us is great. In my opinion, what made this a great album, is the fact that we all have a solid foundation-of a good musical upbringing. We've been raised on good Rock N' Roll!  All this came out in the studio with some great individual performances by everyone in the band. I am proud of all of us! (Note/Ralph: Ok, Julian. You told me that this will be a long interview, but.. whow :-) )

You have opened shows for Babylon A.D., Gilby Clarke, L.A. Guns, Pretty Boy Floyd and Saxon. No surprise to those who know your album, but an impressive reference anyway. How did you get to play such gigs? This looks like D-Zire have become a major institution on the L.A. rock scene...

We have played the L.A. circuit since Dec. of 1995. Our first show was at the Whiskey but our favorite place to play believe it or not, is the Coconut Teaszer. Its always fun and the crowd is great! As far as playing with the big name acts, the promoters would always call us and ask us, if we were interested in opening up for them. If the situation was right, we would agree. If it wasn't and they tried to screw us over, we would say fuck off!! It was cool playing with Babylon A.D., LA Guns, Gilby, Lizzy Borden, etc. but we want to be the ones headlining. We've paid our dues, we're ready to take off and take it to the next level. We are known in L.A. but our goal is to be known around the world!

How do your songs come to life? Do you just start jamming, contribute several individual ideas or do you record demo versions to present your ideas to each other?

The way that we usually do it is, Byron will come up with a riff and record it. Then he'll screw around with a drum machine and add a beat to it. Then he'll put down a simple Bass line. This is what we call a working tape. He'll usually give it to me first and I will check out how the song is structured and go off of that. I'll try different vocal melodies, get a feel for the music and then sleep on it for a day before I get the idea for the lyrics. Sometimes its cosmic and it just comes to me and it all fits perfectly. I like when that happens! "Chance On Love" happened that way. I wrote that when I was released from jail. Once the lyrics are set, we'll show it to T-Man and Billy. T-man will either change up or beef up the guitar rythm and add his classic solos. Billy will add all kinds of rolls, fills and accents to keep the back beat steady and solid. Another way that we write, is that me and Byron will get together and just jam. He'll play his guitar and I'll ad-lib some lyrics off the top of my head. We have done a couple of songs that way. They will be released on a future album. Another way is that we'll be at band practice and then all of a sudden T-Man or Billy will start playing something and we just jump in and follow and go with the vibe. The creative process is loads of fun. I luv it!

There is something about the way you sing that interests me. You seem to use your voice in quite a versatile way. So you sound to me quite like Danger Danger´s Ted Poley on "Chance On Love", like Derek Davis of Babylon A.D. on "She´s No Angel" and "Don´t Look Back" and the expression on "Amanda Mae" brings Poison´s Bret Michaels to my mind. Is this just subjective perception or have you done this on purpose?

Well my influences as a vocalist are: Joe Lynn Turner, Dave Meneketti, Steven Tyler, David Lee Roth, Paul Stanley, Lou Gram, Steve Perry, Ronnie James Dio & Bruce Dickenson. Roth, Tyler & Stanley more for stage antics than vocals. I guess my versatility comes from playing in several different types of bands before I joined D-ZIRE. Hard Rock, Bluesy Hard Rock, Commercial Hard Rock, Metal, Sleazy Glam Metal. I dont do it purposely, I try to give each song its own unique sound from a vocal perspective. Its quite natural for me to enhance a song by singing a certain way. I think that Steven Tyler does this very well. Listen to Kings & Queens and then listen to Draw the Line. My big thing is balance. I want to do a ballad, then do a heavy aggressive tune, then a commercial tune and so on and so forth. I guess its working cause you definitely caught on to it. You must be a musician..... HA! HA! HA! ... (Sure I am !!! (Julian))

You are very aware of the world´s current situation and critisize the US government and the entire system in a lot of your lyrics. You encourage your listeners to wake up and try to change the situation. How much does your message reach your fans and what feedback do you get?

Its not really changing the world situation but changing their own situation by becoming more aware of what is really going on in the world. When a person is armed with knowledge, he can fight back against whatever obstacle is causing grief or unhappiness. The major cause of injustice in the U.S. is the current administration. I have said all along that these twisted fucks blew up the World Trade Center in New York and tried to blame Osma Bin Laden for it. The main objective of all this-is oil. 9-11 was a diversion, an excuse to mess with Afghanistan. They need to build the pipeline from the Caspian Sea into Afghanistan. Iraq has all the oil reserves and does not want to cooperate with the U.S. Thats what this whole fuckin' thing was always about. This Homeland Security that was set up in the U.S. is the modern day Ghestapo. We can be thrown in prison now for speaking up against the President. That is a direct violation of our Constitutional Rights as Americans. George Washington would be pissed off if he were alive today. Its not a Democracy anymore, its a Fascist State-just like Germany was during Hitler's reign.

