‘5 Questions With’: Dakota Jones

Read the full interview below…

EQ: How did you all meet and eventually form Dakota Jones?

DJ: I’ve known our drummer, Steve, since 1999 actually, we were in elementary school together. In 2016, Steve and our former guitarist started jamming for fun. They asked me to come around and sing with them some time, and I said absolutely not. I was terrified of singing in public, even just in front of the two of them. Eventually, Steve convinced me to come along, and we would just play covers of songs. It was a nerve wracking process for me, but I kept showing up. Scott, our bassist, was a friend of our guitarist and was pulled in to round out the sound and make a proper four piece. One day, just messing around, we ended up writing a song, a song called “Leave Me Alone” from our first EP. We knew pretty immediately after that that this was what we should be doing, and we haven’t stopped since.

EQ: Tristan, I like your honest and unapologetic songwriting. What is your creative process when writing your lyrics?

DJ: Thank you so much! My process is a fickle one. Or rather, my muse is pretty fickle. I write alone, partly because the songs are so personal to me, but also because I’m usually alone when the thoughts come to me. On a bus or train, sitting alone in a room, walking down the street. I never sit down with the intention of writing, I just get hit with something and I have to follow it. Usually the songs come to me in one whole piece, melody included. So I never spend more than 5-10 minutes writing a song. If I have to toil over the lyrics, it just doesn’t feel genuine. So it’s great to have a song done in 5 minutes, but the flip side of that is that I can’t control when the muse comes.

“’Black Light’ is my story. The pain of where I’ve been, and the joy of where I’m going“

EQ: So tell us about your album! Will it have the same vibes as the first single ‘I Did It To Myself’ ? How long was it in the making?

DJ: We definitely bring a lot of funk on ‘Black Light’, and ‘I Did It To Myself’ gets the whole vibe kicked off. It feels like this album has been in the making since our first EP, you can look back to our old music and track our growth, both personally and musically. Black Light really dives into a place of funk soul and everything that comes with it. There’s joy and dancing, sleek guitar licks and funky bass slaps. There’s pain and longing, and there’s the feeling of relief when you come out of that place and find your joy and purpose again. ‘Black Light’ is my story. The pain of where I’ve been, and the joy of where I’m going. We were honored to have some incredible musicians join us on this record, Randy Jacobs and Michael Toles on guitar, Jon Gilutin on keys, Kudisan Kai on backing vocals. These are powerhouses that have worked with everyone and their mother, and I can’t believe we got to collaborate. Black Light is a celebration of every side of life. There was such joy and love in the room while we were making this record, and I think you can feel it all when you listen.

EQ: What do you want your listeners to take away from your music?

DJ: I want people to remember that real music still exists. That people are still out here telling real stories, and trying to make you feel something. That there’s joy in pain and pain in joy, and that music is still the ultimate way to experience all of life’s emotions.

EQ: Finally, what else have you got planned this year – any performances planned ? (considering we’re allowed)

DJ: We have a few more music videos in the pipeline to support the new album, which I’m so excited about. We’re also so thrilled and grateful to be able to get out and perform again! We’ve got a few shows planned in New York this summer. Then we plan to make our way over to the UK this fall to play some shows in and around London – that’s what we’re looking forward to most of all.

Listen to her new album ‘Black Light’ below…