Nicholas Jamerson hails from the hills of Eastern Kentucky, and he’s always willing to talk about what the area – his home – means to him.
The country singer joins the Whiskey Riff Raff podcast to talk about his home state, detail how he’s been writing a song a week for the last three years, and why he’s trying to release fewer songs at a time to better suit the modern day consumer’s attention span.
The “Linda James” singer also talked about being process driven over product driven, why he loves it when bands like Ole 60 cover his songs in concert, how he documents his life and his children’s lives differently than most people, and his decision to step in as a soccer coach for his kid’s team… and why he’s workshopping bringing a banjo to the soccer practices.
Being a soccer coach is just one of the things that helps pass the time in his Eastern Kentucky home. When we asked what life is like there, he used words like “slow” and “quiet.” He even suggested that it can be a little isolating, and would be extremely so if not for his kids:
“It’s pretty isolated from even each other. I think that neighbors – I mean there’s obviously places where people are on top of each other like normal neighborhoods – but where I live, it’s a little more spread out. People tend to keep to themselves. The social ecosystem is very much driven by kids, and sports, and school stuff.”
Jamerson admitted that he’s experiencing a whole new version of Eastern Kentucky through his children.
The responsibilities that come with that take up a lot of his time, but he’s obviously still working as an artist and musician. He says another reason he feels lonesome in Eastern Kentucky is because not many others – if any at all – are doing what he’s doing:
“Not a whole lot of people doing that there. But music is a really big thing. There’s such a rich history and tradition there of monster musicians. Even those that people don’t even know… just playing in church.”
It seems as though Eastern Kentucky is one of those places where people are born, grow up, and never leave. As he said in that quote, some of the best musicians he’s ever witnessed are in eastern part of the Bluegrass State… but you’ve never heard of them, and you’ll likely never hear from them. They’ve chosen to stay right where they are, and they’re content.
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Jamerson credits his musical interest to playing in church when he was younger, and being around music that was played for small audiences in and around his home:
“We grew up in church playing… and a big part of the social scene was people gathering in the living room and playing music. Those are my earliest memories. Just being around the old timers playing standards and hymns and things like that.”
If it weren’t for those people that stayed put, Jamerson might not be the artist he is today.
Understandably, getting out on the road has changed Jamerson’s perspective of his hometown and home state. He’ll always wish nothing but the best for Eastern Kentucky, and loves his home, but he can’t help but feel like the area has a lot of room for growth:
“It’s always a love-hate with hometowns. I appreciate the simpleness of it. I appreciate the quiet. But sometimes you see… historically, eastern Kentucky has been sort of economically deprived, really since the inception of the state. It’s under appreciated by its own people…
There’s a little bit of resentment at times because it feels like we’re getting in our own way sometimes and not helping ourselves. But it’s changing. I think the musical landscape has changed so much in the last 20 years and there’s so many artists that are coming from Kentucky that are in the scene that things are changing there. It’s a great place.”
@whiskeyriff @Nicholas Jamerson #whiskeyriffraff #whiskeyriff ♬ Our Love Was Beautiful – Instrumental Version – Straight White Teeth
You can hear about all of that and more from Nicholas Jamerson by checking out the interview on YouTube or making sure to download the podcast on Apple Podcasts by searching “Whiskey Riff Raff” or by clicking here.
We’re also available on Spotify and wherever else you can listen to podcasts.
Cheers, y’all.
