Great Scott
OKC-based singer-songwriter Jason Scott talks about his multiple music pursuits and the road to his debut recording “Living Rooms” in advance of his Friday vinyl release party. Nathan Poppe shares the interview.
When couples need a love song for their wedding, they talk to Jason Scott.
He offers what he calls tailored tunes.
“They give us a background story, and we write a custom song,” the Midwest City-native told The
Oklahoman in a December interview. “I’ve been writing love songs for a while. They just come easy to me for some reason.”
For the Oklahoma City-based singer and multi-instrumentalist, music means business. He’s been co-running the wedding performance crew String and Sound for a handful of years, and it’s made nuptials a fulltime gig. When Scott, 33, approached the subject of writing aboutmatters of his own heart — it was simple.
“My wife and I have been married for almost nine years,” he said. “She’s been putting up with my music for a long time. I felt like I owed her one.”
Her song’s called “She Good to Me,” a standout on his new record “Living Rooms,” a five-song collection he’s been quietly celebrating for the past couple of months with a series of intimate release shows. His debut album is a product of the clash between comfort and unease. It’s a line Scott’s been crossing for much of his life.
The Okie had a strict Pentecostal upbringing where popular music and movies were only digested in brief moments — like when he visited his grandfather’s house and bingewatched Jackie Chan movies. The former worship minister said he’s constantly playing catch up with secular entertainment.
And for the past several years, Scott’s cut his teeth at bars and weddings, switching between delivering his originals and whatever covers get requested— yep, even if it’s “What Does the Fox Say?”
“At weddings, you’re there as another vendor and there’s little recognition for my art because I’m not there to be an artist,” he said. “I’m a soundtrack. When I get to play my own music, I’d much rather play in a listening room than a bar because a lot of times it’s the same as a wedding.”
People generally want two things from a wedding performer: a quick path to an open bar and familiar songs. It’s not always fulfilling, but Scott’s watched weddings carry artists out of their comfort zones, turning solid songwriters into stronger performers. JJ’s Alley in Bricktown — and the free drink tickets that calm the nerves — has also been a big influence on Scott. “Playing there was the best thing I could’ve ever done in my life because they suck people in with support,” he said. “They give you a place to f—- up, and it’s where a lot of the songs on ‘Living Rooms’ were tested for the first time. It was hella intimidating.
“You don’t know if you’re really good at something or have a talent until you really feel it in front of people. … All that’s been a process. I’ve had a massive year of growth as a musician and as someone who’s finally decided that I have something to say and I’m gonna say it, regardless.”
Old songs are new again
Scott’s strength also comes from how he diversifies his music pursuit. He runs his own studio, has plans to engineer Okie artist Carter Sampson’s next album and is ready to record another solo record on a recently secured 8-track tape machine.
But for now, Scott’s on a trail of release shows, which are often times set inside the record’s cozy namesake or a listeningroom environment.
He’s sharing old songs made new again. Album tracks like “Fly Away” and “Fire Shutup in my Bones” have been rattling around for years.
“There’s definitely a weight that lifts off your shoulders after you finally get your first record done,” he said. “You also learn so much that it encourages you for the next one.”
For the initial outing, Scott didn’t need to look hard for help. He donated to his former ACM@UCO songwriting professor’s Kickstarter campaign and secured himself a collaborator.
Tulsa’s Travis Linville teamed up with Scott betweentour dates over the course of 2017.
“I still felt like a student, that’s for sure,” Scott said. “He directed me in a lessis-more way. He’s like that in class, too. He’s laid back. He’s quick with a suggestion, which makes him a great producer … and he’s not afraid to say what needs to be said in the moment.”
After all, there’s more than one way to write song. That’s a Linville lesson, and it shows on “Living Rooms.” The title track exhibits one of the many moods on the short record, and it flexes Scott’s darker side.
One day, he was watching his young boys playing in the living room and started eyeing family photos on the wall and the knickknacks collected on shelves. In a way, everyone in the room was inching closer to death, and those possessions were going to outlive his family, Scott said. “That sparked the song, and shifted it into my perspective, which is a ghost watching myself get older in the living room,” he said. “It’s basically morbid as hell.”
The distance between comfort andunease doesn’t have an exact recipe, but Scott’s an interesting cook and one worth keeping an eye on.