Turn Your Art Into Business featuring Sophie Mazzaro | The Ripple Effect Podcast - The Ripple Effect Podcast with Steve Harper

Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Guys, I keep telling you I am upleveling my game when it comes

(00:03):
to this podcast, I am bringingthe absolute heat by bringing
and booking the best guests thatyou could possibly ever imagine,
people that are out there makinga difference in the world,
people that are shining a lighton incredible things that we
need to know about, creatives,entrepreneurs and people that
are just all around good peoplein today's guest, Sophie mazzaro

(00:23):
is one of those people. Sheticks all the boxes. She has
brain, she has beauty, and sheis one of the most creative and
talented artists on the planettoday. And I'm so grateful that
she agreed to be a part of theripple effect podcast. First met
Sophie, or was aware of Sophiebecause she stayed at a
friend's, a friend of mine'shouse as an exchange student.

(00:44):
Many, many years ago, she's fromGermany, came to Austin, and my
friend CJ romberger told me,watch this girl. She is going
places, and boy, I've watchedher, and she has gone some
places. She is breakingbarriers, she is knocking down
doors, and she is kicking assand taking names. Sophie is an
incredible artist. She is knownfor an incredible mural that she

(01:08):
did in Venice Beach, Californiato memorialize Colby Bryant
after his passing, she hascustomized some of the most
expensive Nike sneakers youcould imagine and made them 10
times more valuable with herart. And she is just an
incredible visionary and artistin her own right. The painting
she does, oh, they are amazing.I wish that I could have

(01:28):
acquired one of these earlydays, because now I can't even
afford her work. But she is indemand in such a big, big way.
She is not only talented, butshe is a smart, creative
business person and a hell of anentrepreneur, and I can't wait
for you guys to meet her. Sowith no further ado, let's dive
into this interview with Sophiemazzaro right now. You

(02:00):
you. Sophie, welcome to theripple effect podcast. I am
super excited for thisinterview. How are you doing
today?
I am doing wonderful Steve. Ican't believe it took, um,
almost two decades for us to getback together from the first
time we met.

(02:21):
Well, I you know, hey, you knowyou're worth the wait. Let me
just tell you I am so gratefulfor this. I mean, you've been a
little busy since the last timewe ever talked. I mean, yeah,
you've changed states. You'relike this internationally
renowned artist now you're indemand in every level. I mean,
it's, it's incredible. But I amjust so grateful that you made
the time. And one of the reasonsI wanted to have you on the

(02:44):
show, just to kind of dive inright off the bat, is because I
have really, really respectedhow you've become such an
amazing not only artist andcreative, but an entrepreneur,
and just how you have dictatedhow you wanted your career to
unfold exactly the way youwanted it to. How is it that you

(03:06):
are doing so many amazing thingsand making it look so damn easy?
I think it's called ADHD,voluntarily. Yeah, yeah. I think
being an artist, I do thinkthere's those two types of
people, the ones that see theworld in an artistic way and in
color palettes and likecontrasts and how, just how

(03:29):
artists see the world. And thenthe other people that have the
IT side, and the more logical,like my parents, weirdly,
they're all in it. Oh, really.But yeah, so I'm the only one
that went the complete oppositeway, but it's just, um, I've
gotten so much criticism for it,but on the other hand, I
wouldn't do it any other way,because I love and need all

(03:52):
those outlets. Yeah, I went toschool, you know, I was a
theater kid, and I went toschool for acting and stunts.
That was my original major, andthen I just kind of left that
industry over how toxic it wasin LA, I just didn't like that.
Somebody else gets to dictate ifyou're gonna if you're gonna be

(04:14):
someone or if you're gonna besuccessful in cast Oh, but you
don't have the same last name asone of the casting directors, or
you're not willing to do anyfavors, like my my morals never
changed. Living in LA, I'm stillthe same German girl, I think,
just just a little tougher after14 years in LA, but I was just
never ready to compromise any ofmy morals. Successful in that.

(04:37):
And then I I just thought, youknow, being an artist, which is
something I've done since I wassix years old. Like I've always
drawn, yeah, and that'ssomewhere, something where no
one can tell me that's not goodenough, yeah, where no one else
gets to say no, like you won'tbe in this project, because you
get to decide that yourself. AndI just kind of started doing

(04:58):
more of those. And. Got throwninto a project called graffiti
mansion, which they've thiscrazy millionaire in Las Vegas,
flew in aid artists from allover the world, and we painted
his gigantic mansion. And twoand a half weeks, 22 hour days,
I'm not joking, like two hoursof sleep, 30,000 cans of spray

(05:23):
paint. And in the beginning, Iwas so typical German. I was
like, Hey, I've never doneanything on this scale. Like, I
don't know, Americans willalways say, like, Yes, I'm in
even if they don't have theexperience the German in it
means, like, I don't know if Ican do this, but he said he's
seen my work, and he thinks I'mcapable of doing this, and flew
me in, and that's awesome. Thatwas the beginning of doing

(05:45):
murals. Because I was just like,I guess I can do this. I
love that. And did was, was hedoing that for like, a reality
show, or just because
I think he's just an eccentricmillionaire? Yeah,
a few of those in your network.I mean, it's not a bad, you
know, not a bad person to know,
right? No, it's not. And eventhough the project itself, you

(06:08):
know, it was hell, it was LasVegas in the summer, it was 120
degrees, probably 130 on theroof, like we were all. A couple
of us went to the hospital forheat shop or inhaling fumes and
stuff like that. It wasexhausting, but I'm still
friends with like especially oneof the other artist girls, she

(06:29):
flew in from Australia, andwe're still friends to this day.
And we have, we're kind of on asimilar journey that we took on
murals, painting, tattooing. Sothat's kind of nice to still
have these connections of likeminded people.
That's awesome. Well, and youknow, I mentioned in your in
your intro, I mean, you did thatamazing memorialization to Kobe

(06:52):
Bryant on the Venice Beach Pier,right? How did that come about?
Was that a commissionedopportunity, or was that
something, you know, the thecity engaged you on or how did
that come about? I did that
for free for the community. Ipaid for my own paint, and I was
just very determined. I lived inMarina Del Rey, which is right

