Jim Catapano is the lead reviewer at Five Star Arts Journals and has covered everything from Shakespeare to Hard Rock. He himself is a world class musician, writer and performer. ArtsIndependent, the site which carries his editorials, would like to pay a brief tribute to Jim by chatting with him about … HIM.

So when I research you to see what category to put your work as an artist in, I come up with every category to put your artistry in. Musician, writer, performer, commentator, and the list goes on. What kind of artist do you consider yourself? 

JIM: I guess I’m a Jim-of-All-Trades! A friend very sweetly referred to me as a “Renaissance Guy” which is very flattering, but really just a grand way of saying that I’m interested in everything. Which I think is important, it makes someone well-rounded and gives them a lot to talk about! I rarely need to discuss the weather or last night’s game, which helps keep the conversation exciting. And I’m always very interested in what other people are doing!

I often find, with artists like you, that you can’t be called a musician or a writer, you have to be called an artist because you’re so diverse. What makes you so diverse? What is it that gives you the desire to put out so many different kinds of art? 

JIM: I’m very grateful to say that to a large extent I’ve been able to make a creative contribution to everything that intrigued me as a kid. Which is all kinds of creative expression – writing, performing, drawing, acting, and also the tech side of things like audio engineering, mixing and mastering. I feel like I don’t exist if I’m not creating, which I think is a drive that fuels many artists. I love expressing my unique comedic perspective through my online comic character “Dave”, (The Dave Dimension) which my brother and I actually created when we were kids and then brought to our University Humor Magazine—we both collaborate on ideas for it.

JIM: Music will always be my next love after that, but I appreciate any opportunity to not only express myself creatively, but also promote other artists and friends in the Community who I believe in and often collaborate with. I’m also extremely blessed to have worked with so many inspiring and encouraging creative people who really helped me learn and grow. Recently I even did some singing and dancing in a musical for the first time, with some absolutely wonderful and encouraging talented people and a very appreciative audience, so that’s another check on my list!

Does each of your work feed others? Meaning does your writings fuel your compositions, does your blogs feed your more public writings, etc. Or is everything a simple moment of creation? 

JIM: I do think that my different interests complement each other. I bring a lot of humor to the projects I’m involved in, and people have been very kind to say that I contribute to the morale of all the group projects I’m involved in. I like to help maintain a positive, optimistic atmosphere, and having experience in so many different kinds of creative endeavors, problem-solving, troubleshooting, and riding out the rough waves has really helped me do that.

What’s next for the great Jim in terms of artistry?

JIM: I’m working with two bands right now, chiefly The Opposition, and we’ve been consistently posting new original music on Social Media. I’d like to play live more often and help jumpstart the live music scene in NYC. My favorite thing after performing live is seeing other people perform. I’m also going to continue being very active as a reviewer and have an ongoing Voiceover collaboration with two authors. And squeezing everything else in between! (I’ve heard of sleep but have personally never tried it.)