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CY: I listen to so many different things. I’ll probably never stop looking through used bins of CDs

and records, at garage sales, or flea markets, or wherever, but YouTube has become my essential
listening platform. It’s an infinite stream of amazing artists, historical recordings unavailable
anywhere else, and modern artists that are constantly coming up with new ways to develop
compelling video to go along with their music.

The music I create will always be rooted in blues, but there’s so much great art to listen to, and
the more variety I have in my
playlists, the more I feel I’ll be able
to contribute something unique to
the musical world. If ya want a list
here’s what YouTube has been
showing me in the last month
(obvious stuff omitted to avoid
repetition): James McMurtry, Butch
Walker, Andy Frasco, Lawrence,
Jacob Collier, Parliament Funkadelic,
Nicki Bluhm and The Gramblers,
Lucas Nelson, Jamestown Revival,
Corey Henry, Snarky Puppy,
Huntertones, Hank Mobley, Noah
Kahan, Jeffrey Steele, Tom
Hambridge, Gary Nicholson, and

Muireann Bradley.

LL: When did you relocate to Dayton, Ohio and what brought you there?

CY: Essentially, I moved to Dayton to attend the University of Dayton in 2005, and I never left.
Since I’ve been here I’ve really gotten into the music ​community and had some great times at
some world class music venues including Canal Street Tavern and Gilly’s (both have now sadly
closed, each providing our town with performances by loads of legendary acts over their lifespan).

LL: Would tell a bit about your artist career path please?

CY: My main musical focus has always been putting on a one man show, with an interplay between
modern songwriting, and rhythmic picking inspired by classic Delta and Piedmont Blues. I started
learning Robert Johnson songs from Scott Ainsley’s DVD lesson, and I had a few lessons from
Ernie Hawkins (one of Rev. Gary Davis’ Disciples) in Pittsburgh. I started to build focus within
the blues community around local blues societies, and as a result have been to the International
Blues Challenge in Memphis a number of times, making it to the finals in 2015. Most recently the
Northeast Ohio Blues Association (NEOBA) sponsored my Memphis spot in 2023. While I did not
perform in the 2024 IBC, my latest album was fortunate enough to make it to the final 5 in
Memphis this year for the recording part of the competition (after being selected by NEOBA once
again).

Now, I’ve been working on songwriting a bit more recently, with rhythmic fingerstyle picking as
the underlying groove to pretty much everything I write. I think it gives my work a unique
element, and it’s really important to me that the music I create feels original. I’d rather take risks
with something weird, than get buried in the noise around me.

LL: Let’s talk about your September 2023 release “Live At The Hidden Gem” . What was
your concept and vision for this project?