Beth Hart
With her smoky, fiery vocals, Beth Hart has been an overlooked but steadfast figure amongst blues fans for two decades. She remains a down-to-earth and humble being, as Jon Sutton finds out.
You learned to play part of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata before you learned to read. Could you imagine being anything other than a musician?
I just figured out some of it by ear and that’s what got my parents to put me into lessons. I really couldn’t imagine really anything else that I wanted to do. Although my dad did take me to see Shirley Muldowney, who was a famous racecar driver; I loved her and really thought about becoming a race car driver.
You also did a lot of sport as a kid. Does that physicality add something to your performance and your energy on stage?
I think so. If as a kid you get a lot of exercise, there is a discipline that happens as well as building early muscles and getting you really using your breath. I love to swim, bike and hike – I like that feeling I get when I’m exercising. It’s a very similar feeling to performing on stage – you get all that adrenaline.
You’ve been very open with your fans about some of your darkest times, such as family loss, addiction and your bipolar disorder diagnosis. Can the dark times help with the creative process? Or would you say the creative process only becomes necessary because of the dark times?
There’s that old saying, “necessity is the mother of invention”. No matter what it is in life that you love to do, all of us go through difficult stuff, some more horrific than others, but there is something about when you are struggling or afraid or in pain where that can inspire you just to get it out. If it’s through writing a song, performing, dancing, being a cook or being a really good teacher, you funnel that energy just to get it out. That becomes a great energy to pull from. That vulnerability is important because I think it connects us.
You’ve got an open and modest personality, which has endeared you to fans across the world. Do you think it’s that genuine connection with people that has given you such a loyal tribe of fans?
I think that’s because of the type of songwriter I am, I pull so much from that vulnerability that it maybe connects to certain people. Out of self-protection, I should probably be less open about things but, but I come from a family that is very open about their feelings.
Why do you think so many artists and entertainers have so many similar stories of writers and performers suffering from excess or addiction?
I think that you’ve got that [everywhere]. We don’t hear about doctors, surgeons, school teachers, plumbers or builders that have addiction issues, but entertainers, because their life is more reported through magazines, television, the news – you hear about it more. But of course, I could be wrong.
You once said of success, “I don’t want to be up on a mountain looking down on the people that I need”. Does it ever concern you that success could alienate you from people?
There’s a lot of needs that I have. I love to perform, I love to connect with people, and that makes me feel less alone – but I think you have to be extraordinarily strong to be able to continue to be creative when you are famous. I’ve been lucky, I never became a famous person, certainly not a household name at all. There are some people that come to my shows that like what I do and I am thankful to God for that but I’m really, really fortunate that I don’t live a lifestyle where I have to be in a car with tinted windows and have paparazzi chasing me down. I don’t think I’m a strong enough person to be able to handle something like that, I just couldn’t handle that separation. I think it would kill me as a songwriter.
St. David’s Hall, Cardiff, Sat 21 Apr. Tickets: £41.50/£37. Info: 029 2087 8444 / www.stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk