Posts in Q&A
Exclusive Interview: Jennifer Hudson Talks Aretha Franklin and ‘Respect’
Exclusive Interview: Jennifer Hudson Talks Aretha Franklin and ‘Respect’

On August 8, 2021, the world saw the star of stage and screen, Jennifer Hudson, become the legendary artist Aretha Franklin in the recently released career-spanning biopic, Respect. Of course, who better to bring Franklin’s life to the silver screen than the beautiful-voiced, supremely skilled Hudson, who, by the way, already boasts an Oscar on her resume (along with an Emmy and Grammys)?

Hudson was a perfect choice. (Not to mention, Franklin chose Hudson herself for the role.) This week, starting November 9, to be exact, fans of Hudson and Franklin can purchase Respect for themselves on Blu-Ray and DVD, each of which contains special behind-the-scenes features like the making of the movie and videos of Hudson’s transformation to become Franklin for the important role.

We caught up with Hudson to ask her about making the movie, why she wanted to take the part, how she thought the movie might impact Franklin’s legacy, and what she loved most about making the film about the Hall of Fame vocalist.

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Q&AJake UittiAmerican Songwriter Magazine
Q&A: Grant Gunderson
Q&A: Grant Gunderson

Photographer Grant Gunderson has been on the top of an erupting volcano and shot death-defying skiers and mountain bikers at the peak of their momentous jumps. The Bellingham, Washington-based photographer has published his intense action photos for myriad magazine covers and digital outlets, from ESPN to Eddie Bauer. We caught up with the nature enthusiast to ask about his origins in photojournalism, and what he loves about his work.

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Q&AJake UittiAAA Journey
The Velveteers' Demi Demitro: “I like cheaper guitars: not having everything be perfect forces you to work and be creative with what you have”
The Velveteers' Demi Demitro: “I like cheaper guitars: not having everything be perfect forces you to work and be creative with what you have”

Demi Demitro, frontwoman for Boulder, Colorado-born rock band The Velveteers, has a unique voice on the guitar. She has a power with the instrument. It’s as if it becomes dancing fire in her hands when she wields it on the band’s new record, Nightmare Daydream.

The new 12-track album rattles and shakes, and was produced by none other than Dan Auerbach, frontman, of course, for the blues-rock band, The Black Keys. Lately, Auerbach has been discovering and producing a number of acclaimed acts from his Nashville studio, from Yola to Robert Finley to now The Velveteers.

We caught up with Demitro to ask her about her relationship to the six-string, developing her skills as a teen, and how she and her band began to collaborate with Auerbach in Music City.

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Q&AJake UittiGuitar World
Carlos Santana: “When I found the guitar, it was like seeing flying saucers and Moby Dick and discovering the spiritual orgasm all at once”
Carlos Santana: “When I found the guitar, it was like seeing flying saucers and Moby Dick and discovering the spiritual orgasm all at once”

If you say the name Carlos Santana to anyone passing by on the street, not only will they almost invariably know who you’re talking about, but they’ll also likely have their own fond memory of the prolific guitar player.

Whether that personal history began with early Santana hits like Black Magic Woman or Oye Como Va, or the bond was born later in the '90s with hits like Smooth, Santana is a legend due to his bright energy and wailing notes from his talented fingers.

Santana has a new 15-track album out this month called Blessings and Miracles, on which he recruited artists like Kirk Hammett, Chris Stapleton, Diane Warren and old friend Rob Thomas.

We caught up with the Mexican-born 74-year-old guitar legend to ask him about the new record, how he works with his cadre of famous singers, and what he remembers from the original Woodstock…

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Q&AJake UittiGuitar World
Country Music’s Cody Johnson Releases Double LP, Shows ‘Human’ Side
Country Music’s Cody Johnson Releases Double LP, Shows ‘Human’ Side

Huntsville, Texas-born country music singer-songwriter Cody Johnson knows that life isn’t ever one thing. Over the years, Johnson has grown and developed an appreciation for all types of singers, people, songwriters, songs, experiences, and perspectives. He loves connecting with a crowd. He loves exhibiting multiple sides of himself in his music, over the course of a collection of songs. Case in point: Johnson’s latest double-LP release, Human The Double Album, which he unveiled on Friday (October 8).

Walt Whitman is often quoted when discussing the human condition. The famed American poet has said, “I contain multitudes.” Meaning, of course, so does everyone else. Well, Johnson agrees and showed as much on his new double album. The artist, who recruited Willie Nelson as the album’s only feature, has always loved Outlaw country music and performing at Honky Tonks like his favorite uncle used to.

