Jordan Davis
west stage
friday 7:50 & 9:55
JordanDavisOfficial.com
Jordan Davis is a Shreveport-born, Nashville-
weathered creative soul with his feet firmly planted in
two different eras. The imagery in his songs relies on
the same specificity behind such classic, lyrically- driven
songwriters as John Prine, Jim Croce and Bob McDill. But
the tech-tinged production and silvery phrasing in those
same songs embodies the genre-defying musicality of
such current acts as Eric Church, Sam Hunt and Lady
Antebellum.
Working steadily on his debut album for Universal Music
Group Nashville, Davis is welding those two ideals nicely.
The jangly, skittering “Singles You Up,” the picturesque
come-on “So Do I” and the propulsive “Take It From Me”
each mix those elements in varying degrees, some leaning
heavier on the production, others focused more on the
lyrics, but all of them held together by Davis’ unique,
laidback phrasing. His easy-going nature and focused
interpretation of the world around him is easy to identify
in those songs, the same way that Jim Croce’s personality
came through in some of the music that influenced him.
“Those songs take on so much more life if you find out
how introverted he was,” says Davis. “He really just wrote
songs because they let him say what he wanted to say. You
hear a song like ‘I’ll Have To Say I Love You In A Song’ –
that probably was him not knowing how to say it, but he
knew he wouldn’t screw it up if he sang it. Those songs are
awesome.”
Davis’ appreciation for competing musical ideas harkens
back to his upbringing in Shreveport. The Louisiana city is
overshadowed nationally by New Orleans, whose jazz and
funk culture are the stuff of legend. Just a couple hundred
miles to the east of Shreveport is Mississippi, the hotbed of
gut-bucket blues, while just over the border to Shreveport’s
west is East Texas and its deep association with hard
country and honky-tonk.
Writing and playing music was a passion that was
passed down in the Davis household. In fact, because
music was always around, Davis hadn’t really thought
about it as a career possibility. He majored in resource
conservation at LSU in Baton Rouge and thought he
would pursue a job that would protect the world’s physical
attributes.
After his graduation from LSU, Jordan got an entry-level
environmental job, but he spent plenty of time dreaming
of Nashville, where his older brother had already moved to
become a songwriter. Jordan periodically sent unfinished
songs to his brother, and when Jacob played one for a
music executive, he urged Jordan to come to Music City.
His decision eventually paid off and after receiving a
publishing deal in June 2015, UMG Nashville announced
on Leap Day 2016 that the company had signed him to
a recording contract. Paul DiGiovanni – a Boys Like Girls
guitarist who’s worked with Blake Shelton, Hunter Hayes
and Dan + Shay – quickly became one of Davis’ regular
co-writers and his producer. “Paul would build a demo and
have it done in a day, and you couldn’t listen to it enough,”
Davis says.
With a creative foot in two places, Davis is well
positioned to make a long-term connection. His songs are
so musically engaging that they easily attract attention.
But they’re also deep enough to hold a listener through
repeated exposure.By melding classic lyric-writing with
modern musical texture, Davis is similarly staking out
his own spot on the creative map. The cool melodies
and understated delivery bring you in. The soul in his
characters keep you in place. In Jordan Davis’ place.
Hit Songs
• “Singles You Up”
• “Slow Dance in a Parking Lot”
• “Take It From Me”
WinstockFestival.com | 25 Years of Country Music
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