Meet Jack Skokos | Musician

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

Hi Jack, any advice for those thinking about whether to keep going or to give up?
As an artist I think the main force to keep me going is my enjoyment of it. Once I stop feeling joy in creating and performing my music, that is when I’ll know I need to stop or change something. Even if i’m not exactly making a living off of my art I still wouldn’t give up until I hated doing it. I mostly do it for me so even if i’m not getting the audience I want. I would still keep going until I started hating what I was doing. I try to make music for the sake of making music. I think it is just something I have to do.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
So currently I have two musical projects. The first one is Coldridge which is my band. We are a four piece band and we have been playing around Denver for probably around 4 years now. The project started when we were all still in high school. We were a bit inactive during covid and had a lineup change, but are now back in full swing. The other members of this band include Ryder Berry on bass, Jamie Ramey on drums and our new member, Faith Huddleston on vocals. We try to mix lots of different genres, from metal to jazz, into an accessible pop rock sound. Coldridge just finished recording a 3 song EP with our friend and mixing engineer Cole Helman. We also have 2 other albums that we had previously released. My other project is called Skoki, which is my “solo” project. I have solo in quotes because it has been very collaborative between me and the other people that played on it. I have currently released one EP under Skoki titled Bloom and one single. I started writing some of the songs for Bloom during the pandemic and realized they didn’t really fit with the sound of Coldridge. The Skoki stuff is more broad on genre and I’ve also used it as a learning tool, specifically to learn how to produce and mix. It’s much more of a creative outlet for me where I feel I can make whatever I want with that project where Coldridge is a little more focused in our sound. I’m definitely super proud of all the stuff I’ve created and even more proud of the things I am currently creating. I think with every release I feel like I improve and so I always just feel most proud of the newest thing i’ve 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?
I think the best part about Denver is how close it is to nature. I would first probably want to take them up into the mountains for a hike. Staunton State Park is not too far from Denver and is a nice place to get out into nature. Denver has tons of great music venues so going to see a show at Globe Hall or Moes BBQ is always a fun time. Also Mutiny Cafe is really cool especially if you wanna see some local artists and that whole area of Broadway I think is really cool.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My whole family are all really supportive of me. My parents have always helped and been supportive of my pursue of music, paying for musical lessons and such. My brother and sister are also both very supportive. My twin sister McKenna is about as supportive as someone could be. I also have to recognize my band members and everyone I’ve collaborated with on these projects.

Website: https://skoki.bandcamp.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jackskokos/?hl=en

Other: Coldridge Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/31JxBlLWItP3OGyooBoar7?si=eHdx8A3KTLKgNANTUWlX0A Skoki Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5YWrGtz166oXYa35p0VBFY?si=mo2-i9xeTbOUCNwZbg7BEw

Image Credits
1. Thomas Cooper 2. McKenna Skokos 3-4. Thomas Cooper 5. Unsure, a friend or family member took it