Interview: Ida Mae

Over the course of 13 impressive tracks, married duo Stephanie Jean and Chris Turpin explore a range of acoustic and electric folk rock sounds on their band Ida Mae’s debut album Chasing Lights. The results have appealed to the ears of acts as eclectic as Greta Van Fleet, Blackberry Smoke, The Marcus King Band, and The Lone Bellow, each of whom have recruited the group as an opening act.

Prior to warming up the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium crowd for Rodrigo y Gabriela on Tuesday, Dec. 3, the native Brits collectively corresponded with Asheville Stages via email to discuss gutsy career moves, living in Music City, and oscillating between support and headlining.

Edwin Arnaudin: What’s your history with Asheville? If it’s your first time here, what have you heard about our fair city from fellow musicians and/or friends?

Ida Mae: We have visited Asheville twice before when passing through, but this will be the first show we have played. The town has such a great atmosphere and reminds us a little of Brighton back in the UK. A lot of musician friends speak so highly of Asheville, and obviously the countryside surrounding the town is breathtaking. The music and arts scene seems so strong there, we’re sure the show is going to be a fantastic one.

EA: I’m impressed by your gamble at the start of making what would become Chasing Lights to land a record deal within six months. What do you consider the turning point in achieving that goal? And what do you think you’d be doing if you hadn’t been signed by that deadline?

IM: It was certainly a risk. We had just enough money for six months and had been through a few stressful legal and contractual complications with our old band [Kill It Kid] at the time. We felt it was important to set ourselves a real goal in terms of writing and recording as much as we could in the that time period.

Setting ourselves a deadline really motivated us to work as hard as we could on our singing and writing. I think it can be easy to get distracted and weighed down by a lot of the industry side of being a musician, and that can be so unproductive. We decided the best way to deal with everything was just to work harder!

EA: How long have you lived in Nashville? How did you decide to move there and what about it has surprised you the most thus far?

IM: We have been there just over a year now and we love it. Although we’ve been on the road most of the year, it’s been lovely to have a firm base here in the States with a good solid group of friends and fellow musicians around. It surprised us how many people we already knew, actually, and that you can’t go anywhere without seeing someone you know! 

EA: I’m curious about how you approach the setlists for your recent headlining shows versus ones where you’re an opening act. Are there certain “core” songs that you strive to include in each opportunity? And what risks/experiments do you take with the different set lengths?

IM: We are very flexible with our sets. We only have one record out, so for the headline shows we just play everything we have! The support shows, we adapt from show to show. It often depends on who we are opening for, whether or not it’s a rowdy crowd or an intimate venue, and so forth. We are so lucky that as a duo we can really just change things on the fly! If the crowd is pin-drop silent, we can play more of the softer ballads and vice versa. 

EA: Who’s in the band you’re bringing with you for the Asheville show?

IM: We don’t have a band as yet! Just us, the guitars, and a tambourine!

EA: When you reflect on 2019, what events or moments stand out to you the most?

IM: There have been so many. We’ve been able to travel across over 41 States now, so seeing so much of this country has been incredible. We are so proud to have grown a small but passionate fan base of our own already.

We were also lucky enough to open a few shows for Willie Nelson and Allison Krauss, which was obviously an unforgettable experience and one we will cherish forever. 

EA: After such a full 2019, what are your professional (and personal) hopes and dreams for 2020?

IM: We just hope to keep touring and growing our own fan base. We’d love to start tracking some new material later next year too. And maybe sleep a bit at Christmas!

IF YOU GO

Who: Ida Mae and Rodrigo y Gabriela
When: Tuesday, Dec. 3, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, 87 Haywood St., uscellularcenterasheville.com
Tickets: $30-55

(Photos by Dean Chalkley)