Giuseppe Capolupo does not take “no” for an answer. Growing up, he thought being a musician would be the perfect job. Although everyone told him he could not do it, and he would need a backup plan, he refused to listen and followed his dream.“For me, music is a direct connection to human emotion,” Capolupo said in a phone interview Saturday.Capolupo, 25 of Jefferson Hills, said songwriting is a way for him to be vulnerable and open up to people. He wanted to prove that he could do this and share the art of music, something that means so much to him.Capolupo has been performing music for as long as he can remember. When he was nine years old, his parents bought him a keyboard and lessons with a private instructor after years of watching him experiment on his aunt’s keyboard every Christmas. Capolupo said he would listen to the radio and easily pick up some of the melodies he heard.Pretty soon, Capolupo was experimenting with improvisation, and began writing his own melodies. He soon transitioned from a jazzy sound to a more modern, rock ‘n’ roll sound, and started playing drums. In his early music career, Capolupo was the drummer for two metal bands, Haste the Day and Once Nothing, and traveled all over the world, touring with them.One day, Capolupo picked up an acoustic guitar and started trying new things and learning how to play. While on tour with both bands, he wrote songs of his travels and experiences, in order to tell his stories. When the tour ended, he recorded the songs on his computer.“I was born to do this,” Capolupo said.In January 2011, he showed the recorded songs to his friend, Caleb Pogyor, who told him his songs were really good. Pogyor told Capolupo to get a full band together to perform at an album release party in January 2011. Taking his friend’s advice, Capolupo asked some friends if they were interested.So in came Scott Maniglia, Tony Tortella and Diego Byrnes. The three of them quickly learned the music to Capolupo’s songs. They rehearsed as a full band only a few times before the performance. When it was over, Pogyor told Capolupo it sounded like the four of them had been playing together for years. Mangilia, of Lawrenceville, grew up with Capolupo. Since they were both drummers, they always joked about being in a band together.“[But] it was not something that seemed to be in the cards,” Mangilia said in a phone interview Sunday.Capolupo was writing songs and playing guitar and Mangilia said it was like an unspoken rule between the two friends, that they would be in a band together. Since Mangilia was always a drummer, it was decided he would drum for the band.Byrnes said he met Capolupo while staying at a college friend’s house over Christmas break. They only met once, but stayed in contact for years. When Byrnes moved to Pittsburgh, he invited Capolupo over for dinner and they played music together with some other friends.So when Capolupo asked Byrnes, originally from Long Island, N.Y. and currently living outside of Johnstown, to be a part of his new band, Byrnes said he knew what was coming.“[Giuseppe] texted me one day and said, ‘I have a question for you.’ I just said yes, because I knew what was coming,” Byrnes said in a phone interview Sunday. “I’ve just always enjoyed being in a band and playing on stage.”Thus Gypsy And His Band Of Ghosts was formed. After collecting all of his songs, the band began recording their extended play (EP) “Shortcuts, Backup Plans and Detours” at Beacon Hill Recording Studio in Dormont.“We put in a lot of time at the studio to sound as good as humanly possible,” Capolupo said.The EP will be released on iTunes and Spotify on Sept. 4, and the hard copy will be released on Sept. 22 at the Thunderbird Café at 4023 Butler Street in Lawrenceville.“I feel really good [about the EP]. I’m glad it’s finally coming out,” Mangilia said.Capolupo said Gypsy And His Band Of Ghosts has been playing shows whenever and wherever in order to promote the band and the new EP. Most recently, they opened for another Pittsburgh band, Bear Cub at the Rex Theater in the South Side on Sept. 4. Capolupo also said he has been running around the city to pass out fliers and putting himself out there to promote his band and their music.