BJ Robinson: In this edition of "KPBS Arts," a look at the art of a San Diego poet and playwright.

Gill Sotu: Let them dance like your parents aren't home, like your nemesis finally got their comeuppance, like you live in a world where it's actually cool to use the word "comeuppance" or any word you please.

BJ: Furniture making inspired by spirits.

Thomas Perry: It's a lot different working with the barrel.

Even just getting the right barrel, making sure the bands are lined up, like some bands, they might be off a half-inch and you want it to line up and be uniform.

BJ: A modern artist compared to Toulouse-Lautrec.

Cordell Cordaro: My artwork is kind of abstract in nature in the sense that I'm not trying to portray a still life or, like, a realistic painting.

I'm really trying to capture an idea or emotion, kind of inner emotions coming out.

BJ: And meet the man behind a weekly jazz jam in Barrio Logan.

Bill Caballero: It's Latin jazz moved into, like, the land of boogaloo and then kind of going on into what they call, like, Chicano music or whatever, oldies, stuff like that that's popular with the lowrider crowd and with the Chicano population.

BJ: It's all ahead on this edition of "KPBS Arts."

♪♪♪ BJ: Hello, I'm BJ Robinson and this is "KPBS Arts," the show that explores art of all kinds.

This San Diego artist is multitalented: a poet, playwright, musician, and a DJ.

We take a look at the inspirational work of Gill Sotu.

♪♪♪ Gill: We are our own beautiful and our own obstacle.

We are the bastard children of Marilyn Monroe and Miles Davis.

Someone forgot to tell our parents that there's no need to go outside for amazing.

We're our own incredible.

Gill: What a poet does is connects two things, usually, that seemingly have nothing to do with one another and they create meaning out of that.

And my job is to build bridges and connect people, ideas, and spirits together.

Gill: A homeless man stopped, showed me his broken smile and his signage.

I'm embarrassed.

It takes cardboard and liquored breath to remind me of my kindness.

Gill: As an adult, when I got into the Navy I started writing a lot of poetry 'cause I had a lot of time and water in front of me.

Then I learned about spoken word.

I started doing it, started competing in Los Angeles 'cause I was living maybe a half an hour north of L.A.

I didn't know that you can do poetry without any paper.

I didn't know that you can do poetry and just, ahh, just come alive like that.

It tapped into my hip hop roots, it tapped into my, like, performance roots.

All my life, I feel like people have been pushing me in front of a crowd to do something.

I wasn't valedictorian, I wasn't the best-behaved kid in the class.

But for the graduation my teacher got me up to welcome the whole audience and tell 'em what was going on and stuff like that.

I didn't audition or ask to do it.

It's just my whole life has been like that.

It's kind of been magical like that.

Gill: We, the children of the story, no matter where you call home, have a sky in common.

It is the dim blanket that we fall in love under, it is the times that the dust gets cooler and we get closer, where songs sound best at the gas lamp, especially when they are happy and sung off-key, ha, ha.

Gill: I write things that I need to hear to remind myself of certain aspects of life and I try to touch on different aspects of life.

I try to be as entertaining as possible and speak to the heart.

I can't always help people or reach people intellectually, but I can always speak spirit to spirit, you know?

And I feel comfortable in that and I'm strong in that.

And so that's what I try to do in each piece, either--whether it be commissioned or stuff that I write myself.

Gill: When a shift happens, a chemical catalyst begins to create inside your body.

Gill: I'm always putting some part of Blackness in it.

There's no way that I cannot do that, you know?

And then what happens is when people start to introduce you or announce you onstage, and this happened very early on, a little less now, but they qualify who you are.

So they'll say, like, in the beginning it was, like, "A Black poet," you know what I'm saying?

I'm not just a regular poet; I'm a Black poet, you know?

Or they'll say, like, a hip hop poet, even though I'm not rhyming in my poems, you know?

I'm doing a poem just like you're doing a poem, White person, but for some reason I have to have this label in front of me maybe 'cause they think they're gonna-- it's gonna bring young, hip people, but that happens a lot.

I'm really interested in the things that connect us.

