Often a musician's family heritage is sacrificed to produce music that appeals to the mainstream audience. But for Julius Sanchez, family heritage and the desire to make his band Fade 2 Black a success go hand in hand, with neither sacrificed for the other. Sanchez is very proud of his family's Pilipino (Pacific Islander) heritage and wants to prove that the group can be "just as successful as other groups out there" in the pop/rock arena. In February 2004, Fade 2 Black released its' debut album 'Fade Away' which Sanchez calls "an alternative to alternative".

'Fade Away' blends influences from such diverse groups such as Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, blink 182 and The Carpenters and from solo artists such as Debbie Boone and Mariah Carey into a musical concoction Sanchez labels as "bittersweet, like dark chocolate...a dark overtone with an underlying bit of hope."