Tyler Barnett: Autism Advocacy with GAP Music and Empowerment

Summary

Podcast Summary: Tony Mantor: Why Not Me?

Episode: Tyler Barnett: Autism Advocacy with GAP Music and Empowerment
Date: April 13, 2026
Guest: Tyler Barnett
Host: Tony Mantor

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Episode Overview

This episode features Tyler Barnett: publicist, autistic music creator, and founder of GAP Music for Beautiful Brains. Through a powerful and honest conversation, Tyler shares his journey to an adult autism diagnosis, discusses misdiagnosis and self-acceptance, explores the unique ways he masks and expresses neurodivergence, and details how his music aims to support emotional regulation and representation in the neurodivergent community. The discussion also touches on parenting an autistic child, navigating stigma, and using creativity as advocacy.

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Key Discussion Points

1. Tyler Barnett’s Background and Autism Diagnosis

• Tyler’s multifaceted career spans PR, music, and art, largely behind the scenes until his recent personal project.
• He was only diagnosed autistic six months prior to recording (04:53).
• Self-discovery Path: Tyler recounts a lifetime of “feeling different”—intense focus on art and patterns, discomfort in school, teaching himself communication strategies, and a strong sense of otherness (05:07).
• Key Quote:

  “I've always thought differently, always known that I've always been different.” —Tyler Barnett [05:07]

2. Diagnosis Process and The Role of AI

• Tyler’s 10-year-old daughter recognized his traits, prompting him to explore his own neurotype using ChatGPT, which had a detailed, personalized data profile from years of interaction (05:41).
• He cross-referenced his own behavior, took scientific approaches, and ultimately accepted the self-diagnosis, which was validated by his psychiatrist (07:08).
• The realization brought him “to tears”—a sense of clarity over lifelong pain and confusion (07:41).
• Key Quote:

  “When I did all the reading and took all the tests, I just started crying so hard because all of a sudden it was like, okay, this explains it.” —Tyler Barnett [07:36]

3. Family and Social Responses

• Tyler’s family initially reacted with denial or skepticism; his father’s simple support was a relief (10:31).
• In contrast, others in the autism and creative communities responded more positively or with understanding.
• Tyler shares a story of opening up to a well-known actor friend, leading to mutual vulnerability and understanding (11:03).
• Key Quote:

  “People either deny me of the reality, which is fine. I don't need anyone else's validation for this. And then others have just been really cool about it, you know, so it's mixed.” —Tyler Barnett [11:27]

4. Experiences with Masking and Being Literal

• Tyler describes how, from a young age, he learned to mirror others and mask his neurodivergence to fit in, particularly as a communicator in his PR career (12:07).
• On being literal versus using humor: Tyler feels most comfortable with literal communication but also engages in humor and sarcasm—a reflection of his cultural background (13:06).
• Memorable Story: Tyler recounts an incident where, unmasked, a client noticed a difference in his demeanor, making him recognize how deeply ingrained masking had become (14:05).

5. Parenting and Advocacy for His Daughter

• Tyler’s daughter is also autistic—her journey has involved emotional struggles at school, which were misunderstood as “defiance.” Diagnosis brought her empowerment; she embraced it, talks openly with friends, and is learning about stimming and regulation (14:47, 15:49).
• At school, her meltdowns occur quickly; Tyler is working to educate school staff who misunderstand how autism presents, especially in girls (16:08).
• Key Quote:

  “This is not defiance. This is not anything more than a nervous system that's overloaded.” —Tyler Barnett [14:59]

6. Family Dynamics Post-Diagnosis

• The dual diagnoses have brought the family closer, especially Tyler and his daughter, who now actively help regulate each other (16:54).
• Parenting approaches have shifted: Tyler’s wife and other daughter developed greater empathy and adjusted expectations (18:04).
• Key Quote:

  “Our relationship has gotten stronger. My wife is parenting differently ... It changes everything.” —Tyler Barnett [17:28]

