Mark your calendars, pull out your Spotify playlists and prepare for another plethora of songs to be stuck in your head because Mrs. Grace Potter is going solo and doing it in a big way. Who is Grace Potter you may ask? Well for all my country fans out there she is the siren voice accompanying Kenny Chesney’s in singles, Wild Child and You and Tequila. If you are more of a festival type, then you would have seen her rocking out with her band The Nocturnals at Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo in 2011. Even still if you listen to the Rolling Stones, The Black Keys, Flaming Lips and or Willie Nelson, chances are you have heard Grace as she continues to collaborate with a variety of artists. Simply put, this girl is everywhere and is has now graced the halls of our favorite music venue here in Athens, The Georgia Theatre
Previously with The Nocturnals, Potter has taken the leap head first into a solo career and wow what rewarding result. Midnight was released in August of last year and was created and produced in tandem with Eric Valentine. The tracks are electrifyingly soulful and in some miracle combine catchy pop melodies perfectly with the rock n' roll vibe that we all love. The stars aligned correctly and I was privileged enough to get to talk with Grace about her life, her inspirations and her album. Check out our conversation below and get to know the sweet, compassionate, cool girl that is Grace Potter.
I was greeted by hellos and the sweet enduring voices of welcomes and after our introductions the good conversations started:
Grace! You have obviously had such a huge year with the album and tour. I want to start out with some background information… You grew up in a small town in Vermont, how was growing up and who influenced you to do music?
“It definitely came naturally I had some amazing influences at an early age. My great-great uncle, Spiegle Willcox, actually played Dixieland music, he was a trombonist in the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. Way back in the day, I mean he played with Frank Sinatra and Louis Armstrong. He was the only other professional musician in my life.” He was about 92 or 93 when I started to really get to know him and ask him questions. We became very close, especially right before he passed away because, he was basically my hero. “I do think it (music) came more naturally than anything in my life, it was almost like cheating because it was so easy”
Were you in a band in high school or did you get any classical training?
I was blessed with a really amazing music department at my high school, which is very rare actually to have so much available to you and it’s not like a grew up and went to private school, I went to public school. I didn’t go to church but I always found myself really drawn to gospel music and would flip through my parents huge record collection looking for these artists.
When people hear Grace Potter, what do you want them to think?
“I think that, you know, I’m just an artist, I don’t have an aesthetic that everyone can recognize, because I do represent so many different things and that’s on purpose. I don’t have one genre or sound that someone can pick out ‘oh that’s totally Grace Potter,’ I did that my whole life because I didn’t feel obliged to pay my dues through the bar band and the blues music that I definitely started in.” I just love exploring different styles. I have always been this way because before I met the Nocturals I was deeply involved in all kinds of different music. Everyone is a speaker, and God bless the artists that can settle in and find that one style because this is definitely not a talent I was given, I was given the talent for breaking things up, shifting them up, blending them together. You know, it’s just like cooking in the kitchen! It’s an amazing thanksgiving dinner of the rock n’ roll revolution! To answer your question, I would define Grace Potter as just a girl who loves to sing.
**Laughs**
Congratulations on your first solo album, what made you decide to go solo?
When the band listened to the new music, they found that this sound was just not the Nocturals. They just didn’t know what to do with the music I wrote for them. When I wrote the demos, they were very complete, not much room to fill in the sound. I knew how I wanted them to sound and really what I wanted them to convey. It is very interesting how it came together.
What is your favorite song on the album?
I really love the song Low because Low feels a lot like what I was going through and emotionally I am very connected to that song. Also Hot to the Touch was the last song I wrote for the album so that felt like kind of a perfect bookend for the record. But I have to say my favorite song is Your Girl. I think Your Girl, sonically is the most exciting and the experiment that was the most successful.
Do you have a superstitious pre-show warm up?
Um I don’t really have anything particular but I do have my rituals, in getting ready for the show, I meditate. I kind of take on the theatre, usually I am pretty tuned into everything around me. Theatres are a place were music is meant to carry through, they are vessels, it’s almost like a church in some ways. I take really seriously the idea of the live performance because it can be a little bit like a revival. Some people show up looking for that, they are looking to be moved or inspired. So my ritual is to really meditate on that, to recognize and pay my respects to the fact the people have spent their hard earned money to come see my music. Oh also, the band and I all huddle seconds before we get on stage, we dance and we huff and puff and make funny noises. I usually come up with some word or meaning that everyone has to say at one point in the night. It’s like a dare; everyone has to say that word into their microphone. It’s just a little game but I really do want everyone to make their presence on the stage known. We have way too much fun on the road!
How was working with collaborations, specifically The Black Keys, Dan Auerbach?
It’s a great experience to try and understand another artist’s mind. Going to Dan’s studio and writing with him for The Lion The Beast and The Beat, I found that he is a phenomenal creator. He is very thoughtful dude, he has a lot of ideas and an amazing back stock of information that binds to music. A lot of times he just saves it for later like 3 years down the road.
What is your drink of choice?
Wine. Definitely wine, but actually too I have this version of a Moscow Mule that I love. Copper cup included
What are you musical endeavors for 2016?
I want to continue touring on this record and sharing the music that is extremely personal to me. My goals are to be super honest with the audience and honest with myself about what I want and to make sure that in my journey through life, everyone around me feels loved, understood and appreciated. Life comes out from under you when you start to count on things, things change and I want to embrace that change with effortless grace, for lack of a better word.
As the conversation ended I was grinning at how comforting and sweet Potter was for allowing a college student to take up some of her break time. From this simple act my thoughts on her were confirmed as she was the most genuine, spiritual and graceful person I have interviewed thus far. Pun intended. If you didn’t attend her Athens show, never fear! The Midnight tour is continuing and I left a link to her website here!
