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

Micah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. The first dollar you earn is always exciting – it’s like the start of a new chapter and so we’d love to hear about the first time you sold or generated revenue from your creative work?

As an artist sometimes it is really hard to put a price on your work. Artists sometimes tend to not charge enough or even at all for something they have created; Giving away drawings, tattoos or even playing shows for free. In high school i was always a drawing or would draw on my homework and a lot of people would watch me or request a sketch that i could do for them. I would even draw on my classmates skin with a pen like a tattoo in class. I never minded because I’ve always loved for people to have my work, and share my talent and love for art with others. I cant remember which time was the first time profiting off of my music or art, but one of the moments that I will always remember was when i won 1st place for an art competition. At the time i did it just for fun, and didn’t know that there was prize money, so it was a bonus, but around this time i realized that i could do what i love to do, and also make a living from it. Since then i would take commission work, design tattoos and sell my original art in shows.

Micah, 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?

Wow, where to start. All around i am a creative. I write music, play guitar, piano, sing, draw, paint, and i even do tattoos. So you can say I’m just a straight up ‘right brain’ (which ever side is the creative part of the brain. Haha). I’ve just always been like this as long as i remember, but i would say that the ‘business’ side of it started in high school when i started selling my art and playing music shows. Which had led to a program at Berklee college of Music, then to Manchester University in Indiana for Art, then eventually moving to Los Angeles. I always wanted to do this for a living and make money off of my love for being a creative, and sharing my art with the world. Sometimes i feel like it can be difficult doing ‘all of the above’, but i feel like that sets me apart from a lot of other people. I feel like it can be overwhelming at times too, and when you do so many different things, your life is never consistent. One day i will be doing tattoos, then the next i will be painting or doing a commission painting for a client, then playing music in front of people on the weekend.

I can say that as much as i love doing what i do, things can be difficult because it’s never really a steady income; not to mention the creative blocks that come with being an artist. But my ultimate goal and mission is to keep the art and music coming, sharing who i am through my art, and obviously surviving off of it, which is such a blessing.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

STOP PAYING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE !!!!!!! Pay an artist to design something for you! It may be a little more expensive but what is life without true authentic art created by humans? We are becoming a society where a lot of people want things now and aren’t willing to wait for it, or even invest into something created by someone. The life of an artist is an amazing one, but can be difficult, even if you think the art ‘comes easy’ for them and they can do it with their eyes closed, it is still a lot of work, practice, love, passion and energy. We are not machines.

Have you ever had to pivot?

When i had moved to Los Angeles from Indy i came from selling a lot of art, doing music shows, to not knowing anyone at all in CA. I felt like a small fish in a big pond, no connections, and no money. I had to start from the bottom working in a kitchen as a line cook, then working 3 different jobs. It was difficult to feel creative after working in a hot kitchen for 7 hours to try and pay bills. I had at times felt hopeless, but picked up and was doing 2-3 music shows a week, then eventually got a job at a tattoo shop. I went from a line cook, to a full time tattoo artist in a year, with so much free time to paint, and do music.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.instagram.com/micah_jewel?igsh=YThjdjB6OWRsYXBy&utm_source=qr
• Instagram: @meekatattoo
• Facebook: Micah jewel
• Twitter: @micahjewel
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/ujuKgJzvDkQ?si=bSUAIoo2RxUlC8ZS
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/40EEdZl1I2mEhT9fg4SF31?si=TnbqJzbOQkSF5hqhj98WKA