E30: This Modern with Frontman Marcus Reardon
This week on the City Limitless® podcast, we welcomed a guest whose story feels deeply connected to Mesa’s own evolution. Marcus Reardon, frontman of the band This Modern, grew up in Mesa, shaped by the same streets, schools and creative shifts that have transformed the city over the years. Our conversation traced his journey from a Mesa kid surrounded by music to an artist helping shape the local scene today, offering a look at how passion, persistence and place come together to create a career.
Marcus was born and raised in Mesa and always knew music would be part of his life. His family ran the music program at their Catholic church, and he spent his childhood around instruments, choir and talented relatives. In high school, he and his friends would freestyle in parking lots, testing out lyrics they wrote at home. Those early sessions sparked something, eventually leading him into a basement studio where he recorded his first rap projects and realized how much he loved the entire process of making music.
Everything shifted the day he visited Mind's Eye in Downtown Mesa; a recording complex filled with rock bands. Even though he was firmly in his rap era at the time, someone asked if he could rap over a rock track. He said yes. They recorded the song, and just like that, he was invited to join a band. After several rebrands, that band became This Modern, a group whose sound blends rock, rap, pop and electronic influences, all rooted in Marcus’ wide range of musical inspirations.
Marcus’ connection to Downtown Mesa runs especially deep through the Mesa Music Festival and the Mesa International Film Festival. He debuted This Modern on the Mesa Music Fest main stage, the night after he retired from his rap persona and has since played some of his biggest shows there. At the Mesa Film Festival, the band won Best Music Video for a two-part project filmed throughout downtown, including on the light rail.
Not every moment has been glamorous. On their first tour, Marcus broke his foot on stage and finished the rest of the shows in a walking boot. On that same tour, they played a set in a stranger’s living room to an audience of one man doing dishes. Those experiences, he says, stick with you just as much as the big shows.
Looking ahead, Marcus is focused on making music his full-time pursuit, with new This Modern music on the way. This includes a collaboration EP with Through Waves and upcoming vocal features with DJs releasing tracks internationally. He has also been writing a considerable amount of country music and hopes to land a strong placement this year, whether it is cut by another artist or released himself. He knows the music industry comes with plenty of setbacks, so his advice to new artists is simple: Have thick skin, celebrate the small wins and keep moving forward, even when progress feels slow.
For now, fans can follow along on social media as This Modern continues to release music, skits and behind-the-scenes content that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The shows, songs and stories will keep coming. If there is one thing this episode made clear, it is that both Marcus and Mesa are still in the middle of their creative rise, growing together one stage, one street and one story at a time. To hear the full conversation and discover more stories from the artists redefining our community, check out this episode and others on the City Limitless® podcast. You won’t want to miss it!