Meet Michael Weiskopf | Musician, songwriter, performer.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michael Weiskopf and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael, how do you think about risk?
Someone once said that “It’s the experiences that you want but don’t go for that you remember more than what you have actually done”. While not a universal truth for me, it does have great resonance. I learned early on that every day brings some degree of risk and most we don’t pay much attention to or give a lot of thought. The big risks in life are the ones that involve great levels of personal failure or fears that need to be faced. As a performer and a writer, I have learned to embrace that kind of risk because it brings enormous satisfaction when setting goals and (not always) achieving them. Being in the “arena”, putting yourself on the line, either in personal relationships, business, or creating art involve digging deep for your authentic self and acting on it. The rewards of success and the lessons of failure are transitory. The moments of engagement are the meaningful ones.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
In Steven Van Zandt’s great memoir “Unrequited Infatuations” he coins a term that he refers to as “Wisdom Art”. If there is a place to categorize my work I think that definition sticks. My music is about ideas, experiences and stories. It is a blend of musical styles and story telling that i believe is beyond the cliches that define today’s popular music. It requires a kind of active listening. I think the payoff is there for an audience that has been around for a while. I try to write songs that have a variety of chord changes and melodies that fit the story line or the emotional content of the lyrics.

I have recorded four albums of mostly original material and have graduated from being totally intimidated by the recording process to making it clear what i think works for me in the studio and how i want my songs to present themselves. So, it is my continuing development and progress as a musician that i feel pretty good about. Performing my original material successfully without a band for foreign audiences has been very fulfilling. I think the biggest challenge for a creator is finding their audience. There is so much talent and diversity that it is difficult to break through. But remember this, there are nearly eight billion people on the planet so if you have something to say, you likely have a meaningful audience. Finding them and aggregating them in an efficient way, well, that isn’t so easy.

I don’t need the world to know my story, just enough people to continue to feel that my work is validated.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Assuming you mean South Florida?

Walk around Wynwood, Le Chat Noir (Downtown) Tropical Park, Broward Center (depends on who’s there) Clevelander Bar, The Betsy Hotel Lobby and photo gallery. The Luna Star Cafe, The Frost Modern Art Museum. A charter boat at sunset. South Pointe Park. The Beach. The Perez Museum. Casa Tua restaurant. Big Pink. South Beach Music Exchange. Bass museum. What’s left of the wooden boardwalk. Gale hotel bar, several dive bars that will remain nameless. Outdoor movies at the New World Symphony. The Fifth Street Gym (now on Alton Road). Toni Sushi.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My band mates and musical collaborators; Randolph Hudson, Stuart Sherman, Taka Shimizu, Steve Bass, Klyph Black, Damian Sanchez.

The enormous influence of: Bob Dylan, J.D. Salinger, Frederick Douglass, Philip Roth, Robert Johnson, Rosa Parks, Joni Mitchell, Cosmo Kramer

Website: http://michaelweiskopf.com/

Instagram: michaelweiskopfmusic

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100004174295986

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qW4OOeRIdLo

Other: http://thecompleteunknowns.com/