Meet Jesse McCoy | Musician, Producer, Composer

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

Hi Jesse, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I figured out fairly young that I begin to lose my ability to be a functional human if I’m not being pulled along by some sort of creative pursuit. I get pretty miserable without an outlet. I am naturally highly introverted and anti-social but I fight it by playing in bands and writing music. I have always turned to music and art to dig me out of my own head and connect me back to the world. When that gets taken away things go dark pretty fast. I thrive off of inspiration, its the best fuel in the world. I can go days into weeks on one good idea. Once I know where an idea is going you can’t pry me off it with a shovel. Doesn’t mean it will amount to anything but it’s the process that I get sucked into. Process is everything. Somewhere along the line it clicked for me that there are ways to make a living off of that drive to create without compromising your personal art, sanity, or dignity.

What should our readers know about your business?
I’ve always strived to make a living off of creativity, specifically music. I’ve been writing, recording and producing my own music as well as playing in punk rock bands since I was 14 years old. I started out with tape recorders and 4-tracks and worked up to computers, software and hardware. I’ve never worked out of a fancy studio, I’m not a trained musician by any means. I have a small studio in a spare bedroom and 15 years of experience stumbling through doors to find what works for me.

I formed Bedfires Music around 2015 as an umbrella for the various forms of projects I was taking on in music production. Bands were not paying the bills so I started getting into publishing and composing for TV, Film and other media/digital content. It took a few years of pulling double duty between a day job and the business but I was able to start doing this full time in 2019. At first, my goal was to focus solely on sync licensing but it takes forever to get paid. I needed to find other avenues to fill in gaps and that’s what led me to podcast editing and other forms of editing/engineering work. Its really grown into a pretty versatile business in the sense that I’ve done a ton of projects that id never imagined I’d do and that keeps things exciting. Musically, I specialize in styles of punk, rock, and electronic but I’ve done everything from Spice Girls-esq power pop to huge epic video game music to guided meditation loops and beyond.

I’m definitely proud of what Bedfires has accomplished in a few short years. I’ve worked with artists and creative teams from all over the world on a wide variety of different projects. I’ve collaborated with radio shows, YouTube channels, filmmakers, authors, indie artists and more. It’s been such a great experience even with all its challenges. Luckily, success has very little to do with money or status in my world. I think its something you will feel and know when you’ve found it. Do I have a ton of cash in the bank? No. Do I have a retirement plan? Hell no. I will always feel like I am a sneeze away from a van down by the river but I think that’s just how I’m wired. What I do have is an overwhelming sense of gratitude on a daily basis. I believe I am incredibly successful by my own definitions. I have incredible people in my my life that keep me motivated. I get to make music or create something every day. I can look at childhood photos of myself in my Barney shirt with a plastic guitar and a microphone and know I’ve stuck to my guns. I am 32 years old and I’m still doing what I love to do. I’m still screaming punk rock songs at the top of my lungs with my best friends. I’m still inspired and I’m nowhere near finished.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Pueblo gets a bad rap but it’s home and I love it here. It’s been really cool to see it grow in the last 10 years. If you were new in town or visiting, we would check out Mineral Palace Park and El Pueblo History Museum during the day and then head downtown to Analogue by Solar Roast. This place has everything I’m into, records, books, coffee and booze. The staff are some of my favorite people and it has really become a hub for the community. I also work there as an audio tech/record slinger to pay for my horrible record buying habits.

If we are looking for food we are going to Julian’s Restaurant for vegan green chili or maybe the Shamrock for burgers and pub fries. For non-vegan friends don’t miss Mill Stop, The Pantry, and Tacos Navarro.

If we are looking for shows we would head over to the Blo Back Gallery in the grove or check out CR23 Bombshelter in the county. Both of which are run by incredible people carrying Pueblo’s D.I.Y torch into the future.

To end the evening, we would go play some pinball at Flip-A-Coin arcade followed by drinks at The Downtown Bar or Walters. Pueblo is really alive on Saturday nights in the summer. Just walk around downtown or near the parks and you will run into something cool be it live music, car shows, food trucks, street fairs, art galleries, those Larper dudes with the foam swords etc.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
A huge thank you to my family and friends, my fiancé Nikki, my animals, my bandmates in Mineral Palace and Deathsails, the Analogue/Solar Roast Crew and my hometown Pueblo Colorado. Thank you for all the encouragement and patience.

Website: https://www.bedfires.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessemccoy91/

Other: Mineral Palace https://www.bedfires.com/mineralpalace Deathsails https://www.bedfires.com/deathsails

Image Credits
Deathsails Music Inaiah Lujan Mineral Place Music Annette Moon Nikki Encinias Austin Belore