Meet fightstik | Musician

We had the good fortune of connecting with fightstik and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi fightstik, what’s something about your industry that outsiders are probably unaware of?
Definitely how much work independent artists do. I get asked a lot about what studios I record at or who does my cover art or other questions like that, and most independent artists like me do all of those things themselves. That’s mostly out of necessity too, because it’s hard to find places to record and the expenses really add up when you’re paying a bunch of different people to do a bunch of different things for you. So most people probably really don’t understand just how much time and work goes into each and every release when every aspect of the process is handled by just one person or a few people in a band.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Well I think something that sets me apart is how my music is made. I record independently in a home studio, which means everything that you see and hear is all me. I record all the instruments, write and record the vocals, I mix and master everything myself, and I even do all my own cover art and merch design. I’ve spent hundreds of hours over the last few years learning everything I can possibly learn about every aspect of that stuff, from production to sound design to creative product design so that everything feels professional and quality despite doing it all myself from my apartment. It definitely wasn’t easy and sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming trying to tackle everything myself, but I love being able to say “that was all me” when everything is done.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
To be honest I don’t even really know what to recommend. There are so many cool museums and places to see in downtown that it would probably mostly be that for the whole trip. The Menil Collection, Museum of Fine Arts, and Museum of Natural Science are all places to just spend a day and get lost, and I used to go to the park outside of the Menil a lot my freshman year of college to just sit and listen to music and do homework. So I would probably take them to some of those places.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My family first and foremost. My parents have always been extremely supportive and been behind me the whole time, and my two younger brothers are part of my live band so without any of them I wouldn’t be where I am. I’ve been super lucky to have a lot of people in my corner throughout my career. I owe a lot to my family and my close friends (and to my old boss that used to let me take off shifts all the time for music stuff, shout out KB). And finally my girlfriend Morgan, she’s been my sounding board for my entire career and she sees the work and frustration firsthand and always supports me. She hears everything before it comes out and hears me rant about all my ideas and she’s really just been the best. I wanted to also shoutout my live drummer Matt Seidel and my high school choir director Jason Womack.

Website: https://fightstik.com/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/fightstik

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fightstik

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@fightstik?si=FimgClh1W6XaNWtB