Interview: ChiodoSupply (Written)
Comedian, Activist, Musician, Punker, Ball Player and overall bad mthr fkr, it’s ChiodoSupply, and he recently released his first full-length solo album, 1919. In this interview, we get to know him a little better.
1. Hello! Thank you for taking the time to chat to us. First things first, tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started.
Hey, thanks for having me. I came up in the underground punk scene. I was the frontman of a band called Model Citizen, which kind of existed like a rumor, like an urban legend, if you know, you know. We never chased the spotlight, we were too angry and usually drunk to do much more than make really loud, pissed off music. After years of that chaos, the wheels fell off, which is another way of saying we all had jobs and kids. After years of just writing songs in my home office for fun, something broke in me. Maybe the weight of the world? I dunno, but I traded distortion pedals for banjos, and somewhere between heartbreak and healing, ChiodoSupply was born.
2. Someone comes to you and asks you to sum up what kind of music you play – what do you tell them
Imagine if Johnny Cash woke up hungover in a trap house with Mike Ness and a stack of Woody Guthrie records. It’s outlaw Americana with the scars of punk still showing. It’s for people who’ve been through some shit and can’t afford therapy.
3. What’s currently keeping you busy? A new album/EP/single release? A new video? Playing live, or planning ahead?
Just dropped my first full-length solo album, 1919. It’s raw, it’s vulnerable, and it doesn’t flinch. Pretty much building the whole ship while sailing it. I also have a pretty big presence on social media where I can rant about the things I care about, the state of the world, causes important to me.
4. What is about this current period that is particularly exciting for you?
I’m in the middle of a transformation, and people are catching on. I spent years screaming into the void with punk rock, now I’m whispering stories in my baritone voice, and somehow it’s louder. Watching this new identity connect with people, especially folks who’ve walked through fire, it’s electric. It also has given me this new found confidence in my composing ability.
5. Tell me about the work that has gone into making it a reality and what it means to you.
Man, this was a bloodletting. 1919 wasn’t just recorded, it was excavated. I pulled stories from my own history, from people I met on the fringes, and turned them into something sacred to me. Every lyric is a scar. Every harmony is a hand reaching back. I didn’t want it polished, I wanted it true. That’s what this means to me: truth, no matter how ugly or beautiful. And sometimes playing my own songs, I will just burst into tears, being the only one that knows what the lyrics mean.
6. Making music and being creative can be a very positive experience and can be very good for the mind. In what way has making music had a positive impact on your mental health?
Music is how I fight the darkness. It’s saved me more than once in my life. When I write, it’s like draining venom. I’ve wrestled with trauma, loss, addiction, anger, all the fun punk starter pack stuff. But turning that pain into melody gives it a purpose. It doesn’t own me anymore. Now I own it.
7. It can also be incredibly challenging, more so in the modern times. What have been some challenging aspects of making music and how have you overcome them?
The biggest challenge? Not letting the weight of the world dictate what I write. That has been hard, I find I am unable to really write much from a place of happiness. I used to be angry as a kid all the time, but now the world just makes me sad. I think that is a combination of the current state of affairs in my country and just the inevitable pains we all experience over a lifetime.
8. How do you handle the online aspects of being in a band? Having to put out content constantly, promoting across several different social media platforms, and having your success measured in likes and follows?
Honestly? I already had a pretty large social media presence and following before writing this album. It’s a necessary evil because I learned through the 90’s that being an underground band is cool, but not if you want more people to actually hear your music. We used to have to print, manufacture and ship records and CD’s, not to mention printing flyers and taking the time to distribute them…that kind of stuff is impossible as a band filled with poor teenagers. Now you can reach millions of people across the globe in seconds. So, I treat it like a show, except instead of a stage, it’s a screen.
9. How do you make this part of things enjoyable, and fulfilling, for yourself?
This is an easy one to answer. By not pretending. I show up as myself, gritty, weird, kind of haunted. I tell stories. And I connect with people. That makes it feel less like shouting and more like passing notes to strangers who needed to hear the same thing.
10. Speaking directly to listeners – what would you ask they do to help support you?
If something I make speaks to you, share it. That’s the lifeblood. Stream it, send it to your friend who’s going through some shit, slap it on a playlist. And if you really wanna support, come to a show, buy some merch, or just drop a comment. That stuff keeps the fire burning. Also, you’d be surprised how far encouraging words will take someone.
11. Outside of music, what do you like to do to relax?
I’ve got a little farm I run—it’s where I clear my head. There’s something real grounding about digging in the dirt, feeding animals, fixing fences, just the rhythm of the breeze and the occasional rooster who thinks he’s tougher than me. When I really need to reset, I fire up my old ’75 Ford pickup and hit the backroads. No destination, just miles of cracked pavement and old radio stations. That’s church to me. That’s why I have always loved the road life.
12. Where can people find you?
You can find me on all the usual platforms—@ChiodoSupply on TikTok(@chiodosupplyoffical), Instagram, BlueSky. If you’re old-school, check out chiodosupply.com.
