Published: March 16, 2010 4:10 PM EST
By: Isaac Davis Jr., MBA (Juniorscave.com)
New Music Spotlight March 2010 Edition
J.K. Hodge
Music Now Artist/Band Spotlight Weekly Series
J.K. Hodge
J.K. Hodge is keeping classical music alive with his brilliant piano playing abilities and crafted song writing skills that will capture the hearts of music lovers around the world. His music is masterfully entertaining and delightfully enjoyable to listen to when you hear the artist's music. In a recent interview with our Webzine, we were able to get to know more about this amazing artist in this fun feature. Enjoy!
Isaac: I just listened to one of your songs off your new EP/CD. What was the inspiration for making your new album?
J.K. Hodge: For starters, thank you for listening to the music on my CD. I put out a demo CD called "Keep In Touch" to see if people might like the music I was writing. My fans are the inspiration for the album that I'm currently working on now. They gave me some positive feedback from "Keep In Touch" and I felt I should give them an even better product.
Isaac: Who were your influences?
J.K. Hodge: The biggest influence I have in my music is Chopin. The feeling and dynamics he put in his music is incredible. The date of his last concert was the same date of my first concert. He also would keep one hand steady and have the other hand go off on a wild ride in his music. Chopin played the piano with sheer passion from his heart. Another influence not necessarily in my music but someone I look up to is Billy Joel. He started off in the classics and then found his own style. I would love to meet him one day. My grandfather whom I never met has influenced my playing. He would play at the movie theaters when the movies were silent. I think my playing brings back memories in my family of his playing.
Isaac: What do you consider to have been the highlight(s) and lowpoint(s) of your career to date?
J.K. Hodge: The first major highlight of my career was actually only a few months ago when I played a military ball for all the armed services. The ball was a commencement ceremony for naval graduates. I felt blessed to have the opportunity to give back to the soldiers who have defended me. My second major highlight was completing a TV show about keeping real music alive. I was interviewed about the importance of keeping classical works alive and debuted songs off my upcoming album "Anatomy Of A Piano Player." I'm very fortunate that I have been playing out for a little over a year and had several highlights already. I'm very thankful to God for the opportunities he has provided me in this short amount of time. The most recent highlight was during a fundraiser for Haiti. I received my first standing ovation.
There really haven't been any low points in my career to this point. It's been a short career thus far but very positive because of the people who have been supporting me. I have submitted my music to several places and it has been rejected by some venues but I understand that this is the nature of the business and appreciate more the venues that have accepted my music. The biggest low point to this point is not being able to stay patient. This is a long haul and you want so badly to speed things up but you have to be satisfied with the small steps and not to take rejections to heart. I found you need to keep following up with things but not to be obnoxious about it.
Isaac: Brief history about your background plus the style of music you play.
J.K. Hodge: My background in music started around the age of 8 when my parents sang in the choir and felt it would be in my best interest to take lessons from the church choir director. Our church had 3 different choir directors in a span of 8years. They all had their music doctorates and different styles when it came to teaching me piano. I learned the different styles but then moved on to a productive sport career in high school and college. At the age of 31, I began to write music for the first time. I went back to my roots and gave it a try. I just turned 35 and although my technique might be a little rusty it's gradually starting to improve, but the passion and emotion I play with can't be denied.
The style of my music has hints of my favorite classical composers but is today considered ambient. It is emotionally charged piano instrumental that is like the month of March. It comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. I try to take my music to as many places as possible. The majority of the music I write is considered very soothing and relaxing and will sometimes be joined by strings or flute.
Isaac: How easy is it to gets gigs for you as an artist? What is the live music scene like in your area?
J.K. Hodge: Like anything in life you have to work to get gigs but if you have a good reputation you will be asked back. I don't think gigs have become limited but I do feel in this recession that businesses aren't willing to pay as much as they have in the past. I'm piano instrumental so the music scene is a little different for me because I play in smaller quieter venues. I still think the music scene is thriving around here but its more cover bands because there aren't many schools that are attended by out of state residents. You lose that cool college band scene because of this in my opinion.
Isaac: What do you think of the state of Indie music at the moment? Do you listen to radio much at all? Has the Internet helped music grow or hindered it in your opinion?
J.K. Hodge: I think the state of Indie music is stronger than ever. American Idol and TV shows of that nature have shown there are tons of bands with a decent amount of talent. I hardly listen to the radio anymore and find myself on the Internet constantly listening to music. The first airplay I received was on Internet radio and that Internet radio station actually was given a designated regular radio time slot. The Internet has definitely helped the music scene in my opinion and given bands with more talent a shot at exposure. It used to be there were people that played better or worse than you and depending on who was marketing them would be how successful they would be. Now you can see, hear, and value bands on the internet more frequently and communicate music more freely.
Isaac: If you could create a fantasy band - what would be the line-up and why?
J.K. Hodge: Creating a fantasy band would be a difficult task with all the amazing musicians that have existed. I attempted doing it but found it impossible because it would need to be at least an 8 piece band and there were 8 different musicians that I could put at that 1 spot.
Isaac: What CD's do you currently have available and where can they be purchased from? Where can fans access your music, videos, blogs, and anything else about you online?
J.K. Hodge: I have my first and second albums available at myspace.com/johnkennethhodge. My email address is there along with my blogs and schedule information. I'm releasing my new album "Anatomy Of A Piano Player" in August and hope to have the album out on iTunes and all other major markets God willing. Also, at myspace.com/johnkennethhodge are my videos and some songs off my new album!
Isaac: Message to your fans?
J.K. Hodge: To all my fans out there, I would like to thank you for making this happen and I look forward to what's around the corner for us!!
