The Matador and the Mustang has a powerful message of love and forgiveness and finding purpose within a dysfunctional family. It’s a fitting antidote to our polarizing times, but also a very fun and entertaining story. Burkesmith is a natural-born storyteller.

Growing up in Malibu California in the 1970s and '80s, J.C. had what looked like a charmed life. He was the class clown and multi-star athlete, who lived in a big house on a hill overlooking the ocean. And yet J.C.'s childhood was hardly an enviable one. As the youngest of four kids, he fought hard for his family's approval, especially from his hyper-competitive, larger-than-life father, and highly critical siblings. His best efforts were never enough. His mistakes were magnified, his successes mocked or ignored. Again and again, he was viciously bullied and discouraged; verbal daggers left him feeling like a complete failure and nearly killed him as an adult. The Matador and the Mustang Part 1 is J.C. Burkesmith's heartfelt true story of how he found meaning in his pain and suffering; how he turned the magnifying glass back on himself and took charge of his own thoughts and emotions and sought to repair his broken family and inspire and uplift others. It's also a story of love, faith, forgiveness, and, ultimately, personal transformation.