The Spotify playlist "Making Waves featuring music from the Gulf Coast" shares some of the amazing music being made from New Orleans to the Florida panhandle. Have a listen while you read the third article in the series showcasing one of its artists!
https://open.spotify.com/user/1227151884/playlist/5iz5WSw4rC6TUgpACZPyI5
Today the spotlight is on Jillian Holt. She has shared three tracks from her debut album, Wishful Thinking, on the Making Waves playlist, offering personal interpretations of classic soul tunes with powerhouse vocals and a contemporary feel.
Singers who leave their mark on a generation of fans are often described by their raw vocal abilities, with one cliché description referring to their ‘set of pipes.’ By that standard, Jillian Holt’s pipes resonate, not only in your ear, but also in your soul. Heavily fortified with strong, decades-old, rusty American steel with combustion that’ll knock you on your ass. And her debut album, in part, pays homage to the pioneering women and musicians of color who birthed the sound of Detroit’s Motown and Memphis’ Stax records.
Born in Atlanta, Georgia and raised in South Alabama, Jillian Holt has been singing since childhood. She honed her craft in the coastal city of Pensacola, Florida playing and singing nightly to overwhelming crowds at a renowned dueling piano house. Hired in her early twenties for her larger than life female persona and an even larger voice, Holt has a no frills approach to singing. Influenced by such greats as Robert Plant, Joe Cocker, KoKo Taylor, and Janis Joplin, Jillian Holt has a deep love for flawed, yet utterly genuine vocals. And she, too, is all real, all the time.
But don’t get your feelings hurt, she just means what she sings.
Jillian infuses her vocal interpretation with inspiration drawn from multiple genres spanning several decades. Here she elaborates on her musical influences, the making of her album, and how she balances her music career with her family life.
"Music is such a major portion of my life that I have influences across many genres.
My favorites are Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Eric Clapton, and Steely Dan. I also love 2Pac - his ability to rap in a manner that is so closely aligned with jazz phrasing gets me every time. Luciano Pavarotti. Simply Red. Bonnie Raitt, too.
I’m a huge fan of Bob Dylan. His writing, his delivery. I saw him in concert for the first time when I was about 10 years old and I have seen him 9+ times since then. His ability to cleverly tell a story and seamlessly lead from one phrase to the other is really inspiring. Blood on the Tracks and Desire are my favorite albums."
A personal connection to the songs also contributes to her soulful vocals.
"I try to apply the songs to my life so I can get a sense of what the songwriters were trying to convey. It makes it personal.
For Shotgun, I thought about the power of women when they get together to build each other up. Through trauma, through heartbreak, there’s nothing better than your girlfriends urging you to pick yourself up and move on.
Going Down has been a favorite of mine for many years. Adam wrote a new arrangement of the song that gave me the ability to take ownership of those feelings. Feeling down and going back home, in this case, to my sister’s house - even if I have to sleep on the floor - to recover.
I love vocalists that aren’t perfect but who mean it. I can’t stand affectation or forced warblings. Joe Cocker, KoKo Taylor, Robert Plant, and Janis Joplin are some of my favorites.
I love early recording of Aretha Franklin - her voice was so raw and powerful that the recordings are often distorted by the sheer power of her voice clipping. In particular, her version of The Weight has her voice captured in that manner."
"I wanted to record an album with music by the pioneers from the Motown and Stax era because that music encouraged me to mean what I sing. No faking, no frills, just passion. Plus, I’m lucky enough to be married to ADAM HOLT… his incredible analog studio and immeasurable talent is really inspiring. He pushed me to make it happen, and I’m so thankful for that."
Jillian's musical influences, combined with the encouragement and support of her husband, musician and recording artist Adam Holt, were her impetus to create "Wishful Thinking".
"Adam Holt worked as my producer, creative director, engineer, and so much more. He created the arrangements of the songs to fit my style and coordinated the entire process so I could simply sing. He also played guitar, piano, B3, and sang backup vocals. He was my cheerleader, encouraging me and teaching me along the way. I had the opportunity to have both Adam and Donnie Sundal of Boukou Groove play (piano) on this album. They were able to solidify the sound I wanted with ease and I greatly respect their musicianship. "
"Wishful Thinking" is a collaborative mosaic, combining the talents of local musicians to create an exceptional sound.
"Richard Douglas Jensen served as my Executive Producer and worked to solidify the direction of the project, approving some song choices and denying others. He offered creative input and kept the project on track.
Last but certainly not least, I had the pleasure of having many amazing local musicians play on this album.
Greg Deluca, Owen Finley, Pierre Robinson, Donnie Sundal, Karl Langley, Jonathan Ashley, Ethan Snedigar, Stan Foster, Adam Cooper, Jacob Dearrington, Marcus Gillard, Blake Nolte, and Emma Hayley Jensen."
While Jillian and Adam share a passion for music and enjoy performing together, they each manage to maintain their own artistic identities.
"Adam and I have a lot in common and we work hard to keep our marriage rooted in mutual respect for each other and for our individual identities. We choose everyday to be together. Plus, I just genuinely like him. We have three amazing daughters that are each very different but are wonderful young people... We stay busy but make sure we make time for what’s truly important."
"We were both musicians before we met. He will always be Adam Holt. He doesn’t have to include me in his vision for his musical career simply because I, too, am a musician. I wouldn’t dare infringe on his career or creative direction in that way and he respects my desire to release music of my own.
We work together performing live because we work well together. He cares about music more than anyone I’ve ever met and he makes singing feel like I’m walking on clouds. We have a similar work ethic and we harmonize well together. (And we get to hang out together on stage, so that’s pretty darn cool)." I have seen them together on stage and can vouch for that!
Jillian is currently "doing a lot of writing for an original album I’m hoping to begin working on in 2019." She frequently plays live in venues along the Gulf Coast.
Keep up to date with Jillian and listen to more of her music here:
https://jillianholt.com/
https://www.facebook.com/jillianholtmusic/
https://www.instagram.com/jillian.holt.music/
https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/jillian-holt/1379558018
https://artists.spotify.com/c/artist/3roRm7fm0TqQ3NJ2uIDydD/profile
Cheers and happy listening!
by
Rhonda Huete
http://www.rhondahuete.com