(07:12):
borders Venice at the time, andI knew the area really well. And
I had a close I had a closefriend that was close friends
with the Coby family, and he wasreally devastated. So it was
kind of more for him at first,to find a way. I'm like, I don't
really know the right words tosay or anything, so I just
wanted to express it in the bestway that I knew, which was a

(07:35):
mural. And I'm like, I need awall for this. So I didn't want
to do this in the middle of thenight, like a graffiti illegal
type of thing. I just wanted toget permission and take my time.
And I just approached the Venicewhaler, which is that
restaurant, and told them what Iwanted to do. And they actually
allowed me to do it, becausethat's normally an advertising

(07:56):
wall. Sure they pay someone paysthem, like, 10 to 30 grand a
month to advertise on there, andthey just let me do that mural
that's
awesome. Well, we'll definitelyinclude a screenshot for the
YouTube folks that'll see it,but it you, you did an amazing
job, and I obviously havefollowed your work for a long
time, to kind of go all the wayback how you and I first

(08:18):
connected is your host family.You stayed with CJ romberger, is
a good friend of mine, and I wassaying in your introduction that
she had told me, literally, Ithink two days after you
arrived, this girl has somethingspecial that you are going to,
you know, make a mark in theworld. And boy, was she right. I
mean, just like, I mean, theworld basically bows to you now.

(08:41):
I think it's so so incredible.But when you first came what so
you were an exchange studentfrom Germany. Where did you grow
up? In Germany?
I grew up in Berlin. Okay, bornand raised in Berlin, and I was
I weirdly always wanted to leaveGermany. That sounds really
harsh, but I just already new asa kid. This is not where I want

(09:02):
to grow up. Coming to Austinwasn't my first time in America.
My parents had taken me toFlorida when I was a little kid,
and I was probably like eightyears old, and I just remember
standing in the first grocerystore there, looking at the
cereal aisles and then, and likeall all the beach and big pools

(09:24):
going on, nobody in Germany hada pool and the big cars. And I
was like, I want to live here.
That's where I'm going.
So it's partly my parents fault,probably for introducing me so
early. But then in school, I wasjust tired. It's it's always
cold, like the weather is so badin Germany, that was probably
one of the biggest factors. Justwaking up and it's dark, going

(09:47):
to school like, right? I rode mybike to school and on ice and
snow, coming home when it'sdark, then somebody forgot to
heat the school over winterbreak. So you take an exam and
gloves on, I'm like, No, I wantto go. Go somewhere else. And
then we found this exchangeprogram, and you don't get to
pick where you go, okay? You getto pick a region, yeah? And me

(10:09):
and my dad looked at his, uh,gigantic Atlas, and we're like,
oh, Texas is really big. Youshould go there. Yeah, that's,
that's how it came to be. Andthen I was originally going to
be placed in Round Rock, and thefamily fell through. So I had a
ticket booked. Yeah, I was 16. Ihad my ticket booked. I, you

(10:30):
know, didn't speak English thatwell. And then a couple of days
before I'm leaving, my familyfalls through. Oh, and then CJ
found me, because somebody hadput my application in Zach Scott
theater. Yeah, they knew I lovedtheater, and CJ saw it. And for
some reason, like, came home towest, I was like, we're getting

(10:51):
an exchange student,
and the rest is history, right?The
rest is history. I mean,there's, you know, I see them. I
just talked to West yesterday. Italked to CJ probably the day
before. Yeah, we went onvacation together last year in
Wyoming. We went to Yellowstone.So they're still very much part
of my life. And I love this.Yeah,

(11:14):
yeah, very good people. And, youknow, in such an amazing way
that that all worked out, right?You talk about all the way the
ripple kind of unfolds. That's athat's a perfect example that
things work out exactly the waythey're supposed to. When, when
you graduated, did you go backto Germany? Or did you stay and
just knew you were heading to LAat that point? I

(11:35):
did go back to Germany tograduate because it was just a
deal I had made with my parents,because I was a straight A
student, especially in Germany.So they had actually let me skip
a grade in Germany because I wasstudying while I was in the in
Dripping Springs, I studied formy German school, and then
graduated early and just hadthat German diploma, just

(11:55):
because it counts more. And incase i i wanted to have a safety
net or something else. And thenright after I graduated, I got
into the Lee Strasberg TheaterInstitute, wow, which CJ also
encouraged me to do. I mean,they've just been such a huge
part of these choices andsupporting me. And then I moved

(12:17):
to LA at 19, and I had beenthere ever since, except now I'm
in Wyoming.
Now you're in Wyoming. I lovethat. So when you went to LA
obviously you were thinking, youknow, breaking into show
business, maybe moving thatdirection with your career was,
was art sort of always kind ofthe, you know, kind of your
second passion, or was it alwayslike, I'll do the, I'll do, you

(12:40):
know, acting or get into, youknow, into that industry to do
it. But really, my true passionis always, you know, following
my creative spirit in terms ofartistic expression.
It was always there, okay? And Iremember even one of the
teachers kind of gave me a hardtime about it and told me,
You're gonna have to choose. Andthat's just something I've heard

(13:01):
my whole life, like, Sure,you're gonna have to make a
choice, but it's it's not thateasy. You can't stop having a
creative outlet just because youshould be more focused on one
Yeah, is it better to just pourall your energy into one thing?
Probably yes, but I just lovethese other avenues just as
much, and they're a part of me.I can't just stop doing it. And

(13:24):
I, you know, I always got Iloved writing scenes. I would
produce and write comedy scenesor something on the side too,
while I was in school. And Iwould always draw when I got
home, if I wasn't completelyexhausted. Because, yeah, school
kicked my ass.
How? How was it that you knew,you know, you said you've been

(13:47):
doing, you know, you know, artsince you were six. How was it
that you knew that you actuallyhad some talent, that you could
actually pursue that as kind ofa, hey, this, this, this could
be it. This is my direction inmy career. How did, how did, how
did that come about?
I don't know if I ever thought Ihave talent, or I don't know if
I ever believed, oh, you justhave talent. Because I think

