SEATTLE - He's an overnight sensation 50 years in the making.
Seattle software engineer Michael Wansley, known to the world as Wanz, rocketed to fame as the singer on the hit Macklemore and Ryan Lewis single, Thrift Shop. Wanz and the band traveled the globe, entertaining fans on four continents. He even picked up a couple Grammys along with Macklemore and Lewis in 2014. What did he learn?
"A hell of a lot," Wansley said.
Enough to fill a book. It's called The Book of Wanz, and it includes pearls of wisdom from life in - and out of - the spotlight.
"Never burn a bridge you might need to escape over," Wanz gave as one example.
Here's another: "Life always moves forward. Don't stand still."
Many Wanzisms first emerged online as Tweets from the road.
"I just kind of captured those at 140 characters and pushed them out as #TheBookofWanz," Wansley explained. "Most of them came from me talking to kids outside of auditoriums before a Macklemore show. And then I'd go back to the back or back to the bus, and I'd realize I'm two generations sometimes beyond these kids, but they think about the same things that I do."
Some of the sayings have been bouncing around in Michael's head for decades.
"My father taught me some things," Wansley said. "My mom taught me some things."
They're often the words of self-encouragement he's used to deal with disappointment, or find grace and humor in life's ups and downs.
Wansley said, "There are some insecurities that transcend time."
Wansley is still riding life's roller coaster. After his stint with Macklemore, when Thrift Shop royalties could no longer fund his own quest for music stardom, he went back to work in the software industry. But the singer continues to make music, and follow his own words of Wanzdom.
"I'm still searching for where I fit in," Wansley said, "But I'm always gonna be that optimistic person who believes that the sun will come out tomorrow."
In a way, the Book of Wanz is still being written.
