We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Mike Ward. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Mike below.
Mike, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
Throughout my career in advertising, I sat on the board of Michigan United Cerebral Palsy and also participated in many activities to assist the less fortunate in the Detroit area. Since my retirement in 2017, I have been a full time singer songwriter and have participated in many shows benefiting organizations such as the ACLU, Michigan United Cerebral Palsy, flood victims, fire victims and victims of abuse. But one of the most meaningful projects I have been part of is a benefit concert I helped organize and perform in called “Darkness on the Edge of Corktown. We hosted 30 songwriters (All the artists donate their time and talents.) who each performed a Bruce Springsteen cover to benefit the Motor City Mitten Mission, an agency that assists the homeless in Metro Detroit 24/7/365. The name is a play on Darkness on the Edge of Town and it took place in Corktown (part of Detroit) This was our third annual show and last year we raised $5000 plus two truckloads full of donations. This year we raised $4000 and more than two truckloads full of donations. Each show ends with all the artists performing a song that I wrote “No Way To Live” which is meant to shine a light on the issue of homelessness. Since its release in November 2021, it has brought in more than $1000 that has been donated back to organizations assisting those living on the streets.
Mike, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I began singing at a very young age in church choirs but was also surrounded by music of my older siblings (I am the 7th of 8 kids) —stuff like Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, Odetta, Irish folk music of the Clancy Brother & Tommy Makem—and my parents both loved all kinds of music from jazz to show tunes to folk. My mom wanted each of us to play an instrument. She played a baby grand piano daily but we had access to trumpet, flute, clarinet (my first attempt) and a beautiful Gibson guitar that mom gave my dad in 1947. I still own and perform with this guitar. Our family was allowed to express creativity which resulted in a sculptor brother, poet/teacher sister, fashion/graphic design sister and I was a writer/designer for more than 40 years in the creative side of advertising. Even the siblings who had more traditional jobs had creative outlets.
My background in writing and creating advertising on a daily basis really has helped my songwriting especially the editing process, the production end and promoting my music and shows. Trimming ideas into 30 or 60 second units made the process of honing in on the main idea of song and really finding the memorable language that will creata song that hits home.
I grew up in the conscious-raising 60’s, where a new awareness of the world was colliding around me. Influences are the likes of Dylan, Jackson Browne and Joan Baez, with my own songs offering a dose of self-deprecating humor ala John Prine and Louden Wainwright III. My intimate songwriting style reflects family, community and the world that surrounds us. A fear of leaving that world without making a difference in the lives of others is part of what drives me.
As an artist, I am also deeply concerned about the future of this country from a social, political and community standpoint. This is why I am involved with many many community organizations and look to use my voice to raise issues to the light. Additionally I am a 30 year board member for a disability advocacy organization in Michigan fighting for the rights of those who struggle with disabilities.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Having begun my songwriting journey later in life (age 60…even though I was passively writing songs since I was 18) I was fairly ignorant of resources available for songwriting and storytelling through songs. The organization Folk Alliance International (and the regional conferences FARM, SERFA, SWERFA, NERFA) has made in immeasurable impact on my creative life. Through the mentors, conference speakers, other songwriters and the online resources, my journey has been enhanced and the trajectory of recognition my music has received has been far beyond what I could have done on my own. I only wish I had begun attending these conferences twenty years ago. The moment my wife and I walked into our first FARM (Folk Alliance Region Midwest) conference, she said “I think you found your people”. So true. The personal connections made, the support and the education has been incredible.
I had spent each day of my work career developing ideas, putting them up on a wall for anyone to critique, so when it came to the songs I was writing, I was not really interested in a critique on them. Once I retired I realized how narrow that thinking was. The Folk Alliance resources and those I have met through the organization have enhanced and improved my music. It also led me to many other songwriting groups and that has led to friendships and collaborations that continue to bring new ideas and new way to express through music.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
This story actually comes from my college years. I had gone to a community college in a small town (Port Huron MIchigan) and came out with an Associate Degree in Advertising Design. Then I attended more of a fine art oriented college for a year before dropping out and moving to California where I thought I would be able to find a job as an art director at an ad agency. After 8 months, I quickly realized how wrong I was. So I applied to the University of Michigan School of Art (where my best friend attended) and was accepted. I felt pretty good. My first week in Ann Arbor, the new students in the School of Art were told we could read the remarks/critiques on the portfolios we had submitted for acceptance. So I read the remarks on my work. “This person does not even see” “Accept only if there is room” “poor design and drawing skills”…these were a few of the remarks. It was a gut punch to a young student. But I decided right then that I would put every ounce of energy into improving, working and studying to prove them wrong. I received a Magna Cum Laude BFA from the School of Art in 1978. My work ethic helped my creative spirit grow and flourish over the next 50 plus years and is still at work in my music. Challenge accepted. I grew up playing hockey and was born the 7th of eight kids so I have always been competitive..even with myself. That attitude (and an Irish temper) has occasionally exploded with quite a temper and thus my nickname “PsychoWard” was born. So when I needed a way to separate from other artists named Mike Ward…Psychosongs was born.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.psychosongs.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/psychomike7/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/psychosongmike
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/psychoward/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/psycho5478
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/psychosongs
