LAJON WITHERSPOON One on One Interview

LAJON WITHERSPOON

SEVENDUST

Amidst the up-rise of the Seattle music scene, Atlanta-based band, SEVENDUST, was born. SEVENDUST were the innovators in the resurgence of heavy metal/ hard rock, in the late 90’s, bringing back heavy riffs, soulful vocals, and multi-harmony compositions. What set’s Lajon Witherspoon apart from other vocalist’s of that time, is the fact that this guy can actually sing! Lajon focused on subjects close to the heart, not the typical depressing lyrics of the time, helping to bring back meaning to something that was once lyrically and musically sacred. SEVENDUST first appeared on the MORTAL COMBAT soundtrack, releasing the single, “My Ruin“, under the name CRAWLSPACE. Shortly after, the group changed their name to SEVENDUST, and released their self titled debut. Continuously releasing a string of hits, including, “Black”, “Too Close To Hate”, “Home”, “Rumble Fish”, “Angel’s Son”, “Enemy”, and so on… the group is still going strong with their most recent release, “Southside Double-Wide Acoustic Live“. Vocally, Lajon has created a rap-rock, throaty and soulfully smooth, trademark sound that has influenced bands such as DISTURBED, GODSMACK, STEREOMUD, LIMP BIZKIT, and LINCOLN PARK. After several months off, SEVENDUST has returned to the road. Lajon was kind enough to take a few minutes out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions. Here’s what the rock innovator, and vocal veteran said:

Jaime: Lajon, how old are you?

Lajon: I’ll be 32 tomorrow. (October 3rd)

Jaime: How old were you when you first started singing?

Lajon: I’ve been singing since I was a baby.

Jaime: So, you’ve pretty much been singing your whole life?

Lajon: Yeah, my dad used to be in a disco-era band. I use to go to rehearsal with him. Music has always been in my life. I’m a big fan of country, rock-n-roll, rhythm and blues… I love everything, as long as you’ve got conviction.

Jaime: Were there any bands or vocalists that inspired you to sing?

Lajon: Stevie Wonder, Thin Lizzy, Black Sabbath, Earth, Wind, & Fire, Michael Jackson, The Jackson Five… Everyone man. All music inspires me.

Jaime: I’m still blown away by your performance tonight. You are a great performer. SEVENDUST haven’t got what they deserve yet.

Lajon: Thank you. Yeah, I feel ripped off. (Ha-ha)!

Jaime: You have been ripped off.

Lajon: But, you know what man, we’ve been blessed.

Jaime: How is your voice holding up tonight? You seem a little tired.

Lajon: Well, you know what, we’ve been off for two months, and we’ve like done four shows in a row. It’s kinda hard, but I’ll get through it, and it’ll be all right.

Jaime: You still sounded excellent. I can just tell by talking to you that you are tired. I wanted to mention what happened tonight. Half way through your 2nd song, the power went out, and was down for at least 20 minutes. What happened?

Lajon: I guess we’re just too powerful. (Ha-ha). I’m not really sure, but after 20 minutes of down time, we were getting a little worried. The fan’s don’t seem to understand sometimes that things like this happen. They get mad at us and sometimes riot. It’s a shame that it happened because you get a groove flowing with the audience, then boom, it’s gone. We had a great group of kids, everything remained calm, and when the power came back, the magic was back!

Jaime: Yeah, the crowd reacted as if nothing had happened.

Lajon: Like I said, we performed for a great group of kids. We apologized and they understood.

Jaime You seem very emotional when you sing.

Lajon: Sometimes I can’t even get through the night. Those songs are real to me. I can tell you this; songs I wrote years ago, seem to pertain to my life now. Even more.

Jaime: With the surge of new bands like LINCOLN PARK, and DISTURBED, don’t you feel like you were the innovator of this type of music? Ones who incorporate rap, and throaty and melodic singing?

Lajon: Bands like GODSMACK and DISTURBED give us much respect. I am very thankful.

Jaime: Well, they should.

Lajon: Man, I say to anyone who is doing it, God Bless. If they feel like we are innovators, that’s an incredible compliment. I’m only doing what I love. I don’t try to be a preacher, but I can only write about shit that is real.

Jaime: So do you play any instruments?

Lajon: I play guitar and bass. I only play for myself. (Ha-ha)

Jaime: Have you had any vocal training?

Lajon: Yeah, but not enough to understand the voice. I trained with a guy named Jim Smith, out of Atlanta. I did a couple of vocal trainings, but I truly feel that it’s in you. I think that we all have a magic voice, we just have to tap into it.

Jaime: I believe you’ve found your magical voice.

Lajon: Thank you.

Jaime: So, do you warm up before a show?

Lajon: Yeah, but I’m going to be warming up to your CD now.

Jaime: Thank you. It’s an honor.

