Born to two creatives in 1975, I grew up in studios and galleries; My mother a glass ceramic artist and father a highly respected chef who owned his own fine dining restaurant. I was immersed in the arts and this informed my entire way of life.
I lost my father at age five and my mother was my first example of how to make a living in the Arts. She became a master neon sculptor. Music a constant focal point in my earliest childhood memories was in my DNA. Both parents encouraged my exploration in music. Starting on guitar, then playing viola in the school orchestra and finding my groove as a percussionist in high school marching band. I played my first paid performance at age 17. Music kept calling my name. As soon as I turned 18, I left my hometown Oklahoma City and moved to Austin,TX. I worked in a neon shop and picked up gigs in Austin. I went on to find my home in New Orleans where I lived and worked extensively in music and neon from 2003-2012. I had the honor of studying drums under the tutelage of legendary Jazz drummer Johnny Vidacovich (Professor Longhair, Mose Allison). I had my neon work featured in the Academy Award winning biopic ‘Ray’ in 2004. Hurricane Katrina changed the landscape for working musicians in New Orleans. Upon returning to the city after evacuating, I began supplementing my income as a sound engineer. I always had an interest in live show production and quickly realized that the sound board is also an instrument. Working in the performing arts over the last 17 years, I’ve been able to travel the world and work with artists from every genre imaginable. This has been an incredible source of inspiration and motivation for my own creativity and music composition. It brings me great joy to not only be able to play my instrument but to honor my father’s life making a living in a creative industry just as he did and to carry on my mother’s active legacy as a master neon sculptor.
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