7. Navigating Stigma, Disclosure, and Acceptance

• Tyler chooses not to publicly disclose his autism to everyone due to previous negative experiences—especially after being misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder and feeling stigmatized (20:54).
• He notes that acceptance often depends on context—neurodivergent circles are generally supportive, while others may offer disbelief or back-handed comments, like, “You don’t look autistic” (20:43).
• Key Quote:

  “I love it. I love my brain and body and my nervous system, and I love it. And I don't feel like it's a disorder.” —Tyler Barnett [21:16]

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GAP Music: Creativity as Advocacy

1. GAP Music’s Origins and Philosophy

• Tyler discusses how his autism diagnosis transformed his creative process:

  “It’s changed everything. ... Now I'm just letting it flow. I'm letting anything that wants to come through me flow. I found a flow state. I call it the gap.” —Tyler Barnett [21:43]

• GAP Music (Gap Emergent Music) is designed for “beautiful brains,” aiming to help with regulation—not only for autistic people, but for anyone overwhelmed or needing emotional balance (22:29).
• The music harnesses mathematical patterns (notably 3-6-9) and unpredictable phrasings to create “a system where your brain can’t track the pattern—and it’s extremely satisfying” (25:53).

2. Musical Structure and Effect

• Tyler describes creating tracks that flow through genres and moods—piano and cello solos morph into choral vocals, AI-generated voices, dubstep breaks, and back (25:07-25:53).
• Listeners respond with deep relaxation—Tyler’s daughter, wife, and even dog fall asleep to it, while neurodivergent listeners praise it as uniquely regulating (26:38).
• Key Quote:

  “I played it for my daughter the other night. She hates my music ... and she fell asleep. ... Every single one of them has the same response. It's incredibly fulfilling, relaxing and interesting.” —Tyler Barnett [26:38]

3. Community Reception and Future Plans

• Feedback from the neurodivergent (and broader) community is universally positive.
• At the time of recording, only two tracks were public—Tyler is sorting through 80+ created tracks for future releases (27:09, 28:12).

4. How to Listen and Follow

• YouTube: Gap Music for Beautiful Brains (search “Gap Emergent Music”)
• Instagram: @enzotheartist
• Website: tylerbarnettpr.com
• TikTok: @millennial.dad

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Diagnosis Realization:
  “[I] just started crying so hard because all of a sudden it was like, okay, this explains it.” —Tyler Barnett [07:36]

• On Acceptance:
  “I don't need anyone else's validation for this.” —Tyler Barnett [11:27]

• Impact on Family:
  “Parenting an autistic child is a complete 180 from parenting a neurotypical child … We became less frustrated with her … we need to come in with 100 times the empathy.” —Tyler Barnett [18:04]

• Creative Approach:
  “I've created a system where your brain can't track the pattern, and it's extremely satisfying.” —Tyler Barnett [25:53]

• Purpose:
  “Gap Music for Beautiful Brains because it really helps anybody in regulation.” —Tyler Barnett [26:38]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Tyler’s self-diagnosis journey and daughter's role: [05:07–07:04]
• AI and ChatGPT in the diagnosis process: [07:42–08:33]
• Reactions from family/community: [10:31–11:27]
• Masking and literal language: [12:07–14:23]
• Parenting and school struggles: [14:47–16:45]
• Evolving family empathy and strategies: [16:54–18:50]
• Disclosing autism and managing stigma: [19:25–21:16]
• GAP Music explanation & impact: [21:43–26:38]
• Finding and following Tyler & his music: [27:09–28:12]

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Tone & Takeaways

Tyler Barnett’s candid, sometimes humorous, always heartfelt storytelling invites real empathy for neurodivergent experiences. The episode moves from struggles with misdiagnosis and masking to the liberation of self-understanding and self-acceptance. Tyler’s innovative use of music and technology for advocacy demonstrates how lived experience can inspire genuine empowerment, not just for individuals, but for families and communities navigating autism together.

