I'm Derek Cloakwood, a solo musician and animator. I've been performing and writing music for years, and The Man with the Ghost Guitar is my first animated project.

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I've always noticed that musicians rarely get to be the hero in fictional stories, so I decided to make one. I write the songs first, then draw and animate the visuals to bring the story to life. My drummer plays drums. Everything else — the guitar, bass, keys, vocals, illustration, animation — is me, working out of my studio between gigs and rides.

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The music sits at the intersection of rock and roll and blues-inspired guitar work, with the kind of soulful vocals that people who've heard me play tend to remember. Each song is written to stand on its own, but they connect into a larger story across the season. Season 1 is called Origins. It runs seven episodes, releasing weekly Fridays starting October 2, 2026, and concluding on Friday November 13, 2026.

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The visual world draws on the Southwestern landscape and the neo-Western tradition — dusty saloons, red rock formations, long roads, a nameless traveling musician on a motorcycle called the Dark Horse. There's a supernatural thread running through everything that Season 1 will reveal in its own time.

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I make this work because I want to. Not because there's a formula, or an algorithm to chase, or a market I'm trying to hit. Just an animated Western rock series that I would want to watch and listen to, made by hand.

If you like what I'm making, the best way to follow along is the mailing list — one email each Friday during the season with the new episode. Songs release on Spotify the same day.

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