This will be an ongoing project that focuses on on detailing rising performers/musicians/actors and peoples of interest concerning their lives and struggles that kickstarted their careers.
Jared Clark a.k.a. PepperCoyote of LookLeft
Career; Musician/Songwriter/Music Teacher
Bio: I started performing at 5 years old with my first little kid piano recital.
My professional career started at 16 when I was in a garage band with some other high-schoolers playing awful cover music in bars.
In college I started writing my own music. I was in a classical vocal program pursuing a music education degree but I ended up doing a whole bunch of "pop" song writing. I formed a band with some friends and we played shows all over the area for the 4 years we were in school together.
I moved to Phoenix after graduation and started performing at a lot more conventions, at this point my band was split across the country, so I converted the band into a solo act.
This was purely out of necessity and the will to keep performing. It ended up being what defined me as a performer.
The Job You Hated;
My first job out of High School was at Walmart. I was in a rural area and it was pretty much the only place hiring on a regular basis. I was put in the Deli. I had only spent about 2 weeks weighing salami before I was utterly sick of the job.
This, more than anything made me work harder in college. It's Walmart that I credit for helping me earn those "A"s because I knew I never wanted to go back.