I'll talk about our differences, but in the end, I'm always talking about things that connect us, regardless of race.

Gill: No more shadows chasing you.

You can be who you really are.

Paint your face, spit your truth, thrust your arms out to the side and airplane your way into re-embodying your unapologetic youth.

Some folks just shine brighter in the night.

There are Seaworld-like fireworks in your fingertips that are just itching to ignite.

Let them dance like their parents aren't home, like your nemesis finally got their comeuppance, like you live in a world where it's actually cool to use the word "comeuppance" or any word you please.

We are all waiting.

The moonlight, the melody, and if you'll have us, your stage.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ BJ: To learn more about Gill's work and to find out where you can see him live in San Diego, go to gillsotu.com.

And now, here's a look at some of the arts events happening this week in our community.

BJ: It's a family affair for Motor City Barrels, a company that creates unique handcrafted art pieces and furniture out of old whisky and wine barrels.

Take a look.

♪♪♪ Darrel Lambert: I think the rustic refurbished stuff is big.

You know, people are just drawn to it.

Jake Jarvis: A lot of people like the look of it, the darkness.

It just, kind of like, pops.

Thomas: I think it's a novelty, there actually is the younger generation.

Darrel: I've noticed over the past 10, 12 years, that they've gotten into, like, the bourbon and scotch and whisky and they've gotten away from, like, Bud Lights and Budweisers, so I think that's a lot of the customers that we get.

I was always good with my hands I mean, attention to detail.

That's--a lot of people tell me that.

I always put in the extra effort to make it look nice, you know?

Rob got married and he had a bourbon bar, you know, a cigar bar.

We used the barrels and made tables out of 'em.

Then we didn't know what to do with 'em so we started creating different products.

And I thought it was gonna be a hobby, they're all about recycling, and we used up old products and so we started getting into that, and there were the whisky barrels.

That was probably maybe six months after we got going, we said, you know, "There's something here."

And then we were already like, "Wow, we are--this is a functioning business now," and it's just going crazy.

It started out just with two people.

Now it's, you know, seven people with me and the wife, my nephew and he's married to my niece, you know, so it's--everyone's pretty much a family.

Thomas: Darrel and Nancy have nearly been my second parents since I was about ten.

Darrel's so creative and cool to be around, and you learn so much.

When we started, like, just some of the stuff we were attempting to make, I was like, "I don't know how we're gonna do that," 'cause I, you know, working with wood and things that are square and level and flush and plumb, it's a lot different working with the barrels.

Even just getting the right barrel, making sure the bands are lined up, like some bands, they might be off a half-inch and you want it to line up and be uniform.

Darrel: We make a A-frame wine-rack and we take the whisky and we put wine bottles on it, but-- and then there's bottle openers.

We make a stave bottle opener with a magnet that's behind the opener and so when you open your bottle it sticks.

And you can't see it; it's buried underneath the wood, but it sticks to the piece of wood when you open your bottle so it's kind of creative.

You know, people really like that.

And we got the half-barrel hideaway.

And then we got the hallway table and we have a stave with lasered, like, "Bourbon made me do it" on it and different sayings.

Or the dog dishes.

We can make 'em any size, any height, but if you have a cat, we made some for cats.

And then we make a half-barrel, quarter-barrel for pet toys.

And we make dog beds.

There's a lot of things.

It's never-ending.

Jake: We do wedding barrels with the cards and a slit at the top and we make a door on the side.

And we made a dancing barrel for, like, Irish dancing and we put, like, hardwood tops on the barrels and they dance on top of the barrels and stuff like that.

And we made grape-crushing barrels.

Thomas: We make the wine bottles that hold the thing with the glasses fit on and it's a nice centerpiece and, like, a lot of women have been buying those and putting 'em right on their table.

The best part about working with these products is it's one of a kind, handmade.

There's no pattern.

When you make it, you made that.

And the worst part about it is it's one of a kind, handmade, there's no pattern.

You know, so it's a catch-22 there.

There is a good process.

Jake: First, we take a barrel apart and then that's always a mess so we clean that up and then take it in here and we mark what we have to make and how many we have to make of it, and then I usually fill in all the cracks, like, drilling the holes and kind of prepping it for the sanding process.

