The Sit Down with Jake Banfield
Raised on ’80s hair bands, ’90s hip-hop, old-school rap and country music from every era, Jake Banfield grew up with tastes that were never confined to one lane. Hailing from a long line of educators and athletes, with several relatives enshrined in the Oklahoma Coaching Hall of Fame, Banfield initially pursued a basketball career until he suffered a game-ending injury. While rehabilitating away from the court, Jake picked up a guitar at a pawn shop and turned to music as his new escape. Before stepping into the spotlight himself, Banfield carved out an impressive early career writing for major pop names including Madison Beer, Little Mix and Anne-Marie. After moving to Nashville and reconnecting with his roots, he rediscovered his own voice and a renewed love for blending genres with emotion and swagger unlike anything else in country music right now. His runaway hit “Lasso” has earnt him attention across the globe and has taken him to Australia where he is currently touring for the first time and in March will bring him to Europe where he will be performing at C2C: Country to Country in Berlin.
Thanks for taking the time to hang out while you’re down in Australia, I saw from the dates that you’re heading to play in Tamworth.
“Yeah we’ve got Tamworth Tomorrow night and then Brisbane on Sunday.”
Oh, wow, doing a fair bit of travelling down there then.
“Yeah, we're knocking it out quick. I’ve got to head back to the state on Monday as we’ve got shows coming up in the States, so, it's quick, but it's been fun, we've gotten to see quite a bit.”
How have you found it in Australia? A lot of people that I've spoken to who have toured over there have generally just been there to do the really, really big festivals and things rather than some smaller rooms like you have been doing, so what have your thoughts been about the audience and how it compares to playing shows of your own back at home?
“Yeah, it's a great question. it's been super cool and I kind of prefer it that way if I'm being real with you. I like the intimacy of these venues so far then I do a free meet and greet after every show, so I've been able to meet everybody after. The biggest difference I can see right now is there's a true appreciation, like they are very thankful for me coming. If you make the trip and take the time, they really show love to that. I think that's awesome and that's how I want it, like I said, I want to start in smaller venues, make it very intimate and I want to build a die-hard fan base here in Australia then just keep coming back here and hopefully growing. But it's been amazing. It's been a blessing, to be honest with you.”
Have they been trying to get you to do a shoey on stage yet?
“You know what? I've done two. Both shows, they peer pressure and I end up doing it. It's been fun though, I did one out of my boot the first night, then last night I did it out of a fans, so we'll see but it’s you know, when in Rome.”
It always makes me laugh because whenever I’ve spoken to Aussies, they are all like nah, I’m not drinking out of my own boot, but also it’s like how was this not an American thing in colleges in the south.
“One hundred percent, yeah it’s a vibe, the fans love it and it’s an energy moment. There's two more shows, so like, I'm gonna do it, I think it's fun and like when I get back to the States, I'm not gonna do it. I'm gonna keep rocking out, it's fun and yeah, it's a good time.”
Thanks for taking the time to hang out while you’re down in Australia, I saw from the dates that you’re heading to play in Tamworth.
“Yeah we’ve got Tamworth Tomorrow night and then Brisbane on Sunday.”
Oh, wow, doing a fair bit of travelling down there then.
“Yeah, we're knocking it out quick. I’ve got to head back to the state on Monday as we’ve got shows coming up in the States, so, it's quick, but it's been fun, we've gotten to see quite a bit.”
How have you found it in Australia? A lot of people that I've spoken to who have toured over there have generally just been there to do the really, really big festivals and things rather than some smaller rooms like you have been doing, so what have your thoughts been about the audience and how it compares to playing shows of your own back at home?
“Yeah, it's a great question. it's been super cool and I kind of prefer it that way if I'm being real with you. I like the intimacy of these venues so far then I do a free meet and greet after every show, so I've been able to meet everybody after. The biggest difference I can see right now is there's a true appreciation, like they are very thankful for me coming. If you make the trip and take the time, they really show love to that. I think that's awesome and that's how I want it, like I said, I want to start in smaller venues, make it very intimate and I want to build a die-hard fan base here in Australia then just keep coming back here and hopefully growing. But it's been amazing. It's been a blessing, to be honest with you.”
Have they been trying to get you to do a shoey on stage yet?
“You know what? I've done two. Both shows, they peer pressure and I end up doing it. It's been fun though, I did one out of my boot the first night, then last night I did it out of a fans, so we'll see but it’s you know, when in Rome.”
It always makes me laugh because whenever I’ve spoken to Aussies, they are all like nah, I’m not drinking out of my own boot, but also it’s like how was this not an American thing in colleges in the south.
“One hundred percent, yeah it’s a vibe, the fans love it and it’s an energy moment. There's two more shows, so like, I'm gonna do it, I think it's fun and like when I get back to the States, I'm not gonna do it. I'm gonna keep rocking out, it's fun and yeah, it's a good time.”
You've had Bella Mackenzie opening these shows for you and I know you've done a track with her very recently as well. How did you first become aware of her and what's she'd been like as a tour mate along with someone to work with?
“My team had mentioned her at first, then I listened to her music and I just loved her voice, I thought she was really good. She's also younger so she's just gonna keep getting bigger and bigger, I think she's got a ton ahead of her and I think she's exciting. She sent some tracks that we could look at for a duet and I loved ‘Tombstone Desperado’ then we ended up cutting it. It’s been fun to perform live and people already knowing it which has been really cool to be honest.”
You said that you're heading back to the States early next week, but you have some more international travel coming up and you're going to be a lot closer to us in two months' time because we're going to get to see you in Berlin. What have you heard about C2C and what are you looking forward to most about getting over to Germany in March?
“Yeah, I am so excited. Obviously just getting to see more of the world but then getting to go and play music is amazing. I've heard that it's very special, the fans really care, they want to learn the music and they want to have a good time. It's just going to be a new experience that I'm really stoked for and there's so much history. I'm just excited to get out there and play music, it's going to be fun. No matter where you are, it's music still, but it's cool to see the different vibes when it comes to fans, the culture and the food, I'm really pumped for that. I've heard all good things, I have some buddies in Nashville that have played it and said it is amazing.”
I think one of the things that a lot of people pick up about coming to Europe, is that because the consumption and the way that people access music is a bit different, people will have come across you and listen to your stuff where they don't know you through ‘Lasso’. Their ‘Lasso’ is a deep cut or something you kind of haven't even thought about for ages, is that something you've come across in Aus as well?
“Yeah, there's been some you know, like die-hard fans that know every single song and then they'll request other songs that aren't even on the set list where I'm like, wow, that's a deep cut and I've seen that a little bit. There's just a lot of loyalty, you can tell from older songs they know word for word or, I mean, the other way too with knowing new songs. You can tell they’re taking the time, so it's been really cool.”
I mentioned ‘Lasso’ which is the song that the majority of will know of yours, you've obviously kind been involved with some pop cuts and written with a lot of people as well as doing your own thing. In terms of that song, when you wrote that in the room that day, did you know that it was like, we've got one here? Was it one of those songs which was like, yeah, this is going to really go somewhere?
“Yeah, it really did feel like that. It was like a forty minute write or so, it was just flooding out. It felt so good, it felt like me, it felt like the music I grew up on mixed together in this T-Pain country way and I just thought it was dope. When it comes to music, I try not to look too deep into it. Sometimes it's just kind of like would I listen to this? If I didn't know it with my voice, would I vibe with it? That's how I feel about life though so the fact that it connected like it has is really dope, It's been really cool. It's exciting and there’s a lot of new music that's coming too that's got a similar vibe, so I'm pumped.”
“My team had mentioned her at first, then I listened to her music and I just loved her voice, I thought she was really good. She's also younger so she's just gonna keep getting bigger and bigger, I think she's got a ton ahead of her and I think she's exciting. She sent some tracks that we could look at for a duet and I loved ‘Tombstone Desperado’ then we ended up cutting it. It’s been fun to perform live and people already knowing it which has been really cool to be honest.”
