Speaking of Soul

The remarkable songwriter/performer Ruthie Foster will be making her way to the Door Community Auditorium on July 22nd as part of their 20th Anniversary Main Stage Season. With two Blues Music Awards under her belt, as well as a Grammy Nomination for her record The Truth According to Ruthie Foster, the artist will once again grace the stages of the United States and beyond with her extraordinary voice and soul-lifting songs. I was lucky enough to chat with Ruthie while she was at home in Austin, Texas, enjoying a rare bit of down time before getting back on the road.

Becky Kaiser (BK):  How did it all start? Did you sing and perform as a child? Were you born to sing the blues, so to speak?

Ruthie Foster (RF):  I grew up listening to the blues. My dad was a huge blues fan. After my parent’s split, my dad would send cassette tapes. He sent everything, from Muddy Waters to early Tina Turner. He loved it, and I did, too.

BK:  What else were you listening to that influenced your sound?

RF:  I had been listening to a lot of blues and gospel, but on top of that was soul. My uncle drove an 18-wheeler and, of course, spent a lot of time on the road, so when he was home he would crash on our couch. But he would leave his growing record collection behind each time. That’s how I started listening to what they call “Old Soul” music, a sort of East Texas/Louisiana sound, like Z.Z. Hill. I just loved it.

BK:  Were you singing then, as a child?

RF:  It’s funny, I really just listened. I had just gotten a guitar, I wasn’t much of a player, but I really connected with the music. Being that young you don’t have much of a story to tell yet. But something in the music moved me.

BK:  So when did you start performing?

RF:  In college. But it was mostly pop music, Top 40 we called it. I was playing guitar and I played piano, so I was using songbooks, playing James Taylor, the Beatles. I learned the blues chords on top of those.

BK:  Nowadays many of your songs are original. Do you have a process for songwriting?

RF:  When time meets energy and will. I’m not always able to get those elements to align, being on the road. Of course, I’m blessed to be able to travel as much as I do, but it doesn’t allow for much free time. So it’s when and where I can. Luckily, I have a lot of wonderful friends who are songwriters and I play a lot of their songs. Eric Bibb, for example, is an amazing singer/songwriter. And, of course, there’s the classics:  Lucinda Williams, Patty Griffin…I could go on forever.

BK:  Is there a song you listen to that consistently gives you the chills?

RF:  I’m so into Adele right now. It’s a gift what she has. She makes it effortless. I’m a big fan of great vocalists. There’s something unique about her voice and she uses it well. India Arie, too. This is a girl that writes daily and has rich and insightful things to say.

BK:  In descriptions of your music I’ve seen everything from country to southern blues to rock to gospel to jazz to soul. How do you describe your music?

RF:  Constantly evolving. I love it all, I really do. And I don’t want to do the same thing over and over again. It’s funny, I won two Blues Music Awards:  one was the Living Blues Award for traditional blues and the other was the Contemporary Blues Award. They’re really two very different awards for two different types of music. I love reggae, too. Any island music, really.

BK:  Is music an emotional release for you? Does touring ever get draining or exhausting?

RF:  It does. But I feed off the energy of the crowd. Each crowd is so different, and the energy of the crowd in front of you is so totally different than the one even 24 hours earlier. So it’s really the crowd. Put your best voice forward is what I say. Sing your song.

BK:  What do you do to prepare yourself for a performance? Do you have any before-show rituals?

RF:  I try to stay quiet usually, rest my voice. I try not to eat a couple hours beforehand. Except in Italy. Italians don’t take “no” for an answer.

BK:  And I can imagine it would be hard to say no to Italian food, too! We’ll keep that in mind for when you’re here. Have you ever been to Door County before?

RF:  I don’t think so, but I’m really looking forward to it. Looking forward to meeting the crowd.

BK:  We’re excited to have you. What else are you excited for? What’s in store for your future?

RF:  Gearing up to release a DVD/CD set which this next tour will promote. It’s a live album, recorded close to home at Antone’s, a great venue in Austin, Texas. I’m also going to back to the studio, hoping to release my next album early next year.

BK:  Last, I know it’s trite, but I can’t resist. You’re album is called The Truth According to Ruthie Foster. So? What is the truth?

RF:  I knew I would run into this after naming the album.

BK:  And?

RF:  The truth is what you make it. You walk your truth.

Photography by Mary Keating Bruton.