Meet Corn Mo | musician

We had the good fortune of connecting with Corn Mo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Corn, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
When I was in 3rd grade, my parents took us to dinner at a place called Haussner’s Restaurant in Baltimore. They served local seafood and German food. I don’t remember what I ate but I do remember wandering around before we were seated. They had a huge collection of 19th-century art. I think I went to the basement where there was no seating – just art. When I started my band, I wanted to recreate the atmosphere I experienced that evening at Haussner’s Restaurant. I had a broken accordion that was given to me by my friend’s mom who found it in the dumpster at the shelter where she worked. Only the button side worked. I started writing songs and playing shows.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I started playing music in Denton, Texas. Denton has always had a great music scene and art scene. I played a lot of shows in cafes, clubs and art benefits. After a while, I watched a lot of friends’ bands get signed to labels. It was frustrating. One night, I opened for The Bindlestiff Family Cirkus in Dallas. They invited me to tour with them. So, I did. I was introduced to the world of sideshow. It was the best time I’d ever had. After that, I was invited to tour with The Polyphonic Spree. Then, I joined The Polyphonic Spree. Then, we toured with David Bowie. In the meantime, I was working joe jobs to pay rent. I was lucky that I could leave those jobs to tour. I’ve made a lot of mistakes. One of them was being too precious with my art. I passed on some good opportunities by being too precious about stuff. I enjoy the struggle. It’s how I started out by playing a broken, dumpster accordion. Once, I was left at a services in Scotland during a tour with Ben Folds. The bus driver assumed everyone was asleep in their bunks, where my phone was charging. Navigating by hitchhiking, hiking, talking my way into a festival, finding an old friend along the way was a stressful, yet enjoyable adventure. By the end, I almost wished that I’d left my wallet on the bus in order to make the journey even more challenging. That day is a bit of a metaphor for what I do.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
The Museum of Jurassic Technology (I recommend reading Mr. Wilson’s Cabinet of Wonder: Pronged Ants, Horned Humans, Mice on Toast, and Other Marvels of Jurassic Technology before you go)

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Brave Combo. They Might Be Giants. Ben Folds. The Polyphonic Spree. Common Rotation. Wheatus. MC Frontalot. The Bindlestiff Family Cirkus. The Pontani Sisters. Nick Offerman. Megan Mullally. Chris Weber. David Cross. The Good/Bad Art Collective.  The Love Show Dance Company.

Website: www.cornmo.com

Instagram: instagram.com/cornmo

Youtube: youtube.com/cornmo

Image Credits
Alan Masters John Huntington Simon Hill Andy Moore