We caught up with the 34-year-old Johnson (aka “CoJo”) to ask him about his early days falling in love with music, how his parents influenced his journey, how his varied interests inspire songs, and what he loves most about being a musician (and cowboy) today.

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Q&AJake UittiAmerican Songwriter Magazine
Exclusive: Alice Cooper Talks Audible Original, Being the Villain, and Loving the Stage
Exclusive: Alice Cooper Talks Audible Original, Being the Villain, and Loving the Stage

Today (October 7), famed rock and roll frontman, Alice Cooper, has released a new Audible Original, Who I Really Am: The Diary of a Vaudampire. (Check out this clip!) In the Audible project, the 73-year-old, Detroit-born Cooper details his life from beginning to now. Inside are stories about his famous band, meeting the Beatles, and much more.

We caught up with Cooper to ask him what it was like to put the Audible project together, what the project brought out of him emotionally, what through-lines he discovered, and ultimately, what does the stage—a place where he’s spent so much time—mean to him, today. Earlier this year, Cooper released his latest LP, Detroit Stories.

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Q&AJake UittiAmerican Songwriter Magazine
Pom Pom Squad: "There are varying degrees and styles of how somebody can play guitar. It’s not a one-size-fits-all"
Pom Pom Squad: "There are varying degrees and styles of how somebody can play guitar. It’s not a one-size-fits-all"

As a musician, Mia Berrin, who fronts the Brooklyn, New York-based punk rock band, Pom Pom Squad, is savvy, kind-hearted and compelling. With the release of the band’s new LP, Death of a Cheerleader, Pom Pom Squad has been the talk of tastemaker outlets all over, from KEXP 90.3 in Seattle to these hallowed digital pages of Guitar World.

Berrin – who is as capable of shout-singing into the mic while strumming a fuzzy “Jagmaster” (more on that below) as she is creating a dreamy fingerpicking soundscape – has much to say about the state of the world, and how that state could be improved or become just a bit more self-aware.

We caught up with Berrin to ask her about her relationship to the guitar, how she came to play the instrument and what she loves about it. We also pick apart her favorite pedals and discuss how she thinks about the six-string in relation to her propellant four-piece group.

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Q&AJake UittiGuitar World
Robert Glasper Talks Upcoming Shows, Basketball, Jazz and More
Robert Glasper Talks Upcoming Shows, Basketball, Jazz and More

Robert Glasper is a titan of music. He’s worked with hip-hop performers like the Roots and Common. He’s worked with jazz legends like Herbie Hancock. He’s traversed genres and split them wide open. Glasper, who burst onto the scene in 2013 with his Grammy-winning LP, Black Radio, really cemented his mythic status with his work on Kendrick Lamar’s record, To Pimp a Butterfly (2015).

Today, Glasper continues to do it all. He plays in his all-star band, Dinner Party, and produces work for artists like Norah Jones, Anderson .Paak, Brittany Howard, and many others. Coming up in October, Glasper will be participating in several livestreams, as well as a month-long residency at the famed Blue Note Jazz Club. We caught up with the artist to ask him about his relationship to music, how he first came to it, his upcoming gigs, and much more.

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Q&AJake UittiAmerican Songwriter Magazine
Adia Victoria: “The guitar is an outlet for me, a safe space to express a range of emotions that women – especially black women – aren't able to openly exhibit”
Adia Victoria: “The guitar is an outlet for me, a safe space to express a range of emotions that women – especially black women – aren't able to openly exhibit”

Adia Victoria got her first guitar at 21 years old and, ever since, has had a fruitful love affair with the six-string. Truly, hers is a deep connection with the instrument. When she got her first acoustic guitar, the soon-to-be prolific songwriter had always lacked what the guitar gave her: something of her own to wield in the world.

Victoria, who grew up in a repressive religious environment in South Carolina, found in the guitar a way out. It was an object she could use to be both student and teacher, artist and narrative writer. It became her best friend to which she revealed her darkest secrets. It also became the window through which she saw the world in new and darkly historical ways.

All of this passion and education is laid out on Victoria’s new 11-track LP, A Southern Gothic. For the 35-year-old artist, the guitar is a tool she can use to reveal stories long hidden about the black American experience, her own childhood and stories about subjects like the magnolia and its sordid symbolism.

We caught up with Victoria to ask her about forging her bond with the guitar, how it influenced her musical sensibility and how it shaped her new LP.

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Q&AJake UittiGuitar World
Behind The Song: “Supercharged” by Ayron Jones
Behind The Song: “Supercharged” by Ayron Jones

Today, Ayron Jones is not only one of the biggest up-and-coming names in rock music, but he’s one of the biggest names in the genre, period. Over the past year, or so, Jones has rocketed to notoriety with hits that showcase his gravely singing voice and prowess on the electric guitar, with whirling dervish solos.

