In this interview spotlight, I chat with members of Saving Jackie about the latest music, challenges, technology and more.

Full Q&A along with links and music below.

Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)

    Hi. We’d like to first thank you for this Interview. We’re a Rap/Rock Band called Saving Jackie from San Antonio, TX. We currently have 5 members in the band. 4 of us were born and raised in San Antonio, TX. Our rhythm guitarist was born in Kerrville, TX and moved to San Antonio, TX several years ago. The music style we create is pretty intense. We all listen to different genres of music on our own time and when we come together to create as one, you can hear our individual sound. We’ve been categorized as Rap/Rock and have been compared to Rage Against The Machine but, of course, with a Female Vocalist Front Woman. Individually we listen to different music like: Chevelle, Morrisey, Radiohead, Pantera, Slipknot, Classical, Wu-Tang Clan, & Latin Hip-Hop. When we get together to jam, the magic just happens. All the genres we listen to on our own time mesh together to create the Saving Jackie sound. 

What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?

Music has always been a safe outlet for us individually. Three of our current members, Jenny, Anthony and John, were part of a band formerly known as Jackie on Acid. That band was also a rap/rock group, but our lyrics were very dark and full of aggression.  That band played its last gig in 2003 and we all went our own ways, living through life’s struggles and challenges. In early 2019, after experiencing personal victories in our own lives, the three of us decided to form another band but we wanted a more positive and uplifting message in our lyrics.  We wanted to stick with the same rock/rap sound and changed our name to Saving Jackie.  Life isn’t always easy and writing helps with disappointments, frustrations, and celebrates life’s victories. It’s our safe place to create. 

How is this new release different than previous ones? Were you trying to accomplish anything specific?

Our first release was three songs that we felt would give the world a taste of who we are musically.  This 2nd release has even more of our heart and soul in it and is very personal. We really took out all the stops on the Producing and Engineering side on this new EP. We recorded at Stone Creek Sound located in Helotes, TX. They wanted to put a little more time on this project than the first one to make the producing and engineering better than our 1st EP recording. Damien Refuge and Clifton Miles wanted to push this one and take it to another level. We’re looking at completing this mix and mastering by the end of December. We’ll be combining our 1st 3 song EP and our 2nd 4 song EP together to make an LP. We’re excited about it. We can’t wait for others to hear it. 

Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age? How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)?

I remember sending Band Promo Packs by mail back in the day and having a Mailing List for our Shows, having to prep each one individually. Now,  we can send Electronic Press Kits along with our MP3’s and send online invites. Things have become simpler.  But, with COVID, we’ve had to stay relevant through social media by promoting ourselves  virtually.  

Some challenges we’ve had are to stay up to date with our social media pages, staying interactive with the fans daily and finding creative ways to build new fans.  

What was the last song you listened to?

Jenny- Funny thing. I listened to Saving Jackie. I start at the top of our EP with the song My Faith is Larger to My Everything then end with Silence the Storm. I hear alot about Artists not wanting to hear themselves? Well, that’s not me. {laughing} Again, every song takes me back and the lyrics are deep. I enjoy it all. Every experience, including jamming with my bandmates at the Studio. I find joy and peace in creating.

Rick – I’m building a Spotify playlist for my trip out of time.  I have songs from Anberlin and  Shine Down to name a few.

Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?

Jenny – I have some of each. I’d choose MP3s because of its accessibility. I really like Spotify

Rick – I like CD’s because I like to look at the artwork and read the liner notes.And it stems from liking albums when I was a kid.

How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why? 

I prefer Spotify. It’s easy to navigate. It provides many Artists of different genres. It’s easy to make a Playlist.

Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/savingjackie101

   EPK: www.reverbnation.com/facebook 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/242vgZKcxaneOcIrN042Gi

Band website: www.savingjackie.net 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saving_jackie/

Twitter: https://www.instagram.com/saving_jackie/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYIG6ZT5R-00EvFFWaczpnQ

Anything else before we sign off?

We hope to see you at  a Saving Jackie fan.  Little by litty, we are gaining fans in South and Central America and throughout the metal world.  Maybe someday  we can see you at one of our shows.  With our new album, we hope to broaden our fan base and hope to gain some new friends and experiences along the way. 

Keep an eye out for our New EP and our next high intensity show. Hope to talk again soon. Stay safe.