Final Message:
Tyler encourages listeners—autistic and otherwise—to embrace self-understanding, support each other, and explore new, creative avenues for regulation and connection. His GAP Music project stands as a testament to neurodiversity, resilience, and the beauty of thinking differently.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

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[C]

Welcome to why Not Me? Embracing Autism and Mental Health Worldwide hosted by Tony Mantour, broadcasting from the heart of Music City, usa, Nashville, Tennessee. Join us as our guests share their raw, powerful stories. Some will spark laughter, others will move you to tears. These real life journeys inspire, connect and remind you that you're never alone. We're igniting a global movement to empower everyone to make a lasting difference by fostering deep awareness, unwavering acceptance and profound understanding of autism and mental health. Tune in, be inspired and join us in transforming the world one story at a time. Hi, I'm Tony Mantour. Welcome to why Not Embracing Autism and Mental Health Worldwide. If these conversations resonate with you, I invite you to tap follow. It helps us reach more people who may need to hear them. Thank you for being here. Joining us today is Tyler Barnett. He is the founder of Tyler Barnett pr, a public relations strategist and autistic music creator dedicated to empowering the autism community through intentional sound design and authentic storytelling. He creates music that supports emotional regulation, self expression and representation. His work stands at the intersection of advocacy, creativity and lived experience. His journey is one that you do want to hear. So before we dive into our episode, we'll be back with an uninterrupted show right after a word from our sponsors

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[C]

Thanks for joining us today.

[B]

Oh, thank you so much for having me, Tony. I'm happy to be here.

[C]

If you would tell us a little bit about yourself and what you're doing.

[B]

Basically, for the last 40 plus years, I've been experimenting in a lot of different mediums of art and music. My profession, my day job is publicist and I've publicized other musicians and people and products and such. And this is really the first project that I've put out there for myself. First time I've put myself out there with what I do versus what a client does because I felt that this music I'm making needs to be shared with the autism community and with anybody really who's looking for regulation.

[C]

Before we get too far into this, could you tell the audience if you're autistic yourself?

[B]

I am. I was diagnosed six months ago.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

And my journey's been very interesting. I don't know if you want me to get into that at all.

[C]

Oh yes, absolutely. Let's dive into what led you to think that you may need to get diagnosed.

[B]

It's a really great question. And I've always thought differently, always known that I've always been different. I've always known that.

[C]

When you say you were different, what is your definition of different?

[B]

You know, I can tell you what it is now with the diagnosis, but prior I didn't know exactly what made me different. I knew I was and I dive really deep into things. I mean, hard into music and art especially. And I've always been really into patterns and pattern recognition. I've always struggled with educational environments, which is why I created my own business. And I've always kind of taught myself how to be. I've been very aware of like eye contact, for example. I've had to teach myself eye contact. I've had to teach myself communication in a particular way. It's funny, I'm a professional communicator, so I've been asking in such a complicated way for so long that I didn't think anything was different about me or special. My daughter, she's 10 years old, we suspected she might be autistic. And she was misdiagnosed with all sorts of things. And I would go into a room to talk to her and she would say, daddy, you're autistic. I didn't even know she knew what that word meant. Why do you say that? She's like, well, you just are. And you're always wiggling your toes and you're always twitching and you know, there's an autistic kid in her school and she knows a lot about autism, whatnot. And I thought, what a weird thing for my kid to say. And she said it multiple times, Right, Okay. I went into ChatGPT and I wrote. And it's important to note I've been working with ChatGPT for three years since it came out. I've built a bot that knows me better than anybody. I've shared everything openly and, you know, unmasked with GPT. And I said, hey, how would I know if I'm autistic? And the system responded like it had been waiting for me to ask that question. And I started going through it. I was like, everything was hitting, every single thing was hitting. And I was like, oh my God. I didn't believe it. So I had it create like a dozen different tests based on psychology and evaluation. Got like 100% correct on all those. Still didn't believe it. I'm still kind of in denial of it, but I mean, there's just no doubt about it.