(14:09):
talent is a weird way ofdescribing something, because I
do know people now that are someof the absolute best in the
world at what they do, even sometattooers, and it's weird to
tell them you're so talented.Yep, because it's we've put in
these more than 100 1000s ofhours of just not giving up, not

(14:33):
giving up, not giving up. Soit's more, I think, a
personality trait than justtelling someone you're talented.
Yeah, I think if you want to beanything, and you put enough
time into it, you can probablybe whatever it is you want to
do. Well,
along that lines, I am curious,because you are such an

(14:53):
incredible artist, for someonewho is not, but would love to
figure that out. How. For, forpeople that don't consider
themselves very creative, whatdo you suggest? Because I think
everybody wants to expressthemselves somehow, right?
Whether it's painting, it'sdrawing, you know, it's
sculpting, or even, you know,putting together, you know,

(15:15):
musical jams or whatever, right?There's, there's all these
different potential outlets, andI think most people stop
because, you know, I love howyou frame the word talent,
because I think that, you know,we think, because we don't
recognize that we have thatinnate ability, we don't think
we're talented, so we neverstart, right? So any suggestions
or ideas, because I know a lotof people on this podcast,

(15:37):
they're always looking for that,right? They're looking for that
next level, and need that littlebit of encouragement to just
start and try something. So I'mcurious what your feedback would
be about that.
First of all, I think I have nomusical talent, and that's a
totally false statement, becauseI've never really tried. I think
I just it's a perception aboutme that I have, but I have

(15:59):
never, I've just not beeninterested in it. And then the
second thing is, you gottaactually do it, do the thing.
And I'm guilty of this myself,because with social media coming
around, we get bombarded withthese people that we think are
just the absolute best, andpeople who wake up and they

(16:21):
dress up really nice, and thenthey paint these masterpieces,
and it sells immediately. Andthen I'm like, Well, I don't
even need to try, like, they'realready I'll never get there.
Yeah, yeah, I'll never getthere. It's actually like, I
think it's very discouraging,even as an artist who's selling
stuff, I get caught in that trapsometimes too. And I've had
many, many, like, months in mylife where I didn't create at

(16:45):
all and I was in a total slumpand or I would just plan stuff
out in my head instead ofactually taking pen to paper. So
that was one of the biggestthings I learned, is you have to
actually do the thing on paperor on canvas. And sometimes I go
outside with my canvas and Idon't plan anything, and I just

(17:07):
splash paint around on it, andthen I can, if I hate it, I can
paint over it later, but atleast I'm having fun again
creating, because a lot of myjobs were for companies to where
you maybe you paint somethingthat you don't love 100% you
know, there's always thatpainting for what you really
love and like, and then otherpeople might not appreciate, and

(17:30):
then painting something that'sonly for a client you don't
really like it. So finding thatmiddle ground little bit for
them and a little bit for you,but just just having fun with it
again.
How was it that you you wereable to strike that balance,
though, between what they wantedand what you wanted, and still
come into a project and feelgood about the you know, the

(17:52):
outcome?
Ah, sometimes I can justconvince people something will
look better if I wanted, like Ilove painting palm leaves, for
example, for big murals, Ialways think it looks good like
you could make it look good inany color scheme. So I just kind
of sway their opinion towardssomething that I really want to
do, and then I mean, it's, it'sreally, I haven't had that many

(18:15):
projects where I dreaded it.That's not true, because then I
don't even take it on. If it'ssomething that I really I'm just
not going to enjoy, then what'sthe point? I can refer another
artist that maybe that's theirspecialty. So, yeah,
I love that well in and you tookthis medium beyond murals,
obviously, onto the canvas, butthen you also have done

(18:36):
incredible job on sneakers.Like, tell me about that. I
mean, that's that that, I swearto God. I was like, thinking
about this the other day when Iwas kind of writing some notes
for preparation for today, and Iwas like, Gosh, I wish I had
bought one of your pieces, like,early on. Now I couldn't afford
it, but I just love everyfreaking thing you do, but the

(18:57):
sneakers I have shared. A numberof images that you've shared on
social media with you, with mynetwork, because you just do
such an incredible job. How didthat come about? And was that
just an area you decided, hey,let's try it. It's just a
different form of a canvas. Or
no, the story is kind of funny,because it originally started in

(19:18):
Germany, because I had saved upall my pocket money. I was maybe
14 or 15, so I was still in highschool, and I bought a pair of
Nike blazers, okay, shoes. Andyou know, like Germany is always
behind in what the US is doing,so it's very expensive for me,
and then I get these shoes, anda girl in my school has the same

(19:41):
pair. And then I looked at theamount of money it would cost
for me to ship them back and,like, return them for something
else. So I decided to paintonline instead, to make them
different, because I've alwayshated wearing what other people
were wearing. Like. Everybodyhas these uniforms in the same

(20:02):
H, M clothes and the same shoes.I've always hated that, so I
just hated on mine. And someonebought them from me in school,
and then I rode my bike home onsocks. I was like, fine. I made
my money back. I don't need tosend them back. I'm gonna turn
up the brightness, okay, oh,that's, I don't know, in Texas,

(20:25):
I had pain issues that I wore toschool just for fun. You know,
CJ and West always encouragedit. My art teacher in Dripping
Springs encouraged it. We stilltalk, and he follows my journey
like, it's just funny how this,like you said, it's a ripple
effect of just these randomconnections. Yep, somehow we got

(20:45):
connected. Somehow we're stillconnected. I was even a
bridesmaid in some of myclassmates weddings in Austin.
Yeah,
that's awesome. Yeah, I lovethat. And are you still doing
the sneakers? Or, you know, isthat like you kind of moved on
from that
or so. I only kind of moved onfrom the sneakers because I

(21:05):
wasn't charging what they'reworth. Yeah, that was honestly
on me. So I got bummed out on Idid a ton of them. I probably
did like 100 pairs or something.And, you know, I got a lot of I
had big clients like ClaytonKershaw from the Dodgers, like
that was one of the highlightsof my career when they when you

