To kick off season 3 of the live podcast Creative Chats event series, I sat down at the Mosesian Center for the Arts for a conversation with musician, producer, impresario, and good-natured mischief lover Zachariah Hickman to talk about how he's continuing to build his second act.

His first act? Touring as a bassist, musical director, and more with acts such as Josh Ritter and Ray LaMontagne (sprinkling in some gigs with The Who and Bob Weir), playing venues such as Carnegie Hall (which included the single scariest moment of his performing career), Red Rocks, and the Royal Albert Hall, performing on the David Letterman show six times. He was on the road 280+ days a year, filling in the gaps flying overnight to play shows back in Boston then fly back to the tour right after. In short, it was awesome...and exhausting.

The second act? Building things locally, for a community, sustainably. This included becoming the pandemic-era "Tuba Guy" to spread joy in the streets, building a recording studio in his Watertown home where musicians can stay for a few days and make a record in a supportive environment, running a music camp and mentoring budding musicians, and putting together unique showcases of local talent.

Listen to hear his journey, philosophy, and add a splash of mischief to your day.

Keep up with Zachariah on Instagram or Facebook

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Upcoming events! Click here to see upcoming live podcast events.

How does one local group of volunteers hand out $34,000 to arts and culture projects in Watertown? I sat down with Elektra Newman and Greg Papazian to demystify how the Watertown Cultural Council funds arts and culture across the city, and chat a bit about the history of the council, some of their favorite projects funded recently, and more.

The Watertown Cultural Council's 2026-2027 grant season is open now through October 15th, 2026. Have an idea? Apply here!

More info at:

WatertownCulturalCouncil.org

Facebook | Instagram | Podcast

Support the show

Head on over to www.littlelocalconversations.com to check out all the episodes, events, and everything else going on.

Sign up for the Little Local Conversations email newsletter

Follow on Instagram: @littlelocalconversations

Upcoming events! Click here to see upcoming live podcast events.

Meet Pia Owens! She's done many things in Watertown from having served as a Library Trustee, Co-President of the Watertown Community Foundation, a facilitator for Watertown Community Conversations, and a board member of the Mosesian Center for the Arts. She works as a negotiation coach, tech lawyer, ombudsperson for a writer's collective, among other things. In short, we talk about a lot! Take a listen to learn about her journey through these topics and roles and the lessons and perspectives she's gained from them all.

Find out more about Pia at piaowens.com

Pia's Substack - Let's Have It Out

Pia's monthly column in Psychology Today - Getting Comfortable With Conflict

Support the show

Head on over to www.littlelocalconversations.com to check out all the episodes, events, and everything else going on.

Sign up for the Little Local Conversations email newsletter

Follow on Instagram: @littlelocalconversations

Upcoming events! Click here to see upcoming live podcast events.