Stacey Jackson is a mother of four, a singer/songwriter, an entrepreneur, and a TV presenter. After starting her music career at age 40, she shot to fame and became an inspiration for stay-at-home mothers. Following the success of her debut single on the charts, Stacey has since released four albums and more than a dozen singles. She also collaborated with legendary rapper Snoop Dogg on the track “Live It Up,” which is now set to be released in June 2021 after being rebooted and remixed. Additionally, she has collaborated with well-known dance music producers and remixers like C-Rod and Dave Audé as well as Papa Levi. She has performed all over the world, on parade floats and in stadiums, always donning her signature high heels and hot-pants. “Stacey Jackson In The 80s,” Stacey’s weekly music program, debuted in June on Spotlight TV, which is available on SKY channel 500 and other satellite providers. The book “How Snoop Dogg Made Me A Better Mom” by Stacey will soon be available.
What better way to relive that unforgettable 1980s feeling than to have it literally reawaken in our ears while also giving it a modern twist. The most recent single from Stacey Jackson accomplishes this.
a cover of the British-American rock band Foreigner’s 1981 single “Urgent,” which reached No. 1 in over 100 countries. Through the retrofitting of a ’80s classic into a contemporary dance hit, Jackson has produced a song that bends time itself. Check out the single and the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how you got started?
STACEY JACKSON: I was born in Montreal, Canada then moved to New York after university. I got married to my American husband and had two of my four kids there. Then I moved to London and have been living here for over 22 years. I took 15 years off to raise my family. And throughout the years, even though I was always singing in bands, I couldn’t focus on it being my main vocation. But after I had my fourth kid I had this epiphany that I didn’t want to be in my 70s or 80s and look back and think “I should have, I could have…“ It was my dream to record an album so just before I turned 40, I aligned myself with a charity based in the UK called Music For Youth. They provide festival platforms all over the country for kids to perform. But I thought: “Hey, wouldn’t it be a good idea to get some of these incredibly talented young artists to record on my album?” This got a lot of buzz, especially after the launch of the album raised over 20,000 pounds for the charity! And from all that, one of the songs on the album we made got remixed and there I was sitting between Lady Gaga and the Scissor Sisters on the charts.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
STACEY JACKSON: I had piano lessons when I was a kid but I prefer to write by ear. I don’t really read music well any more. I had years of vocal training and I continue to work with my voice coach — especially if I am going on a big tour or recording.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences?
STACEY JACKSON: Music has always been my mainstay. I’ve been singing since I was kid. I think I knew all the lyrics to every Supremes song by the time I was two. I ended up in an original rock band at 15 where I wrote all the songs in our repertoire back in Montreal. I was also in a Motown band when I lived in New York. I’ve always been most inspired by the 1980s though. I guess it’s because that was the era I grew up in as a teenager. And then in the late 80s, I got heavily into fitness and teaching aerobics classes and being around the kind of music that just makes you get up and move… For me, that was also super inspiring. Music and fitness have always been a big part of me and are very synonymous. But I guess my first ‘real’ influences as a songwriter would have to be the hard rock bands of the 80s so groups like def Leppard, Whitesnake, Van Halen, Heart, Foreigner — I aspired to be like them when I was younger. Haha! So even when I choose to do a cover version of a record I typically choose to switch up a hard rock song from the 80s and make it into my own sound. Hence my latest release which is my version of a 1981 Foreigner record called “Urgent”.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
STACEY JACKSON: I write lyrics mostly about positive experiences — so quite motivational, I guess. I just want people to feel good and get up and dance. The records I write are on the line between commercial pop and dance music and of course when they get remixed, the tracks can get amortized and get played in a variety of clubs and gyms around the world. I love that the music I create you can literally just press play and move!
STACEY JACKSON:
That’s a great question! Obviously when you write a song, you write it from the heart but I suspect if you want it to be somewhat successful you also have to have a bit of a business mind attached to it. My records are commercial so I have to be in tune to what’s also out there musically and also to what people want to listen to — or in my case, dance to or work out to. Timing is also a key factor and whatever goes around comes around. I think the musical influences of the 80s has empowered a lot of current artist like Dua Lipa and Lizzo and The Weeknd for example. So for me… having authentically lived through that era makes my process so real AND so much fun — to be able to use the current sounds of 2022 and merge them with the distinctive sounds of the 80s. I love it!
6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?
STACEY JACKSON:
Music is an incredible vehicle for all of that. Take “Hamilton” the musical for example. I mean the mastermind and creativity behind the music to tell such a remarkable story is ingenious. The music that I’ve written over these years also tells the story of my own personal journey from where I was at the time I first came out publicly as an artist to now… Personally, I have been through some ups and downs but to be honest, the entire world has been through ups and downs lately! So, I think a lot of that reflects in my lyrics— particularly in ‘Flipside’ which I wrote over lockdown and is about is about looking after yourself, and taking care of “you” even if you have other commitments and other people depending on you. In my case, being a mom and a wife and trying to juggle a very intense music career.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfilment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
STACEY JACKSON:
Absolutely! I wouldn’t do it otherwise. The music business is a total maze though so if you don’t love what you are doing you shouldn’t be doing it.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
STACEY JACKSON:
Funnily enough is some of my music starts off as chords on a piano — sometimes even as a ballad! And then it builds from there. And for some of the songs I create, I may just write the top line melody to an amazing beat I’m sent from a producer or I think of a melody to the click of my heels while I’m walking the dog… Don’t ask, I get inspired from a lot of places. So each song is completely different depending on where I am at the time and also who I may even be collaborating with. But the tracks all carry a similar vibe and I feel that now, especially, I’m delivering my 80s influence with a 2022 sound.
9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
STACEY JACKSON: Having my first hit record at 40 was soooo amazing but at the time, juggling being a mom of four and an intensive music career which required me to be on the road a lot was no easy feat. There’s a lot of hard work involved — especially at the start of my journey — to get people to listen to your music, and DJs to play it! So the amount of upfront work it entails to get music out is no easy task. But I wouldn’t have done it any other way. I adore what I do and my family is my biggest cheering section!
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far? STACEY JACKSON: 1. My incredible family 2. Having over 12 top ten dance hits and a collaboration with Snoop Dogg on my record ‘Live It Up’ and of course, 3. Hosting my own 1980s nostalgic music show… “Stacey Jackson in the 80’s” which is available on various satellite and digital platforms globally!
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1 comment
We are so proud of you Stacey. You are an incredible daughter, a fabulous Mom, a wonderful wife and an outstanding music icon. With love….Merle and Ronnie💕🍷