Jaime: With the direction of most heavy bands in the last 10 years, I’m surprised to see that you have remained true to the art of singing. You are an actual singer with an incredible voice. So many bands either had poor vocalists or singers who constantly screamed. How did you keep from following in this direction.

Lajon: When I sing, I sing from the heart. That’s the only thing I know.

Jaime: How do you keep your voice so strong and in such good shape?

Lajon: You know what, praying every night, plenty of rest…

Jaime: Do you drink a lot of water?

Lajon: No, and I smoke a lot, which I know is bad for your voice, but I think it’s all mental.

Jaime: I can agree to a point. I know singers who smoke weed and chain smoke cigarettes and it doesn‘t seem to phase them.. I just couldn’t do it and maintain my voice. Singing is mental, but water is good for your voice.

Jaime: I like the breathy quality you project on songs like “Broken.” It sounds very natural to you. Do you have to push to get that breathiness?

Lajon: Oh no, it’s comes natural.

Jaime: What’s your secret to sustaining long notes?

Lajon: I just feel the note, and go with it. As long as I can feel the note, I can make it last forever.

Jaime: How do you get that throaty sound, like on “Enemy,” without hurting your throat?

Lajon: I don’t really know, but it’s harder to do if I’m tired. It can affect my throat. If I’m tired, I’ll feel it, but, I’ll see you like in a week or so, and it won’t affect me at all. I’ve been off for two months so it’s affecting me now, but other than that, it’s fine.

Jaime: How do you feel your voice has changed or grown since the 1st CD?

Lajon: I feel like I’ve gotten older and better. I feel more learned. I feel that I know how long my voice can hold out. Physically and mentally, everything with this band has changed. We’ve grown up together. Not only have we grown up together, but we’ve grown up with a beautiful nation. Do you know what I mean? Like, people who’ve grown up with us from our first album till now. We’ve all grown up together. It’s weird. It’s like, we are all family. A lot of people, you know what I mean?

Jaime: Yeah, it’s great that you have such a huge fan-base.

Jaime: I think SEVENDUST has matured as a band. You are more into harmonies, which, by the way, were amazing live.

Lajon: Yeah, I really depend on them vocally. Harmonies make great songs.

Jaime: Have you ever lost your voice or had throat trouble?

Lajon: One time, years ago.

Jaime: What happened?

Lajon: I think we did like, twenty shows in a row. We were in New Jersey, and I still did the show, even though my throat was hurting, but other than that, knock on wood, I’ve been blessed.

Jaime: If I’m having a rough time I’ll use Entertainer’s Secret Throat Relief spray, or just inhale water.

Lajon: What I’ll do, is inhale deeply, to keep my throat moist.

Jaime: Why exactly did you change the name from CRAWLSPACE to SEVENDUST?

Lajon: At the time, some guy called us up and said, “That’s my name”, and our album was coming out, so we had to change it, drastically.

Jaime: Is there anything that you’d like to mention that a serious vocalist should refrain from doing to protect their instrument?

Lajon: You know your body. I’m 32 years old. (33 tomorrow) I know what I can do and what I can’t do long. I know I can’t do blow all night long, or smoke and drink all night long. You just know yourself. So learn what works for you and what doesn’t. You are your own instrument. So take care of yourself.

Jaime: What’s your secret to vocal longevity?

Lajon: It’s passion. I love music. I live and breathe it!

Jaime: It seems like you are a band of brothers, because you trade off vocals, and you can depend on them to help you out.

Lajon: Yes, absolutely. We are always there for each other.

Jaime: Do you have any tips or tricks you’d like to share with other singer’s?

Lajon: Talk to yourself at night. I do. I talk to myself and make sure my voice is feeling OK. I’ll do little exercises like “mmmm”…

Jaime: The best thing to do is lip bubbles, like this; “Bbbbbb.”

Lajon: I do that every day.

Jaime: Or you could try one of my exercises which is called the Siren, “aaaAAAAaaaa.”

Lajon: Man, you’ve got a great voice!

Jaime: Thank you.

Jaime: One more question. What sets Lajon apart from all other vocalists?

Lajon: I don’t know. Honestly, I can’t believe that I have the respect of people thinking I’m a vocalist, because, I’m just a country boy.

Jaime: But, you are a great vocalist. It isn’t all about an incredible range. You have a very strong voice, and a great smoky resonance. You have an excellent harmony sense. You write damn good songs.

Lajon: Man, I really appreciate that.

Jaime: Thanks for the interview.

Lajon: No problem. Any friend of Erik Rogers is a friend of mine.

If you’d like to learn more about Lajon Witherspoon and SEVENDUST, check out their OFFICIAL WEBSITE at www.sevendust.com.

Discography

Self Titled Debut - 1997

Home - 1999

Animosity - 2001

Seasons - 2003 - 2001

Southside Double-wide Acoustic Live - 2003

Live & Loud - Home Videos

Retrospective - DVD

Live Again - 2002