Matthew Byas aka Maffyuu is a drummer, producer, and an original member of the popular band Phony Ppl based in Brooklyn, NY. Maffyuu is also the son of hip hop legend DJ Jazzy Jay and was destined to play music from a young age. Maffyuu and the core members of Phony PPL met and formed the group when they were all still in high school and have since signed to the major record label 300 Entertainment, performed all over the world, and have even had features from names like Megan Thee Stallion and  Joey Bada$$. Despite performing together for over a decade and all the success they've had Phony PPL still has so much ahead of them.

In this episode we discuss growing up in a musical family, being classically trained as a percussionist, how the band Phony PPL formed, where his name Maffyuu came from, similarities between fighting games and playing music, how to learn new skills from YouTube, how to stay on the same page as a band, getting cosigned by celebrities, performing for Quincy Jones, and so much more.

Erik Ross is an Austin Texas based artist known for his unique paintings of characters that are easily recognizable as his own. I met Erik randomly in Los Angeles over a year ago and we kept in contact in case I was ever planning to visit Austin. Erik's art career has taken off over the last handful of years and he is finally having his first big show this coming June. Tune in and hear how he went from playing college baseball and telemarketing to having his work shown all around the country and making his art his career.

DJ Kam Bennett is an established DJ based in St. Paul, MN. Kam grew up in St. Paul, but has grown his career far outside of just the midwest. He started out DJing parties while still in high school. When he got the call from Lil Bibby to be his DJ his career really took off. Since then he has worked with a ton of big names in the music industry and played shows all over the country. These days he has settled back in Minnesota to raise his daughter and have a bit more consistency, at least for the moment.

SonReal is a Canadian music artist known for his unique mix of hip hop and folk music. He originally gained mainstream attention when his hit music video "Everywhere We Go" reached over 400k views in it first week back in 2013. Since then he got signed to a major record label, moved to Los Angeles, and put out several successful albums. In more recent years though he moved back home, got married, and is now a father of 3. His most recent album "Nobody's Happy All The Time" features more singing and guitar than some of his previous work and preaches a personal and meaningful message. We recorded this interview backstage in the greenroom before his show in St. Paul, MN while he was on his first tour since before the pandemic. Make sure to check out the new album, and keep your eyes peeled for a ton of new music that is on the way.

Michael Sieben is an Austin, Texas based illustrator and the current managing editor of the hugely popular Thrasher Magazine. He is also the co owner and artist behind Roger Skateboards. Michael grew up skateboarder and earned himself a bachelors degree in fine art before finding his way into the skateboard industry. From making little local zines for fun to writing and editing the most successful skateboard magazine of all time, Michael has a lot of stories to share.

Sprig of That is a tabla, fiddle, and guitar trio that play midwest-raised and globally inspired acoustic folk music. The band consists of Krissy Bergmark on tabla, Isabel Dammann on violin, and Ilan Blanck on guitar. Sprig of That came to Eau Claire and performed at Forage as part of the All Ears Listening Session series. I was lucky enough to catch their live performance and record an interview with each member after the show. With the recent release of their new album "Bloom", there was plenty to talk about.

In this episode we discuss how to form a band, how to come up with a good name for a band, how to improvise when performing live, how to maintain a band when the members live in different places, how to balance work life and touring, how to find your own sound, and much more.

Sol is an established hip hop artist based in Seattle. He has been a full time musician for over a decade and recently went on a cross country tour with his friend and fellow music artist SonReal. I was able to catch him before his show in St. Paul for this interview.

Adam Accola is one of the main people running Colab EC and is also a member of the board of directors for Converge Radio. My show originally premiered on Converge Radio several years ago and has been a weekly, and now twice a week, radio show ever since. Converge Radio is Eau Claire's local independent station that plays a wide variety of music, talk shows, and much more. Colab EC is Eau Claire's premier collaborative co working space. Since Adam and I have spent so much time working together on various things over the years it just made sense to finally have him on the show.

The Gully Boys are a 4 piece band based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They performed at the Brickhouse in Eau Claire, WI on Saturday December 3rd 2022. I was able to sit down with all 4 of them to record this interview before their performance. In these interviews we discuss how the band was formed, touring the country, playing covers, winning Minnesota's "Best New Band" in 2018, adding a 4th member, recording music, and much more.

Daniel Donato is a guitarist and singer/songwriter originally from Nashville, Tennessee. Daniel started busking at the age of 14 and grew his skills considerably when he started playing in the famous Don Kelly band while still in high school. At first his dream was to become a studio musician and play on every major country record, but instead he felt the need to start creating his own music. Still only 27 years old Daniel has become a force to be reckoned with in the industry. His band "Cosmic Country" is really something you need to see in person to fully understand how special they are. Thankfully they have been on tour after tour almost non stop for some time with no end in sight. In this episode we discuss how the crew came together, how to carve your own path, ways to slow down, and why it's all worth it.