Trying to define country music just got a little bit harder. Combining the traditional country elements with his own southern soulfulness Steven Clawson is looking to expand the boundaries of country music.
STATS:
Born: January 25th 1982
Hometown: Thomasville, GA
Musical influences: Elvis, Garth Brooks, James Taylor, Kenny Loggins, The Eagles
Pets: two cats: Harmony and Melody
Favorite Movie: Almost Famous
Favorite TV shows: 24, West Wing, and Wonder Years
First cassette tape: Alan Jackson "Here in the Real World"
What's in my CD player right now: Ryan Adams "Heartbreaker"
Books I'm currently reading: Rainbow 6 and Last Train To Memphis
Favorite smell: Jambalaya and Breakfast (not together)
If you could do anything else besides music: work for CIA
Color of Kitchen plates: inspiring brown and white set graciously donated by Mawmaw and Pawpaw
Interview:
Give us your musical background.
"Both my parents were vocal majors in college so I was constantly around singing as a child. My Dad is a southern baptist minister so I was "encouraged"….well forced…. to sing in the church choir,lol. But, I think the biggest thing was probably when I picked up my dad's old guitar and started making music on my own for the first time. I loved it so much that after highschool I headed to Nashville to study music business at Belmont University and here I am today still plugging away at it.
How would you describe your music?
"When people ask me what kind of music I play, I usually just tell them country because it's the easiest thing to say. But it's actually a mixture of a lot of stuff. Me being from the South, I love anything that has a lot of soul to it, whether it's country, blues, rock, or whatever. I've kind of blended everything I like into a genre that I like to call "Southern Soul,"hence the EP title. I don't wanna go too into it because I'm curious to see how the listeners are going to describe my music. So for now, I'll just call it country."
How do you usually write a song?
"To me, the melody is the easiest part and part I enjoy the most. I've always got melodies floating around in my head. It's the lyrics that take me forever. I never think my words are comeing out right or saying the things I mean to say. Actually, now that I'm thinking about, I usually write a song by trying not to write a song. I'm not big on just sitting down and setting out to write a song. With me, most of my songs have just happened. Sometimes while I'm playing I just find things and run with them. I think that's how most great things happen. You have to be willing to recognize when you've found something and be willing to get out the way and just let the music do its thing. "
What goals do you have for your music?
I want my music to cross genres without me losing credibility within country music. I feel like country music industry gets so freaked out if someone doesn't have the typical country voice or style. They think that radio won't play it. But I think radio will. I think the country listeners are craving something new and fresh. I wanna broaden what people think of as country music. To me, what people consider country doesn't have to be so strictly classified. Maybe one day there will be different kinds of country and when a country artist is asked what kind of country they sing, they will say "I sing Steven Clawson type country."