If you haven’t heard of Jillette Johnson, you will. The California-born, New York-raised 24-year-old artist is promoting her debut album “Water in a Whale.” I chatted with the soulful piano-playing Johnson about her musical influences and living out her dream.
How did you come up with the name for your album?
I wrote a song at the end of making my album called “True North,” which actually closes the album. And there’s a line in “True North” — essentially the first verse is, “The enemy is in my mind but the little bellyaches give it life. If I could be inside my body while I move my mouth, then I could better swallow when I fail, and it would only be like water in a whale. I could really sing to the ocean with the mighty sound.”
So, in the context of the song, it’s about coping with failure and how to use it as a compass to find your way back to your safe place that you can control. It’s also about my voice in the world and my journey in being an artist and singing to people every night.
Your voice is really angelic and it’s so powerful. What inspires you and your sound?
It’s kind of like therapy for me…it doesn’t really go through my right brain; it’s really a left brain thing. It’s more of just when I feel like opening my mouth and making sound, I do and it’s usually reflecting what I feel.
How did you know music was something you wanted to pursue as a profession, as opposed to a hobby?
I’ve always wanted to be a professional musician. I can’t remember one moment where I thought I would be anything else.
Is there anyone you look up to professionally?
I grew up listening to Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Alanis Morissette and a lot of really powerhouse women, as well as fantastic songwriting men like Paul Simon and Bob Dylan. It’s difficult to emulate the careers of those artists because I’m in such a different world now. The music industry’s changed a lot, but the integrity of what they do and the songs that they wrote are always inspiring to me.
Is there a song on this album that’s the most personal or was the hardest to write?
Actually, “Butterfly Catcher” was the hardest song for me to write because I don’t usually write songs in the moment that have to do exactly with what’s going on in my life. It’s usually reflecting back on something that happened a little while ago and I’ve been able to heal a little bit. “Butterfly Catcher” was in the moment of breaking up with someone, so it was one of those you sort of cry through when you write.
I saw you perform on “Rachael Ray.” What was that experience like?
It was really cool. I taped “Rachael Ray” and that was my first national experience. And then I was on VH1 [on “Big Morning Buzz”], which was live, and then “Rachael Ray” aired. “Rachael Ray” was really my first taste of kind of the big leagues, and it was amazing. Everyone there were so kind to me and it was exciting.
What’s next for you? What’s your goal? What do you hope to achieve?
I’m going to stay on the road and try to bring “Water in a Whale” to every home in America and then eventually make a second record. Just continue to build my presence in the world as an artist.
To find out more about Johnson, check out jillettejohnson.com/home and facebook.com/jillettejohnson.
Check out some of my favorite tracks on the record:
“Torpedo”
“Cameron”
“Flood the Ocean”
“Last Bus Out”
“Pauvre Coeur”
“Heathen”
