Frankie Silver’s Broadway break leads to 3-year medical ordeal

“I said to myself, ‘Frankie, you’re not going to be one of those people that just drives a normal car and gets in it every day,’” recalls singer/dancer/producer Frankie Silver. “I figured, when I drive, I want it to feel like I’m embarking on a new adventure. I want a reason to laugh and get excited every time I walk up to my truck.” That truck sports a Jurassic Park logo on the doors, and while the acquisition hasn’t led to any mad dashes to escape ravenous dinos, it did help Silver and his dog to make their big move from New York to San Diego.

“When I bought the truck, that was the first time in my life I had ever driven!” says Silver. “I figured that during a pandemic, when nobody was on the road, was probably the best time to learn. I fit everything I could in the back of the truck and sold everything else, and just grabbed my dog, Paco. We set off across the country, driving across the northern parts of America for about three months, visiting friends along the way, but camping for most of it. I think the desire for adventure and the thrill of the unknown really helped catapult me to a place that I knew was going to be paradise.”

Silver’s latest single, “Airplane Mode,” is set for a January 5 release. Produced by Matthew Hall, mixed by Ken Lewis (Eminem, Kanye West) and remixed by The Disco Fries, the song, as well as Silver’s ability to perform, was delayed by years of physical therapy and rehab. “I was hired to dance on Broadway in the show Mama Mia in the role of Pepper. The week before rehearsals started, I was visiting my family in mid-state Pennsylvania. I was in the old family barn, which had a second story makeshift wood floor. As I was walking across the room, the floorboards gave way and I fell through, severing my wrist on sheet metal.” The accident nearly took his hand — and his life. “I severed six tendons, completely frayed the Ulnar nerve, and most importantly, lacerated the Ulnar artery, which nearly killed me.”

After a seven-hour reconstructive hand surgery and three years of physical therapy, “I was finally able to start using my right hand again. I made almost a full recovery, which is very rare for people who experience this type of injury. I still have no feeling in my last two fingers, and I have trouble opening and closing my hand completely, but other than that, I’m happy to report I can still do gymnastics and play piano,” which some people thought “would never be a possibility again.”

Silver’s healing took on an internal, almost spiritual aspect as well, and he says that’s what called him to the place he refers to as paradise. “As an artist, San Diego is the perfect place to nourish your soul, find fun hobbies, and let your creativity come out of you organically. As artists, we need to give ourselves a break and time to heal, to be in our little cocoons so we can get introverted and manifest and let creativity flow naturally. Ironically, once you’ve created your work, you have to become extroverted about it in order to perform and present it. I’ve always found that funny. San Diego is the perfect place to be both of those artists. Everything is so easy and chill and beautiful here. And Azuki Sushi in Bankers Hill is hands down the best sushi spot in San Diego.”

When Silver arrived, he was welcomed by Gallery 130, a non-profit that “supports local independent artists and musicians, offering them a place to be creative without charging high rates. The gallery was very supportive to me as a new artist in the community. They sponsored and produced my debut live show out here at the Quartyard downtown, which got our organization and my music citywide recognition and local news coverage.” Now he’s on the board. “We teach our members and students how to produce music. We offer opportunities for our artists to perform. And my personal favorite is the songwriting class I teach quarterly. Coming from an Indigenous background, and just with all of us suffering from the struggles of a world that is falling apart, I hope to heal through music. I told you, I’m not just a pretty face.”