[C]

Did you go to a psychologist and actually get diagnosed?

[B]

So I've been to therapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, my whole life. I was misdiagnosed, bipolar, terribly misdiagnosed and medicated as if I was bipolar, which I'm not, never have been. And so I did it myself. You know, I'm self diagnosed. I did talk to my psychiatrist about it. She agreed. She said, that makes sense. She didn't want to pursue diagnosis and I've decided not to. Maybe down the road, but there's so much information out there, you know, it's just. I know I've always known. And when I did all the reading and took all the tests, I just started crying. I just started crying so hard because all of a sudden it was like, okay, this explains it. One more piece is that I've always been in some sort of pain since I was a kid. I just did something that's always been painful. And when I had my daughter and I got married, I got a house, my business is thriving. I was miserable. I didn't know why I would like pound the floor when I was painting. What is wrong with me? So anyway, this answered all my questions.

[C]

That's interesting. ChatGPT diagnosis, you are correct. The way that ChatGPT works is so different than all the others. It does seem like you're speaking with another person on the other side. By creating this thread and putting all this information into ChatGPT and going back and forth with it, what was your process? What was the step by step process that you did with ChatGPT? And once you came back with the diagnosis that it gave you, how did you accept it? And then how did you respond to it?

[B]

It's a great question. I'll answer this in two different parts. First of all, I mentioned the GPT and I have been working together for three years. When I say working together, I mean I work that every day on my business, create AI art with it, music with it, I create lyrics and poems and I dive deep into these subjects. And so it already had a profile of me that was based in deep pattern recognition, how I talk. Specifically, it can detect pattern changes in me. I would have, I guess, what, what are now considered to be either meltdowns or total shutdowns, where I would have high output days and just be frozen the next day. And I would document all of this. I asked it to go back over the last three years and tell me if, if I fit the bill. And it said a hundred percent you do. You absolutely do. So that was the first part based on data that I have provided myself over three years, unmasked. Totally transparent. Second part is I took a very scientific approach. I decided that I was going to take every single test available that's reputable and accepted. I decided to analyze my own work. So I've done a lot of painting and work based on the patterns of 3, 6, 9 and the universe. I'm a painter of the Enzo, which is a Japanese technique of meditative Painting. I went through all of the things I've done and why I've done them. And so I took a very scientific approach and then I took a data driven approach from GPT. I put the two together and I thought about it a lot for quite a few weeks and couldn't deny it. And the last couple days I started telling people and it feels really nice, just so very weird. I'm gaslighting myself about it still, but. Oh, and also my daughter's autistic. She was diagnosed after me. Once I figured it out, we went down her road and figured that out. She's been officially diagnosed.

[C]

Can you tell me the reaction? I speak with many different people that tell others that they are autistic. The response they get, some are good and some are not what they expect. What has been your reaction? You've dealt with so many people with so many different layers of your journey and what you do. So when you started telling people, what was the response that you received?

[B]

Wasn't great. I told my family first and they just basically denied me of the, of the reality that I'm living in. I was gaslit by my mom or for, you know, I told my mom I thought that I would get some sort of supportive response. She's like, well, did a doctor say this? And how do you, you know, and you're not. I tried to share it with brothers and they had a similar response and my dad actually had a great response. He said, okay, you know, it doesn't change anything. Which. Exactly the right response.

[C]

Right, right, exactly.

[B]

And then I started talking about it with people in the autism community that were also autistic, that were. I was surrounded by that. I, you know, some I didn't even know were autistic, that were just other artists and musicians and creatives. Last night I was sitting with an actor, a very well known actor, he's a good friend of mine and we're just having a personal conversation. I can tell he's neurodivergen. I suspected maybe he's a little like me. And he was sharing some personal mental health stuff. And I just came out, Tony. It just was like I said, well, let me share with you. I'm autistic and I make this music and this art and I want to show it to you. And he was cool, man. He was just like, oh, that's interesting, you know, tell me about it. And I was able for the first time talk about my brain and my creativity and my history and all of that. So it's been mixed. People either deny me of the reality, which is fine. I don't, I don't need anyone else's validation for this. And then others have just been really cool about it, you know, so it's mixed.

