If you were at homecoming last year, you might have heard sophomore Chase Dinaburg’s first rap song, “Flying.” You may also know him as CMD The Rapper on platforms like Youtube and Apple Music, where he releases his songs. 

Dinaburg has been making music since sixth grade, where he became inspired by the stories hidden behind the lyrics.

He was introduced to music at a very young age by his father, who often brought him to concerts. Now, his dad supports his music career. 

“My dad has gone through everything with me, funded everything, celebrated our success, [and has] been through my bad songs early on,” Dinaburg said. “I grew up listening to a lot of music and my dad introduced me to different cultural music which is what inspired me to create my own.”

One of Dinaburg’s biggest motivations to write songs is his family. He enjoys sharing and creating songs for the people he loves.

“My family inspires me and I like to get them involved. I did my first song publicly with my sister,” he said. 

Although it may seem odd, Dinaburg’s favorite music genre is actually opera. He loves that artists can share their feelings through their expressions while singing.  

“I like opera because you can feel their voice depending on what story they are telling and it’s on a deeper emotional level than other genres,” he said. “I love that you can show emotion through your voice and you can tell a story through your passion.”

Dinaburg feels that he can communicate with people through music. He explains that he enjoys putting it out into the world. 

“It’s fun to make something people can relate to because it’s a language anyone can speak.”