Today we’d like to introduce you to Jad Tariq.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I began working professionally as a musician here in Memphis in 2019. I’m originally from Trumbull, Connecticut, and moved down to Memphis in 2015 for college, guided by my desire to live in a music town, and specifically one where most of my favorite music was created.
I picked up the guitar at the age of 8, and really haven’t looked back since! I loved rock n’ roll music as a kid, and by the time I was 12 or 13, I became interested in blues music after I saw an episode of a program called In Session on PBS, featuring Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan. This was one of my earliest memories of discovering blues music. I also discovered soul music as I got a little bit older, and with Memphis’ deep history of blues and soul, it seemed a pretty clear choice to move here.
The first professional gig I did was as a guest guitarist on a few tours with singer/harmonica player John Nemeth in January of 2019. After these tours, I began forming connections with many of the players around town, and the next thing I know I was working consistently enough to support myself here, so I just ended up staying!
I hadn’t necessarily planned on staying in Memphis after college, but there was enough work for me to make a living, and I absolutely loved the work I was doing. I’ve always enjoyed performing, and growing up I played out as often as I could, playing semi-professionally in high school and college with various groups. Being able to make a living as a full-time musician has been incredible, and I’m very happy I get to do it in this city.
Over my past few years in Memphis, I’ve had the privilege of playing and working with many fantastic artists, such as Earl “The Pearl” Banks, John Paul Keith, John Nemeth & The Blue Dreamers, Benton Parker & The Royal Reds, Max Kaplan & The Magics, Tony Holiday, and many others!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It’s never easy to make a living as an artist. We always hear the old mantra of the “starving artist” for a reason! The biggest obstacle when I started out was… rent!
It was definitely hard work to establish connections in town, and not only to find gigs but to find gigs that paid right. Thankfully, Memphis is a town that supports musicians for the most part, and there is enough work here to go around. While we certainly aren’t making millions, we’re able to get by and keep doing what we love.
The biggest challenge has been the pandemic. For all of us artists, the pandemic stripped away not just our main source of income, but also completely stopped us from doing what we love. We were unable to perform live for more than a year, which was emotionally draining.
I’m glad to be able to work again, and while the pandemic was (and still is) a struggle, it gave me a newfound appreciation for what I do. I’m very fortunate to be able to make a living doing what I love, and after the pandemic, I know not to take that for granted!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
At the moment, I’m mainly working as a sideman guitarist, doing both touring and studio work. The bulk of my work is through live performance, and I’m fortunate to get to do that a few nights a week here in town! I would definitely say that I specialize in blues guitar, but I do love to branch out and do gigs outside of the realm of blues and soul. I’ve gotten to do a few country and rockabilly gigs, and some jazz as well.
I am also a songwriter and often work in that regard with Max Kaplan & The Magics, in addition to our live performances. At the moment, you can find Max Kaplan’s latest single “Mind on My Heart,” a tune that I wrote, on all streaming platforms. We also have a new single coming out on March 18th, entitled “Loving, I’m Leaving” which was written by Max, so keep an eye out for that wherever you stream music!
My most recent touring work was a few weeks ago with John Nemeth and The Blue Dreamers on the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise, which was an absolute blast. There were some incredibly talented musicians on board, and we had a ball hanging out, listening and watching all these great artists, and jamming together.
What are your plans for the future?
I’ve got a few exciting things coming up!
As I previously mentioned, Max Kaplan & The Magics has a new single coming out on March 18th, entitled “Loving, I’m Leaving.” I’ll be playing the Heritage Blues Fest in Wheeling, Virginia, with Tony Holiday on March 19th.
My bandmates and I are also working hard to get a good recording studio going, and have been working on some exciting new music with a few different artists which should be coming out within the next few months.
From April 7th to the 16th I’ll be doing a northeast tour with John Nemeth and The Blue Dreamers.
Here is our April tour schedule:
7 – Moondog’s // Pittsburgh, PA
8 – Zlock PAC // Newtown, PA
9 – Berks Jazz Fest // Reading, PA
10 – WHCP Radio // Cambridge, MD
11 – Fanatic’s // Lima, NY
12 – Fanatic’s // Lima, NY
13 – Jimmy’s Jazz & Blues // Portsmouth, NH
14 – The Turning Point // Piermont, NY
15 – Retro Live // Plattsburgh, NY
16 – The Fallout Shelter // Norwood, MA
Looking towards the future I also intend on working more frequently as a frontman, in addition to my various sideman gigs. I plan on recording some original music in the near future, which I will post updates for on my social media websites.
Contact Info:
- Email: jadtariqmusic@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_jadtariq/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jadtariqmusic
Image Credits
Abi Smack
