Conversations with Hannah Judson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hannah Judson.

Hi Hannah, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up learning violin with the Suzuki method, playing medieval recorder and harpsichord with my dad, and playing the clarinet in the school band, but what I really wanted all along was a guitar. I formed my first band in Wicker Park, in Chicago, in the mid-90s when I was an art student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Women were entering the rock and Americana scene with enough regularity we probably didn’t notice how unbalanced our presence was in event lineups. I produced regular Grrrls Rock evenings at the Beat Kitchen and fronted two bands, Sweet Bridget and Kite Club.

When I moved to a small village on the Seine River just south of Paris, France in 2005, I thought my rock life was behind me. I had sold all of our furniture and most of my equipment before leaving Chicago, though I brought two guitars and two Fender amps with me. One day in our little stone house, I picked up my guitar and began all over again, writing songs. Because the music scene is so different in France, with influences and hierarchies new to me, I felt free to do whatever I wanted. I wrote songs with quirky characters, engaged in conversation, love, betrayal, and politics. I wrote about America, about my life with a new perspective of seeing how it unfolded from afar.

I am a founding member of Boneyard Records, a coop record label. I also run MUSEfest, an international festival that amplifies women in music and film. I recorded a record with Pajaro Canzani in his studio just outside of Paris this summer, to be released in early 2024.

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?
One of the biggest struggles for me has been around time management and keeping all my plates spinning — especially parenthood, career, and music. In indie music, it’s easy to lose sight of the big picture, your raison d’etre. There are so many people selling to you, telling you how you should be doing it, as well as obligations pulling you away from what got you into music in the first place.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My sound is indie folk-rock. I have written hundreds of songs and recorded four records. The songwriters who influence me share a sense of purpose, are daring, and true to their own work. Liz Phair, Leonard Cohen, Aimee Mann, Neutral Milk Hotel, Lucinda Williams, and Alanis Morissette have all taught me about songwriting. I am constantly interested in improving my craft and understanding my own personal best solutions to each song that arises. During the pandemic, I studied jazz online with Suzahn Fiering, which helped reorient me to the fretboard and gave me a new palette to pull from as I write.

I am always motivated to understand the journey of women in music and to support women in the arts however I can.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I really love diaries in any format. I keep one myself and am always interested in the diaries of others. In college, I read all of Anais Nin. A few years ago in France, my friend Cindy Shapiro, the composer and libretist, brought her dance opera of Anais Nin (Anaïs, A Dance Opera ) to Paris. I brought my daughter and all of our friends to the show. I loved how the telling of one’s life can inspire retellings and compounding creativity.

I love anything by David Sedaris. I just read “Theft by Finding, Diaries (1977–2002)” which were just so wonderful and reminded me to keep jotting down my own daily notes.

During the pandemic, I watched The Andy Warhol Diaries on Netflix, which just floored me. I already love the artist, the life and work, but seeing it through the lens of his quirky daily notes as dictated on the telephone to his friend and collaborator Pat Hackett brought it all home on such a deep level. I started writing letters to Andy and may do something with those one day in a performance.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.hannahjudson.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hannahj_muse/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HannahJudsonMusic
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/hannahjudson
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@HannahJudson

Image Credits
Photo credits: Daphne Howland