What pisses me off the most, is that this illiterate idiot-stole the damn' election from Al Gore. He should not be President right now. Look at it this way, none of this would be going on, if this guy was not in office. Innocent kids would not have to give up their lives for this Illuminati plot at reviving the Roman Empire- which I call the United States Of America. Its back to colonizing the New World and creating a New World Order in the Middle East. Beware of the one who has all the answers to the World's Problems. This is the Political Figure that we must fear. He will promise World Peace but at a cost that will destroy all of mankind in the end. His reign will be seven years...

Americans that can think for themselves, know all this. Its the lost sheep that believe the media whole heartedly that are truly misled. That includes a lot of our youth. Its the youth movement that I am trying to target. They are our future! Most of our Fans get our message, thats why they listen to us. There are some that totally disagree. Thats fine-I can live with that. Only time can tell what the future has in store for us. For the most part though, most of the people that I have talked to appreciate what we are doing. We have had many encouraging comments for raising the social awareness of the current world vibe. Most people feel and know in their hearts, that what is going on-is not right! We encourage people to get involved in Protests and to write to their congressional leaders and express their views, on opposition to a war in Iraq. Its now or never....

"The Awakening" is the soundtrack for this Social Consciousness.

You told me in an earlier conversation that you live your life in a "counter culture way". Please explain this term a little closer and tell us how this affects your life as well as the life of others around you.

I am not going to elaborate on this too much because its something that you feel in your heart as an individual that cares about this world and mankind. You either feel compelled to do it, or you dont. The best way I can describe it, would be something similar to the Beatnik movement that later evolved into the Hippie movement of the late 60's.. You throw some New Age spirituality in there along with some Native American wisdom and you have the basic idea of what the Counter Culture movement is all bout. Others around me have gotten used to me living my life this way.

I was born to be a non-comformist! My family & friends that care about me, accept me the way I am. Its never caused any kind of friction or hostility. I am raising my daughter the same way!

Many people who dedicate their lives to purposes like Humanity, Nature or Religion are very radical and run tight in what they believe. However, you also keep the spirit of a true rock and roller in you. Which way do you manage these ideals that might probably appear contrary to most people?

The majority of people have this misconception about Long Haired Rockers being a bunch of drug addicts and sex crazed perverts and alcoholics that are uneducated and stupid. That is the image that popular society has created.

Hey, if thats what they want to think, then let them. That only gives us more power to blow their minds when they realize-that its not always like that. Ignorance!! I would not consider myself a radical in any extreme. Whether its political or social. Lets just say that I am very aware about the current world crises and I would like to share my knowledge and opinions with others who have similar views. I will not force feed my beliefs on anyone that does not want to hear it. People are shocked that I am so aware yet play the music that I play. I guess I need to play opera or top-40 stuff to be accepted by these clueless yuppies!! No Thanks......!!!

I will always Rock Hard and raise hell, as well as be aware politically. I do not believe in roles or rules that people tell you - you must live a certain way just to fit in. I march to the beat of my own drum. As long as I dont hurt anyone or myself, then back off and let me be. What appears contrary to others suits me just fine.

I am a socially aware Human Being first and a Long Haired Rocker second.

Back to music again. It seems to me (as a European who has never made it to California yet...) as if the "Sunset Strip" the way we know it from numerous 1980s legends is about to rise again and hard rock- and glam bands seem to get more positive attention and attendance than they did during the nineties. Please tell us - as a "homeboy" - how it (really) looks like.

I think that people are starting to realize that a lot of the 90's stuff was pure crap. You dont have to be a good songwriter anymore. You can play some cheesy punk riff or some power chords and change your tuning and you sound modern now.

Its quite bizzare to me. You really dont have to sing well or play guitar well at all. When the changing of the guard took place with the Nirvana explosion, Hard Rock and Metal Bands were looked at as being dated. What the fuck is being dated and who makes this shit up?? Classic Rock is cool but anything 80's is self absorbed, pompous and vain?? That proves to me that the old hippie movement was never supportive of anything done in the 80's by Hard Rock or Metal Bands. Even MTV, who played nothing but Hard Rock and Metal when they first came out, turned their back on everything 80's. Whats interesting about the whole thing, is that you can really see who just jumped on the bandwagon and did it for the money, and who truly believed in what they were doing- that they stayed non-comformist all the way through. With me, its always been a lifestyle. I will never conform or change my style of music too drastically, just to try to conform. This is who I am and creating good Hard Rock is what I believe in. That, I will never change!! There is a resurgence of Good Glam Rock and Metal again in Hollywood and I think that its about time. Some of the more established bands are leading the charge and there are a few new bands that are good but not enough to create a happening scene. At least not yet! We'll see what happens in the coming year... The Key Club has Club Vodka and Gazzari's Night twice a month, The Coconut Teaszer has the Glitter Glam Fests once a month and the Dragonfly has the Pretty Ugly Club once every week. It would be nice to see an explosion of youth supporting these venues. The Cat Club also has some good stuff going on every Thursday night. D-ZIRE will definitely be playing these venues but what we really want to do, is play in Germany and throughout Europe. We want to show our appreciation to everyone that has supported us out there. I will say this as far as the scene in Hollywood is concerned, the attendance has picked up quite a bit. They just need to stop booking these fuckin' tribute bands and booking more original Hard Rock acts in order to pick up steam and get the train rolling again. For the record, I just wanted to let you know that I am originally from Miami, Florida and moved to California when I was very young.

