Ike Wynter: CRAZY Journey from Touring Musician & Entrepreneur to Viral Wood Artist

Milwaukee Uncut

From a giant Crayola Crayon box to a scene out of Spongebob, he’s using his passion for woodworking to inspire creativity and a sense of community in his followers.

In this episode, we dive into his journey that got him to where he is today, including his struggles with mental health and potential brand collaborations on the horizon.

From a young age, Ike had an entrepreneurial spirit. He started a rock band with his friends when he was in high school - even playing at the Rave on school nights. After graduating and realizing college wasn’t what they wanted to pursue, they left to play shows across the country. Nine years later when the band split up, Ike and his brother started their next gig, a junk removal business.

“We started it the day after. I had zero gap between music and our business. It was like a 12 hour period that I slept.”

In the first year, their business exceeded expectations, allowing them to repay the loan lent to them by their parents.

On the side, Ike started building coffee tables out of discarded pallets. After posting them on Facebook, people started reaching out asking him to make tables for them.

From there, Ike’s passion for woodworking took off, but challenges with his mental health created ebbs and flows in his ability to produce art; “I couldn’t even walk into my studio.”

Around 2021, he completely uprooted his life - leaving his studio and MIlwaukee - to move across the country to California where he would go to work for the Dream Machine Foundation.

We talk through the last few years of his life and what it means for him to be back in Milwaukee creating art again. The city has embraced him with open arms, and a recent collaboration for 414 Day sparked new recognition for his work in the city he calls home.