Today we had the sincere pleasure to sit down with the ultra talented Mike Cleveland. Mike has had a pretty amazing career and story. He's widely considered the bluegrass fiddler of his generation, and if you're into bluegrass you know him well. He's been IBMA’s “Fiddler of the Year” over 12 times and in 2018 was inducted into the National Fiddler’s Hall of Fame. His recording Fiddler’s Dream was nominated in 2018 for a Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album, and in 2019, he won a Grammy for his album Tall Fiddler. In 2019, Cleveland’s amazing life of adversity and achievement was featured in the documentary film Flamekeeper: The Michael Cleveland Story from director John Presley. You can find it streaming online and it's really incredibly inspiring and a must watch.
To hire Mike for a session, contact him here
We had an amazing chat. We spoke about his early days and influences. Attending the Kentucky School for the Blind in Louisville, where he originally learned the Suzuki method of violin, and then how got deep into bluegrass after hearing a local fiddler play the tune Orange Blossom Special. He shared a bit about his attitude to toward practice, leading a band and so much more.
I know you're really going to dig this one, so without further ado, here's our chat.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!