To put it mildly, CJ Draden is the last of a dying breed. I think even he would put it that way, and like it. In fact, I think he would prefer it that way to add to the immensley dark and twisted yet amazingly beautiful and mysterious nature that surrounds everything he creates.
You want credentials? How about a huge following around the US, almost every‘ Con’ you can think of under his belt, and oh yea, he has the god amung men, aka, Stan Lee’ s stamp of approval to boot.
But behind all of that is a guy who honestly respects the artform he has sold his soul to be a part of. It might scare away the average person but hang around a while and you will learn that the creepy and dim world Draden inhabits has many sources of light within it. He just chooses to not pay the electric bill.
PAC: When did this twisted rise to stardom start to take place?
CJ: I dont really view it as stardom. Im just very open and honest with my passion and emotion towards what I do and how I work and folks respond well to that. Ive always been this way and it has got me into trouble but i stayed the course of being extremely open and honest with my self so the the benefits of self discovery and purpose were revealed to me. As an intellectual myself I know that people what something truthful to believe in, and in the entertainment industry there are so many fake impressions of personality that people can see right through. I never liked that. I wanted to inspire people to be able to rise from any circumstance and communicate to the world with their work the same way I had risen from nothing and no one. Its just takes honesty and the ability to face the soul and know you are probably not going to like what you see, but if you can endure, then there is literally nothing you can achieve. Stardom is for amateurs, truth is for the visionaries.
PAC: Most memorable event?
CJ: The Moment Stan Lee approached me about my work. So surreal.
PAC: What is Stan Lee like in real life?
CJ: Stan’ s a gentleman. There’ s no other way to say it. I don’ t get star struck becasue I’ m aware for the illusions people put on to sell their bullshit. Stan hides nothing. He is exactly the embodiment of an ideal that I told myself back in college of the would remain the course even when criticized for it, truthful. I believe this is why he approached me about endorsing my graphic novel. He saw a piece of me in my work that lies cant hide. I was never looking for an endorsement or to be recognized by big shots, in fact i try to stay away from popularity and industry becasue of the false egos and nonsense that is covered over art and soul making aspect of creation. Its supposed to be about the art not the popularity and i just wanted to connect with folks with my work and it just so happens that emotion and truth speaks volumes and can be heard to even the people standing at the top that never really hear the screams of individuals yelling for a hand out and its takes an honest person to respond to. Thats stan real to the core.
PAC: Tell us about that Pinocchio thing everyone keeps talking about.
CJ: Pinocchio is a project I put together to rationalize with a lot of the problems I dealt with as a child growing up with out a father. It wasnt the easiest thing to deal with. The fathers I did have were abusive and alcoholics.
PAC: How do you fund your never-ending trip across the country to these events?
CJ: Ive gained a large following through the work I produced. I’ m very grateful for the support folks have shown me. My funding comes from the the sales of my work and the support i get form the folks that follow my vision. Hopefully when I begin to release more of my personal work ill receive the same content.