Name: Jacob Hargrove
Age: 20
Hometown: Memphis, TN
Major: Music Performance
Involvement on campus: Phi Mu Alpha, UTM Percussion Studio, UTM Contemporary Music Group
Catchphrase: Fake it until you make it, baby.
Favorite show: Breaking Bad
Favorite food: Lobster
Cats or dogs: Dogs
Pet Peeve: Dishonesty
Favorite music genre/artist: Radiohead
Hobbies: Playing music and Unicycling
Somewhere you’d love to travel: Israel
Who is your biggest inspiration?
Dr. Julie Hill (UTM Percussion Professor, former President at Percussive Arts Society, etc.)
What’s your favorite thing about UTM?
I really love the Music Department that we have here. We’re like one big family. The amount of love, support and encouragement that I get from the Music Department is honestly out of this world.
What’s your dream job?
I want to teach music on the collegiate level. That’s been the dream ever since I met the Head Percussion Professor here at UTM, Dr. Julie Hill.
We all have our nerdy/dorky habits; what’s one of yours?
I travel to compete in a 15-year-old video game. Watch out ladies, I’m single and ready to mingle! ;)
So you ride a unicycle around campus; how’d you get started with that?
So when I was a freshman in high school, I wanted to get into BMX. I did that for a little bit, but I soon realized that where I lived, the BMX crowd consisted of absolute degenerates. I didn’t want to be involved in the kind of stuff that they were doing, but I still wanted a fun way to exercise. I got on YouTube trying to find something else I could do. I saw one video of a guy doing crazy tricks on a unicycle, and I was immediately sold. Luckily, unicycling is a very inexpensive hobby to get into at first. I only spent $40 on my first unicycle, and I would easily say that it was the best $40 I’ve ever spent.
How do you feel being “the unicycle guy”?
I’m honored to have that title. All the time, people I’ve never met approach me wanting to talk about unicycling. Even when I don’t even have my unicycle with me, strangers come up to me a lot and ask me if I’m “The Unicycle Guy.” I’m just really happy that so many people are interested in what I love doing, and I enjoy talking about it with people.
Does it take a lot of practice to ride a unicycle/ is it difficult to learn?
To learn how to unicycle, it honestly takes a lot of patience, trial and error and bruises. It’s pretty easy once you know how to do it. Tricks are insanely hard, and I can only do a few of the “easier” ones.
Anything else you want to add in?
Don’t be afraid to try new and weird stuff. You might find something fun and exciting that will change your life forever.
Photo courtesy of Jacob Hargrove.