(21:26):
get a call from Clayton's wifeand she's like, Hey, can you
make us the shoes for, yeah, forClayton's for the gala? Yes,
yeah, sure. Like, why not? Thatwas the ultimate, you know, full
circle when you're an LAresident and you get to do
something for the Dodgers. Iwill still do them if,

(21:47):
especially if I have existingclients that I treasure, and I
always, you know, I treat everyclient, whether that is a
Clayton Kershaw or just a normalperson. I treat them all the
same because they all support myart business the same. So one is
not more important than theother, and if they request
something. So like one lady, shewanted to take her kids on the

(22:09):
Taylor Swift tour, and I was onvacation, and I told her, yeah,
this is really cute. And she'slike, my daughters are dying to
have these shoes. So of course,I made them for her, but it's
more on request now with peoplewho know that I I do them. If
you followed me long enough toknow about the sneaker face,
then yes, you deserve to havesome. I

(22:30):
just got to save up some penniesfirst I got, yeah, I'm not sure
I could afford your going rates.But I mean, your work is
incredible. I mean, I love, Ilove how you did it. I mean, I
think one time I saw one of thevideos where you kind of did the
time lapse of of one of thepairs that you were working on.
And I just, I just lovedwatching the process sort of
unfold in your mind as to whatyou were going to do and how

(22:51):
you're going to do it. That whenyou, when you attack something
like that type of project, is itvery much like walking outside
and looking at the canvas andsplashing some paint around and
seeing where it goes. Or in mostof those cases, do you already
have a game plan in your mindabout what you want to put
because there, I would think inin the sneaker realm, there's
not a lot of margin for error interms of, you know, those types

(23:13):
of projects.
Um, I only recently, recently,as in, two months ago, started
having a game plan for canvases,for example, where I talked to
another artist, and she waslike, yeah, what's your painting
process? And I was like, What doyou mean? I just start putting
paint on it and then see whathappens. And she's like, Oh, no.

(23:34):
So with sneakers, I never had aplan. I would just start. I
mean, I knew the theme always,but then I would just start with
the front or somewhere, and thenkind of piece it together from
there. That's awesome. Peoplehave put an enormous amount of
trust in me and knowing it'sgoing to turn out. Because I'm
really not someone that doesthese elaborate sketches up

(23:57):
front and get some mock ups. I'mlike, You want Batman shoes,
okay, just trust me. It's gonnabe good. But I don't really feel
like making a mock up, because
that's like doing it twice,right? You know, like, just
trust me, they're gonna be off.Just
trust me. Well, that's that'sthe same with commissions too,

(24:19):
if I have to over explain,because right now I'm really
into the wildlife and doing youknow more Wyoming themed and
Rockies animals that live in theRockies. If I have to over
explain to you what it's gonnalook like and the colors, then
I'm probably not the artist foryou, because either you like my
style and trust me that I can dothis, but if, if someone's

(24:40):
already picking it apart beforethen, that's just not a good
fit.
I'm gonna, I'm putting yourwebsite up because I think the
work. I want everybody that seesit or sees the video to actually
go to the website. Andobviously, for those of you that
are hearing this on the actualaudio platforms, I encourage you
go to the YouTube channel andget this because. You've got to

(25:00):
see Sophie's work. It's just,it's absolutely incredible. And
especially with this newdirection you're headed, I just
there's just such a cool, reallyfunky vibe about what you're
doing and how you're doing it,and you just do such an amazing
job. Is the, is the process thatyou go through when you are
starting now, now that this isfairly new, like, two months

(25:21):
old, right? Is it, when you planthis out? Is it a situation
where you kind of have aninkling of where you want to go,
or do you let your I've alwaysbeen curious, because I'm not a
painter, right? But do you kindof sketch out what you're doing,
or is it literally, you'reputting paint up there, and
you're figuring it out as yougo? I'm curious about that
creative aspect of the process.

(25:43):
Yeah, it used to be like that. Iwould literally just start
putting paint up there, and thenI actually took that criticism
to heart from some of theseother artists who pointed out
that it would just streamlinethe process a little bit more if
I planned a little bit more. Andso what it has helped me is put
the painting together faster, ifthat makes sense, because I

(26:06):
don't have to second guess, oh,what's the next step? Like, what
am I going to put as abackground? Because now I
already have that planned out,and I use it. Usually use my
iPad, because it's great. TheApp procreate is amazing for
just kind of sketching somethingout. And then you can see, do
these colors go together? Doesthe background work with this?
So it's kind of like a mock up alittle bit, not too I don't

(26:30):
spend too much time on it, maybelike 10 to 30 minutes. That's
it. And then I usually put a abackground in, and I'm making
those. I don't like paintingbackgrounds, so I just changed
it to something, yeah, and Idon't You don't have to paint
what you don't like. I thinkmost people think they have to
be good at everything, or theyget so intimidated by by art and

(26:55):
other artists on social media.But like, you can literally just
paint whatever you want. Itdoesn't have to make sense. You
can paint an orange elephantfor, oh, you care, as long as
you have fun doing it. Yeah.
I mean, that's, that's, I thinkthat's a really good piece of
advice right there, right? Youknow, and nine times out of 10
you're even though you might bedoing it for Commission, or

(27:17):
maybe doing it for a client,eventually to sell it, or
whatever it has to start from.You know that heart center
component, right? It has to comefrom within. Otherwise, you
know, you're, you're just goingthrough the motions, and it'll
feel like that when you actuallysee the finished work. I think
with yours I had, there's notone thing that I have have seen,
that you've done that doesn'tinstantly make me smile or make

(27:40):
me happy, which I think is, isjust such an incredible talent
that you have so and such agift, I mean, just such an
amazing ability for you to dowhat you've done, and the
diversity of the approach thatyou take, I think, is
phenomenal. Are you always,constantly challenging yourself
to, like in Wyoming now, you'redoing wildlife, and you're

(28:00):
you're being inspired by thatgeneral area. Do you feel like
your career has gone throughdifferent phases where you
really kind of throw into acertain, you know, kind of
genre? Or could you be paintinga bear today and then painting
something vastly differenttomorrow, and that's just the
way your process works. Or, howdoes that?
I absolutely think so. I thinkalmost every artist goes through

