You have an amazing and clear voice. Did you grow up in a musically family or how did you get into music?
Jordan: Thank you very much – Well, my mother likes to tell people that I could sing before I could actually talk, but my family was definitely musical, I used to watch her sing in church, wishing I could do the same thing. She’d also play gospel music from my country (Congo DR) at home all the time, as well as more contemporary artists that she liked such as Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, the very big soulful voices, so music has constantly been around me from a very young age. I guess you could say I was a musician before I even realised I was.
I really like your song ‚Yours to keep‘. When you create music, what comes first – lyrics or melody?
Jordan: It tends to be a combination of both, depending on whether I’m writing on my own, or with another person. When I’m on my own, I’ll start to sing a lyric, write it down, and if I can find a guitar part that fits around it, I’ll try and mimic that particular melody elsewhere. Or it could be a case of me, singing a small idea into my voice recorder, trying out various melodies of things of how I’d like the verses and choruses to sound, and then trying to fit lyrics around the parts that I liked.
You will do a headline tour in the UK. What is the best part of touring? And what are you the most excited about?
Jordan: The best part of touring, is how you can never predict beforehand how the gig is going to go, because you’re playing to a new audience in a different city and they’re going to be different each night. You might play to a timid, shy crowd who listen & observe very intensely to you, which is lovely, or there’s potential for you to play to a very rowdy crowd, who sing every word with you from start to finish, which is nice too. It always varies, but getting to play to any crowd who want to listen to me is a blessing, so I aim to play the best show I can each night. I’m most excited about showing off the new music from the second EP that’s coming out in May, I’ve been itching for people to hear it, and so I’m looking forward to seeing how people react to it. It’s kind of different to the first EP (‚Physics‘) but still very much the style of music that I make, that folk driven guitar with a soulful voice over the top, that my audience have become accustom to over the past two years – I’m just hoping people like it, so I’m keen to get out there and show it off.
Your songs can be very dreamy but also full of power, what do you think, is the suggested mood to listen to your music?
Jordan: (laughs) I don’t have a suggested mood or emotion for my music to be honest with you, I think if you have three minutes spare in your day or you’re commuting home, you could play my music or if you want to listen to something chill without feeling drowned out by heavy drum & bass drops, then you could listen to my music too, it’s all personal to the listener so I would never impose a time of day or setting for someone to listen to it.
You already released two EP’s. Will there be an album soon and what can we expect?
Jordan: I hope there will be an album soon! I don’t know, you’ll have to tell me if you hear anything! (laughs) Eventually there will be album at some point, but I wouldn’t be able to tell you what to expect just yet, because any ideas I may have, could change from now, until the day it’s actually finished and I need to be willing to go with those changes, whatever they might be and experiment with different sounds to see what comes of it, rather than be stuck in certain mind frame of: ‚It has to be like this or else it’s gonna sound bad, this sound has to come here‘ etc. I need to be open minded; otherwise I’ll make something that I won’t be happy with. I want to make an album that leaves me with no regrets, about the decisions I made or didn’t make, so I have to be honest about it from the beginning.
Who ist your favourite musician?
Jordan: This is a very difficult choice as I have many, but I think it’s gotta be Michael Jackson, I didn’t realise how much of a part his music has played in my life, even in the little ways I hum melodies or dissect songs in my head.
Instrument, you love the most?
Jordan: Even though I play the guitar on stage, my favourite instrument is the piano, I think it’s so versatile and can evoke so many different emotions to suit your mood.
Which country would you like to visit?
Jordan: At the moment, it’s Egypt, I’m a huge fan of Egyptian history so I need to see the pyramids, tombs and just embrace that culture for a while. I would love to tour the U.S in an old school camper van though.
Any musician you would like to collaborate with?
Jordan: So many! Tom Misch and Laura Marling are two of my favourite artists at the moment, but I think my dream collaboration would be music producer Rick Rubin; I need his words of wisdom in my life for sure.
Do you prefer festivals or concerts?
Jordan: I’d say festivals, the vibe is so much cooler, everyone just wants to have a good time and dance, the atmosphere around you is always up and friendly.
Interview conducted by Julia
If you want to listen to his beautiful music, check out his Soundcloud profile: