Willie Wisely Ambitiously Fosters His Creativity to Find His Dreams.

by Monica Millsap Rasmussen.

Willie Wisely as a local musician may bring out emotionally charged reactions.

“Willie was opinionated and often times just said it the way he felt it and, of course, other musicians didn’t like the criticism.” Steve McClellan, former general manager of First Avenue, explaining Wisely’s relationships with other local musicians.

But, Willie Wisely also had plenty of friends in the local music scene, encouraging his talents to grow. Since moving to Los Angeles in the 1990s, Wisely has further developed his career with producers like Robert Galinsky and John Fields.

Andy Dick says of Willie Wisely that he is “a brilliant writer/ performer/ producer.”

His most recent endeavor, a Broadway musical called “Coffee: The Musical,” has received notable support from people like Chic’s Nile Rodgers.

Yet, with all of this behind him and all of the possibilities ahead, Wisely is still looking for the next big thing to happen to him.

“I’ve never collaborated with Beck, yet. I haven’t worked with Meshell Ndegeocello, yet. I haven’t sang lead with The Zombies, yet.”

Wisely opines that even the most successful of artists are never sated.

“We manage to find our margins easily, but have difficulty finding our dreams.”

The recent reunion of the Willie Wisely Trio was, in part, a celebration of Wisely’s ability to continuing reaching for one of his dreams – to continue live vocal performances.

In 2009, Willie Wisely’s vocal cord became inflamed with a hemangioma. He delayed the surgery until March of this year.

“We cut the album then just left it alone for a while. We’re doing the reunion shows as a celebration. We’re quite happy to be together.”

The Trio’s album, True, was cut in 2007 and will be available to the public in January 2012.

Since moving to LA, Wisely misses the camaraderie of the Twin Cities music scene.

“There were some world class people who were rule breaking and understood songwriting. Bands like Rex Daisy, National Dynamite, Trip Shakespeare, Steeplejack. LA doesn’t offer the same chemistry. It’s raw ambition. It all sounds great, better than most of what I did hear, but it is session mentality. Their live performance mimics the record. I think the record should mimic the live performance. I like managed chaos.”

Wisely maintains his connections from his Twin Cities days. He and Andy Sullivan (Steeplejack) have shared guest spots on each other’s recent albums. Mike Ruekberg is Willie’s songwriting partner in Coffee: The Musical.

Mark Mallman, who just last year finished his third marathon performance – a 78 hour song – is a current local example who embodies that idea of “managed chaos.”

“I’d love to do something with Mark Mallman. I’ve always wanted to, but never thought I was cool enough to work with him. But, I can see having a competing event, like a grudge match, with him, if I have some highly caffeine fueled power drinks!” Wisely laughs.

Although Willie Wisely has managed to make a career of using his talents to earn a living, he “doesn’t advocate it at all.”

“I’m still paying out loans. To do this type of work, you have to be prepared to stay healthy and walk a financial tightrope. You have to ask yourself, ‘can I be sane without doing this?’ If the answer is ‘yes’ then just be an artist as a hobby.”

“But if the answer is ‘no,’ then you have no choice. Once you’ve decided you’re insane, you have have to stop saying no to anything.”

Willie Wisely is certainly discerning, but does have the type of ambitious list of achievements that might cause one to classify him as insane. He has, however, tried to focus his energies into just a few projects as of late.

“I continue to work for my company, Tekspacular, but it is not as big of a focus. Coffee: The Musical has raised the required amount of money to get going and has had its first table reading, so I’m really excited about that. That is where most of my energy is going. I’m also pitching a television show called Radio 8 Ball, which will be a music discovery show.”

Of course, Wisely is also finishing up the necessary processes for the Willie Wisely Trio’s album True for a release date in January. Look for a review of the album right here later this year.

For fans who cannot wait to hear some of the new recording, check out Willie Wisely Trio Facebook page for a couple of delightful samples.