What´s your connection with Juan Croucier (ex-Dokken, ex-Ratt)?

I talked to Juan a while back about recording at his home studio in P.V. and got a tour of the place. He was very informative and helpful in explaining the analog versus digital dilemna that we were involved with at the time. Byron and T-Man also got a tour of the place but they thought that it was too expensive. The problem was that we were all in debt (credit cards, loans, etc.) and my guitar player was saving his money for his wedding and honeymoon. I guess it was bad timing! Juan was very eager to work with us and wanted to enhance our sound but because of our financial troubles, we could not muster up the cash needed! So we decided to finish what we started on the 16 bit ADAT Machines because of cost. Thanks to Horacio Colmenares (guitarist for New Eden) we were able to salvage our project and make it sound competitive. He had experience with 16 bit ADAT Machines and knew how to make it sound warmer and not so processed. I do plan on talking to Juan sometime next year about recording our next album with him. He's working with one of my friend's right now. I invited him to come see us play at the Hollywood Athletic Club and he came out and really enjoyed it. He said that it reminded him of old RATT and that he enjoyed the show. He's really a cool dude!! I would like to see him out there jamming again.

I guess if your making a movie, there is nothing wrong with them. For music though, I do not think that the vocals and guitar have that warmth that the analog sound gives you. Even DATS sound better than 16 bit ADATS. Thats excatly what we did - we rented some ADAT machines and transfered everything into the computer to make it into a DAT file. We used vintage tube compressors to warm it up. The end result, is what you have in your hand. I am not a engineer but I have a good ear and I know what I like. We learned a lot of valuable lessons in the studio.

All I can say is, that if you liked this album, wait till you hear our next one. Its gonna smoke!!!

How does the future of Toney Richards and D-Zire look like? What are your plans?

Well right now we are looking for new management and a record deal with a label that can promote us. We would like to go on tour but we'll have to wait till at least April of 2003'.. We will do some local shows in L.A. and San Francisco in the early part of the year and see what happens from there.

We are trying to get on a Metal Fest in Europe for Summer, if thats possible. We are also looking at Florida, New York, New Jersey, Boston, Rhode Island and Hawaii as possible future dates.

Hey, if the price is right and they are willing to work with us - then we are there. I will be at the NAMM Show in Anaheim in mid January working on getting some sponsorships for all of us. Its always fun and you never know who you will run into. I ran into Jeff Labar, Gene Simmons, Zak Wylde and Tommy Lee two years ago. I also recently talked to Dave Meneketti and his manager at a Y & T show in Ventura, discussing the possibility of us opening up for them for some of their California dates. They are supposed to let us know sometime in January...

Me and Byron are already busy writing and getting ideas together for our next album. I think that our future looks great. The sky is the limit!! With a lot more promotion and getting our material in the hands of someone that can make a difference in our careers, is key for us. My immediate plans are to stay with D-ZIRE and ride this out for as long as I can. All the way to the top!!! Thats what I'm shooting for...

Well, we´re almost done. At Medazzarock we usually give everyone we do an interview with a few prompts to allow him or her to spill his/her guts in a sentence or two. Now here´s your chance:

- Los Angeles:

Its a great place to live and you can´t beat the weather...

- Kik O´ Rama Records:

Need more money for promotion...

- Best band (except yourself):

KISS

- Your main influence (personally or professionally):

Personally - My parents

Professionally - Gene Simmons

- George W. Bush:

Arrogant, Illiterate, Ignorant, bastard son of Satan!!

- The U.S.A.:

The most caring & giving people in the world, with the most corrupt government in the world.

- Your bandmates:

Hard working, lots of fun, focused and ready to rock!!

- Your personal aim/goal:

To Be Happy, Successful, A Good Father and the Best Frontman and Lyricists that ever lived!!

- Amanda Mae (your daughter and the song):

A precious gift from the Almighty that inspired a beautiful piece of music.

- Your famous last words:

So there it is and there you have it.