Paisley Mountain Press: The other thing we wanted to talk about was your dedication to Kentucky. Your experience as a Kentucky artist, what has that been like for you?

Richard Sullivan: Yeah, I was from here, lived here in Louisville until I was 18. I hadn’t been here for like 10 years. It started pulling me back. I started having dreams about Kentucky again. Every time I would wake up I would think about Portland.

PMP: Portland, Louisville.

RS: Yeah, Portland, Louisville, the west end of Louisville. I was living in Boston at the time and all of this press was happening here in Portland, Louisville because people were starting to move over here and develop. Things were starting to happen. This was like 2016. And it felt like there was a lot of energy, especially as an outsider looking at all of the press. Being here now, I can say that energy is waning. It’s going to take a lot longer to revitalize and bring positive energy back to a community that’s been neglected for so many years. But Louisville and Kentucky have always been home. I don’t know where else I would be. I honestly don’t. I want to make an impact here rather than somewhere else. People are so kind here. The perception as a Louisvillian, growing up here, I was always told don’t go to the west end. Don’t go past a certain point. There is compassion and kindness everywhere. There’s drugs, and mental illness, and poverty, but it’s the same people as are over there. I don’t feel like we’re separate once you get into the thick of it. Kentucky sports are obviously a huge deal. I think it crosses many borders too. So that’s really interesting. I think it’s cool that I worked with you guys because Terry probably spoke to everyone. All sides of the coin. He sold to everyone. And it’s cool to have his perspective as well.