We recently connected with Jared McCloud and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jared , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I think it was just how it was going to be- not that I decided anything. I was bored in school and held plenty of jobs that really didn’t do anything for me other than pay bills, so they usually didn’t last that long. Art was all I ever wanted to do, and a bunch of different styles as well. Painting, tattoo, songwriting, sketching, graphic design… believe it or not they all sort of go together. Once I started to figure out how to make a living do what I liked I never looked back.

Jared , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Well I have been a touring singer/songwriter for a very long time- I have been writing and performing songs since I was a kid. That took me places I never thought I would get to, from record deals to playing incredible stages across the country.

Art is something that runs in my family so I have been making art my whole life as well. In my mid 20s I started an apprenticeship to be a tattoo artist. It is a trade that I have been able to take with me anywhere and the atmosphere and schedule afforded me the opportunity to tour and perform.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Honestly I’m fortunate that I have jobs that society is pretty supportive of. Music isn’t going anywhere and Tattoo only gets more popular every day. I guess with how the internet has changed everything it’s a lot different of a career than it used to be, but you have to adapt. They said Napster was going to be the end of the “music biz” and I suppose it was, but now it operates differently- and maybe that’s a good or bad thing but it still operates.

Now people are worried that AI art will put artists out of work, and maybe they’re right, but I have to believe that someone who was going to hire a painter or a sculpted to make something, to create something, is not the same person who is just going to type something out and the print whatever comes up and hang it on the wall. Good art isn’t going anywhere.

I guess to answer your question, keep buying. Keep seeing shows. Keep wearing merch or getting tattooed or supporting local artists.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

It used to be to get “better”. I used to do this thing where I’d say, “ok, I had to start playing guitar when I was five, to be good enough to play with these kids when I was a teenager, to be in this band, to have met this guy…” and go through all the steps that took me in the path of this career. Same thing with tattoo- starting my career when I did meant that I was in the right place at the right time to make money and support myself to get to the next step. All of this was to get further. Better. Bigger, because that was my priority at the time. Now when I do this whole thought process, the end is I had to do all of these things to become a dad, and meet my wife. They all had to happen in the way that they did for me to be right here and now. My family is the mission, and I’m very thankful I get to create to take care of them.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jaredmccloud.com
• Instagram:@jer.makes.da.artz