Ben Araiza

The Story Of Za is a story that has been building for years, with stories of family, heartbreak, learning, love, hate, hard work, and pure, raw talent. It s the story of a boy from the Bay Area who has grown into a man ready to take over the world with his honest, eclectic, infectious sound! A former break dancing teen from Watsonville, California, BEN ARAIZA has grown into a true musician, writer, and artist. Influenced more by R&B and early rap (which is evident in a lot of the delivery of his lyrics), he picked up the piano at an early age. He wrote his first song at 15 but didn t pick up the guitar until 1993 when he first saw his true idol, Prince, in concert. Inspired by Prince and Santana, Ben rushed out and laid down a cool grand for his first Fender and amp. It s taken Ben over 4 years of blood, sweat, tears, and all of his income to finally get The Story Of Za to the masses, partially because of the honesty he conveys in all of his songs. Having gone through many rough times, his songs tend to reflect some form of heartbreak but with a tinge of hope, personal strength and growth. When you feel something that strongly, it makes it that much easier to remember every detail later on. Those details tell a whole story in four minutes. The Story Of Za is eleven chapters in the ever-emerging life of a promising talent and a passionate musician, with many more chapters and volumes to come. Asked where he pictures himself in five years, Ben replied: I have no idea. My dream would be to play for a huge crowd somewhere like Shoreline (Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA) where I saw so many concerts myself. I know I will give it my everything and work as hard as I possibly can. One thing is for sure I ll be happy - with a big smile on my face and an ice cold beer in my hand.