I love talking to other musicians on tour and finding out what we all have to do, not just as artists but as business people. A lot of us are investing and trying to use social media. It is such an interesting level of responsibility and engagement on all these levels. I don't know how one can do this without absolute commitment and faith.
My father was very strict, a very militant parent, because he wanted us to be very focused kids. He sold the televisions, so we didn't watch TV. And he didn't want any music playing that wasn't gospel or inspirational music. In fact, he didn't even like a lot of gospel because he thought it was too bluesy.
I've always been genuinely interested in the spirit world. I've seen things I will never talk about because I'd be a fool to. You can't lay out that world in words.
I've always loved the woods, and I've always loved gardening and a lot of solitude and quiet.
I'm in love with the way that Ella Fitzgerald delivered a lyric. She would deliver a lyric with the kind of clarity that would make you wonder why it was written, and make you think about the writer. I think every writer hopes an Ella of any genre or anytime gets a hold of their work and works the song like that.
The whole musical institution of the church involves a lot of different styles of communication at the same time. Things like call and response. Sometimes they use the music to pray and work things out. And there's so much repetition in gospel, it's like churning butter.
Gardening is a working meditation for me. It helps me remember process, and it helps me remember patience.
No matter what happens, I can go back to the mountains. I have nature and my wonderful friends and neighbors. I get so much by being there.
I'm so grateful for just the inherent mercy of life.
I didn't wait around for my parents' opinion about my venture out into contemporary music.
Everyone I perform and tour with looks out for each other; we ensure we stay healthy.
It's hard to know who you are until you're cracked open a little bit.
As I grow older, I hope I can fully embody my grandmother's remarkable peace.
I've begun to realize, as I'm getting older, that I was taught to go for a certain kind of stillness to get things done. I missed that in my life. I loved my grandmother's property, out in South Georgia right above the Florida line, so I just thought I'd find some property where I could feel that again.
I call myself a singer-songwriter influenced by the gospel and jazz tradition. Naturally, because of my lifestyle and love for nature, there's a lot of folk and Americana there because that's just my life.
I love singing all types of genres.
Music is primal: when it's done without pretension, you can really feel the shape of someone's soul.
Jazz has a lot to do with being very present. You know the structure, then you flow through it.
I think, as singers and performers, we are ambassadors of the human experience. I don't want to get bored just talking about myself.
I get bored very quickly.
