Life & Work with Jefferson Thomas

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jefferson Thomas. He shared his story with us below:

You awaken to headlights shining in your bedroom window in the middle of the night. You hear the familiar bang of an amp against the screen door, followed by a string of four-letter words. “Good,” you think to yourself, “he made it home again.”

By the time you hit junior high, you’ve already seen the old man play a thousand gigs, and you’ve chosen to follow in his footsteps. And your mother is a singer. Both their triumphs and tragedies beckon you into a world where there’s never enough money, but more wealth than anyone could ever imagine.

By his eleventh birthday, Jefferson Thomas had already surrendered, sitting in on bass on his parents’ gigs. At fifteen he was playing guitar and singing professionally all around the US. With the money he had packed away from playing out as well as a music scholarship, he headed off to college.

While there, he interned in the music school’s recording studio and practically lived there while recording his first release. “I was nineteen when I put out my first CD”, says Thomas. “It’s probably still out there somewhere, which makes me feel queasy. I don’t think I even still own a copy.” A thousand gigs later he had refined the “blue-eyed soul” vocal style that today sits atop his rich amalgam of indie-pop and Americana.

One word can be used to describe Jefferson Thomas’ music: American. It is quite literally a “melting pot” – of the places he’s been and the things he’s seen, heard, and felt. “I listen mostly to new people making new music, and there’s a lot of great stuff out there.

I also love to listen to old music; retro R&B and soul, vintage country, classic rock, whatever,” Thomas muses, “but I don’t just want to parrot that stuff. Those classic records are classic for a reason – they were good! If we want to honor them, let’s all try to make good new music. If we’re lucky, maybe somebody will be listening to us twenty-five or fifty years from now.”

Jefferson’s live video of his song “Jacksonville” from an NPR broadcast went viral and introduced him to audiences worldwide. As a result, he embarked on his first European tour and has subsequently toured overseas every year since, constantly breaking new ground and growing his fan base.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Struggles all the way! The recent devaluation of recorded music in our culture has forced me to focus more on live/touring, as well as licensing my music to film and TV projects.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
More than ever, to survive in this business, you have to adapt to how the business itself evolves. With regard to touring, I’ve had to simplify my stage show in order to make it more malleable and “commando” to be able to take it around the US and overseas.

On the production front, I’ve had to completely re-think the way I make music in the studio and even the way I write it. I have to work a lot faster to meet TV deadlines, which are very tight, and I’ve had to re-think what constitutes “the definitive version” of a song. I’m not sure such a thing exists anymore.

How can people work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
It is both unnerving and exciting to say that I’m really not sure! The traditional, classic “producer” and “co-writer” roles still exist, but the music business has been in such an upheaval that new roles are being defined every day.

The only mistake I could make would be to say, “That’s not how we’ve done it before..” So if you hear/see my work and think it could involve you, get in touch. There are no “stupid questions” or “wrong answers!”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://jeffersonthomas.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/officialjeffersonthomas/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeffersonthomasmusic/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCagdwCeXcS_LIOA8h5njFzw