Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Michelle Do. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Michelle, appreciate you joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

It’s difficult to earn a full-time living from your creative work. I don’t get the luxury of working from 9-5, or the benefits from doing that. I might work full-time hours, but they’re scattered across a few institutions, and I’ve made a patchwork quilt of hours logged from different gigs. Often, my day is a gig at 10am, teaching from 12 – 5:30pm, and then rehearsal from 6 – 11pm, at three completely different locations. Weekends are also work days, because that’s when shows happen.

I still wouldn’t give it up for the world, though. I love the rush and excitement that comes with performing, and getting to create heartfelt moments that will bring a sense of meaning to my audience. I also take a bit of pride in knowing that I can pay my rent and my bills, and maybe have a little extra for savings doing something that I love. The hustle is real, but there’s a sense of accomplishment to the struggle.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m a multidisciplinary artist, for lack of a better term. I’m a pianist/keyboardist and a visual artist, mainly, although I’m working up other skills, like aerial arts, and cyr wheel. I’m fascinated by the creative process and how it applies to various artistic disciplines. I love expressing extremes in my work – lurid, psychedelic colors in my art, or just plain monochrome, if I’m working with charcoal. The sarcastic, discordant music of 20th century composers really speak to my heart. I love bringing to light the grittier, dirtier emotions of the spectrum – anger, determination, despair, loneliness, feelings that are raw and visceral and uncomfortable, because I’m sure anyone in my audience can relate, and maybe that will bring a bit of solace to those with whom my art happens to resonate.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I love wringing every last drop of potential out of the disciplines I’m currently pursuing, seeing how far I can push my limits, and then pushing them even further. I’m filled with curiosity about any and all aspects of my disciplines, and I want to see what will happen if I approach the creative process in unusual ways. All the messy mistakes, all the pitfalls and obstacles, they’re all a part of the process, and I’m constantly thinking about solutions to strange problems whenever I work in my art. How do you blend purple into yellow? How do you play this one difficult passage up to tempo? I think about this constantly, and when I find solutions, they become tools to help me further refine and explore the skills I’m currently developing. It’s a whole cumulative process, and the more I explore, the more I realize I don’t know.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

There’s a lot of sacrifice involved, if you’re going to pursue a life as an artist. Holidays and weekends, mostly – those are my busiest days, on top of the regular teaching and performing gigs I have during the week. Shows and banquets and fundraisers happen on holidays and the weekends. Also, most artists are really, reeeeaaallllyyy bad at socializing, because all of our brainpower goes to “how can I create the thing better!” instead of building up interaction skills. Almost all of us have crippling imposter syndrome, because we’re so used to analyzing all of our own artistic shortcomings in order to fix them, so we hyperfixate on that, and it’s all we see. But it’s still a rewarding reality to live, because when we make something that inspires or resonates with an audience, that moment, in and of itself, is the most beautiful thing in the world.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.huyenkhanhdo.com
• Instagram: Mssolfegge
• Facebook: facebook.com/Asylummusician

Image Credits
Michael Chee