Today we’d like to introduce you to Rocko Wheeler.
Hi Rocko, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
The origins of music have to begin where I was born. (And I’m still amazed I’ve somehow ended up in Los Angeles, writing and singing about the lonely streets of America, from border towns to late nights in Hollywood.) I grew up in the Piney Woods of East Texas, a heavily wooded, deeply religious region of Texas. The Baptist Hymnal provided the melodies and instruction. I loved the melodies, passed down and sung with a bit of a cattle-twang accent. But it wasn’t so much an attraction to country music as it was a resonance with the authenticity of the music I was hearing—-a lot of old songs sung without pretension, spiritual melodies. I think I’ve carried that into the songs I write now. I want there to be some kind of conviction in it, even though I hardly recognize that kid who grew up in that environment. The world has changed, I’ve changed. That’s life.
As a youngster, I picked up the violin, mostly out of love of movie music. Come to think of it, maybe the draw to LA was always there through movies. I loved the scores of James Horner and John Williams, a bunch of composers. I’d sit in the living room and rotate CDs and cassette tapes of movie scores, sitting for hours, memorizing the themes and movements. It wasn’t all that different from the emotions I felt in old hymns. There’s always mythic quality to movie music. But violin proved too cruel a master for me. My dad had an old acoustic, and I decided to start strumming. By this time, at 16, the frets were a welcomed change. I started sneaking Simon & Garfunkel records, Beatles, Creedence Clearwater Revival, James Taylor, Ricky Skaggs, New Grass Revival, etc… It was all over. My head was cracked open.
I started writing songs in 2007, even tracking a record in Nashville, but it wasn’t until I moved to LA in 2011 that I truly became a full-time singer-songwriter. Full-time crazy person. I originally came out here for the film. I worked on film sets in the art department, writing scripts in aspiration. But a lot of life happened and some tragedy in my personal life. The end of a lot of things——a death, a divorce. It was at this time I threw out my old life and went back to the song. 2013 I began playing the clubs: Hotel Cafe, Dresden Room, you name it. I found incredible liberation and rebirth writing songs, not as a so-called professional, but as a person who needed to get born again. Performing wasn’t an endeavor. It was a matter of life over death. And so it was!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’d be boring to talk about the shifting of the industry, the out-of-wack attention economy, and how most artists don’t get paid for their work. Alas, that’s where we are. But I’d say the biggest struggle, knowing this is the case, is staying in music for the right reasons. Artists are squeezed, and we’ve seen the proliferation of “content”, The great struggle is actually offering something of value to the listener——to find the listener who wants something of substance. It’s a flashy attention-deficit culture. The songs of Paul Simon, James Taylor, Bob Dylan gave me a sense of liberation. I too want to give that feeling of liberation to my listeners. I think it’s an endangered experience these days. While I haven’t lost hope, this is truly the struggle: to be motivated by life-affirming insights, brave expressions, and songs that have the power to assist you in life. I hope I don’t lose that.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m incredibly proud of my albums. It’s easy to lose sight of what these things are, what they’re supposed to be. At an elemental level, they’re a RECORD. They are a record of who you are at the time, who you’re making music with, where you’re making music. In 2015, I released “The Book of Rocko Wheeler” LP. These are my most brutal, most off-the-cuff songs. They’re songs written out of grief and striving, liberation, sexual discovery, and relational longing. I made the record with my good buddy Randall Kent and Andrija Tokic at The Bomb Shelter in Nashville. Andrija had just made some gold records like The Alabama Shakes’ breakout. But Nashville’s a funny place. He just had the records humbly propped up against the bathroom sink. Keeps you humble when you’re taking a piss. It was quite an experience!
Now, I’m getting ready to release my newest LP, “West Coast Gold” in March 2024. Immensely grateful to have worked with Sean Sullivan and Benjamin Lusk at the legendary Butcher Shoppe. They are two of the most humble, talented guys who, in the most subtle way, bring the best out in you. Ben is a mystery to me——multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, poet…I think he’s somewhere out in West Virginia working at a nuclear plant. Sean has worked with everyone and boasts not about his little gold statues for some notable bluegrass and country records, such as Sturgill Simpson’s “Sailor’s Guide”. I love those guys. We took a collection of songs that I wrote while traveling on the road and put them into this collection. We dove into the music of Marty Robbins, Guy Clark, and John Prine. I can’t wait to start sharing those songs. I hope the little fire in each tune keeps burning as they go out into the world.
Until it releases, I pretty much camp out at Hotel Cafe in Hollywood and Bigfoot Lodge There’s a real coterie of authentic, talented artists swirling around right now. The scene is exciting. There’s a showcase run by Fede Petro called Open Folk. It’s quickly becoming the best showcase in LA with artists that are bringing something far deeper than the norm. If readers get a chance, don’t miss Open Folk. And don’t miss the stuff the bluegrass fellas are putting on at Bigfoot and Tee Gee’s. As I’m thinking about it, I’m most proud of doing life alongside these people—-too many to list.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
The nerd in me will over-recommend, but I highly recommend “Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now” by Jaron Lanier. It’s a small book, but articulates one of the problems of our age with clarity (where clarity is scarce). For something a little more poetic, spend a few mornings with Kahlil Gibran’s “The Prophet”, or any of the poetry of Billy Collins. These poets teach us to see, breathe, and find value in the everyday experience. Fill yourself with the good thoughts of writers and storytellers whose work is life-affirming and honest. We’ve had enough of cynicism. Cynicism can easily be confused for realism.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @rockowheeler
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2XOBzOx1k7DYB42TzHWT9Z?si=gebtgszlSvaSFqsk7ibkQg
Image Credits
Photos – Alex Justice, Fede Petro, and Citrus Fruit Snaps
