When I first met Milwaukee-based singer and songwriter Trapper Schoepp, he was accompanied by Ollie, his 7-year-old Boston terrier. Entering the local coffee shop, the pair seemed to blend in with the everyday slew of coffee-drinkers and conversationalists gathered there. I’d soon learn this was how Schoepp spends his days when not on tour or writing music: drinking substantial amounts of coffee alongside Ollie. With caffeine coursing through his veins and Ollie at his feet, Schoepp was ready to tell his story. 

And while it’s not everyday you meet the voice coming through your stereo, Schoepp, 29, makes it clear the songs you hear are often the result of choices that can’t always be anticipated. Sometimes the last-minute addition of a pedal steel guitar can change everything, making a good song great — sometimes there isn’t enough studio time to dream up all the might-have-beens.

When it comes to songwriting, there’s no clear line between getting it right or not. There’s also no way of truly knowing when the best version of a song has been created — that’s part of the process. As a folk musician rooted in Wisconsin, Schoepp’s storytelling is anchored by the salient and relatable conversations happening around him. There’s no telling where his music will take him next. 

Schoepp preparing for a show (Photo by Lily Oberstein)

“Sometimes it’s best to just trust your gut and just commit to it and know that there will be more songs,” Schoepp says.

His most recent album, “Primetime Illusion,” tells the stories of characters striving to fulfill their version of the American dream. In a stripped-down blend of folk, country, roots and rock, he encapsulates the essence of a 1970s singer-songwriter in Laurel Canyon. His writing shows thought-provoking and tactful narratives — easier said than done. 

As he sees it, thinking of songwriting as a process or a formula can be a trap for a writer. Finding the inspiration for a song can happen anywhere, at any time. Sometimes all it takes is a quick walk around the block — literally.  Inspired in tandem by a relationship and the 2016 election, the song “It’s Over” is a product of feeling like a circus-gone-wrong, Schoepp says, and all it took was a five-minute walk to find the words.

Of course, this isn’t always the case. It can also take years to mold and develop a song, making sure the characters within the story fall into place and have an engaging narrative. For Schoepp, this sometimes means leaving the door open and hoping someone walks in — that someone being a song.

“Sometimes it all happens at once and that’s when it really feels like a magic trick,” Schoepp says. “And sometimes it can take years to get a song done.”

Songwriting

Part of the escape to writing and performing for Schoepp can be found in his songs. While they in part tell his story, many require him to place himself in someone else’s. They signify the ever-present lessons to be learned from the past. It’s what storytelling and folk music is about, Schoepp says, looking back and seeing how the past informs the present.

And while many of his songs relay stories of his family, an integral part of folk music, Schoepp takes the tradition one step further by incorporating family. His brother, Tanner Schoepp, has been alongside him from the beginning of his music career. In high school, the two joined with their friends to form their first band, and, as time has passed, Tanner has continued to contribute to the journey, accompanying Schoepp on tours, playing electric bass and harmonizing vocals.

“There’s such a thing as blood harmony. It’s a kind of harmony that cannot really be replicated easily,” Schoepp says. “That’s an important part of our sound.”

Together, their voices blend to reach the blood harmony found in songs like “Run, Engine, Run,” a tribute song to their grandfather and the 1964 Mercedes-Benz they inherited from him. As if they were the same make and model, their voices both compliment and offset one another seamlessly. 

In terms of songwriting, Tanner also provides his brother with what Schoepp calls checks and balances, often playing the role of editor. Being siblings has only made this dynamic stronger, allowing for honest and open discussion over a song idea or inspiration.

“A small change can make a big difference to a tune, just having another person to bounce ideas off of is important,” Tanner says. “Music is a very collaborative experience.”

Songs like the “Ballad of Olof Johnson,” show the intricacy in Schoepp’s writing. Another piece inspired by his grandfather, the song isn’t just about the person, it’s about perseverance in putting down roots somewhere unfamiliar. As Schoepp looked back on Johnson’s journey, he soon realized people are still experiencing some of those same struggles in trying to immigrate to the U.S. in 2019, although it may look different than it did in 1901. 

Frank Turner, an English singer-songwriter Schoepp opened for in past tours, said in an email that Schoepp is also an engaging performer in front of his audience. While his style is reminiscent of an early Bob Dylan, Turner says Schoepp’s voice and touching anecdotes separate him from the artist.

“Trapper is a classic journeyman songwriter,” Turner wrote in the email. “There’s always a welcome warmth to having him in the building.”

While Schoepp has toured as far away as Europe, he still finds his Wisconsin roots are never far behind. “I think that is really gratifying when you get to bring something you wrote on your kitchen counter back home in Wisconsin to some little town in Tuscany and it connects with people,” Schoepp says on touring outside of the state. Yet he still finds his way back to Wisconsin, performing in cities from Milwaukee and Madison to Neillsville and Sheboygan.