FORT BRAGG, N.C. - Edward Andrew Loraditch, is a former Fort Bragg paratrooper who is currently pursuing a career in music. The Texas native who was once attached to All-American Chorus, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, before separating from the service in 1987, sings under the name Andrew Lords and has recently recorded his fifth CD, "Carolina Blue."
The CD title is also the name of the first track on the compilation of eight songs and pays homage to his love for this state.
In personifying North Carolina, he sings, "She's a beautiful girl/a warm soft place to fall ... she's a faded memory of wonderful days gone by..."
"What I like most about the Carolinas is the fact that it feels like home. I have so many young adult memories here," said Loraditch, a resident of Raleigh N.C. "I was stationed there at Bragg from '85 to '87."
Loraditch's music allows him to cope with isolation, he said. It is something he became accustomed to after being separated from his five siblings at the age of three, following the unexpected death of his mother.
"It's like I'm an observer of my own life instead of a participant. Music has never helped me feel closer to other people. Quite the opposite. Music has allowed me to exist in my isolation. Whether I have an audience or not, I am most happiest creating music," he said.
For Loraditch, music is more expressive than talking and it is the means of communication he said he most prefers.
"I much prefer to write than to talk," explained Loraditch. "I've published short stories and poetry while attending Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C. I personally don't enjoy listening to people talk about themselves longer than a few minutes, so . . . I assume people don't wanna (sic) hear me talk about myself, so I don't."
At the age of seven, Loraditch taught himself to play piano. It was the first of many instruments he now plays, including electric and acoustic guitar, drums, bass, percussion and harmonica. On "Carolina Blue," he sings the lead and harmony vocals, joined only once on track five, "Moving to Tennessee," by Tina Bowen, whom he said is a former girlfriend and close friend.
"If I tell you I love you, baby, will you move to Tennessee ... is it really so bad loving you in song," he sings.
For Loraditch, being a former paratrooper helps him push to make it in the music business.
"On the outside world, people do not always do what they say. In the military, you do. It is instilled in us. There is no lying or being lazy. Something needs to be done . . . you do it. Period," he said.
But, there is also something else that gives Loraditch the drive to succeed as a musician - he is a cancer survivor of Hodgkin's disease, a type of lymphona that affects the body's white blood cells.
"Being a cancer survivor has allowed me to believe in anything, no matter the circumstances," he said. "I believe I can do anything, if I put my mind to it."
Besides music, Loraditch said he enjoys wrestling and bodybuilding and has always had an intense desire to learn as much as possible about everything.
"Everything interests me. I love to question things," he said.
For those interested in Loraditch's music, visit his Facebook page at Andrew Loraditch or at Andrew Lords. His songs will soon be available for purchase through iTunes, he said.
Though music appears to be Loraditch's future, he's not likely to forget his past ties to Fort Bragg and a military life of which he is still proud.
"We are the protectors of the free world. We are not all created equal. Bragg has some of the most sophisticated, intelligent warriors the world has ever known . . .", Loraditch said. "I want my military to walk around with their chests expanded, beating on themselves like 400 pound gorillas. I love it and I loved my experience with the military. I have missed the camaraderie over the years. Some of my best memories are of Bragg and this area.
"Be a man. Contribute to something greater than yourself," he said.
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