Artist Spotlight: Stacey James Band
In this conversation, we go beyond the music with Stacey James Band — diving into the moments that shaped their soul.
Upcoming 100: What inspired you to start creating music, and how did you develop your unique sound?
Stacey James Band: I always felt music in my soul, even as a young child. Over time, I discovered that I was a very emotional person with many feelings, thoughts and observations. They all became poems that began having melodies behind them over time, so by age 1 0 - the music just started kinda creating itself. I just let it come through in a matter of speaking. My sound, I feel is a combination of all the places I’ve connected within since my first love, Motown. From there through soul and funk over to Prince, phases of rock and Red hot Chilli Peppers to alternative, singer songwriters , to the vocalists id sing over and over again, such as Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, over to underground to above ground hip hop.
Upcoming 100: Can you describe your songwriting process? How do you come up with lyrics and melodies?
Stacey James Band: I used to find I wrote words with melodies behind them and then would create music around it in some way. Over the past 20+ years now, Ive discovered my way is through the process of what is felt through sounds. If I have crafted something through an instrument, whatever the sound of the song makes me feel- is where I go. Different sounds produce different emotions, thoughts, experiences, pictures in mind etc. I let those come through and then write the song from there. Same process with beats or instrumentals. What does this sound make me feel?
Upcoming 100: Which artists have influenced your music the most, and why?
Stacey James Band: I want to say my band! Because they help create the bigger picture of the art piece. I have a couple colours until they show up with brushes and another canvas, and and and ha ha
But if I were to go into main stream artists that I listened to growing up I would say Motown, The Funk Brothers, Prince, Marvin Gaye, Alicia Keys, U2, Jann Arden, Lauryn Hill Whitney Houston, and so so many more.
Upcoming 100: How do you balance your creative vision with the expectations of your record label or management team?
Stacey James Band: In order for me to remain creative I have to have flow. I have to have an open space to splash around in and come out with gems. Pressure makes usually brings garbage out of me ha ha Ive discovered this
Upcoming 100: Tell us about your favourite song you've created so far and the story behind it.
Stacey James Band: I don't know if I have a favourite because there are just so many different songs that fly to my mind. I would have to say “I Can See” - Stacey James Band track. I remember the day I wrote it, I was pounding the floor with my heel to produce the bass drum effect while playing the piano and dented the floor! I remember looking back things. “Whoa!! Thats passion Sj” haha - but the song itself was a feeling of freedom, I had discovered that I am a co creator of my reality and that I do have control in how I feel and live my life “And in this state Im running against myself- and I know theres nobody else, who’s gunna guide my ship and make it home, who will make me not quit and go on - cuz I can see”
Upcoming 100: How do you handle criticism and negative feedback about your work?
Stacey James Band: When I was younger it felt different because my feelings were at play and so I may have internalized some as a personal thing but always have listened to to it. I know that we have to listen to grow in any area of life so I take the expertise and wisdom of others seriously and have more so with age I find enjoyment in critique because it gives me something to work with. It gives me a new perspective
Upcoming 100: What role does live performance play in your career, and how do you prepare for a show?
Stacey James Band: I feel that live performance plays a fairly significant role, although I have slowed down to only a few shows this past year to offer myself time to focus on other things and write A TON of music. First breath in over 12 years so playing out is a biggie. Especially with the band to get the full feel live! My prep always includes a day of pounding water to make sure the pipes are ready to stretch ha ha I usually run my material briefly but I like to do the more so days leading up, otherwise I find that I overthink. If I work through it all for the days leading in, the day of its last little refreshers or a quick finger training and good to go. If I am riding alone I do social exercises on route and if I’m not alone, I do it in the shower when I’m getting ready. The one thing that is always important to me is having my set lined up, I used to save that last min and cause myself stress by not making the song choices , then my band waited on my list and I felt bad an just a ripple of not good haha so I always have my list ready and I even have set lists lined up in my notes based on the vibe and kind of gig. I can dig one up quick and make a couple adjustments
Upcoming 100: How do you stay connected with your fans, and what's the most memorable fan interaction you've had?
Stacey James Band: I tend to stay mostly connected via social media. I used to do mail outs but found that people would just gravitate to IG, Facebook and my inbox. It worked for me! I try to answer all and stay connected somehow because I believe in the art of true human connection and there is nothing more special then a connection built from art. How lovely is that? The most memorable interaction, well there have been plenty but this one stands out. I was playing a venue off Osborne strip here in Winnipeg, Canada. Between sets we broke for bit and so I ran over to the bathroom. When I went in there was a young lady by the mirror crying. She scrambled a bit and likely didn’t want to be caught crying. I just went in and said”its ok it ok, you ok, ill come back after!”- she was like “No no, that last song.” It was a song called “Embrace It” from my “11 11” album. She continued to explain how it hit her because she feels like she did that, she embraced her pain and that is what kept her from taking her own life a couple years back. Turns out the young lady had gone through a very hard time that lead her to a place she described as “the battle with herself of a lifetime” but how she found her power. I just stood there with her crying in the bathroom. Hugging. It was beautiful. May I say also that she reached out not too long ago and she is working in youth trauma. Incredible
Upcoming 100: How do you handle the pressures of the music industry, and what advice would you give to aspiring artists?
Stacey James Band: I try to remember who I am. One thing I always asked myself and still do is “Who are you? And why?” - this allows me the ability to be true to myself by knowing myself and knowing the direction I want to go. You make better choices when you have a personal compass. Aside from that, it would be acknowledging something as a business and attempting to merge that with creativity , can be hard. So if you see them as two parts of one whole to make a functioning machine- then it will help with being able to function within it
Upcoming 100: What are your future goals and aspirations as a music artist, and how do you plan to achieve them?
Stacey James Band: I plan to continue to release my decade albums, ’11 11’ I feel was my journey of my 20s, my “444” album is the journey of my 30s. I plan to do this by continuing to write, observe and feel :) Aside from that, the writing market. I have way too many songs, way too many genres and I will never perform them are. I have been blessed to have some amazing vocalists sings some of my works and hope to hear many more to come.