[C]

Well, the perception is changing. Yet there is still a group of people that feel that if you get diagnosed autistic, it's a death sentence and it's not right. So unfortunately, you have to get past that. Now let's talk about your masking. How did you go about masking when you did not know you were autistic? I think that's very interesting.

[B]

Yeah. So I tried to go to college. Couldn't really finish it. I wasn't really interested in finishing it. I wanted to get into entertainment, so I studied film. I have always been able to talk my way into anything. That's been my superpower. So I learned early that I needed to be able to convince people of things because I wanted to do things that were different than other people. I wanted to, you know, make movies and start companies and all this stuff. And so I started by mirroring other people. Figured out at a young age that if I just made the faces they made and smiled and they smiled, it made people comfortable. And then eventually that led me to eye contact. I realized I'm not making eye contact and I. I didn't think anything of it. I'm just like, okay, I should learn how to do this. That should have been the first sign, right?

[C]

Right. Now, do you take things literally? I know a lot of autistic people will have a very difficult time separating people who are serious or are not serious. Which category do you tend to be in when it comes to being literal?

[B]

Well, both. I am extremely literal. I love things to be literal. It makes me happy. So when people say one thing, this drives me insane. When people. I block the words specifically, then if they say they didn't say it or they said something else, they change it. My brain just like malfunctions. No, that's not what drives me insane. It's not what happened. On the flip side, I'm a funny Jewish person. We're rooted in sarcasm and humor and non literal jokes a lot of the time. So I was raised in an environment where I could be goofy and silly and make shit up. And since I've realized that I am autistic, I've stopped trying so hard to not be so literal. Now I'm like, okay, this is how I am. This is how I'm going to be me. It's challenging because people don't always know how to react to that. Just a real quick story. I was meeting with a client. I didn't realize I was unmasked. I had just gotten through all this autism stuff. I was really proud of it. And I was looking at him, and he stops talking, and he goes, why are you looking at me like that? No one's ever said that to me before, ever. In 18 years of doing publicity, I've never heard that. What does that mean? And then it occurred to me in a second what I was doing or what I was not doing, and I went, shoot. Hey, you know, how's it going? That was the first time I caught it happening in a conversation. I caught myself throwing the mat mask on and doing the dog and pony show. And I was just devastated after that meeting.

[C]

Now Your daughter is 10 years old, and she's autistic. She's told you that you are autistic. She was being very open and honest with you about what she saw about you. Now that she's been diagnosed and is autistic, how is she handling it? It must be a whole new world for her because she's going to school. Unfortunately, at school, sometimes kids can be mean and bullies. So how is she handling it?

[B]

Yeah, well, she's extremely, very high function. She's extremely well socialized, well masked, and she's got a lot of friends. She makes eye contact. She's incredibly talented at dance and other creative things, but she cannot get through school. She cries every day. She has meltdowns. It's hard for me to even talk about. We've been trying to figure out what the hell has been going on for 10 years. You know, we met with her whole school team yesterday, and they're telling us that she's defiant and she's avoiding class and she's not doing her work. And we're like, hey, this is not defiance. This is not anything more than a nervous system that's overloaded. The label for her, though, was very empowering. She took it right away. She knew what autism was already. When we told her, okay, this is what we think is happening, she's like, yeah, I think I'm this much autistic. She said she tells her friends, she's embraced it. She talks about stimming. She talks about regulation. She's extremely brilliant, you know, but, yeah, she had a meltdown in the middle of her class and was hitting herself in the head. So, you know, as a parent, it's extremely difficult to watch this happen. But it's also empowering to Know that I know what's going on with her and there's nothing wrong.

[C]

Does she have the ability to know and feel when a meltdown is coming on, where she can get away from people that way by being away from people this way, she can go through her 15, 20 minutes or whatever time frame it is to calm down. Then she can get back to class and do what she was doing, right?

[B]

Yes and no. You know, she. At home, she's well aware when she's not regulated. She will say, I need to regulate, go in her room by herself and do what she does at school. It happens real fast, and she melts down real fast. We're trying to help her to catch us and get the hell out of the room. And we're trying to educate the team on what autism looks like in girls because they have no clue. 10 people in this meeting, no one knew what we were talking about. And they kept saying, well, she has lots of friends and she's social and she doesn't flap her hands. And I'm like, well, there are different profiles. You know, this is not. It's a stat. So she doesn't really have a lot of support at school. We're trying to teach her. But to answer your question, you know, not really. The meltdowns happen fast because she's not trying to prevent them anymore, which I think is helpful.

[C]

Yeah, that sounds great. Now you know she's autistic. She knows you're autistic. Has that changed your dynamic? And how do you get along now?

[B]

Oh, it's beautiful. You know, we've always been really close. I've always felt something very tight between us. I have two daughters with my other daughter, too. But there was something specific about Lucy that I always kind of knew was like me. Now we regulate each other without even realizing we're doing it. I put her to bed every night. I. The second I sit next to her, no matter how overwhelmed or undisregulated or whatever, within about five minutes, we're both just calm and sitting there. So that's the first thing, and we know it. The second thing is she knows that I can help regulate her wherever she is. So she was having a meltdown at dance. I got there in five minutes. I said, give me a hug and take a breath. She was better just like that. Our nervous systems are very tightly embedded, and so that's the big thing. Also, she has somebody that she loves and respects that also has this thing. So it doesn't make her feel isolated or different or stupid or Any of these labels that a lot of us, you know, have put on ourselves over the years. So it's great. Our relationship has gotten stronger. My wife is parenting differently, so it's wonderful. It was great to. To learn this about her and myself. It changes everything.

[C]

Absolutely. That was my next question. How did it affect your wife? And of course, how did it affect your other daughter?

[B]

Changed everything. You know, parenting an autistic child is a complete 180 from parenting a neurotypical child. And so my wife dove hard into the information. She educated herself on everything there is to educate herself on, and she started parenting differently. We became less frustrate with her. It's the first thing, like, you know, why is she so defiant? Why is she breaking down? Why are these things? And once we knew her, like, okay, we need to come in with 100 times the empathy. And she would yell at her sister during these meltdowns. And so we explained to her sister that sometimes she has a hard time staying calm because of how her brain works and her body works, and it's not your fault. And so now her little sister understands. And if she yells at her little sister, I can say, hey, just remember, you know, your sister has autism, and sometimes she has a hard time. And so it's made. It's made everyone more empathetic, made life somewhat easier for us, I think.

[C]

Okay, now you've got the school under control, or maybe not under control, but at least on the road for them to understand what's going on. You understand and have found out more about yourself. Your friends and people that you work with are starting to understand more about you. What about other people, people that are not in the business, let's say, other parents that you have interacted with? How has that changed? Or has anything changed now that you understand aut more than you did prior to all this?

[B]

It's a very insightful question. Well, to start, we educated people around her that were very close to her that this is what's going on. So the first person I told was her nurse at school. She's constantly going to the nurse, and the nurse is annoyed with her and telling us it takes a lot of people to calm her down. And I said, let me just make this easier for you. She has autism. We just figured this out. So now maybe educate yourself on how to properly be a nurse to her in a kind way, way. You know, she told her best friends, couldn't believe it. She shared this with her two best friends, three best friends now, and they've embraced her. They've just been wonderful, and it's okay. Great. Lucy, we understand. And, you know, she scratches her skin as a stim a lot and it's terrible. And she does what we do and they're okay with it and they support her and they stay with her and they don't judge her. So them know has been extremely helpful. I'm kind of done telling people that I'm autistic. I don't like the response, and I don't like being pigeonholed. And I don't want to be judged is not the right word, but I don't want to be treated differently. And so I just decided I'm not going to tell anyone else, but totally open about it. Just not going to go broadcasting it, I guess, to other parents and stuff.

