On her debut album "Beyond The Bloodhounds," Adia Victoria Paul -- who performs as Adia Victoria -- addresses her complicated relationship to the American South.
The South Carolina native adapts the blues music of that region with a modern spin. Her album references artists like Billie Holiday and Robert Johnson -- for both their music and politics.
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Paul and her band stopped into the CPR Performance Studio before a set at this year's Underground Music Showcase in Denver.
She performed three songs from "Beyond The Bloodhounds" and spoke with Jeremy Petersen about the sociopolitical history of blues music, coming to terms with her Southern upbringing and expressing herself through live performance.
Stream the session above and read interview highlights below.
Paul on her relationship with the American South:
"It's never going to be a completely peaceful relationship. But I think as an artist, for me, it's a gold mine of inspiration just because it facilitates between these extremes for me of adoration and complete hatred."
On her live performances:
"I'm a pretty low-key individual. When I get on the stage it's just a time for me to share a part of myself that most people would never have access to. And I respect that. It's not just about me, it's about the relationship that I'm establishing with the audience.
"I think we enter into a very peculiar agreement, artists and listener, where we get to know each other. It's like a symbiotic relationship. They give me energy and I give it back to them."
Songs performed:
- "Dead Eyes"
- "Mortimer's Blues"
- "Horrible Weather"
"Mortimer's Blues"
"Horrible Weather"
