By Jennifer Oladipo
Starting off as a cover artist is a well-worn path for music performers. Some can build an entire career on crowd favorites. Others, like Jamie Wright, know from the beginning that they plan to take their own voice to center stage. And it’s the hardest thing she’s ever had to do.
Ironically, part of the difficulty of making her own music comes from huge rage Wright developed as a cover artist. It was hard to find her own voice in a repertoire that spans jazz, R&B, Motown soul, and even country.
However, her process of self-discovery was aided by engaging with her audience, and the guidance of fellow musicians. "Playing with different musicians definitely pulls out things in you that you didn't know were there," she says. Nearly seven years of performing for the Sunday brunch at Hall's Chophouse in Greenville, SC, for helped her learn the intricacies of jazz, a genre she'd initially approached only mild interest while studying classical music in college.
The process of refining her artistry involved embracing the challenges of blending different musical styles. "It's kind of like crossing cross-contaminating both of those worlds," Wright reflects. Through this exploration, she discovered a harmony between her soulful singing and the sophistication of jazz. Going into the studio in 2020 to record an album of cover songs, she unexpectedly found herself choosing songs from one genre.
It turns out, she found her voice in smooth jazz. Now, she has to find her way through the business of the genre.
“I'm constantly wanting to learn. So this was a new project for me to have to learn about the music industry of smooth jazz. Just because you know about the R&B industry or the pop industry — it’s like night and day. They're all like night and day. The challenges you have to go through the connections you have to make are totally different. So it's definitely been a work in progress. But I'm glad to finally say that I feel like I'm going in the right direction.”
Part of that direction is toward stages beyond Upstate South Carolina. While Jamie acknowledges the support she's received in her hometown of Greenville, there are only so many venues that pay enough to support her whole band. And the caliber of touring musician she works with does not come cheap. Still, Wright says she’d love to play at home as often as possible, but she’s excited to take her new sound to new stages, wherever they might be.