You said that you're heading back to the States early next week, but you have some more international travel coming up and you're going to be a lot closer to us in two months' time because we're going to get to see you in Berlin. What have you heard about C2C and what are you looking forward to most about getting over to Germany in March?
“Yeah, I am so excited. Obviously just getting to see more of the world but then getting to go and play music is amazing. I've heard that it's very special, the fans really care, they want to learn the music and they want to have a good time. It's just going to be a new experience that I'm really stoked for and there's so much history. I'm just excited to get out there and play music, it's going to be fun. No matter where you are, it's music still, but it's cool to see the different vibes when it comes to fans, the culture and the food, I'm really pumped for that. I've heard all good things, I have some buddies in Nashville that have played it and said it is amazing.”
I think one of the things that a lot of people pick up about coming to Europe, is that because the consumption and the way that people access music is a bit different, people will have come across you and listen to your stuff where they don't know you through ‘Lasso’. Their ‘Lasso’ is a deep cut or something you kind of haven't even thought about for ages, is that something you've come across in Aus as well?
“Yeah, there's been some you know, like die-hard fans that know every single song and then they'll request other songs that aren't even on the set list where I'm like, wow, that's a deep cut and I've seen that a little bit. There's just a lot of loyalty, you can tell from older songs they know word for word or, I mean, the other way too with knowing new songs. You can tell they’re taking the time, so it's been really cool.”
I mentioned ‘Lasso’ which is the song that the majority of will know of yours, you've obviously kind been involved with some pop cuts and written with a lot of people as well as doing your own thing. In terms of that song, when you wrote that in the room that day, did you know that it was like, we've got one here? Was it one of those songs which was like, yeah, this is going to really go somewhere?
“Yeah, it really did feel like that. It was like a forty minute write or so, it was just flooding out. It felt so good, it felt like me, it felt like the music I grew up on mixed together in this T-Pain country way and I just thought it was dope. When it comes to music, I try not to look too deep into it. Sometimes it's just kind of like would I listen to this? If I didn't know it with my voice, would I vibe with it? That's how I feel about life though so the fact that it connected like it has is really dope, It's been really cool. It's exciting and there’s a lot of new music that's coming too that's got a similar vibe, so I'm pumped.”
We had your first album ‘Open Bars’ come out last year but obviously, we all know the fact that by the time you put it out, there's songs you'd written and recorded quite a long time before that. As an artist, you're already a step ahead because you're already thinking about what's next, even though the cycle is where you're just only pushing ‘Sunburn’ as like the second or third single off the record.
“It’s just staying prepared. I write a lot and I think it's really important to just keep having good music but don't force it. I don't force it, if I don't feel like writing, then I'm not going to write, you know, because I want this stuff to be high quality. It’s been really cool to get in the room in Nashville, I moved there three years ago and stack up these songs. But yeah, you're right, once we got the album out, it was like, okay, what have we got next? Do we feel good or what do we need? We're just trying to stay a play ahead is what I would say and that's what we do.”
Do you find the process of writing and working on songs in Nashville is massively different to how things are in LA and pop world?
“I would say so. There are similarities, but it's definitely different. Nashville, in my opinion, just the songwriting ability, like every word, every line and the emotion is really behind it in trying to find the best words to write the best song, you know what I'm saying? LA has really cool pockets too, like, melodically and beat wise, they both have their pro’s but Nashville definitely has a different, I would say, appreciation for the storytelling vibe in the countryside.”
What became the real attraction in terms of your style and musical sound to want to kind of come and put yourself into that country music type box era. What was the real appeal for you?
“Growing up, I grew up in a town of nineteen people in the middle of nowhere in Oklahoma so I always had the inspiration as country was always in my life and it was always on the radio. I grew up listening to it, but I also grew up in a gym. I was an athlete so I listened to a lot of hip-hop music and a lot of upbeat rock music. When I got injured in basketball and just kind of fell into music, I was like, let me just do what I listened to and that was kind of the vibe. At first it was like an alternative vibe, then mixing in some hip-hop and then mixing in some country where it was finally like country feels the best and country also has the most longevity where you just keep building that sound and building the stories. I just feel like in the country space, you can really grow with an artist, see them grow as a person and if they have a family or when they do this and this so that must have got to me but not forgetting the hip-hop lane that I love and all that.”
You mentioned basketball being your other love, was it almost like a Troy Bolton in High School Musical situation where you were battling between basketball and secretly wanting to make music?
“Ha-ha, it’s actually funny, I never thought I would be doing music, I really did not. I am not as good looking as Zac Efron, you know, I wish, but I really did not think this was going to be my career. I loved music and I loved listening to it but it kind of just happened, you know? I fell into it during quarantine and it's been awesome.”
Going back to the different ways of working on things, I know that when people read your bio, the track that you were involved in which will stand out is the one which Anne-Marie put out with Little Mix. That obviously has quite a number of writers in the credits and I don’t imagine you were all in the room together at the same time so, was that a very different process and were you specifically working on something for Anne-Marie or was it just kind of a lot of things came together, Little Mix got involved and that's what came out?
“We were in LA and that 'Uh Oooh' song had already been big in the 2000s for Lumidee. Those writers automatically go on there, but me, Pete Nappi and Taylor Upsahl started writing and it was not in that direction. I mean, it wasn't like for them though, we just knew it was like a pop girl smash and we were just trying to write a smash that went down the pop road. I just remember they were pitching it out and I believe it was Anne-Marie first, that was like, I wanna do that and then we got word that Little Mix wanted to get on. I think it was that way round anyway. It was like this is legit, they're legends so it ended up working out like that and it was really cool. We wrote that one in LA, actually we wrote it via Zoom, then we ended up getting the new music Friday cover and we were in LA so we went had some drinks and just celebrated. It was fun, that was a really cool moment.”
In terms of collaborations, on the record, you have got the track with RaeLynn, who I got to speak with for the first time just before Christmas, she's a lot of fun and has a great energy. With ‘Still Feels The Same’ did you always see that as a duet when you wrote and how did she end up getting involved?
“It’s just staying prepared. I write a lot and I think it's really important to just keep having good music but don't force it. I don't force it, if I don't feel like writing, then I'm not going to write, you know, because I want this stuff to be high quality. It’s been really cool to get in the room in Nashville, I moved there three years ago and stack up these songs. But yeah, you're right, once we got the album out, it was like, okay, what have we got next? Do we feel good or what do we need? We're just trying to stay a play ahead is what I would say and that's what we do.”
Do you find the process of writing and working on songs in Nashville is massively different to how things are in LA and pop world?
“I would say so. There are similarities, but it's definitely different. Nashville, in my opinion, just the songwriting ability, like every word, every line and the emotion is really behind it in trying to find the best words to write the best song, you know what I'm saying? LA has really cool pockets too, like, melodically and beat wise, they both have their pro’s but Nashville definitely has a different, I would say, appreciation for the storytelling vibe in the countryside.”
What became the real attraction in terms of your style and musical sound to want to kind of come and put yourself into that country music type box era. What was the real appeal for you?
“Growing up, I grew up in a town of nineteen people in the middle of nowhere in Oklahoma so I always had the inspiration as country was always in my life and it was always on the radio. I grew up listening to it, but I also grew up in a gym. I was an athlete so I listened to a lot of hip-hop music and a lot of upbeat rock music. When I got injured in basketball and just kind of fell into music, I was like, let me just do what I listened to and that was kind of the vibe. At first it was like an alternative vibe, then mixing in some hip-hop and then mixing in some country where it was finally like country feels the best and country also has the most longevity where you just keep building that sound and building the stories. I just feel like in the country space, you can really grow with an artist, see them grow as a person and if they have a family or when they do this and this so that must have got to me but not forgetting the hip-hop lane that I love and all that.”
You mentioned basketball being your other love, was it almost like a Troy Bolton in High School Musical situation where you were battling between basketball and secretly wanting to make music?
“Ha-ha, it’s actually funny, I never thought I would be doing music, I really did not. I am not as good looking as Zac Efron, you know, I wish, but I really did not think this was going to be my career. I loved music and I loved listening to it but it kind of just happened, you know? I fell into it during quarantine and it's been awesome.”
Going back to the different ways of working on things, I know that when people read your bio, the track that you were involved in which will stand out is the one which Anne-Marie put out with Little Mix. That obviously has quite a number of writers in the credits and I don’t imagine you were all in the room together at the same time so, was that a very different process and were you specifically working on something for Anne-Marie or was it just kind of a lot of things came together, Little Mix got involved and that's what came out?
“We were in LA and that 'Uh Oooh' song had already been big in the 2000s for Lumidee. Those writers automatically go on there, but me, Pete Nappi and Taylor Upsahl started writing and it was not in that direction. I mean, it wasn't like for them though, we just knew it was like a pop girl smash and we were just trying to write a smash that went down the pop road. I just remember they were pitching it out and I believe it was Anne-Marie first, that was like, I wanna do that and then we got word that Little Mix wanted to get on. I think it was that way round anyway. It was like this is legit, they're legends so it ended up working out like that and it was really cool. We wrote that one in LA, actually we wrote it via Zoom, then we ended up getting the new music Friday cover and we were in LA so we went had some drinks and just celebrated. It was fun, that was a really cool moment.”
In terms of collaborations, on the record, you have got the track with RaeLynn, who I got to speak with for the first time just before Christmas, she's a lot of fun and has a great energy. With ‘Still Feels The Same’ did you always see that as a duet when you wrote and how did she end up getting involved?
“We always thought it was gonna be a duet. We wrote the second verse at first and we were just like, let's write it as if a girl wants to get on it, if she wants to change the lyrics, go ahead, but let's write it like that. RaeLynn always stuck out, when I grew up as I was in high school and in college, I listened to her voice and I though her voice was so dope. I love her twang and where she's at, just her voice, I think it sits in a really cool pocket so I thought it would make a lot of sense on that and it did. She crushed it, she took it to another level and the song has a deep emotion to it, so I always loved her songs like that and she crushed, she's amazing.”
Then with Tamworth, you've got your show but are you hoping to kind of get around and see what else is going on?
“Yeah, we're gonna head up tonight, we’ll get there a little late, but we're gonna get to see a little bit, but definitely tomorrow. We don't play till 9:30 p.m., so we’ve got all day. I'm gonna be hanging around and I just want to say what’s up to everybody, you know, try to meet the most people as I can and then we head off to Brisbane. I'm going to really try to enjoy tomorrow and I heard it's hot, so I’ll drink a lot of water and just try to connect while I'm out here.”
Well, when we'll see you, it won't be as warm as it is there but it’s a great vibe in Germany and we’re really looking forward to it.
“I'm super stoked for that. Yeah, I's going to be a lot of fun.”
Jake Banfield will be appearing at C2C: Country to Country in Berlin over the weekend of March 6th to March 8th where you can further details on the festival WEBSITE or on INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK. Jake’s debut album “Open Bars” is out now and is available HERE plus to keep up to date with all that he is up to, you can follow him socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK & FACEBOOK.
Then with Tamworth, you've got your show but are you hoping to kind of get around and see what else is going on?
“Yeah, we're gonna head up tonight, we’ll get there a little late, but we're gonna get to see a little bit, but definitely tomorrow. We don't play till 9:30 p.m., so we’ve got all day. I'm gonna be hanging around and I just want to say what’s up to everybody, you know, try to meet the most people as I can and then we head off to Brisbane. I'm going to really try to enjoy tomorrow and I heard it's hot, so I’ll drink a lot of water and just try to connect while I'm out here.”
Well, when we'll see you, it won't be as warm as it is there but it’s a great vibe in Germany and we’re really looking forward to it.
“I'm super stoked for that. Yeah, I's going to be a lot of fun.”
Jake Banfield will be appearing at C2C: Country to Country in Berlin over the weekend of March 6th to March 8th where you can further details on the festival WEBSITE or on INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK. Jake’s debut album “Open Bars” is out now and is available HERE plus to keep up to date with all that he is up to, you can follow him socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK & FACEBOOK.
