Daily Inspiration: Meet Mikey Wheeler

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mikey Wheeler.

Hi Mikey, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Michael Kenneth Wheeler.

Professional tattooer/illustrator/designer

Multi-Instrumentalist and song-writer

Born April 17th, 1982 in Kansas City, Missouri.

Moved to Columbia, Missouri in 1989.

Began my tattoo apprenticeship in high school and started tattooing professionally in 2003.

Began playing guitar in 1993. Started writing, recording, and performing in 1997. Currently playing with Gift Horse and 90’s Tribute band, Soy Bomb and the Dream Team. Past projects include Famines, Vohnkar, Coward, Bald Eagle, The Souls, River Runs Red, Damn Near, and Juvenile Wreck. Primarily a guitarist and vocalist, I also play bass and drums.

Moved back to Kansas City in 2009 to tattoo at Mercy Seat in the Crossroads Art District. Met my wife Megan Wheeler, also a professional tattooer, at Mercy Seat. We were married in Seattle, Washington in 2015. Began tattooing at Windhorse Tattoo in 2020.

Megan and I have a 3 year old daughter, Charlie May Wheeler and we’re celebrating our 10 year wedding anniversary this year.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I discontinued my tattoo apprenticeship at one point for 2 years due to a conflict with the shop owner. The shop was then sold and I continued my apprenticeship under the new owner. Had the new owner not offered to finish my apprenticeship, I very likely would have never tattooed professionally

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
After 22 years of professional tattooing I still have the same philosophy I’ve had since apprenticing. Learn to tattoo anything in any style for anyone who wants a tattoo. As long as the request doesn’t conflict with my personal or professional morals and ethics.

While it’s increasingly common for modern, custom tattooers to design, refine, and tattoo in a specific/signature style and build a career and reputation on exclusively that skill set, my business model is more of a jack of all trades approach. Instead of favoring one aesthetic, my goal is to make the best tattoo possible out of any subject matter in any style, assuming the request is logistically tattooable.

I feel that prioritizing my client’s vision and goals over an expression of my own personal artistic vision creates more opportunities to work with a wider range of potential clientele.

Ultimately, remaining open to a virtually limitless spectrum of ideas and requests has forced me to find functional design solutions for projects I would have otherwise not had the opportunity to learn from. I believe this mindset is the core reason for my success and my ability to remain prolific in an overly saturated market.

We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
My first love, before tattooing and music, was basketball. I’m still a fan and follow the NBA every season.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.Windhorserising.com
• Instagram: @mikeywheelertattooer
• Other: [email protected]