Dara Tucker: The Now and the Next

Dara Tucker spoke with us about her sophomore album, Soul Said Yes (2011), an outstanding collection of original songs, reworked jazz standards, and interpretations of tunes from the likes of Sade, Tracy Chapman, and Hamilton Bohannon. Tucker told us where she found her voice (hint: cheese, skis, knives), how she renders her deepest thoughts and insights within her music (spoiler alert: sometimes they show up unannounced), how up-and-coming artists can develop themselves (basically: hit the stage!), and what musical element threads her varied tastes together (hint: see album title).

And because, statistically speaking, most of you will spend less than a minute reading this article (though we encourage you to defy the stats and read from top to bottom), and this important piece of information was revealed in response to the very last question we asked, we'll say at the outset that Dara is incredibly proud of, and grateful for, her band and collaborators.

And for all of you who live in the New York area, or will be there on March 10-11, Dara will be playing the Blue Note on March 10 (Saturday), and the Long Island Winterfest on March 11. Read on!

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  "Body and Soul" – Soul Said Yes (2011)

JT: When did you decide to pursue music?

DT: I actually grew up wanting to be an actress, not a singer, but music was always in the back of my mind because it was so pervasive. My aunts and uncles were musical, and it was something that I took for granted. I do remember having  vague fantasies about being a singer, but I didn't fully internalize that until later, because I always wanted to be an actress.

JT: How did you come to start singing professionally?

DT: I have a degree in international business and German studies. I did corporate language training for a couple years, but that wasn't cutting it. So I moved to Switzerland for a year in 2003 and played piano. I rented a keyboard and fooled around with writing, and that forced me to find my voice.  I started writing personal songs about my experience and philosophies, and I realized that this was something that would allow me to find my way.

It was more than just the music. I've loved music since before I could talk, but when I was abroad, it moved from being a thing I took for granted to something that would have a significant place in my life. I had a singular message, and I had a voice to communicate. And I realized it was a voice I needed to share.

My focus was on writing, actually, not singing.  So I moved to Nashville to hook up with musicians, and started singing standards on evenings and weekends while working a day job. 

JT: What philosophy animates your music?

DT: I have a song called "The Space" on my CD that I think gets at my philosophy. Growing up in a staunchly Christian household, it's taken me time to get beyond the point where I completely identify with how I was instructed to think about the world.  I started stripping away the layers of religious instruction in order to understand deeper truths and principles about the world and the way it works. The songs I write are reflective of that space I inhabit – and they're uniquely me.

Everybody has that space. My journey as both a writer and a human being has been to understand what it means to be me. When you grow up in a strict religious home, it's more about what's prescribed. My writing is about being okay with being in that in-between place. It's about relating to the world from my point of view, and conveying things from my vantage point.

JT: Do you write for other singers?

DT: When I first started writing, I thought several of the songs would probably be better conveyed by other people. They were personal songs, but also standard love songs – and I love to write those as well.

I moved to Nashville to write for other artists, but once I understood the dedication and commitment it takes to do that, I realized that I preferred to put that energy into developing myself. It was an either-or option, because it really takes a lot of energy to pursue songwriting, especially in such a competitive town. If you want to make that a career, you have to put yourself out there – go to songwriters' nights and mingle and mix and meet the right people. And that's such a different world than the world I began to occupy in Nashville, which is live performance and jazz singing. I would've had to split myself in two. In the end, I concluded that writing my material to perform for myself was more important to me.

JT: How do you go about composing your music?

DT: I write a lot of my music on my own. The culture in Nashville is collaborative, but I tend to be more solitary in that process.  I'm starting to trust more people to assist me in that process, though. Once in a while I'll turn it over to a band member – usually [bassist] Greg [Bryant]. Writing is a personal thing that describes a state of mind or a belief, but I'm trusting my band more and more. It's a fun process to develop.

JT: How does your music come to you?

DT: Sometimes the lyrics and melody come together. Sometimes the melody comes before the lyrics – it varies.  I heard that when Lionel Richie conceived of "Hello",  he got the entire song at once, and he was scrambling to find a tape recorder to get it down. That's happend to me once or twice.

For me, songwriting is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration, though you feel like it should be the other way around. It's an arduous process to develop a song, but when you have the commitment to follow through, you can come up with a well-rounded song. Creative people can be impatient and unrealistic, and expect our art to fall into our lap – I'm guilty of that sometimes.

Sometime's I'm inspired by the lyric itself. I'll hum a melody and think, Is this something I know? Am i remembering this?And it takes a minute to parse that out: Is it coming from me or outside? And when I realize it's me, I do my best to get it on a recorder. I might linger on the melody a bit until I find a lyric for it, but it's always nice when it comes together.

JT: How has your experience with the music business been? Any advice for aspring artists?

DT: When I first moved to Nashville, I had unrealistic expectations of what the process was going to be like. I was focused on getting songs into the hands of major artists, and figuring out how to get the attention of labels. I came into it just as everything in the music business was changing. It went from labels being set up to develop artists to being a strict moneymaking business. They've had to economize so much that it's not necessarily in the best interest of artists to seek out the label paradigm; they're not set up to do what they used to be set up to do, and artists won't always win out by going the label route.

My advice, based on my experience, is to focus on putting together a band, and learn how to work with a band in a live setting. You can start out by just sitting in with bands – and thankfully jazz is set up to be able to accommodate new artists in a live music setting. You can always find a jam session in a big music town. I was fortunate enough to connect with guys who were welcoming of singers who wanted to come out and sing a couple songs.

You can't get past the need to develop yourself as a live performance artist. So many people are signed who don't have that, and that's the opposite of what it should be. When you come to a label, you should be as well-developed as possible, because they aren't in the business of developing unless you're young and in R&B.  They don't want to do the kind of work they would've done 30 or 40 years ago. So learn how to work with and communicate with a band. Get as much live experience as you can, even if it's a small cafe, and even if the venue pays you just enough for the gas it takes to get there and home. As an artist, I guarantee you don't know as much as you think you know until you can play well in a band setting.

Music is always going to be a collaborative art. Someone may be great at singing into a hairbrush, but there's nothing like playing live. There's nothing like getting out there, getting with other musicians, and getting comfortable collaborating with other people. Even if you're not getting wide attention, you can make musical experiences happen on your own. Your power is in being able to fellowship with people through your music. You can make music with or without a label, and you'll always be in a good position because no one can take the joy of that away from you. Your thought should be, Let's get out here and make some music happen.

JT: What has your label experience been like?

DT: I'm on an independent label called Watchman Records, which was founded by band member Greg Bryant. His philosophy is to just make opportunities happen for yourself. It's a devleoping label, and I'm excited to be in on the ground floor as it develops.

I knows it's something that Greg wants to expand in order to promote other artists he enjoys and is interested in. He really has a heart for promoting jazz in general, and he wants to see it expand and grow, and this band is the guinea pig.

JT: We often here that the radio landscape is tough because there are less jazz radio formats. What has your experience been?

DT: As long as you're connected with radio marketing and promotions for indie artists, in most cities across the United States, there will be a jazz station, or at least a jazz program at a college station. We've been able to get airplay on about 60 stations across the country. It's not like what it use to be, but there also aren't as many independent deejays in other genres as there are in jazz. More jazz deejays can play what they like – we're fortunate in that respect. Again, I entered when everything had already began to shift, so I don't have the perspective about how it used to be. This is all I know, so I'm working with it as it is. It's an uphill climb, but no matter what you do, it's going to be hard work. If you know that at the outset, you'll save yourself a lot grief.

JT: What was the concept for Soul Said Yes?

DT: I started out with a concept of integrating jazz and soul, which is just an interesting thing to be able to do. The jazz right now has a lot to do with singer-songwriters and pop music being integrated, which is cool. I want this to represent my own territory, kind of combining standards and original music with soul music and a little gospel here and there. I hope that it's a unique take on a very old music form, and one that infuses some life into the genre from my own perspective.

There are others who are doing this. Lizz Wright is doing this – she's definitely an inspiration, and she comes from a similar background as me. I want to allow jazz to become a contemporary thing while remaining true to the genre.

I did a Tracy Chapman cover. I covered a Hamilton Bohannon song from the 70s called "Save Their Souls".  I tend to be all over the map musically in terms of what I like. I go from genre to genre and don't really have a favorite. So to present my own voice on a record can be challenging – I had to figure out how to synthesize influences, and figure out which strands bring them together. What I do know is that soul is the resounding theme in what I enjoy. From Esperanza Spalding to India Arie to Lizz Wright, soul was the theme.

JT: Where can we see you live?

DT: I'll be at the Blue Note in New York on March 10th. Then I'm heading to Long Island for Winterfest.  Next is Pete Miller's in Evanston [Illinois] from March 15th to the 18th (March schedule not yet posted on Pete Miller's site), and at the Beehive in Boston on April 14th (April schedule not yet posted on Beehive site). And there are some other dates we'll be announcing once they're solidified.  

JT: Have you started thinking about your next project?

DT: My mind is already there, even though this one just came out. I'm looking forward to exploring different territory. I'm not trying to switch it up too much, but my second was different from my first, and the next will be a bit different from this one. I'm always seeking out what the new sound is, because I always want to remain contemporary.

Jazz gets a bad rap as music that is a relic. I perform a lot of standards when I sing live, but I definitely don't consider myself to be a museum curator. I want to keep the music fresh and good. I want to explore the now and the next.  [My first album] All Right Now is a representation of what is current, and so is Soul Said Yes. The next album won't be any different. I've already started to write and am compiling music for that project, and that's exciting. I'm also really looking forward to touring.

JT: Will you be traveling abroad?

DT: Definitely. Having lived abroad in Switzerland and Germany, and traveled through the Mediterranean for the past few months, I'm definitely eager to tour abroad. I know our music is being played in the UK and in several markets in Europe, and I'd love to capitalize on that.

JT: Anything else you want to say that we didn't cover?

DT. Yes – I must highlight the players: Mason Embry and Paul Horton are both pianists, and I enjoyed the opportlunity to record with them, and to allow other people to experience their greatness.  There was the great Charlie Hunter on several tracks, including "The Space". Derrek Phillips on drums – he's my favorite drummer. James DaSilva on guitar.  Greg Bryant is the bassist on the entire album. These are ultra-talented musicians that I truly love playing with.  - A.R.T.