//Interview\\ ”I've got quite A story” Brooklyn songwriter Ike Dweck on Headline Tours, Music as Therapy and Dream Tour Riders
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Brooklyn songwriter Ike Dweck has been charming crowds since 2023, and now, in 2026, he's continuing to do so across the USA and the United Kingdom on his first headline tour this summer, while also creating supportive live atmospheres that truly feel like home. With his heartfelt yet unapologetically vulnerable lyricism about love, loss, and life, and a carefree nature throughout it all, he has easily set himself up as the next big indie folk rock star. As he embarks on his first-ever headline tour, we sat down for a chat with him Pre-show in Manchester to find out all the details.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
My name is Ike Dweck. My real name is Isaac, but everyone calls me Ike. I started writing music around three years ago, and ever since then, it's just been a lot of introspection, a lot of figuring out what kind of story I want to tell with my music, and now I'm here, and I get to share those stories with other people, which is really cool.
What is something that really excited you about this headline tour, especially as you’re touring in two quite different places, the USA and the UK?
I was honestly excited to hear people's accents. I don't talk to a lot of people from London or from the UK, so it's been so cool to see different cultures connect and hear people sing the words to my songs.
That’s always been something I’ve never gotten used to so far. I’ve played 15 shows, and any time I hear them singing the words, I’m like, “That’s crazy, I can’t believe you guys know the lyrics I wrote in my bedroom, that’s so insane!” Overall, I’m excited to connect with the show, and I’m excited to connect with people; that’s what I always look forward to.
How would you say Brooklyn has inspired your creative process?
I don't think my city or state has kind of informed it; I think it's more just been the environment, the friends I've made and my family and all the experiences I've had, just in general with life, have helped inform my music in so many ways. I've got quite a story, just relationships, personal stories, outside of relationships, just everything.
You have just released your latest single, ‘End of Me’, which is absolutely gorgeous in its nature. What were some of the highlights of making that song?
It was a song where, very quickly, something happened; I needed to pour those emotions out and ‘End Of Me’ was the result, and it was released within a week of being written. So the process was definitely therapeutic, and was a nice way for me to finally process something that had happened.
If you could talk to yourself at the start of your career, knowing what you know now, what advice would you give yourself?
I think my advice would be to put my head down and just keep running, keep going after it, but I kind of did do that, so it wouldn't be advice; it would just be like reassurance that it's going to be difficult to get to where I am now.
I still need advice. In five years, I'm probably going to have more advice that I'd love to give to my present self, but I think, for the most part, I would say just keep doing it, and eventually things will work themselves out. That has been the one thing that plays on repeat in my head, questioning whether things might work out or not. Younger me never would have thought I'd be here, being a musician, a full-time musician growing up.
What would be your dream tour rider, if you could request anything?
Diet Coke will always be there. I love Diet Coke, and my guitarist loves Diet Coke, too. I think something like some hot shawarma would be on there as well. That would be amazing after a show. I'd say those are the two biggest ones.
If you could have a verse on any song or collaborate with any artist, what song or artist would you choose?
There's a lot of lyricists who I think are just absolutely incredible, who I don't think I can, I'll ever outshine or match their level of lyricism, but I'd be honoured if I did get a chance to write on their song, Phoebe Bridgers would be crazy, Noah Kahan, obviously I think Gracie Abrams, too, would just be really fun to write on.
I like their music a lot. I think Gracie's melodies are just crazy, and Phoebe has such a way with words that are just, “wow, she put exactly what I'm thinking in such a poetic way”. Yeah, I would say those three would be really fun. Zach Bryan would be another one I think would be cool to write with. I love his lyrics as well, but there are too many to pick, honestly.
What venue are you most excited to play that you've not played yet on tour?
This one, Academy 3, honestly; this is the one I've been looking forward to the most. We'll add Mercury Lounge, too, because it's a hometown show, but in a different country; this venue is just so cool. Yeah, I think this is the one I'm looking forward to the most.
With a lot of your artworks, there's a recurring theme of nature and being outdoors. What's the kind of inspiration behind this?
I think I've always liked things that feel a little bit more raw and authentic, like being outside. I'm a homebody, so it's nice to touch the grass a little bit. I feel like it depends on the vibe of the song, but for the most part, I think it kind of fits the aesthetic I'm trying to go for with a lot of the music. I try to be as intentional as I can with the artwork, but sometimes it's just like, oh, this would be a cool shot.
What is on the cards for Ike Dweck for 2026?
Well, I’m working on a project at the moment. I don't know when it's gonna be released, but definitely going to show some of the songs tonight, some unreleased ones, and that's going to be on the agenda for like the rest of 2026, 2027, coming up, so we'll see, but that's what I have my eyes set on for right now. I’m really excited for that.
Ike Dweck’s Latest single ‘End Of Me’ is out now; click the artwork below to take a listen.
Ike Dweck By:bellarose_media (Bella Sgarlata)
Follow Ike Dweck:
Comments