My friend and exquisite singer and songwriter, Luke Mitchem, has come a long way with making waves in the music industry. He’s used his music for the greater good too, whether it be raising monies for his beloved hometown of Joplin, Missouri, which was devastated by a tornado in 2011, or writing about and singing songs that strike his old soul, Luke is a name you’ll never forget. With songs that many of us can relate with, such as ‘Please,’ ‘I Sing For You,’ (my personal favorite) and ‘I Won’t Put Your Name In A Song,’ you’ll be humming the tunes and singing along. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Luke for several months, after meeting him in late 2009. Luke’s an incredible musician with talent that will keep him around for years to come.
Luke took some time out to interview with Guitar Girl Magazine, and has the distinct honor of being one of our very first male musican interviewees, of which he’s excited about! Find out what he thinks about the differences between men and women in the music industry, as well as his sincere appreciation of women in music, and gives a little insight about his upcoming album that’s centered around female musicians.
GGM: Congrats on being one of our first male interviewees for Guitar Girl Magazine! How do you feel about it?
Thank you all so much for the opportunity! It’s an honor to be one of the first male artists to be interviewed by you all.
GGM: Let’s get right in on the music aspect of men and women in the music industry. What do you think are the obvious differences, and do you think women are treated much differently than men?
I wish there weren’t differences between men and women in the music industry but, to be honest, there are differences and that is a natural prejudice that we have as fellow musicians and fans of music. As an independent artist, it is equally hard for men and women. We are battling for shows with musicians that have a ‘team’ supporting them and that gives them an edge. It is probably harder for women to get respect in the music business, but I know that from my point of view, they are equals and trememdously talented songwriters.
GGM: What influences have women in music meant to you?
As an artist, I’ve always kept an open mind and allowed anyone and everything to influence/inspire me in some way or another. I have seen some very talented female artists in the past year; Lisa Hannigan, Laura Marling, and Jill Andrews to name a few that have influenced my music lyrically. I think there is an overall misconception that female songwriters are all ‘radio pop’ lyricists but they are not. These three have lyrics that cut deep and stay with you long after the first listen. And seeing them live and how they perform has pushed me to match that level of intimacy in my own shows.
GGM: Tell us about your next album that’s going to be centered around female musicians, please…
I’ve always been a fan of several female songwriters and over the past year I’ve found myself writing songs about them, for them, or about the conversations I’ve had the pleasure of having with a few of them. I don’t want to give too much away about the next album but I’ve been working on an album’s worth of songs revolving around 10 or so female songwriters that have really inspired me. I guess in some ways it is me saying ‘thank you’ to them for inspiring me. I only hope that if they do hear the songs that they will find something in them that they remember, that seems familiar and smile.
GGM: You’ve been playing music for quite awhile. How do you see the music industry now after seeing several changes over the years?
When I first started playing music I had no idea how difficult it would be to book shows, receive reviews, sell albums, etc. I’ve learned a lot from every tour, album, and artist that I’ve come across. The music industry is tough on everyone, even the very successful. But we keep pushing because we want to carve out a small living and keep sharing our vision with other artists and our fans. I believe that it has gotten a little easier to get our music out to the masses with social media but that presents another problem because there is so much for music listeners to sift through. As an artist, you have to keep pushing and working and get a little lucky along the way.
Thanks for interviewing with us, Luke!
Follow Luke:
Purchase Luke’s music on:
