Tag: jaime wyatt

Vandoliers’ “10 Years of Peers” Playlist

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

If you ever wondered if your fav alternative country/folk-punk/Americana bands were allies, don’t worry, I’ve played with a ton of them and this list is nothing but top-notch punks, sweethearts, and buddies.

These are the songs I’m listening to as we ride around in a little red van across Europe. All of these artists have supported me and the boys through the grind of being a working band and my transition.

You have to give credit where credit is due – influential bands like Old 97’s, Flogging Molly, Mariachi El Bronx, and Lucero are all amazing groups who took us out on big tours and taught us everything we know. I’m also excited to show off some of our comrades the Bridget City Sinners, Skinny Lister, Katacombs, Mya Byrne, Nate Bergman, and old pals Summer Dean and Silverada. I even snuck some rock bands like Toadies, Bowling for Soup, and Frank Turner in there too, because genre is a construct and all of these artists deserve more airtime! – Jenni Rose, Vandoliers

“Big Brown Eyes” – Old 97’s

Old 97’s took Vandoliers under their wing right when we started. They were our main influence, being from Dallas and all. They gave us our first big festival show, our first tours, introduced us to Bloodshot Records, and helped me through my first sober tour. Thank goodness for the Old 97’s, forever grateful.

“What Are You Willing to Lose” – Lucero

So many doors opened for us after Lucero took us on a West Coast tour in 2019. This band consistently shows up, every song is exactly right, the show is organic and cathartic. Thanks to Lucero, we picked up a traveling fan base that sings every word every night.

“The Ol’ Beggars Bush” – Flogging Molly

On the cover of the first “album” I made in 8th grade is a picture of me in a Flogging Molly shirt. We owe so much to the band. After the pandemic, Flogging Molly took us to another level on two nationwide tours and a cruise. Flogging Molly taught all of us what it looks like to be a forever band who stay true to their roots. Can’t wait for the Salty Dog Cruise in October!!

“7 & 7” – Turnpike Troubadours

Another great band who gave us some big breaks. We opened both nights at Cain’s Ballroom when Turnpike reunited. They even had us open at the Ryman. It’s been awesome to see them sell out stadiums lately.

“I Come From the Water” – Toadies

Toadies have been supporting the band for years. Trey and I have personally been playing with them in the DFW music scene for most of our career. Super tight band, supportive in every way, and some of our oldest friends. They just took us on a five-week tour across the US and it was a blast!

“Ohio (Come Back to Texas)” – Bowling For Soup

As I write this we are driving into the UK; in 2023 Bowling for Soup introduced us to their fans across the pond. It was crazy to play the Hammersmith Apollo in London with them. Thanks BFS, we loved playing “Ohio” every night!

“I Still Believe” – Frank Turner

We met Frank on the Flogging Molly cruise and became fast friends while hanging out singing to all our favorite punk bands. Since then, he has always been a text away when I need advice. We are so excited he invited us to play Lost Evenings in Dallas this September.

“Tragedy in a Minor” – Skinny Lister

Skinny Lister are our folky family out of the UK. We met through the Flogging Molly community. Sitting in that sweet spot between folk and punk, we had such a wonderful tour with them across Europe last year! This song will get stuck in your head!

“Wish I Was” – Nate Bergman

Absolute monster singer-songwriter and a great guy to run around the country with. He is engaging, emotional, tough-yet-vulnerable. Total package. If you don’t know Nate yet, you should.

“Break the Chain” – Bridge City Sinners

My new favorite band and people after this European tour (that I am currently on). Libby and the boys instantly gravitated to us, and vice versa, in Spain at the Azkena Rock Festival. Their show is absolutely insane! Folk/punk/metal, I’m in.

“Old Fashioned” – Katacombs

Kat is opening for us in the UK and she is such a powerhouse, even if she doesn’t know it yet. I love her voice, her lyrical choices are perfect, and her musical talent is other worldly. Also a bonus is that she is one of the kindest people I have ever met.

“Revolution Girls” – Mariachi El Bronx

We travelled with the Bronx and Mariachi El Bronx in 2023 and 2024. Incredible humans and undeniably talented and the shows were always wild.

“Dance With Barbara” – Silverada

Our favorite road dogs, Silverada! We have been playing clubs, theaters, and festivals with these boys for a decade. They are some of our best friends and we can’t wait for our run in December! This song makes me dance every time.

“You Ain’t Gotta Die (To Be Dead to Me)” – Kaitlin Butts

She saw right through me from day one! She has always been one of my favorite gals in the Texas scene. Fun fact: I’m wearing Kaitlin’s jacket in the “You Can’t Party With the Lights On” video.

“Neon Cross” – Jaime Wyatt

What an absolute icon. It’s been amazing to watch her grow and glow around this scene over the years. I am constantly in awe of her. She has been such a great person in my corner since coming out, too. This song hit me right between her eyes when it came out. Love ya, Jaime!

“Yes Ma’am, He Found Me in a Honky Tonk” – Summer Dean

Summer Dean shared our van for a couple of dates on an acoustic run. She is a real deal cowgirl and one of my all-time favorite people in this industry. She can do it all. Merch, marketing, socials, drive the van, write a hit, and put on an amazing show. I admire her so much. We had fun playing with her again on the outlaw cruise this past spring.

“Devil In My Ear” – Mya Byrne

She opened for us right before I came out to my band. I loved the Rhinestone Tomboy record so much and I didn’t know how badly I needed to be around a trans person before I came out. Mya has been an amazing friend to me over the last two years and “Devil in My Ear” is a banger.

Photo Credit: Andree Brown

WATCH: Jaime Wyatt, “Althea”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Artist: Jaime Wyatt
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Althea”
Album: Feel Good
Release Date: November 3, 2023
Label: New West Records

In Their Words: “In ‘Althea,’ Robert Hunter suspects betrayal, but perhaps is untrue himself. He references Shakespeare and many suspect he was referring to Jerry [Garcia’s] addiction to heroin, but I personally think it was about his own journey in learning to love.

“Thank you to LA-based director, editor, and animator Tee Vaden for bringing such beautiful images to this song. We compiled tour videos and live performances and meaningful symbols for healing and rebirth, as well as fun Grateful Dead-esque eye candy. I chose to record the Grateful Dead’s ‘Althea,’ as the song is just as true and applicable today as it was at its release in 1980.” – Jaime Wyatt

Photo Credit: Jody Domingue
Video Credit: Tee Vaden

WATCH: Jaime Wyatt Sees a “World Worth Keeping”

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

“We kissed the ring from the billionaire’s sleeve, yeah/
We let ‘em poison the roots/
I’d like my people and yours to see/
All of the earth in its bloom…”

Alt-country singer-songwriter Jaime Wyatt has announced her upcoming album, Feel Good, to be released on November 3 on New West Records, with a fiery lead single, “World Worth Keeping,” and its accompanying video. The track, though overarchingly optimistic and forward-looking, features Wyatt’s booming country croon dripping both with righteous anger and a passionate love for the Earth. The content here is more than apropos for a summer of striking, of record-setting ocean and air temperatures, and of ongoing natural disasters like wildfires, tornadoes, and torrential downpours. Wyatt’s particular brand of queer alt-country is perfectly poised to tackle issues such as these and to offer an imagination of the future that isn’t just despairing and defeatist. Like Iris Dement on “Workin’ on a World,” Wyatt chooses to see a redeemable planet, instead of a lost cause, utilizing hope not as a privileged denial of the stark realities of our everyday, but as a radical act of resistance – resistance queer folks engage in perpetually, within or without hope.

Feel Good was produced by Black Pumas‘ Adrian Quesada and builds on Wyatt’s rhinestoned and glamorous Western-informed Americana sounds, folding in R&B, country soul, and so many more roots influences. There’s a confidence and ease Wyatt continues to grow into following her critically-acclaimed prior albums. “A lot of us grow up feeling like we have to hide who we are just to be accepted, but that comes from a place of fear and judgment,” Wyatt explains via press release. “I wrote these songs as a way of letting go of all that, as permission to feel good.”

Photo Credit: Jody Domingue

The String – Jaime Wyatt and Jesse Daniel

Posted on by Chris Jacobs

The timing was right to split the hour between two exceptional emerging artists making hard country music in the outlaw tradition.


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As you’ll hear, Jesse Daniel and Jaime Wyatt have lived the life, paid the price and processed their pain and redemption in song. Both are products of the West Coast and both have dug deep into their own stories. Many are sizing up Daniel’s ‘Rollin’ On’ and Wyatt’s ‘Neon Cross’ (produced by Shooter Jennings) as among the cream of 2020. These are candid, complimentary conversations.

BGS 5+5: Jaime Wyatt

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Jaime Wyatt
Hometown: Fox Island/Gig Harbor, Washington
Latest Album: Neon Cross
Personal nicknames (or rejected band names): My family and close friends call me James

Which artist has influenced you the most … and how?

Gram Parsons is one of the most influential artists for my life and creativity. I identify deeply with Gram: He was a hippie who was obsessed with country as well as soul and his original music was a perfect blend of genres, incorporating vintage and modern influences. I try not to make a perfectly vintage sounding country song, as I feel like I’d rather listen to the classics than listen to a straight reproduction.

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

I toured with Wheeler Walker Jr. as support and during a set in Los Angeles, a man screamed, “Jaime, I wanna have your baby!”

What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show?

For both pre-show and pre-recording sessions, I do yoga, meditate, go for a jog and do some mat exercises, vocal warm-ups and then crack a Coca-Cola and smoke a cigarette and pace until I hit the stage, or pick up a guitar and pace around with the guitar.

What’s the toughest time you ever had writing a song?

Many many times for many many songs. For me, following the melody is very important and it should lead the lyrics. I write mostly in my head then bring to an instrument, so a lot of songs come to me while I’m sleeping, driving, meditating or walking outside.

“Just a Woman” almost didn’t make the record, because I did not want to risk comprising the potential of that song. I felt I was representing women with that one, which might be a total lie, but I did not want to fail all of womankind, by making the lyrics cheesy. I finished the bridge right before we tracked the song with the band. I heard a major/minor Beatles thing when I woke up that morning and was blessed enough for that melody to return to me while I was outside pacing in the courtyard. Then I finished the second verse maybe one hour before the final recording session.

How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?

I’d say 50 to 60 percent of the time. I’ve done this to hide that I’m gay or that I don’t want anyone I know to know how I feel and I’ve done it to give a wider demographic of people the opportunity to connect to a song.

Photo credit: Magdalena Wosinska

Brooklyn Country Cantina 2019 in Photographs

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

The crowds turned out all day and all night for last Saturday’s Brooklyn Country Cantina at SXSW in Austin, Texas. Amazing music, delicious food, relaxing hangs, beautiful belts, and adorable puppies all came together to make the day a smashing success. Relive BGS’ third year co-presenting the Country Cantina with these FOMO-preventing photographs.

Lede photo by Jaki Levi

LISTEN: Ted Russell Kamp, “Heart Under Pressure”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Ted Russell Kamp
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Song: “Heart Under Pressure”
Album: Walkin’ Shoes
Release Date: March 15, 2019
Label: PoMo Records

In Their Words: “‘Heart Under Pressure’ is an anti-Dear John letter about being there for a friend who is hurting and in need. I read an article about longevity and eating right to have a healthy heart, which got me thinking about the heart literally being a muscle. In music, we often talk about heartbreak as an end-of-the-world kind of feeling and I wanted to write a song about the heart as an actual muscle that can outlast any emotional pain and survive anything we might be going through. I wanted to let the heart and its continual beating be a metaphor for our ability to endure and outlast whatever struggle comes our way.

“I co-wrote this song with an old friend and great singer/songwriter, Mark Webb from Greenville, South Carolina. A few years ago, he originally contacted me and sent me what were the beginnings of a new song of his called ‘Heart Under Pressure.’ I told him about my ‘heart as a muscle’ idea and we then combined them and worked on the lyrics to have them come from the perspective of a friend comforting another friend in need. The world is a pretty overwhelming and confusing place right now and I feel we all need to be reminded that we can make it through the hard times–and that our hearts under pressure really can lead the way and pull us through it all.

“I recorded it at my home studio, The Den, in L.A. with Danny Echevarria (the Countrysiders) on guitar and Aaron Goodrich (Nikki Lane) on drums. Then I played the acoustic guitar, Wurlitzer, Hammond and a little more electric guitar. Then another good friend of mine, Jaime Wyatt, sang harmony on the recording.” — Ted Russell Kamp

Photo Credit: Stacie Huckaba

Gig Bag: Jaime Wyatt

Posted on by Editor

Welcome to Gig Bag, a BGS feature that peeks into the touring essentials of some of our favorite artists. This time around, we look at what Jaime Wyatt has to have handy when she’s out on the road.

Notebook: The road brings me into contact with so many characters and inspiring stories, so when I am a passenger and I have a moment to unwind in the van, I spend a lot of time working out different ideas — lyrical ideas and short stories. 

Silver boots: Thank you, Paul Kaufman, for hooking me up with the best pair of boots I have ever owned. My first pair of non-vintage, custom boots and they’re my pride and joy. They make a pair of jeans and t-shirt feel like a Prada suit. 

Vitamins: Thanks to my NorCal time, I learned about high-quality vitamins when recovering from traveling and physical exhaustion. 

Vintage Western suit: Best score I ever found in Pendleton, Oregon, on tour a couple summers ago. This one started a love affair with vintage Western suits. 

My friend Gloria Noto gave me this amazing palo santo oil from her hand-made line, Noto Botanics, and it’s incredibly soothing, when I’m stressed or need to wind down after a gig. Just rub some on your wrists, inhale a few times and kick back.

Lede photo by Olivia Jaffe. All other photos by Jaime Wyatt.SaveSave