Usually I make the smaller type of products, like the bottle openers and the bottle towers.

Thomas: It's a ton of fun, it really is, like, when you get done with it, no one else has done that, and you take a lot of pride and you walk out of here, sense of fulfillment.

Jake: It makes it special to make it and see how it goes and them telling you that it worked out perfectly and it just makes everyone happy.

Darrel: It's the smiles off the customers.

They come in here and go, "Wow, that's really cool."

That's what I do, and I mean I love to see that.

And people come in here and praise our work and they love our stuff.

And they--that's a word of mouth that is powerful, you know?

Or they'll come round to the house and see the dog dish and they have to have one.

So it's going good that way.

Thomas: We have a lot of fun here.

It's not always a work thing.

There's a lot of laughs and it's fun to make the products that we make and the vision that Darrel has for everything, how organized he is, so like, just being around those kind of people always make you better anyways.

Jake: You feel at home, really, and I've known these people all, like, pretty much my whole life.

So we all wanna make everything as good as it can be.

Thomas: When I'm building stuff, I always think, "Would I put this in my house?

Like, would this go right by my front door?"

And if it wouldn't, then we'll take it apart and reuse it for something else or, you know, try to make it better and so that's kind of my 100% guarantee that the customer will be satisfied with their product.

Darrel: You know, we all kind of look after each other and say, "Hey, you know, do this, do that, or whatever, trying to make a better product.

We gotta make it work, you know, 'cause you're trying to support everybody and take care of everybody, so you know, it's a--it's something that drives you because you don't wanna fail, you know, and have everybody else fail along with you, so that's the drive, right there.

It makes me proud.

Proud to do this, you know?

Finally, you know, after doing a job so long, this is, like, giving me more of an enjoyment.

♪♪♪ BJ: For more information go to motorcitybarrels.com.

Now, here's a look at some upcoming arts events around San Diego.

BJ: Painter Cordell Cordaro's style has been compared to Toulouse-Lautrec.

His depictions, especially of female figures, bring up visions of fantasy and whimsy.

But success as an artist isn't just about style.

We sit down with Cordell to talk about creating community and the business of art.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Cordell: My name's Cordell Cordaro.

I'm a Rochester, New York, artist and we're in Blu Wolf right now where my art is up.

I've been doing art for about nine years, full-time as a career, and I love it.

It's my passion.

My artwork is kind of abstract in nature in the sense that I'm not trying to portray a still life or, like, a realistic painting.

I'm really trying to capture an idea or emotion, kind of inner emotions coming out.

And I think people vibe with that when they see my artwork.

♪♪♪ Cordell: There's also lots of color, I just think it grabs people attention and also shows kind of my passion for life, really, in general in it.

That in itself inspires me and I think that inspires people when they see my artwork.

♪♪♪ Cordell: I've always been an artist.

I went to art school, ALFA University Art and Design, and really a little bit after that I don't think I was focused on an art career, not 'til maybe my mid 20s, at which point I started to seek out opportunities to sell my artwork and local gallery museum Artisan Works was a huge part of that.

They started buying my paintings and I kind of went from being just an artist, kind of knowing I'm an artist, but not really doing much outside of just my own drawings and paintings to really working at it, selling 'em, and thinking long-term, and that's kind of like a metamorphosis of my life.

It opened me up to the business side of art.

Business surrounds art in my opinion and it's really, artists have a chance to be part of--it's a multibillion-dollar global art market so it's out there, and so artists have the opportunity to be part of that and I think, being an entrepreneur, artists are positioned perfectly because they have imagination.

People say no, you say yes, and you know, you keep moving forward and the door is open.

♪♪♪ Cordell: If you go a kind of a gallery route you're kind of giving the reins to somebody else so you don't have to worry about things.

Kind of concentrate on just the art, but you're not putting yourself in a position to meet new people, really, face to face and sell your work and what's involved in that, you know, pricing and getting paid and how are you gonna get paid and the transactions.

It's rewarding for me to be doing that as well.

