Ohio born and raised country artist and producer, Jutt Huffman, has spent a decade in Nashville playing at every honky-tonk you can think of.
Performing over 2,500 shows in his career, his high energy and contagious love of music has established him as a sought-after party starter by sharing shows and stages with Tracy Byrd, Josh Turner, Craig Campbell, Drake White, Craig Morgan, Uncle Kracker, Gavin Degraw, The Band Perry, Ryan Hurd, Brooke Eden, Keb “Mo”, Chris Weaver Band, Joey Degraw and many more!
With a voice that is captivating, a talent that will BLOW YOUR MIND, and an energy that will pep up your spirit, Jutt is an artist you can’t help but love. Whether it’s solo, duo, trio, or full band, do not miss an opportunity to see Jutt Huffman perform live!
Who inspired you to make music?
My dad inspired me to start playing guitar, but my brother, Jeremy, inspired me to start writing songs. Before I bought my first guitar at 13 years old, my dad would play songs on guitar in the evening time. Sometimes he would even have over friends and they would have a jam session while my brother and I would make drums out of anything we could find. After I got comfortable playing guitar my brother, 18 months younger than me, re-wrote “We Didn’t Start The Fire” by Billy Joel. I can’t remember all of the words but I remember it started out “Beanie Babies, Pokemon, Mountain Dew and Enron, Freedom rocks, ankle socks, hundred dollar jeans.” He sang it to the same exact melody of the original song, kind of like a Weird Al version, but wrote about the things that were relevant, in style, or on the tv.
Where have you performed? What is your favourite and least favourite venues? Do you have any upcoming shows?
I have performed all over the country and even a little bit out of the country. When I was living in Nashville I would perform downtown during the weekdays and hit the road on a lot of weekends. In the summer time I’ve been touring up north between Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and looking to further expand those runs. In the wintertime I enjoy the South Florida weather and perform at a bunch of beach bars.
I mostly have been playing cover songs at bars for quite a while but now I am releasing my original music and looking forward to getting out of the bars and doing a lot more festivals and bigger music venues.
So far, my favorite gig has been at The Dallas Bull in Tampa, FL. I opened up solo for Josh Turner and his band. It was a quick half hour set and the crowd’s energy was contagious! I’m so used to performing for three to four hours at a time and keeping high energy for that long can be exhausting. I’m really looking forward to this new chapter of condensing all of my experience and talent into passionate sets of my original music!
Which famous musicians do you admire?
I think it’s really hard to admire someone that you haven’t met personally but I feel like Stevie Ray Vaughan was a pure soul and he is also my most influential guitarist. You can feel his spirit though the way he played his guitar and when you listen carefully you know he is still alive today and will live forever. One of my favorite things about his playing is that no two recordings are the same. He was free styling every time he performed and really pushed his band to follow his lead. Every once in a while, when I’m really getting into it, I can capture the soul and intensity that SRV gave to the world even if it’s only for a moment and it really gets me high!
I know Dave Chappelle is not a musician, but full time comedians and full time musicians have a remarkably similar lifestyle. I admire how Dave Chappelle was able to walk away from his big deal at Comedy Central and then come back bigger than ever and talk about it. Not only is he extremely funny, but the way that he can tell a story and bring people from all sides of the spectrum together is such a gift. I really admire people that are honest and just tell it like it is!
What is next for you?
Well, I just released my newest single, “That Feeling (Freedom)” about working hard, chasing a dream, and the grind of putting everything you got into your goals. It is a heartfelt country production that builds up until my dissonant rock ’n’ roll guitar comes blowing through like an old coal train coming into town. My next single is called, “Hey Hot Mama” and is a fun, upbeat, good vibe, summer country song about seeing the woman of your dreams and persuading her to be with you. It is light-hearted, catchy and will have you wanting to play it again and share with your friends. I’ve been playing this song for a few years at bars and before the end of the song the crowd is singing along with me!
If we were to peek over your shoulder, what does your studio look like? What gear do you typically use?
In my home studio i mostly just make demos and send guitar and vocal tracks. I use an Apollo Twin with Logic and KRK Rokit 5’s. My favorite mics are the SHURE SM7 and the AKG 414. I really want to get a Warm Audio U47 clone next. I think I counted a little over 20 guitars in my studio. My favorite guitars are my Martin 000-18, Taylor 314, a 1987 hendrix cream strat with floyd rose, a 60th anniversary modded mexican strat, a custom brazilian tele my buddy Raul Coutinho gave me, a Gibson Midtown, and my favorite a stratocaster I built myself. I built the strat out of wood from a church I was helping to renovate during the government shutdown. The tornado that came through beat it up pretty bad. The church is 123 years old and located in East Nashville and has been through multiple fires, floods and tornadoes. The wood is called heart pine and became extinct in 1900. I cut all the specs exact to a ’57 stratocaster. It is a mean guitar and is used for most of the tracks that I am releasing this year including “Today We Drink” and “That Feeling (Freedom)” that I have already released.
What is the most useless talent you have?
I’m really good at winning “Monopoly” the board game. You are allowed to barter in that game, right?
What would be the ideal food to have cooked for you on a date night?
A Greek salad, ribeye, boiled salt potatoes, and collard greens. And of course, homemade dessert, a brownie with peanut butter and ice cream and a glass of milk
What would be a good theme song for your life?
“It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ’N’ Roll)” by ACDC
If you could ask your future self-one question, what would it be?
“Was it worth it?” I take a lot of chances and have a high risk lifestyle and I hope that my future self would answer “yes, it was worth it!”
Do you have any lucky items, objects, or traditions?
I’m a minimalist so I don’t care to have a lot of material things except tools for my trade but I have been collecting and wearing earth stones and crystals. My friend “Mama Fish” has been making me a bunch of custom jewelry and everything just feels better when I’m wearing any of it. When I’m on the road I always have my eye out for custom jewelry. Lately I’ve been into Tigers Eye, jasper and olive wood.