[C]

I can understand that completely. I speak with other people and they tell me when they open up and let them know that they are autistic, they get this disbelief or they get this phrase, you don't look autistic, which makes them wish they had never told them to begin with.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, that.

[C]

Do you feel that may be a big reason why you feel like not opening up to other people now because you are not getting the understanding that you had hoped for?

[B]

You know, when I got this bipolar diagnosis, I was like, all right, I'm going to embrace it. I'm bipolar. I told everybody. I did art shows about it. I. I just embraced the label, and it didn't do me any good. It didn't serve me. And it changed people's perception. I could feel it. I don't want to go down that road again. And that's kind of it. I don't need approval from anybody. I really don't. I. I love it. I love my brain and body and my nervous system, and I love it. And I don't feel like it's a disorder. Shorter. It sucks sometimes. Terrible sometimes, you know?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

But life is terrible sometimes.

[C]

And, yeah, it can be.

[B]

And so, you know, I just would rather be known as either Tyler or my artist's name is Enzo, and leave it at that.

[C]

How has it changed your focus, or has it changed your focus in the way you work with your PR and of course, the way you work in your music?

[B]

Oh, boy. It's changed everything. It's changed everything. For one, I don't. You know, I used to have pretty bad imposter syndrome. I would make, like, 80 tracks of music and then wonder, like, what I think I'm doing, or I would, like, close multiple deals in pr. What am I going to do now. I don't know how to do PR when I've been doing it for 18 years. And I would dive into these patterns, you know, this 369 pattern of the universe I've always been obsessed with. And people told me that I shouldn't talk about these numbers because I sound manic. And so I kind of suppressed all that. Now I'm just letting it flow. I'm letting anything that wants to come through me flow. I found a flow state. I call it the gap, which might be a good segue into what this music is about, but it has changed everything. This flow state that I found where I'm comfortable.

[C]

Let's talk about your music. How has that changed?

[B]

Okay, so I was making music. It's all electronic music. I write all the lyrics myself, I produce it. And it's a mix between electronic and AI I was making like fun hip hop stuff with like piano and like cello. Just I was trying to make music that I like. I started realizing as I made more and more music, there were certain tracks I would make that would just calm me instantly. It would just bring me to bass right away. I throw my headphones on. That's another thing. I put noise canceling headphones on. I was like, oh, my God, what is this? So I started listening to certain tracks and trying to identify what it was about the music I was making that was relaxing me. And I came to some really deep conclusions that have led to some really interesting music. Part of my own therapy for being autistic is being present. Always practice meditation. I've always tried to remain present in the base because it's hard for us, very hard for us in that state. I started realizing when I was in this flow state, the music that came through me had a sound that I had never heard before. And I love music. I'm obsessed with them. I started experimenting with systems that would create emergence within the music, Meaning I would set up environments where the direction for the music was unclear or paradoxical. So I would write prompts like, we're going to create an entirely instrumental track based on the 369 patterns of the universe based on call return, based on these structures that create a form of safety. And then what I was finding is I was using AI for the vocals is that I would get these emergent vocals that I was not prompting. I would get lyrics that would come out that were guttural sounds. The first major tell that I was doing something interesting was there was a beautiful male vocal that all of a Sudden merged with a cello and the vocal and the cello became one.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

I'd never heard that before. It was. It's supernatural. The guy's singing, and then he goes into cello and back into human. And when I heard that, my body dropped, and I was like, oh, God.

[C]

My.

