This is the unedited interview version of the article “Once You Start Believing in Yourself” as published in Living Blues magazine. Issue #269. Vol. 51. #5. November 2020. By Frank Matheis
The young guitarist is one of the new crop of young African American musicians on the rapid ascent, being mentored by Jontavious Willis. Like friend Jontavious, Jamia Lashawn Hopson, known as Jayy Hop, is also from Columbus, Georgia. Just 25 years old, he is a fiery young talent to keep your ear on. Like many blues players, he started off playing in the church. His father is a pastor, and the church was his music school from early on. He frequently performs with Jontavious who is already a facilitator, mentor and promoter of a new crop of young blues musicians. Attorney, activist and culture advocate Annette Hollowell was a catalyst, “Jontavious reached out to Foxfire Ranch (Waterford, Mississippi) about hosting eight black bluesmen for a week of sanctuary, fellowship, deep learning, storytelling and immersion in the blues. From these conversations, the Foxfire Blues Assembly was born, as a vehicle for nurturing, connecting, and supporting the next generation of the blues vanguard. The attendees this year include Christone “Kingfish” Ingram (Mississippi), Jontavious Willis (Georgia), Marquise Knox (Missouri), Stephen Hull (Wisconsin), Jamia “Jayy Hop” Hopson (Georgia), DK Harrell (Louisiana), Sean “Mack” McDonald (Georgia), and Little Dylan Triplett (Illinois). Their ages range from 18 years old to 29.”
thecountryblues.com interviewed the young bluesman via phone on July 25, 2020:
LH: “First I started off in church and just as I got older I started doing my own thing, got more into the blues, venturing out, listening to different genres, and blues was just kind of really took me away.
Jontavious Willis and I went to school together actually. I graduated a year or two ahead of him, but we actually met in high school and we had a guitar class together.After high school, I started working and got my own place. We split up after we graduated. After a couple of years our paths crossed again and we started back playing with each other. That’s where we’re at today.
I had a couple of guys that I played with in a little group. We played at different churches. Ministers would call us if they needed musicians for the week or the weekend and we would go take on those gigs. I mainly played drums and keyboard.
In church, we played a variety of music. Sometimes we’d pick up the pace. Sometimes we slow it down. It depends on how the service is moving. You’ve got congregational songs and then you got sometimes they sing spirituals we don’t play.
Currently I am not working a day job. I’m pursuing this music heavily and full-time.
The Foxfire Blues Assembly was a great experience, my first experience like this. It was the first time I had ever been around so many great musicians. We talked plenty of times on the phone before we actually met up, and once we got together it was like a crazy atmosphere. It was great. I learned a little bit more about acoustic playing, more than I knew. I learned a lot more techniques, more artists that I didn’t know about, heard about. We all view each other equally, but as far as having a big part in it, Jontavious and Marquise both of them really had their hands on it. They did a very good job putting this together.
I learned how to be around that type of atmosphere. Now, I just see myself going forward doing this for a while. I found out when me and Jontavious first started out connecting with each other that I wanted to go his route. He really took me up under his wing and taught me a lot about the history of the blues. He skinned the cat up one way and down the other way, and I really appreciate him for that. I ain’t going to say persuaded me, but he really held my eyes open. He really inspired me.
Before, I listened to people like Stevie Ray Vaughan and I was going down the Jimi Hendrix road, psychedelic music. I’m also an electric player but I am getting more comfortable playing acoustic, fingerpicking style. With electric blues, people say they like my songs and the way I handle myself. It’s like when it’s a redhot time to play, I play, but when it’s not I’m still noticed. I’m not cool or graceful – but when it’s time for me to get aggressive, I can be. Some people like to compare me to Albert Collins and Johnny Guitar Watson because of the little minor things I do, it doesn’t take much to get your point across though.
I’ve gotten to the point in my life where if it’s not benefiting me, if it’s negative towards me, I don’t have any feelings towards it. Once I got myself in that type of mindset, all the things that I’ve been trying to learn became easy. Once you start believing in yourself and forget about all the negative stuff outside of you, it’s crazy what you can do – no matter what it is.
Another reason why I’m playing blues more now is my dad, he’s a pastor. He was kind of like, “Blues, blues, stay away from me.” Once I got moved out of the house that’s when I started to make my own decisions. He doesn’t necessarily believe it’s the devil’s music. I didn’t want to be that guy that people looked at and said, “Oh, man, he was drunk last night, partying in here, getting women all on – and now you’re going to start screaming “Hallelujah, thank you, Jesus.” I didn’t want to be that guy. I waited until I got old enough to make my own decisions. Now my father looks at me and loves me like I’m his son. My relative Billy Ward and his brother, Robert Ward, they started the Ohio Players. That’s another reason I got inspired to get back into the music too, my parents told me about that. I was like, yeah –you all are just now telling me?”
