12.15.05 - Volume 2, Episode #12 - Length 23:21
Having an incredible voice with amazing range gives Julia her own sound and style. Find out what sparked the soulful, I Hate You, Come Over, and hear the beautiful 9/11 inspired, United.
AAC 21.7 MB
MP3 21.4 MB
( ♪ Fade Away – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: I taught myself how to play guitar in 9th grade. because I wanted to play at camp. I have been singing my whole life, my family is all into music. Everyone plays piano, guitar, organ. Then I went to Seattle Pacific and I majored in voice and music education.
Julia: SPU, good memories. I had a band called 3 Percent and it was Josh Ottum, Sara Sutton, Rachel Vespnys. We were like a jazzy, folky, rocky band. Christian band. We played at youth groups, we went to Tom Fest, played a little in Southern, Oregon, San Diego. Now Josh Ottum is actually doing his own thing in a couple bands. One called Friends for Heroes and his own solo act called Mr. Pleasant.
( ♪ Fade Away – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: So my Mom is white and my Dad is black. Just so you all know out there. I would drive with my Mom and we would listen to the Beatles, Fleetwood Mac, and the Beach Boys and then I would get into my Dad’s car and we would listen to Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Kool and the Gang, Michael Jackson. Then I’d go to my grandparents house and listen to country, which I’m not really into. Kind of a mixture of white popular culture and black pop culture. In high school, I started to listen to rock, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden. All those new grunge bands that came out, really into. Then when I got into college, there were all these independent bands that everyone has, because it was really cool. Quite a mix. I would say the biggest influences on my sound right now is, I love James Taylor, listen to James Taylor a lot. Love Ben Harper, and I love D’Angelo. He is just awesome. Oh my gosh, what an awesome singer. Lenny Kravitz, India Aire, Take 6 favorite band of all time. All across the board. Those are the main ones.
( ♪ I Hate You, Come Over – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: I had back to back love affairs, love issues. I met this one guy at a restaurant and we hit it off and it was awesome and then he left for Europe. I thought, I’ll never find that again. Then I met another guy a week later and we dated for, on and off, 2 years. The on and off part is the inspiration for my songs, mostly the off part. Yeah, the off part is the inspiration for my songs. Totally fell for him and it just did not work out. Which is sad. He is an awesome guy and we are still friends. We don’t talk much, but we are still friends.
( ♪ A Lie – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: Remember my on and off relationship? Well it was off for the first time, and I just thought, “you know what, I need to go my own way” like Fleetwood Mac. So I decided, “screw him, I’ll just write about it” That is kinda’ what got me started. Started going to open mic’s. People started finding out I was singing again. Started asking me to play and kind of been doing that since, for the past year and half.
( ♪ A Lie – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: Yes, I would like a band. If I had a band, I would be looking for a more funky, more groove, soul groove thing, I guess. Excellent musicians please apply. Maybe a Rhodes piano. Someone who is awesome on the kit, who can d a lot of syncopation. A very good lead guitar player, who maybe with a background in blues and jazz, not just straight rock. A bass player who can just play the snot out of the bass, really funky, off beat, can groove, has a driving beat. I don’t know any bass players though. Drummers are cool, guitar players are cool, bass players, I don’t know any at all. If you are a base player and you are listening to this, you can email me.
( ♪ A Lie – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: Because I want that sound, I am going to have to revamp what I have or write new stuff, new material. Keep what I have for acoustic set. I think there is a couple songs, not the ballads, anything more up tempo I can vamp. I love to collaborate. Its my favorite and when I have other awesome musicians its the best way to write songs.
( ♪ Still Stuck – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: I think it is just a challenge in general to make it. Period. End of story. Everyone is trying to make their way in the entertainment world. I don’t know if my ethnicity has anything to do with where I am going. If it helps me, great. I don’t think of it that way. I think of it as, you have the right timing and you have the right product and the right people hear you. You might have a shot, maybe. If you are what they are looking for that day, that minute. Maybe that will be me, maybe it won’t be. I don’t know.
( ♪ Still Stuck – Recorded by BSB ♪ )
Julia: I always came back to this guitar, probably played it 10 times before I bought it, going “Oh gosh, this is the one I want, this is the one I want.” It’s a Takamine EAN 15C. I just couldn’t put it down, so the assistant manager at Guitar Center came up to me and was like “So when are you going to buy it?” Because I kept coming in and I said “Soon, as soon as I get the money” My dad went in on half for my birthday. It’s just an awesome guitar. I took piano lessons for about 3 years and quite. That was not a good idea, I wish I had stuck with it. So that was my introductory to instruments. I really wanted to play guitar, and so I did. My voice, I have been taking voice lessons since 9th grade. That’s my classical instrument is my voice. It’s kind of like keeping a memory book, only you get to vocal go through it. I love singing. I think my singing is better then my guitar playing, but I am glad I can do both. I like to get better at guitar, I’d like to get better at singing, I’d like to just keep getting better, song writing, everything.
( ♪ United ♪ )
"I love to collaborate. Its my favorite and when I have other awesome musicians its the best way to write songs." - Julia Dumas
Julia Dumas Official Website