(28:22):
those phases. And you know, Ihad phases in LA where I did
only murals, and I don't know,maybe a few shoes on the side.
Then I did the shoes exclusivelyfor maybe two years, and had
some bigger deals. But also, youknow, COVID affected my
business, just like any otherperson, and it was really
devastating in LA becausewithin, like, within two weeks

(28:45):
from March 1 to 14th, I lost 90%of my work, wow. And I also I
was in a car accident March 1,like, the two weeks, I don't
know when, when, literally,
two weeks before the pandemic,right? Yeah, yeah.
And I got really severelyinjured, so that was just a
phase where I was I was unableto lift my arms. I didn't know

(29:08):
it was if I was going to paintagain. I definitely couldn't do
murals because I was tooimmobile. I was on the couch for
like, three months in severepain. I had a brain aneurysm,
and then I had to shift because,first of all, I had to make
rent. Yeah, I did not get any ofthe assistance that so quickly

(29:29):
ran out in California. But Istarted, I started sewing masks
for people like that wantedcustom, just personalized ones
who were tired of wearing thesame surgical mask that
everybody had, and they justwanted to have a little fun in
hard times. So I started makingthose from home, and made that a

(29:49):
booming business, and then burntout really quick after two or
three months of 15 hour days. SoI'm like,
I can't, yeah, I saw that one ofyour articles like you didn't
expect. Expected to take offlike it did, and then, you know,
it's like, next thing you knowis like, 15 hour days doing
math, custom masks.
Yeah, I was like, at the postoffice seven times a day. They
knew me by name. So it alwaysshifts. And I think you just,

(30:16):
you have to adapt, and you can'tbe super like, like, I only want
to do this, and I only want todo it this way, because with the
way technology is going to, youhave to kind of adapt and go
with it, unfortunately. And Isay that as someone who really,
I've never fully embraced socialmedia for what it is, because

(30:37):
I've always seen those darkersides of it can really harm
creativity, and you just end upcomparing yourself to all these
other people, and you don't evenknow if their life is real, like
That's right. God forbid, thestories that I know about LA
about these influencers thathave a team of makeup artists
flown in and get ready and stagetheir photos at breakfast and

(30:59):
then go back to bed becausethey're depressed for the rest
of the day, and everybody thinkstheir life is amazing, yeah? So
that's the other very dangerousside of it, but you gotta
embrace it to a certain pointand just put yourself out there,
because no one's gonna like yourart if nobody can see it. Yeah?
And there's so many amazingartists and tattooers and

(31:21):
writers and creative people thatwill never get seen because
they're maybe embarrassed infront of the camera or worry
about what other people mightsay, but you have to put it out
there.
Yeah, I've sort of adopted aphilosophy over the last couple
of years because I was one thatwould not do it unless I knew I
could do it perfectly, or alwaysdid it, and then I sat back and

(31:44):
I worried about, you know,judgment, or what people would
think, and always worried aboutthe opinions of others, and age
and experience, I think, doesdrive a little bit of wisdom.
And one of the things that agood friend of mine, you know,
shared with me many years ago,which is somebody else's opinion
of you, is none of yourbusiness, right? And when you

(32:04):
sort of get to that point, youfeel like kind of very free and
you it does open up, like thepossibility of, you know, the or
the endless possibilities ofwhere you could take your
career, could take your creativework, or your writing, or
whatever, you know, much likethis podcast, like when, when I
first started off the podcast, Ireally thought maybe, other than
my dad, you know, I probablywouldn't have any listeners.

(32:29):
And, you know, dropped a few Fbombs in those early episodes,
and then he stopped being alistener. So I wasn't even sure
I was gonna have but at the endof the day, what I what I really
love about what we're doing withthis show is getting to feature
people like you who are outthere just, you know, not giving
a crap about what everybody elsethinks. They're just doing, and

(32:49):
they're creating, and they'rebuilding, and they're growing
and and because of that, you'reactually creating your own
amazing ripples, because you areinspiring people to do think
differently and and get outsideof their, you know, their
comfort zone, and get out oftheir own way and start doing
things. And I love that, butalso love that you you put that
disclaimer about social mediabecause it's so true, and not

(33:11):
people. People don't know that,right? I think there is this
tendency be like, I could neverbe that talented, or I could
never do what this person'sdoing, and you don't know the
story or the background aboutwhat they're doing, like you
said, you know, great photoshoot, and then, yeah, I'm going
back to the corner because I'mlike, depressed, because I
really don't have the life I'mproposing to the world to see.
Well, first of all, regardingthe opinions of others, I also

(33:34):
think most people are way toobusy with their own life to
truly worry about someone elseall the time. Like we always are
way more concerned than whatpeople actually
that's absolutely accurate. Yep,everyone is preoccupied
with themselves and then onsocial media. Yes, I think a lot
of us actually do know, if wereally think about it, we do

(33:58):
know some of that is fake. But Ieven catch myself doing this
too, when I just look at someoneand I'm like, for a second, oh,
I wish I had their life orsomething. I want to be in
Greece right now, sitting on thebeach drinking margaritas. That
sounds great, but yeah, youdon't know about their
relationships in real life. Youdon't know who's who's funding

(34:19):
all of this, like it can beexpensive. Some people have a
team running this, like, I knowof artists where it looks like,
Oh, I'm this one person show,and they literally have a team
of people doing everything fromthem, because being an artist is
a full time job, and that youhave to create the artwork, you
have to come up with the ideas,you have to execute, actually

(34:40):
make the painting. You have tophotograph it, you have to
archive it, you have to have itall organized. If you ever want
to make prints, you have to shipthe physical product, get it
packaged correctly, like it hasto be safe for transport. Deal
with the tariffs of othercountries, with the shipping
invoices. Social media, makevideos about is. It's, it's so

(35:00):
many full time jobs, and we doburn out. I burn out on it. I
mean, of course, it's more funif you're doing something that
you actually love and that isyour passion. Like, could I do
this for someone else's passion?Absolutely not. I would quit
after three days. But even formyself, sometimes, like, I'm my