Jones’ latest single, “Supercharged,” which he released about a month ago, showcases the artist’s sonic power and large abilities, but it also showcases restraint. On the track, which often enlivens audiences (more on that below), Jones doesn’t tear the roof off with a big solo. Instead, it’s all about the scream and shout from his vocal performance.

We caught up with the Seattle-based singer-songwriter, who released his hit LP, Child of the State, this year, to ask him about his latest track, how it hits fans, where it originated from, and how it makes Jones, himself, feel when it’s filling the stage with energy.

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Q&AJake UittiAmerican Songwriter Magazine
Behind the Song: Malina Moye’s “Enough”
Behind the Song: Malina Moye’s “Enough”

Upside-down left-handed guitarist, Malina Moye, is a beacon. Whether she’s ripping solos on stage or sharing her new custom guitar strings, Moye brings joy wherever she goes. She’s energetic, exciting, and excitable, and just a treasure of an artist. But Moye’s story wasn’t always a happy one.

As American Songwriter previously wrote about here, Moye has endured her share of struggles, from being homeless to working her way from the ground up as a professional musician. So, when her song, “Enough,” helped the record Bad as I Wanna Be hit No. 1 for two weeks straight on the Billboard Blues Chart, it was a cause for celebration for Moye.

We caught up with the artist to ask her about the song, how it came to be, and how it helped to change her life.

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Q&AJake UittiAmerican Songwriter Magazine
LP: “The ukulele is a serious instrument and it has range – It doesn’t have to be cutesy”
LP: “The ukulele is a serious instrument and it has range – It doesn’t have to be cutesy”

Songwriter LP, is, in her way, one of the most compelling songwriters in the world right now. She plays guitar (mostly acoustic), ukulele, croons like an opera singer and can entertain crowds of thousands, as she did recently at Lollapalooza.

But what makes an artist great is not necessarily their ability to shred or turn the proverbial amplifier up to 11. Rather, it’s how well they’re able to access those personal places and moments in their creative hearts and souls that resonate in big ways for their listeners. Really, it’s about human connection. And that’s what LP is so deft at.

Before she was releasing songs like Lost on You and earning millions of streams, Pergolizzi was a songwriter-for-hire. She’s worked with giants, from Rihanna to the Backstreet Boys. During those occasions, she would sometimes remove herself from the recorded track and take her ukulele to a corner and strum it to come up with the best lyrics.

We caught up with LP to ask her about her history playing guitar and ukulele, how she wields it on stage (almost like a machine gun, at times) and how she considered the instruments when writing and recording her new, forthcoming record, Churches, which is out December 3.

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Q&AJake UittiGuitar World
Amanda Palmer Talks Pandemic, Patriarchy, and Patience
Amanda Palmer Talks Pandemic, Patriarchy, and Patience

Thursday (September 23), famous folks like songwriter and artist, Amanda Palmer, and The Daily Show co-founder, Lizz Winstead, will be performing, singing, and telling stories for the new event, Do Re #MeToo: Sexist Songs Sung by Righteous Feminists, in the name of stomping out the patriarchy and raising money for abortion access.

Also in attendance for the virtual event, for which you can buy tickets here, will be Busy Phillips and Sandra Bernhard. This is now become an annual get-together, with past Do Re #MeToo showcases scheduled in 2020 and 2019. This year, the show has special significance after the recent abortion law passed in Texas.

We caught up with Palmer, who is known both for her solo work and collaborative work in the band, The Dresden Dolls. Palmer, who has a large and passionate fan base, is also known for her social justice commentary and ability to wear her emotions, thoughts, and beliefs on her sleeve.

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Q&AJake UittiAmerican Songwriter Magazine
José González on His Upbringing and His New Album “Local Valley”
José González on His Upbringing and His New Album “Local Valley”

Internationally known musician, José González, is one of those artists who exhibits such an intricate, discrete touch with his work that it becomes an obsession for his listeners. Each note is its own rabbit hole to fall down into, only to do the same in the next riff, song, or record. The Argentinean-Swedish songwriter, who has earned millions of song and video streams and an audience of devoted fans around the globe, is set to release his newest LP, Local Valley, tomorrow on Mute. The record, spare and lovely, will sure to enlarge González’s followers.

We caught up with the musician to talk about the development of the new LP, how González found his signature style, what it was like growing up as the son of two academics and politically-minded parents, and much more.

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Q&AJake UittiUnder The Radar