♪♪♪ Cordell: I think if you wanna make money from your creativity, you shouldn't be ashamed of that.

It's really about creating stability and security in your own life, financial stability and security, so why wouldn't you do that, you know?

And it's also more empowering because you're taking control of your own life.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Cordell: When you're selling artwork, you naturally get a--you naturally know what sells and what doesn't and that might also go to the selling-out thing.

I don't think it's ever selling out but you have to be careful, kind of, toeing the line of creating art that you know works for you and is also something that you'll be able to sell in the future.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Cordell: Money isn't the center of it.

The art is the center, so that's always the number one.

That's the passion.

And I think if you put money first, you're gonna have problems.

For me, with my path is that I'm as much of a entrepreneur, I feel like, as an artist, so that to me is the business side of it.

♪♪♪ BJ: To see more of this artist's work, visit cordellcordaro.com.

♪♪♪ BJ: There's a weekly Latin jazz jam in Barrio Logan that's been a local fixture for almost two decades.

Trumpet player Bill Caballero is the driving force behind it.

He tells us all about this rocking San Diego tradition.

♪♪♪ ♪ Wachi wara ♪ ♪♪♪ ♪ Wachi wara ♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Bill: As part of my homie jam journey, we started at the original Vosalta downtown on East Street between 8th and 9th by the old library and post office, and then it just kept moving around, moving around and it eventually, I mean, it was in National City, it was in Chula Vista, San Diego, of course, and it finally ended up in--through Carlos--Cardos Beltran [speaking foreign language] He opened up a gallery, Vosalta, the final edition in Barrio Logan and he asked if I would do it there.

I said, "Yeah, of course."

So that started me in Barrio Logan.

♪♪♪ ♪ Wachi wara ♪ ♪♪♪ ♪ Wachi wara ♪ ♪♪♪ Bill: People ask me about it, "What's homie jazz?"

And it's kind of like, it's Latin jazz moved into, like, the land of boogaloo and then kind of going on into what they call, like--Chicano music or whatever, oldies, stuff like that that's popular with the lowrider crowd and with the Chicano population.

And it's just, to me, it kind of went beyond just Latin jazz.

It was homie jazz in the respect that everybody-- it felt like a real connection there, like, a home, if you will, and I preferred that title to Latin jazz.

At a certain point it just evolved that way.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Bill: With the history of the American Indian, there were some places that were sacred where warring tribes would come together and all weapons were left off of there and when you went in there, everybody was equal, and they would talk things over.

And I like that about the gym.

At the gym, no matter if you're Charles McPherson or if you're, you know, Joe Palooka you're treated the same there, and, you know, I mean, I can be a little bit rough sometimes, you know, instructing or whatever, but overall, it's just a place where the musicians get to hang out--hang out together and have some fun.

And I think that that has a lot to do with the success because the people that attend, they see the musicians having fun and they, in turn, have fun and then we see them having fun so we have fun with them.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Bill: "La Bruja" is a folkloric--it's danced to by [speaking foreign language] groups in Mexico.

I heard that song through my ex-wife Teresa who is [speaking foreign language] maestra and so I was exposed to a lot of the music and stuff that she did and that song resonated with me.

I heard that and I go, "You know what?

I hear it in a different way," and it's done originally in a--with a--it's from Veracruz, so it's done with the Veracruz harp and I just picked it up and it just felt good on the horn and Irvin Clodis was kind enough to help me put some interesting changes to it as well and it's like one of my signature songs.

People love me to play that song.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Bill: Public at large, I'd like to invite you to the jam.

There's no admission.

You can bring children, all ages.

You can bring your dogs, you can even bring your wives.

So if you're in the neighborhood in Barrio Logan and wanna hear some good music and some great food and drink, please come by.

BJ: And that wraps it up for this edition of "KPBS Arts."

For more arts and culture, visit KPBS.org/Arts where you'll find feature videos, blogs, and information on upcoming arts events.

Until next time, I'm BJ Robinson.

Thanks for watching.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ female announcer: Support for this program comes from the KPBS Explorer Local Content Fund supporting new ideas and programs for San Diego.