What are you leaving behind in 2022?
Home. We wanna get out on the road more. Introduce our music to new eyes and ears so we can grow. Making noise at home is great but we wanna see the world doing what we love. So we’re hoping to leave home in 2023 and rock new stages all over!
Who is your biggest celebrity crush?
I’m gonna have to go with Mike Campbell, the guitar player for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. He always finds the right melody to glue the song together without being flashy. I think when you can write a part that ignites an emotion yet remains simple, the more potent it is to the listener. He’s the master of that.
Ohhhhhh… you mean of the opposite sex…… 90’s Shania Twain. -Brian
Did you grow up playing game nights, movie nights, Sunday dinner or music in or around your household?
My family would play card/board games and have records on all the time. Songs would get stuck in your head and my dad loved to point out different influences in this or that artist and pick apart the music. Meanwhile, mom kicked our butts at scrabble. Then after the games were finished, my dad and I would go to the basement and pick up instruments and try to play the songs we listened to earlier in the evening. That sort of experience definitely shaped me into the musician I am today. Dad really wanted me to be well versed in many styles and have plenty of ear training to pick stuff out quickly. I wouldn’t trade those days for anything. - Joey
What made you choose the music industry versus a nine to five?
Creativity is not a switch that can be turned off and on. I find that shedding the mental and physical stress has allowed me to stay fully committed to the goals I have set and to fully explore the depth of my musicality. Although it comes with struggles, the personal satisfaction is rewarding enough for me to charge full steam as a performer. - Robby
Describe your fans in one word and explain.
Our fans = supportive. We are truly blessed to have such a supportive fan base who really understands and respects the things we are trying to accomplish. There’s a group of fans that we see at literally EVERY show. I never thought I’d have that happen in my life. I’ve known folks who travel around with a band and follow them to every city, and I always thought to myself, “Do you not get tired of hearing the same songs every night”.
But now I’m in that position, and it’s honestly really fun to see the same people at every show and to feel the immense amount of support and love from them. We’ve met some very kind folks over the past couple of years and those fan to artists relationships have grown to now be friend to friend relationships. It’s very comforting to feel a sense of community when we’re up on stage playing, and we see all of our supportive fans in the crowd dancing and singing along to our songs. - Matt
What's your most quotable lyric?
"Chasing Rainbows that never have gold, I mean this s*!% gets old.”
(insert video of girl screaming lol)
What has been your worst experience in the music industry?
There is one day in particular that comes to mind. It was the hottest day of the year and standing stage left meant I was in the sun during our entire show. When I say it was hot, I’m not talking about your run of the mill Virginia summer day- it was scorching. I’m talking about some dangerous heat. Outside of the fact that I didn’t have any sunscreen, I bent down to change some settings on my pedal board and literally burned my knee on the stage. I couldn’t touch my pedals without burning my hand! (not to mention it was so bright I couldn’t see if any of my pedals were on or off) The rest of the band was in the shade the whole show and I still resent them all very deeply for this. I’ve been pretty fortunate to not have any real terrible experiences with the industry but I’ll never forget the sweet relief of dunking my head into a cooler between sets. -Taylor
Do you think you need more copyrights to your music or should it be free for sampling?
I think in today's world it’s tough to say. You want your music to get out there, you want
people to love it and hear it for the hopes they come to shows, but the merch and become a real fan. Sync licensing allows you to share the music and get paid for it, which is great! There’s so many people making music in this world, standing out often seems to be the higher reward than getting paid for the music itself being played. Of course we would all love some extra cheddar to season our efforts with, that’s a fact. We’re also happy to see folks streaming the music and sharing it with others.
What is missing from the arts in your hometown/city?
Honest love for them, especially music. The town I was raised in really went downhill for live music. They have some street art, which is great and a decent bit of actual art galleries, but the music venues have been crushed down to one (shout-out The Milk Parlor for staying the course). Crazy to know a college town that thrives, and at one time had national touring acts regularly in the 90s, has moved to no house shows, noise ordinances, and impossible permit agreements for outdoor music, stifling the ability for a scene to come up. There’s certainly hope for the future to bring it back, but it takes accepting the love of music all around to make that happen.
What project do you have out right now that potential fans should listen to and where can people connect with you?
Heavy From the Sky - Our sophomore record. We’re beyond proud of the work that went into this recording. Get connected with us on instagram, @thejaredstoutband. We love chatting and getting to know each and everyone of our supporters online and in person. When we were kids and met our icons, we found out quickly that they were just normal human beings trying to share their music. They weren’t entitled snobby rude individuals, they were kind and open individuals. That’s exactly the steps we want to follow and are glad to speak with anyone about most-anything. We just want to pass along a little kindness. -Joey B