(35:21):
own boss, and sometimes my bossruns a little loose ship. Here,
I'm like, I don't want to dothis. It's nice out today. Like,
I would rather sit outside toothan finish this painting. But,
yeah,
but I love that because, I mean,that's the realistic aspect of
what you're dealing with. Ithink most people think of
artists like, Oh, you're just inthe studio and you're creating,

(35:43):
and then just magically, peoplebeat a path to your door and pay
you all this money. And, youknow, life is just grand, but
there's so much that goes onbehind the scenes just to
support what you're actuallydoing, right?
Yeah, and there's alsoabsolutely no shame in having
another job. I feel like we havethis weird, romanticized version

(36:06):
that social media is alsoresponsible for, which is it has
to be a full time job. No, itdoesn't. If you want to work at
the post office to support yourartistic journey, then go do
that. Because do whatever helpsyou and enables you in this
economy to paint and still havethat that's still better than
not painting at all and justbeing in a job where you're

(36:28):
miserable.
I love that. I often tell a lotof the entrepreneurs, or the
sometimes we call them, wannaproduce people that have vision
and ideas, but have, you know,not necessarily taking the step
forward to actually go out anddo it, that they can actually
look at their full time job orwhatever they're doing to
support themselves andeventually, sort of capitalize
what they want to work on,whether that's a tech idea,

(36:51):
whether they want to become anartist, they want to write a
book, you know, get a moviemade, whatever, all of that is
actually just, you know, that'sjust your investment capital.
That's your seed capital. You'reinvesting in yourself by, you
know, going out and gettingthose opportunities to fund,
like you said, whatever it is,right? It paints, you know, your
canvases, your you know, youknow, the ability for you to do

(37:12):
the work has to come fromsomewhere, because the money
just doesn't fall from
the sky. It's really expensive.Like, we just went to the art
store a couple days ago, and Ithink we bought like five
brushes and three paints, and itwas like $270 so the people that
complain about how expensiveartists have no idea it's not.

(37:32):
It's not a cheap hobby that youdo on the side. If you want
quality paints and qualitycanvas, it costs a lot of money.
It does. So if you need a secondjob, or just a job that's not
for yourself, where you get anactual paycheck, of course, do
that. I mean, I kind of havetattooing on the side. I just,
right now, I fortunately sold alot of the paintings with the

(37:56):
wildlife, so I'm busy doingthat. But after that, I'm going
back to the tattoo studio aswell, because it's just more
stable, yeah, on a daily basis.And it's still art, it's still
creative, yeah? So if you canfind something that's maybe even
in those lines, if you want tobe a musician, and you can work
on the side, like in, I don'tknow, in a record shop or

(38:16):
somewhere, to make a little bitextra income, do
that, yeah, yeah. Yeah. I mean,and like you said, part of those
jobs can actually help yousharpen the saw for the main
gig, right? The main thing youwant to do, and that's, that's
what I would envision, you know,when you're doing tattooing is,
is you're, you're getting anopportunity to play, it's just a
different canvas. And, you know,something you do for a client

(38:38):
could inspire the next greatidea that you want to do for
your large painting,
but also you create work underless stress, if you have money
coming in from somewhere else. Ithink that's one of the biggest
things, too. We get like, that'swhere the real starving artist
metaphor comes in. When you justdon't have rent money and you're

(38:59):
just desperate to sellsomething, then it usually
doesn't work that well, right?But when you already you're
good, like your rent is paid andyou have money, then you can
create truly, from, from beingcontent and not under the stress
of, oh, I need to make X amount.
Yeah, like you said, it neverseems to work out when you have

(39:19):
that stress and pressure. Justit, whatever it is. It just
never, it never seems to pay offquite as well. So creating that,
I always had side jobs. Yeah,worked in events for years,
yeah, but I also enjoyed it alittle bit, because it was funny
being in the world of the richand famous and like, look behind

(39:40):
the curtains
well and to a degree like someof what I talk about, right?
That helped you build someprobably beneficial connections.
So when you did bring your workout, you actually had folks that
knew you and saw what you weredoing, and there was a natural
interest in potentially a futurecustomer. Yeah. Yeah, I love

(40:01):
that. So one question, you know,how have your folks handled
everything that you've done withyour career over here? And how
often do you see them?
I've put them through a lot, mypoor parents, but that's what
you did not pay me to
ask that question, by the way.I'm just saying no, they
signed up for it. Then theydecided to have a kid. I mean,

(40:23):
from from sitting through myperformances when I was in
middle school, like I would doreenactments with my stuffed
animals in the audience, and Iwould perform sketches for them
over and over and over, fromsitting through that and sitting
through boring theaterperformances like five times the
same play. No, they, they arevery, very supportive. I'm very

(40:45):
lucky to have parents like thatthat, you know, always had my
back, have never treated me likeyou should pick a real career
because, you know, both of themare super high ups in the IT
world. My dad was one of the topexecutives of IBM in Germany and
my mom. My mom also started atIBM, and then went and formed
her own company and was is inthe who's who? Germany for it,

(41:09):
specialists for data storage.But they've never pressured me.
I've taken one course in it,like fundamentals of it, and I
told my mom I wanted to die aslow death. I could do it. I got
I got a straight A in the exam.And I'm like, I can do it, but I
really don't want to. And she'slike, okay, like, you tried. And

(41:34):
they are so supportive. They'vecome to a lot of my art shows
I've taken. My mom was in LAwhen I painted the penthouse
because it painted the tallestmural in America in the 72nd
floor of the US Bank Tower inLA. So my mom was there for the
unveiling of that. That wassuper cool.
Wait, so like, tell us aboutthat project. Like, were you

(41:55):
dangling off a building orsomething? Or,
like, No, it was the inside.
As you said, I must have missedthis. Yeah,
it was the inside. It was justLA, local artists like paying
tribute to LA and I painted abeautiful, like Mexican heritage
mural, very vibrant with them,Mexican flowers that were

(42:17):
inspired by the tiles to go andthe colors. But that was one of
my favorite projects. So they'vebeen a part. I've taken my dad
on mural jobs when I'm painting,or my mom, my mom helped me
paint one where I was under adeadline and I'm like, here,
pick up some blue and fill thisin real quick.
It was a team effort.

(42:38):
Yeah, they're very they'reactually both very creative too,
even though they have thatlogical it brain like both of
them, are creative in their ownway. And I build a lot of stuff
with my dad. We love buildingstuff and fixing things, very
German around the house, andwe're gonna build a fence
probably next year. And theylove Wyoming. They're very

(42:59):
happy. I think that was the bestgift I could give them, was get
the hell out of LA, because nowthey're not so worried about me
every day. Yeah, yeah. And I,actually, I'm working on getting
them they, they just gotapproved for their green card,
which is very exciting. Yeah,that was like a four or five
year endeavor. Even though I'm aUS citizen, it's just very

(43:22):
difficult to get for them. Buthopefully in the future, they
get to spend more time here aswell.
Do you ever see them living hereonce they retire? Or is Germany
still just a home for them?
I hope so. No, they really likeit here, especially Wyoming,
because they say the same stuff.You know, the people are super
nice and friendly, and you canjust they're genuine. You can

(43:44):
make genuine friendships. Theyget invited to more stuff than I
do. My mom can go to boot barnand have three invites somewhere
to parties or at local events.They are both very sociable, and
just have way more of a sociallife than I
do, which is very ironic for ITpeople that's like that. Yeah,

(44:04):
that's not, not normal.
Well, my mom is also, like, a, Icall her the the L woods of it,
in her whole pink suit. It'sjust dominating in a department
full of men. So,
oh, that's cool. That's reallycool. I like that. Well, you
know, I could talk to you allday and I would we will have to

(44:27):
have you back, because there'sjust so much that I think that
our audience can learn andbenefit from just being exposed
to you. But one of the thingsthat we do on the show is we try
to wrap this up with a fewripple connection questions. Are
you okay with that? Yeah, yeah,sure. Fantastic. So you're, I
feel like we got a sense of kindof where you wanted to go as as

(44:48):
a kid, but if you weren't doing,let's say anything from an
artistic perspective, whether itwas acting or, you know,
writing, you know, in that, inthat genre, or art, art, what?
Would you see yourself doing if,if it wasn't that,
this is really weird, because itwould probably be something
polar opposite, like becoming anattorney,

(45:11):
really, okay, yeah. And whywould it be like that? Why? Why
an attorney? I mean, you're anexceptionally great
communicator, so I could seethat being really, really good.
Just interested in the law andcertain like how loopholes are
written, and just Yes, how, howthe law applies. I think I'm a
very just person. I like tostand up for people who are

(45:34):
wronged. So I don't
know. I love that. What do youthink, aside from creativity,
which is an obvious, you know,option here, but what do you
think your superpower is? Oh,

(45:54):
languages and communicating.Okay, I speak three languages,
and I've just always had a weirdtalent for understanding people
that maybe don't speak alanguage, and like communicating
with hands and feet, and Isomehow can figure out what
they're looking
for, what what are the threelanguages,

(46:15):
German, English and French. And,okay,
oh, that's awesome. I love that.But I like that approach, hands
and feet. I can figure it out.Yeah, that's what is your what
is one of the most favoriteprojects that you've you've
worked on
almost all of them that would bereally hard, and I would be

(46:37):
discriminating. I mean, yeah,the Bank Tower was one of the
best feelings just beingliterally on top of LA and
having helicopters fly by andwave at us as we were painting
this mural, you know, for thecity, that has given me
everything and has given methese wonderful career
opportunities and wonderfulfriends for life. That was one

(47:00):
of the best projects. I think
I love that. Who do you consideryour creative influence?
Um, there's a lot of artists Ilook up to, like, there are
amazing Western painters. I'vefound a lot of them recently,
but I've also learned a lot frommy boyfriend, who's one of the

(47:22):
top 10 tattooers, in the top 10%of tattooers in the world, like
he's incredible at what he does,and just his approach to that,
that's where my telling peoplethey're talented is not
accurate, because I see how hardhe works at improving just a
little bit, and I don't think ithas anything to do with talent,
and rather, with just being hardon ourselves and being our own

(47:46):
harshest critic and just tryingto improve a little bit and
pointing out little things that,over time, will make such a
difference. And that's reallyhelped improve my art, too, even
if we butt heads about ourapproach, because my approach is
throwing paint on canvas, andhis is like, no, break it down.
Sketch.

(48:08):
What's your boyfriend's name?Mike, Mike. Love that. Well,
Mike, Mike. Mike's lucky to havea partner like you. For sure.
I'm sure you guys, even thoughyou might butt heads, I could
just imagine those conversationslike
never thought I wanted to dateanother artist. I'm like, Oh my
gosh. Two of me. No, thank you.

(48:29):
That's awesome. If you were to,if you thought about, like, a
message, or, you know, a quotethat you could put out there for
everybody to see, whether it beon one of your paintings, or you
got an opportunity to put abillboard that everybody saw on
the way to work or on the way toschool and on the way home? What
message would you like toconvey?

(48:50):
I don't know if it's a snappy,short quote that'll be
memorable, memorable, but justto just please keep creating the
world needs it, and don't bediscouraged by social media or
by other people's success, andyou just gotta be consistent
over trying to be the best atsomething and being
perfectionistic, but just get alittle bit better and just stick

(49:13):
with what you're doing. And CJactually gave me this as a
magnet when I lived with her at16, and it said there were two
different one once, one was doone thing a day that scares you,
and then the other one was, it'shard to beat a person who never
ever gives up. Oh, I love that.I love that, and I love that

(49:36):
magnet, and I always have thatin the back of my mind, even on
hard days, I I'll have to tellher that I still no but, but
just, you'll just have to keepgoing, even if it sucks, even if
you don't feel like it.
Well, I did not tell her I wasthat we finally connected to
actually make this happen. Soit's going to be a huge surprise
to her, but she's going toappreciate the props, for sure,

(49:58):
I know, for. That'll be awesome.Okay, last, last couple of
questions, if you were gonnawhat would be the title to your
Sophie's life story, if it wasmade into a book or a movie?
Oh, well, I am writing a book,and this will be the first time
announcing it. Actually, we gotan exclusive here. This is

