Emily Burkhead is an intermedia artist whose work blends 3D printing, found materials, and surrealist filmmaking. Despite not having formal artistic training in her undergraduate years (she has a social science degree), Emily pursued an MFA where she developed her distinctive style featuring vibrant hot pink colors and varied textures. Her thesis project, "Trigger/Glimmer/Something Else," became a powerful exploration of her queer and neurodivergent identity. Emily was drawn to hot pink as a "dopamine inducer" that felt forbidden because of how society had conditioned her to view it as childish, trashy, or garish. Her work creates a visual language that communicates her neurodivergent experience - with yellow elements representing sensory triggers (like "wet socks" or "Ed fucking Sheeran") and hot pink representing sensory "glimmers" (like "weighted blankets" or "my nephew's laugh"). Though she sometimes struggled to verbalize her artistic intentions in graduate school, Emily found that her work allowed her to express feelings that are difficult to put into words.

We talk about her character "Miss Bubblegum," a surrealist film persona Emily created inspired by feminist filmmakers like Mika Rottenberg, which captures the disorienting experience of being neurodivergent in a neurotypical world. Emily shares how her creative partnership with her filmmaker partner Henry works, and we talk about the complexities of being in a relationship with another artist. She discusses her challenging experience in graduate school, including nearly dropping out before finding validation through community and peers who shared similar identities rather than just from professors. Emily explains her attraction to early 2000s childhood themes in her current work, finding that art is one of the only ways to synthesize the strange nuances of childhood experiences.

💖 Watch, listen, or read at www.likereallycreative.com/show

Micah McGee, known as Strooly, began his musical journey in a family of artists and musicians. His earliest memories include playing piano at his grandparents' house at age four, fascinated by harmonies and rhythms. Growing up around painters, illustrators, and screen printers instilled a DIY creative mentality that influenced his approach to art. Though he learned multiple instruments by ear (piano, guitar, drums, cello, and stand-up bass), his transition to electronic music production happened in college when limited space made traditional instruments impractical. After moving to Memphis in 2010, he joined a collective of DJs and producers called Voodoo Village, gaining experience in the backend of running a label. This eventually led to co-founding Future-Everything with his partner Anthony Carter, creating what he describes as "a living museum" for artists he believes in, focusing on music that evokes strong mental imagery and emotional narratives.

We talk about Strooly's creative process and how he revitalized his approach during the pandemic by returning to analog hardware, incorporating four-track tape recorders and synthesizers to overcome creative plateaus. He discusses one of the projects he’s most proud of: the annual compilation albums that celebrate Future-Everything's global artist roster. Strooly shares how he balances his creative pursuits with full-time work and fatherhood through careful scheduling. We explore how he incorporates his daughter's sounds and toys into his music, including an ambient album featuring recordings of her playing. Despite his success as a DJ, Strooly reveals his struggle with anxiety and nervousness before performances, using DJing as a controlled environment to overcome his natural introversion. He offers advice to aspiring producers about setting limitations rather than being overwhelmed by options, and shares his dream projects. 

🎧 Watch, listen, or read at www.likereallycreative.com/show 

Musicians J Opp and Benjamin Reese are co-owners of HavenHaus, a DIY music venue in Memphis. The venue began as a small house music space that J started after the COVID pandemic shut down other DIY venues like Pagan Mom House. What began as a necessity to keep the local music scene alive has evolved through several locations to their newest location next to Earnestine & Hazel's in downtown Memphis. J describes finding each new space as almost divinely ordained, with opportunities consistently appearing at the right time. When the previous Cooper Young location began showing limitations (one porta-potty, no AC, electrical issues, and noise complaints), J and Ben found their current downtown location with a built-in bar, stage, lights, and sound system - the perfect next step for HavenHaus.

We talk about how J and Ben met through the local music scene, their individual musical projects (Spitehouse, Banales, and Crum B.), and how Ben moved to Memphis in 2022 and connected with other musicians through Facebook groups and open mics. They describe the Memphis DIY scene as a "friendship central" where artists overlap, connect, and support each other despite occasional "beefs and spats." We discuss mosh pit culture and how it provides an outlet for aggression in troubling times. They share stories about police encounters at DIY shows, their GoFundMe campaign that has raised $4,600 to support the venue's growth, and how they balance running HavenHaus with their creative pursuits. They express their desire to make Memphis an essential tour stop for bands that typically pass over in favor of Nashville, emphasizing the vibrancy of the local music scene touring artists shouldn't skip.

