Jenn Ford has been singing her entire life. Born and raised in East Texas, Jenn first started performing in church, school choir and marching band. She attended college as a vocal music major and was a member of several select groups and ensembles, before joining the US Army. During her time with the Military Police, Jenn was selected to tour with The United States Army Soldier Show, the 62nd Army Band; and eventually assigned to The United States Army Europe Band and Chorus.
Jenn's experience includes radio, television, and stage
production, all while pursuing her career as a singer-songwriter. A vast range
of musical influences from Patsy Cline to Credence Clearwater Revival to ZZ
Top, gives Jenn the diversity to entertain a wide range of audiences.
Having performed worldwide in front of military audiences as
large as 40,000, Jenn is at home in front of a crowd, and draws her energy from
it. Her gritty, soulful tones that have
a bluesy flavor, while staying true to her roots as an East Texas country gal
with lots of sass.
I talked to the East Texas Singer/Songwriter over the phone about her latest release, ‘Americana Radio’ which is an album of her versions of 10 iconic songs we all know. I expected to enjoy my conversation with her, but I received so much more than I could ever have imagined. Jenn Ford is an immense amount of presence, even over the phone. Time has only enhanced her beauty and talent. Now, in her mid 40's, with years of experience on stage, is her time. She's talented, smart, driven and savvy about the realities of life and she's ready to Rock n' Roll her way to superstardom and I believe she will do it.
Photo by JME Studios
Alan Mercer: Did this album
happen out of the blue?
Jenn Ford: I was offered a chance to record for Texas Country
Records in 2017. I wasn’t shooting for country music when I decided to start
singing. I had been singing my whole life. I had a heavy metal band, and I was
in the army band in army entertainment for 6 years when I was in military service
for 11 years.
AM: Wow! That’s
amazing already.
JF: I did military
police work, but they figured out I could sing, so I kept getting pulled into
special duty assignments. I have sung all types of music, but I’ve always loved
southern rock, blues, and country. I’ve always loved roots-based music.
AM: Yet, you were in
a heavy metal band?
JF: The heavy metal
thing was a one off, but I had a great time doing it. That’s where my
songwriting started to take shape. Then Linda Wilson from the Texas Country Music
Association was putting together her first award show. I had already hosted
other award shows, so she asked me if I wanted to be a part of it.
AM: Did you know who
she was?
JF: Yes, I grew up in
Carthage with her kids. I was absolutely interested. I wanted to help her make
it happen. I thought I was just going to be the MC but two weeks before the
show she asked if I could sing one of my original country songs at the awards
show and I just said, yes. I didn’t have a country song, so I wrote a country
song that day.
AM: Jenn, that is
outrageous.
JF: I’m not afraid to get on stage and be in front
of people. BJ Mezek was there, and he asked me to write for him and 2 weeks later
I got a call from Linda. They wanted to record a single, so I wrote 6 songs and
sent them, and they decided to record all 6 and give me a record deal. I had no
band and no country image I could nail down. I spent the next couple years
finding my way. I noticed I kept getting further away from country music. I
always felt I had an edge, so I called myself roadhouse country because that’s
a little bit of everything. You never know what you’re going to get when you
walk into a roadhouse. There are always all kinds of characters in there.
AM: Who’s idea was it
to do an album of covers?
JF: It was my idea to
do an album of all covers. I wanted to do all epic songs from American
songwriters that are iconic and that had impacted me as a musician the most. Some
I had already been performing on stage like ‘She Talks To Angels’ and ‘Gold
Dust Woman’ which has been a staple for me for years, but I never thought I
would record ‘Black Hole Sun’ but I did it because of Chris Cornell.
AM: It’s a great final
song to end the album.
JF: I put it at the
end of the album to be like the extra track, like they used to do in the old
days and put a hidden track on there.
AM: The order of the
songs is so perfect.
JF: I picked the
order. I tried to do the pacing to where it would ease folks into it. I have
loved ‘Angel From Montgomery’ forever. I put a lot of thought into that. I’ve
been singing that song for years because it’s so beautiful. I’ve always been
able to relate to that song about a middle-aged woman. This is my first
production credit also.
AM: You sing ‘Whipping
Post’ with authority.
JF: That comes from a
real story. Whenever I’m on stage I try to put myself somewhere that I felt wherever
the original artist was at.
AM: Did you draw from
personal experience as well?
JF: There are so many relationships that I have been
through, that I can draw from. I have felt the betrayal that comes from someone
breaking up with you, many times. I’ve been crushed and filled with anger and
sadness and exhaustion. I tried to pull all of that into the song.
AM: You definitely
connect emotionally with all the songs.
JF: Another one I
feel strongly about is ‘She Talks to Angels’. I used to be that girl at the bar
who would be drinking because she was so sad. I’ve seen those girls at the bar
who are trying to figure it all out. You have to have grace for that person. I
think a lot of people go through that and are out there flapping in the wind with
no direction. That song comes from the girl not loving herself, even though
everyone else loved her. I feel like at times I didn’t love myself. I was
filled with chaos in my twenties. I look at all the tunes like that. I can
connect with every single song.
AM: What would you
say is the main reason you recorded this album?
JF: I want to create
an interest. I don’t want to be a bar band anymore. I want to be a touring
artist. I feel like this is the time I need to seize opportunities. The time is
short.
AM: You should only
record music that is real and resonates with you.
JF: Thank you for
saying that. I think I will be more authentic and that more people will connect
with me.
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