Don’t Quit Your Day Job, Mike Fasulo!

Hello kids and welcome to another exciting episode of Don’t Quit Your Day Job! I had the pleasure of meeting this week’s contestant a few years ago when we jammed together with some mutual friends, but whether he remembers or not, our paths crossed years earlier when I needed a bead for an earring and I wandered into his (then new) store. I immediately knew this was a special man and that he would eventually be contestant on my fictitious game show that’s really just an interview column in a free newspaper. Ok … enough with the ramblings of a crazy man. Ladies and gentlemen I present to you an entrepreneur, an artist, a rock ‘n’ roller and a man with some pretty cool cars … Mr. Michael Fasulo!

Josh Hurst: What’s your age and location?

Mike Fasulo: I’m 38 and live in Pawtucket.

JH: What band are you in?

MF: I’m in Alley Saints, and I sing and play guitar.

JH: How long have you been at rock ‘n’ roll?

MF: I’ve been playing around with instruments and bands since I was 12 years old.

JH: What do you do to pay the rent?

MF: I own and tattoo full time at Sin Alley Tattoo, on Benefit Street in Pawtucket.

JH: How did you end up there?

MF: I was a tattoo artist and body piercer at other shops in the area for almost 12 years, just paying my dues, then I opened Sin Alley Tattoo about nine years ago.

JH: What drives you to keep at the music?

MF: It’s definitely not about the money, cause there’s none in the music we play. What it really is, is that the music we play is the closest to the music we love to listen to.  The bands that influence our music are either broken up or all the members have passed on.

JH: Besides income, what keeps you at your day job?

MF: Tattooing is a creative outlet, and there is a great deal of satisfaction in building a business from the ground up and watching it succeed.  It comes with its challenges, and can sometimes be the hardest thing to do, but I find it worth it in the end. People also really appreciate what we do!

JH: Does your day job mesh with music?

MF: I have the freedom to set my playlist at work and there is music playing at the shop all day. I can listen to that stuff on repeat so when I get home and get to writing music, it seems to come a little easier.  Plus, I can play our own music at the shop and convince customers who might not be into it to give it a shot.

JH: Where can you be found?

MF: Find me Monday through Saturday at Sin Alley Tattoo at 431 Benefit Street in Pawtucket and check out the Alley Saints at facebook.com/AlleySaints