Podcast: Denim and Leather
Host: Urosh Veljkovic
Guest: Miljenko “Mili” Matijević
Premiered September 16, 2024
Duration: 48 minutes
This video features an interview with Miljenko Matijević (Mili), the lead singer of Steelheart. He discusses his early life, musical influences, and career journey. Mili discusses his experiences in the music industry, the challenges artists face today, his recent and ongoing projects, and plans for the future.
Miljenko Matijević was born in Zagreb, Croatia, on November 30, 1964. He is a US-Croatian singer-songwriter and musician of high repute, best known as the SteelHeart lead singer, the glam metal band from the late 80s and the 90s. Over three decades have passed in his career, ornamented by great heights and bumpy rides that have shaped his career.
Many believe that he and his band, SteelHeart didn’t get the credit they deserved. The Denim and Leather Podcast team is one of them.
Introduction and early life (00:05)
Mili moved from Croatia to the U.S. at age 5. He started singing country songs. Matijević discovered rock music at age 11.
Career beginnings (02:31)
He joined a band at age 11. Mili signed with a band at age 15. He formed Steelheart after meeting Chris Risola (lead guitar) and James Jimmy Ward (bass guitar.)
Steelheart’s rise to fame (06:57)
Matijević told the story of changing the band name from Red Alert to SteelHeart. The story is about achieving success with their first record. Mili was talking about facing challenges before making it big.
Accident and recovery (09:00)
Miljenko Matijević had a bad accident on the performance of SteelHeart on October 31, 1992. He was talking about suffering a severe head injury. It took years to recover fully. He used writing and focus exercises to aid recovery.
“Ou man I got to tell you it was years!”
Miljenko “Mili” Matijevic
Recent projects and future plans (14:07)
The song “Trust and Love” was released in multiple languages. Acted in a movie titled “Trust and Love.” Plans to reunite Steel Dragon for future shows.
Changes in the music industry (30:19)
Mili gave his opinion about the shift from physical records to digital streaming – increased competition due to social media. Artists now handle multiple roles.
Challenges for modern artists (32:26)
Overwhelming workload. Difficulty in gaining visibility. Financial struggles despite streaming platforms.
Creating music today (37:00)
He talked about the author’s and the band’s investment in creating a song and album. High costs and effort involved. Low financial returns from streaming. Vinyl records making a slight comeback.
Current projects and aspirations (41:00)
He mentioned the touring with SteelHeart and announced the upcoming song releases. Mili shared the news about the side project with Niclas Engelin from In Flames. Interest in acting and film music. Writing and producing movies. Plans to film in Croatia.
Selection of Shorts
We made a short selection of shorts (reels) that the Denim and Leather team created from this episode, in which Miljenko answered some interesting questions. If you want to find the complete list of shorts from this episode, you can see it on the YouTube channel of the Denim and Leather Podcast.
Watch the full episode with Miljenko “Mili” Matijević
So, as usual, if we managed to tease you with our summary of the talk Urosh did with Miljenko Matijević, then we recommend watching the full episode.
Don’t let somebody else tell you about Milenko Matijevic’s accident, but hear the story from him and how he managed to run from death twice.
Check out how Mili got a deal for the first album released for Universal Music Group. Also, listen to the story about the anthem in support of global peace; the song “Trust in Love,” and Mili’s story of his experience as a frontman of SteelHeart and lead singer living and performing in Korea.
We wish you to enjoy the 17th episode!
Over & Out!
Mili’ Shining ‘Steelheart Keep up the good work and I will be there listening and loving all the journey of your life and to the next level of life!! ♥️