(50:22):
awesome. You do. I have not toldanybody except my editor, and
it's called California sober andother la lies.
Oh, I love that title, yeah. Oh,
it'll be a funny, satirical,very like self depreciating
humor, type of memoir about thetime as an immigrant, living in

(50:47):
LA, living in surviving LA, andjust kind of a funny, more
honest look behind the scenesversus everybody's polished life
of how dirty and grimy it reallyis and how unglamorous.
Yeah. Oh, and when do we expectthe book to be out?
That's a good question, becausethat's also one of those things

(51:08):
that I've said on I startedwriting that book 14 years ago,
yeah. And then it really onlywas recently that one of my
friends read a chapter and itstarted off as a journal, and he
was like, this is really funny.I'm like, glad you find it
funny. It's my life. Like, Ididn't think it was so funny
back then. But he's like, thiswould be a really good book. And

(51:28):
I just started looking foreditors, and I found the perfect
person on Fiverr that is justhelping me kind of refine it.
But we're working through it.We're about halfway through with
the editing process.
Are you, are you going to gothrough trying to go to a
publisher? Are you going to SelfPublish? Or what do you what's
your plan?
I'm going to try the publisherroute, just because I don't

(51:49):
think, like I don't, if youdon't have a huge audience by
yourself, I think it's going tobe very hard to to kind of sell
and get that out there. And Ithink it would be a good guide
for people planning to move toLos Angeles, or people who've
lived there, and even peoplehave nothing to do with LA and
just know the stereotypes. Ithink they'll find it
entertaining.

(52:10):
Yeah. Well, if I can be aresource for you in any
capacity, I've been veryfortunate to know some really
good, best selling authors, andthen, yeah. So I self published.
In fact, I had a great authorthat basically told me to stick
with, you know, the selfpublishing route. And he gave me
advice and guidance as to whyand to do it. But if I can be a

(52:30):
resource for you in anycapacity, I'd be happy to do it.
So,
yeah, I would love to connectwith you about that whole
process. Yeah,
we'll do it for sure. Last twoquestions. When you hear the
words the ripple effect, whatdoes that conjure up in your
mind? What do you what does itmake you think of
serendipity, of meeting certainpeople like just very unplanned,

(52:55):
but you think somehow somethingbigger has a plan for you to
meet this person or that person,and then through them, you know,
like the what is it sixth degreeof separation? How you know
everybody in the world? Yes, sojust those lucky moments of
connecting with certain people,and then you never know what

(53:18):
that's going to bring you in the
future. Well, I'm super gratefulfor that, because that look, I
mean, that's how we ended uphere today, right? I think
that's fantastic. If the lastquestion I have for you is, what
ripples can I be looking tocreate for you?
Well, the first ripple was beingon this podcast after all those

(53:39):
years. That's just a really,really funny coincidence. And
then I don't know I yeah, I'mlooking forward to connecting
again when my book is done,yeah, to just get it out there
in the world. Just one of thoseother things that I have wanted
to do and that I can't just siton for the rest of my life
wondering, oh, what are peoplegonna think? I just have to put

(54:02):
it out there.
It'll be awesome, and we'll helppromote the hell out of it, I
promise you for sure. Well,Sophie, how do you want people
to follow you? You know,obviously we put your website
up. I'm gonna put that up onemore time, just so people see
it. But is there other ways thatyou want people to tune in and
check out your work or followyou on social or YouTube or
anything.

(54:23):
Yeah, I'm mostly on Facebook andInstagram. And on Instagram,
that's Sophie mazzaro art, andon Facebook, I think it's just
Sophie mazzaro That's always agood way I do little snippets of
behind the scenes, or how I findwhere I find inspiration or
motivation to create somethinglike one of my paintings I made

(54:45):
of a moose that I saw out of a Uhaul driving on the road. You
never know where inspirationstrikes you. And I, I never
understand the people that arelike, Oh, I don't. I just don't
understand where you getinspiration. And then, just
like, everywhere I can take all.Like every I should see a rabbit
and paint that.
Absolutely, I love that. Andobviously that moose was a

(55:08):
stuffed moose. No, he was real.Wasn't a live moose driving a
truck, right?
It was no, it was a life. I wasdriving the truck, not the
moose. I thought
you were riding down the roadand you saw somebody drive by
with a moose in there. I
was driving to California withthe U haul and back, and on my
way back, as I was like utterlyexhausted and had about four

(55:30):
hours left in a 24 hour drive, Isaw a gigantic moose drinking
from a little spring on the sideof the road. And, oh yeah,
is that is that the inspirationfor the one that's on your
homepage currently? Yes, yeah,oh, man, it's amazing. I mean,
that's really cool. I love thatyou shared that well. Sophie,

(55:51):
thank you so much for the timetoday. I really, really
appreciate it. I am a huge, hugefan. I'm so proud to know you
and call you a friend. But mostimportantly, I'm just very, very
inspired, as I know my audiencewill be as well about what
you're doing and how you'redoing it, the approach that you
take for the you know, gettingyour your work out there, and
just being unapologetically you.And I just my hat's off to you.

(56:14):
It's just so amazing to seeeverywhere your career is taking
you. And I'm just so, sothrilled that we could do
this. Thank you, Steve, so much,and I feel honored to have a
friend like like you, who'sknown me since I was 16 years
old, basically, and has followedme through all the chaotic life
phases that I have and careerphases from Austin to LA to

(56:37):
Wyoming. I will have to do thisagain, because I feel like we
could have a seven hour podcast.
Absolutely, we will. And as yourevealed, this is your first
podcast, so I think, yeah. Imean, I am truly, truly honored.
So this is awesome,
yep, and book reveal both. Ohman, yeah,
this is like a double whammy. Sothank you for that. I appreciate
that. Well, listen, guys, we'llbe back for another episode of

(56:59):
the ripple effect very soon, butuntil then, Sophie ripple on
you.

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Turn Your Art Into Business featuring Sophie Mazzaro | The Ripple Effect Podcast

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Turn Your Art Into Business featuring Sophie Mazzaro | The Ripple Effect Podcast