Jake Blount

Jake Blount is an American musician, scholar and activist based in Providence, Rhode Island.[1] He is a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who draws upon old-time, bluegrass, and blues influences. He specializes in the traditional music of African Americans and indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands. He is also a founding board member of Bluegrass Pride.[2] Blount's debut solo album, Spider Tales, debuted at #2 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart.[2]

Jake Blount
Jake Blount performs at Earful of Fiddle
Background information
BornAugust 8, 1995
OriginWashington, DC, USA
GenresAfrican-American traditional, folk
InstrumentsBanjo, fiddle, voice
Years active2016-present
LabelsFree Dirt Records
Associated actsTui, The Moose Whisperers, Tatiana Hargreaves, Libby Weitnauer
Websitejakeblount.com

Early life

Blount was born and raised in Washington, DC.[1] His family is interracial; his mother's family originates in Sweden and Jersey, and his father is Black. Blount and his older sister, Julia, attended Georgetown Day School. His parents, Jeanne Meserve and Jeffrey Blount, were television news professionals. He began learning to play electric guitar at age 12, and played in rock bands with his peers. Influenced by a chance encounter with Megan Jean and the KFB, Blount delved into acoustic music in the latter half of high school.[3]

Blount enrolled at Hamilton College in 2013, where he focused his studies on early African-American folk music. He received his first banjo lessons from Lydia Hamessley, who would become his advisor, and delved into old-time music.[3]

Career

Blount first received widespread recognition within the old-time community in 2016, when his band The Moose Whisperers won the traditional band contest at the Appalachian String Band Music Festival in Clifftop, West Virginia.[4] In mid-2017, Blount graduated from Hamilton College with a B.A. in ethnomusicology, released his debut EP, Reparations, with fiddler Tatiana Hargreaves,[5] and began to tour in earnest. The Moose Whisperers put out their self-titled album in early 2018 and embarked on a release tour in Scandinavia. Upon returning, Blount and Hargreaves opened several shows for Rhiannon Giddens.

Blount and fiddler Libby Weitnauer formed the duo Tui on a tour of Australia in late 2018. They released their album, Pretty Little Mister, in 2019.[6] In the following year, Blount appeared on Radiolab and was selected as a member of the International Bluegrass Music Association's Leadership Bluegrass Class of 2020.[7][8][9] He also claimed first place in the banjo contest at the Appalachian String Band Music Festival, competing with tunes from Black banjoists Nathan Frazier and Dink Roberts.[10]

Blount released his debut solo album, Spider Tales, on Free Dirt Records on May 29, 2020. It debuted at #2 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart.[11] The Guardian declared the record "an instant classic," and awarded it five out of five stars.[12] Bandcamp selected it as their Album of the Day, and it received positive coverage from NPR, Rolling Stone, Billboard and more.[13][14][15][16] In an interview with Country Queer, Blount stated that the album "came out of a desire to tease out the sort of anger and demands for justice and resentment that I see simmering in the black traditional music canon throughout history," and was intended to contradict preconceived notions about Black folk music.[17]

Shortly thereafter, Blount was prominently featured on NPR's Weekend Edition in a segment regarding traditional musicians and their efforts to address racism within the canon.[18] Blount is a 2020 recipient of the Steve Martin Banjo Prize.[19] Following the award announcement, Blount was interviewed by Hunter Kelly for Apple Music's Proud Radio show.[20]

Discography
Title Album details Peak chart positions
Reparations (EP)
  • Label: Self-released
  • Release date: July 28, 2017
 None
Spider Tales
  • Label: Free Dirt Records
  • Release date: May 29, 2020
 US Bluegrass: #2

As Tui
  • Pretty Little Mister (2019)

As The Moose Whisperers
  • The Moose Whisperers (2018)

References
  1. Abrams, Ken. "What's Up Interview: RI Roots Musician Jake Blount Releases "Spider Tales" | What's Up Newp". Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  2. "Jake Blount - Press Kit". jakeblount.com. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  3. "Banjo Newsletter". Banjo Newsletter. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  4. "Appalachian String Band Festival". West Virginia Culture. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  5. Ely, Elizabeth. "Jake Blount '17 Performs Traditional Fiddle and Banjo Music". Hamilton.edu. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  6. Frahm, Jonathan. "Tui Brings Black String Band Music to the Forefront with "Old Aunt Jessie Get Up in the Cool" (premiere)". Pop Matters. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  7. "Jake Blount - About". jakeblount.com. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  8. "Birdie in the Cage | Radiolab". WNYC Studios. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  9. "IBMA Announces Leadership Bluegrass Class of 2020". IBMA. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  10. "West Virginia Division of Culture and History News". www.wvculture.org. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  11. "Jake Blount - Spider Tales". jakeblount.com. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  12. "Jake Blount: Spider Tales review I Jude Rogers's folk album of the month". the Guardian. May 22, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  13. "Jake Blount, "Spider Tales"". Bandcamp Daily. May 29, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  14. "New Music Friday: The Top 8 Albums Out on May 29 : All Songs Considered". NPR.org. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  15. Hudak, Joseph; Freeman, Jon (May 26, 2020). "RS Country Music Picks: Week of May 25th". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  16. "First Out: New Music From Orville Peck, Keiynan Lonsdale, Blimes and Gab & More". Billboard. May 29, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  17. "Jake Blount's "Genrequeer" Vision • Country Queer". Country Queer. June 23, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  18. "Breaking Down the Legacy of Race in Traditional Music in America". NPR.org. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  19. Grow, Kory. "Steve Martin on His Dedication to Awarding Banjo Musicians: 'This Is Equal to Classical Musicianship'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  20. Kelly, Hunter. "Proud Radio". Apple Music. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
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