Fort Lauderdale High School junior, Tanner Martin, is no stranger to the South Florida music scene. He picked up playing the electric guitar at the age of 12 old and has not spent a day when he is not playing shows, writing music, or supporting the local music scene. Tanner started his current band, The Reflect, in the summer of 2023 alongside his twin sister Macy Martin (11), writing original music, and they are currently working on releasing an album. He loves having another person to listen to his ideas.

“It makes the songs bigger than just myself and I feel more comfortable being creatively open about my ideas when I’m working with her.”

Being born and raised in Fort Lauderdale has allowed Tanner to experience a combination of many different music scenes, and he has been exposed to many different genres through live music. Tanner’s love for music began when he was 7 years old, indulging in piano and joining a boys choir, to then discovering the ukulele, which initially sparked his interest in stringed instruments. “The reason I stuck with guitar was because it has the technicality of piano but has the expressiveness of singing, and I’ve always been really drawn to that.”

It was Tanner’s maternal grandmother, Patty Caliendo, who introduced him to music first and quickly realized his gift.

“When Tanner told me he wanted to learn how to play piano, I immediately arranged for him to begin lessons,” she said. “When I picked up my baritone ukulele and started playing, his interest was drawn to the stringed instruments. Before long, he was teaching himself the ukulele and then many different types of guitars.”

The School of Rock program is the music outlet where Tanner spent several years making connections with many influential musical individuals and mentors. His band director, Burny Pelsmajer, shaped him the most to be the musician he is today. Pelsmajer taught Tanner to have a good balance of creativity and structure when approaching the way he views music.

“I never felt lost. I didn’t feel like music was this goal or thing I had to work towards. It just became a part of my life.” Tanner said.

The creative process for Tanner consists of lots of improv on the guitar, and eventually stumbling upon licks or chord progressions that he likes. He then expands on the idea and connect it to a story. “Part of the album my sister and I are currently working on is focused all on love and how it is connected to color.”

Tanner is constantly inspired by different genres and eras of music. The 2000’s play the biggest role in where he pulls creative ideas from. Bands like Coldplay and Gorillaz show a side of rawness and authenticity that Tanner heavily admires.

“I want to leave a mark.,” he emphasizes. His goal with music is to simply just make people feel something they did not feel before. He plans on writing lots of music and

being constantly influenced as much as he can to create as unique ideas as he can and incorporates his inspirations into his own style. Tanner’s biggest dream is for his music to be referenced back for being the most revolutionary of its time but not in an obsolete way. “If people can look back and say, “Wow. That was not your typical album,” then I will feel like I’ve fully broken a new boundary for music, and that is what I strive for the most” Tanner plans to have his first album finished by the end of his junior year and is striving to have a debut show of his and his sister’s music.

“Be the next you” is the most important piece of advice Tanner would give to young aspiring musicians. He highlights that it is easy to want to be the next “big” musician, but it is important to just focus on finding what it is you love about music and what is individual to you.

Tanner is optimistic for his future with music as he leaves us with a final note: “I’m in love with my musical self and if I continue striving for what it is I want I will always be satisfied.”