🐭 Watch, listen, or read at www.likereallycreative.com 

At the age of 5, Suroor Hassan (@suroor.901) wanted to become a pop star. She discovered Britney Spears who taught her unapologetic self-expression and artistic presentation. This early fascination with pop as an idea has led her to experiment with the art form, blending sounds she heard growing up in Pakistan, layered hyperpop glitter, poetic themes of queer joy and angst, and performance. Not only is Suroor a pop star on the rise who recently finished a tour of the Midwest, she’s an adjunct professor and scholar working on her dissertation.

In this episode of the Like Really Creative Show, we talk about Suroor’s musical persona merging with her personal growth, why she chose the name “Suroor,” how she went from living on autopilot to giving a fuck about herself, the juxtapositions explored in her debut album “Lavender Showers,” how she’s transitioned to studio recording for her sophomore album, how she unpacked her immigration experience with her poetry collection “Peeling the Petals,” co-running an experimental music label @purgatorypressings with her wife, expanding her perspective and creativity through her academic work, overcoming performance anxiety, how she manages multiple projects, and her dreams of flying.

🔪 Watch, listen, or read at www.likereallycreative.com

Sam Reeves Hill's (@samreeveshill) artistic journey began after what she describes as an "ego death" when her basketball career came to an unexpected end. Asking herself what she would do if money didn't matter, Sam finally admitted aloud what she had always known inside: "I want to paint." Despite having no formal painting experience until college, Sam developed her distinctive layered, textured style through daily practice—what she calls "daily journal entries" of creativity. Now a prolific painter and muralist, Sam creates abstract works that embrace imperfection and depth, drawing inspiration from her family's creative heritage while carving out her own artistic identity.

In this conversation, we talk about Sam's daily creative practice as a form of journaling, her struggle with procrastination, and how she brings her work home to stay consistent. We talk about the profound influence of the creative women in her family, particularly her mother's collected "mom-isms" that now inspire her art, as well as the touching reason behind a painting inspired by her bluegrass musician father. Sam shares insights about her transition from basketball to painting, painting her first mural for the Balinese Ballroom in the freezing December cold, how astrology helps her understand her Aries self, and how being homeschooled until the age of 15. Then she reveals her dream project—a residency with unlimited supplies and a massive canvas where she can fully express her abstract vision.

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Almost a year ago, the music and lifestyle platform BitchBopz—led by Ashley Koehler—was born and has since taken the Memphis music by an ultra hot storm, highlighting all things femme, femme, femme. Frustrated with not being able to use her marketing and design talents for something that gave her purpose, Ashley formed BitchBopz out of a need to amplify authentic music she loved which blossomed into an engaged online community. Eventually, artists Taylor Mix and Ellen Whelan joined as co-Bopperz, and now, the trio is getting ready to throw a big anniversary bash at Ugly Art Co. after a wildly successful Grammys Watch party—their largest feat yet, but with so much more to come. 

In this interview, we talk about how the trio formed through their strong bond over music, which Powerpuff Girl they each embody, why they celebrate femininity and inclusivity, the power of Britney Spears, the struggle and balance of building a brand with 9 to 5s, how they funnel their creative energy, dipping toes into music production, a dream to work for Rihanna, and a vision to hopefully expand BitchBopz to include representation for independent artists, and reclaiming the word “bitch.”

💗 Watch, listen, or read at likereallycreative.com

At just four years old, DeMarcus Suggs experienced his first transformative moment on the dance floor, swaying with his grandmother to Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance with Somebody" at a family wedding—a joyful awakening that revealed how movement could become both expression and liberation. He found a calling in movement through ballet, leading him to create imaginative choreography pieces centered around redemption. Fast forward to now: he’s made history as the first Director of Creative and Cultural Economy for the City of Memphis. 

In this episode, we talk about following around his sister’s hip-hop dance team, performing ballet professionally before his transition to community development to create something even bigger, the sacredness of a morning routine and journaling, finding dance inspiration from the intersection of Kendrick Lamar’s album “GNX” and Eddie Floyd’s “Big Bird,” the motivation behind starting the City of Memphis Artist Listening Sessions, how creativity should be accessible with a 10-minute radius for all Memphis residents, how to encourage people to see the beauty in their neighborhoods, the six dimensions of what makes a region hospitable for artists to have a sustainable career, and his dream project of choreographing a dance piece for the entire city of Memphis.

❤️ Watch, listen, or read at ⁠www.likereallycreative.com⁠