Joe Jenneman sums his sound up as “soulful indie-folk.” He tries to ensure his songs are easy to listen to and that people can resonate from the first listen.
American Songwriter scoured thousands of entrees for the finalists for the Road Ready Talent Contest—and Jenneman, SmithField, and Beachmont made the top three.
The Road Ready contest broadened its horizons beyond songwriting to include stage performance and audience connection. The finalists will compete live for the Grand Prize, including $20k. They will vie for the money, and the title live at Nashville’s Basement East in front of a VIP audience and American Songwriter’s panel of judges.
Meet Joe Jenneman
American Songwriter: What does being a Road Ready finalist mean to you?
Joe Jenneman: Hate to sound like a cliche’ right from the first question here, but it really feels like years of hard work paying off. It feels incredible to have my talents recognized and spotlighted, and I’m seriously so grateful to American Songwriter for giving me this opportunity.
American Songwriter: What about the Road Ready experience do you think will be the most impactful to your development as a musician?
Joe Jenneman: Something I think will stick with me, and that I have already been consciously pulling from the experience, is allowing things to fall into place. I submitted for the contest nearly a year ago. I won’t bore readers with the details, but my life felt like a rollercoaster at that time. Less like the fun ones at Disney with scenic views and jolly fictional characters guiding you along, but more like the ones they unpack from the back of a carnival truck. Anyway, at that time, as much as I would’ve liked an opportunity like this to come my way, I wasn’t ready. Fast forward about 9 months, I’ve learned so much about who I am and who I want to be as an artist, songwriter, and performer. I needed to develop certain things, allow other things to fall into place, and be ready for such an opportunity to enter my life. I guess all this rambling is amounting to this answer: the Road Ready experience has impacted my development by proving the art of patience. I will always think of this opportunity and the blocks that were built between submitting and being named a finalist as a reminder to trust the timing of things. Sometimes, there is a delay for a reason, and things are falling into place piece by piece, even if you’re not able to yet see the full design.
American Songwriter: How would you describe your music to a new listener?
Joe Jenneman: I’d sum up my sound as “soulful indie-folk.” I always try to make sure my songs feel good on the ears and are something people can resonate with from the first listen. Try to focus on melody, production, dynamics, and being overall enjoyable. Then if listeners are up for discovering more, I try to leave at least another layer or two of the depth in the lyrics which might not be caught the first listen. I’ve noticed a lot of my favorite music has a balance of being intriguing yet approachable, so I try to keep that yin-yang in mind when writing and producing my own tunes.
American Songwriter: Describe yourself as a performer. What can people expect from your shows?
Joe Jenneman: People can expect unfiltered, raw emotion. I don’t really rehearse what I’m going to say; there’s no choreography; if I’m taking a guitar solo, it’s fully improvised. Might it be a safer call to plan everything out to a T and perform things the same exact way every night…probably. But I think when you get too tied to the script, you sacrifice the possibility of magic. And I hope, even for a moment, to uncover something special. I try to be fully free on stage and hope to encourage the audience to feel the same. That’s really the goal with a show: to leave the audience satisfied and inspired. Life is hard, concerts are fun…ya know?
American Songwriter: What’s the one song in your catalog you’re most proud of and why?
Joe Jenneman: Let me start by saying (like every artist ever says) I’m especially excited for the new stuff, and I truly feel like the music I’m working on right now, and will be releasing throughout the year, is my best. That being said, I’m extremely proud of “Bring Me Back” for a number of reasons. It’s gotten a good amount of streams, and introduced my music to many listeners, which I’m incredibly grateful for. Beyond the buzz it’s created, however, I’m very proud of the song/track. Not that I often seek out to get high on my own supply, but if I were to throw on a Joe Jenneman song from Spotify right now, it’d probably be that one…“Miss Addison” a close second. I can still remember sitting in my backyard in Venice Beach a year and a half ago, writing “Bring Me Back.” It felt very different. I wasn’t sure if it was the best or worst song I’d written, but was pretty sure it fell in one of those two categories. I hadn’t written anything quite so repetitive before, nor something with a borderline gospel feel to it, but I think those elements are part of what brings listeners back to the tune again and again. I was out of my comfort zone big time, and I think “Bring Me Back” is proof that’s a good place to be as a songwriter.
American Songwriter: What are your goals as an artist?
Joe Jenneman: Honestly, I’ve been trying not to set specific goals as of late, at least not in a timeline sense. I aim to connect with as many listeners as possible. Whether that be through releasing music, touring, or a mix of both. And I don’t mean “connect” as in “get my music heard” by as many people as possible. While having a wide platform and the financial stability that comes with it is definitely appealing, I first and foremost want to be authentic. Listeners can feel the difference. I’d rather be a favorite artist of 1,000 people, and be a really special part of their lives than “the guy who sings that one song” for 1,000,000 people, but have nobody feel that strongly connected to the project. I understand sometimes both scenarios can exist simultaneously, and I’d fully welcome my platform growing exponentially. Still, it needs to all come from an authentic place and continue to connect with the true believers.
American Songwriter: Who are your influences?
Joe Jenneman: I’d say my first major influence was Bruce Springsteen. When I was 8 years old, my dad somehow got tickets to his show for a fraction of the cost since it was the day of, and they happened to be in the front row. I promise I wasn’t a spoiled rich kid who saw rockstars in the front row all the time, this was just a wild happenstance. Anyway, about halfway through the show, Bruce spotted me. He reached down, shook my hand, and said, “Hey, brother man!” A few songs later, he handed me his guitar pick, and I swear it felt like, from then on, he sang the entire concert directly to me. After the show, he had someone from his crew hand me an autographed songbook, and say “Bruce wanted you to have this.” Needless to say, I was inspired. From that night forward, I was writing constantly … a new song every day. I was obsessed. Springsteen remains one of my favorite artists, and specifically, a favorite songwriter. I’m not sure if anyone ever has or could paint such detailed visuals with their lyrics. Even as a kid, I could fully transport to “Jungleland”, and feel the wind of the open road while blasting “Born To Run”. I still try to emulate that style of specific imagery in my own work.
I’ll save you some ink and just list a few more influences below:
John Mayer
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Bon Iver
Rainbow Kitten Surprise
Jack Johnson
Amy Winehouse
Jimi Hendrix
Father John Misty
The Smashing Pumpkins
The Rolling Stones
Dr. Dog
Leon Bridges
Hozier
Janis Joplin
Featured image provided by Joe Jenneman
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.