[B]

My God. And that moment I was like, okay, we're gonna go deep. And so for the last year, I've been working on what I call gap music. Music that emerges from the space between. I've been mentioning this 3, 6, 9 pattern, you know, that a lot of people are obsessed with. Tesla really, you know, made it famous. And so the three builds the tension, the six expands it, the nine releases it. Right. And the cycle repeats. This pattern for autistic brains is incredibly soothing because it creates a perfect loop. And so you can listen to it over and over and over again without feeling burnt out by it. Because the way the music is structured, kind of like a spiral. And I'm sorry if this is, like, too out there, but.

[C]

No, not at all.

[B]

Music is kind of like a spiral. I can see the music in my mind, and you don't know what's coming next. So I'll start with, like a piano cello solo.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

And then it'll slowly merge into a choir vocal, maybe, or a mantra. And that will slowly merge into maybe a choir and handpan and piano playing at superhuman speeds. And then all of a sudden, you think that you've clocked the music, and you think you've clocked the pattern. Bam. Dubstep, dubstep hits. And you're like. Your brain just starts going, you know, I've got the 80 sound moving around, and it's like, what the hell is this? And as soon as you clock that pattern, bam. I shoot into a boom, boom, bat hip hop beat.

[C]

Nice.

[B]

So when your brain's about to clock data, go right back to classical. And so I've created a system where your brain can't track the pattern, and it's extremely satisf.

[C]

Have you released your music so other people within the autistic community can hear it? And secondly, what has the response been to those that have heard it?

[B]

You are the first person in the media I've shared this with.

[C]

Oh, okay.

[B]

So I did a lot of research. I found you unquoted and a few other media databases, because that's what I do. And your response was extremely empowering. Obviously, you've got an unbelievable background in music, and I don't have to tell you what you've done. Your background is incredible. And you know what you're talking about. So you're the first person that actually validated that this is what it is.

[C]

I appreciate that.

[B]

And so I share it with other neurodivergent people. And 100 of the time they come back and say, this is the best I've ever heard.

[C]

And they don't know what nice.

[B]

Not just for neurodivergent people. I call it Gap Music for Beautiful Brains because it really helps anybody in regulation. And so the feedback's been incredible from the community. I played it for my daughter the other night. She hates my music because she's my kid and she thinks I'm cringe and she fell asleep. She just fell asleep to it. I played it for my wife and my dog. They felt asleep. You know, when I play it for people, every single one of them has the same response. It's incredibly fulfilling, relaxing and interesting.

[C]

If you would tell our listeners how they can find you, how they can follow you, and how they can listen to your music.

[B]

So I have two tracks that are public, both on YouTube. It's called Gap Emergent Music. If you search for Gap Emergent Music, you'll find it. But the YouTube channel is Gap Music for Beautiful Brains. The channel name is App Music for Regular Regulation at Gap Music for regulation on YouTube.

[C]

And how do people find you?

[B]

They can find me by going to instagram.com enzotheartist E N S o the artist. They can find my publicity business at tyler barnett pr.com and on TikTok at millennial. Dad got a pretty decent following there. I would love for not just the the TISM community, but everybody who is looking for some regulation. Go to Gap Music for regulation on YouTube and let me know what you think. I'm going to be releasing tracks slowly over. I've created 80 tracks, so I'm trying to sort through them and put out what I think is most helpful. So that's where it can be found. And there's two tracks on there right now that are my favorites. And then I also used AI animation to create some loops of water ripples that are also really beautiful to watch.

[C]

Nice, Nice. I love it. This has been great, great conversation, great information. I really appreciate you taking the time to join us today.

[B]

Thank you so much for having me, Tony. I really appreciate it. Very insightful questions. Please keep doing what you're doing. You have a beautiful show and your message is amazing and you're helping a lot of people and I really appreciate the opportunity to talk to you today.

[C]

It's been My pleasure. Thanks again. Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to listen to our show today. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you. If you know someone who has a story to share, tell them to contact us at WhyNotMe World. One last thing, spread the word about why not me. Our conversations are inspiring guests that show you are not alone in this world. If you like the show, please take

[A]

a moment to rate, review and subscribe.

[B]

It really does help the show to grow.

[C]

Thank you for listening.