Blake Stamper

HICKABILLY BEATWAY BACK TO TEXASBEHIND THE MUSICCHRISTMAS THINGS“I tore it to hell; it’s splinters now.” Such was the fate of Blake Stamper’s first childhood guitar. That guitar rests in contented peace as it helped foster the musical ambitions that Blake carries to this day. Since then, many guitars have left this world the very same way by Blake’s hand. That’s just the way he strums, or more aptly ravages, his six string, with such fervor and abandon you’d think his whole damn arm would fall out of its socket. Blake’s been burying guitars since early childhood; standing on his front porch playing his heart out for the roaring invisible crowd at his feet. Stamper’s impromptu porch concerts were simply in his blood; his musical lineage goes back generations. His grandfather and father were both well-respected Kentucky mountain fiddlers and bred Blake on Bluegrass greats like Bill Monroe, The Stanley Brothers, and nights hanging out backstage at the Grand Ole Opry. “But I also dig The Beatles, Little Richard, Jackson Browne, Diana Ross, and Foreigner” Stamper is quick to add. Playing in bands all through school Blake translated his influences into not only country and bluegrass but also classical and even big band music. However, blood will always be thicker than water and Blake always returned to his roots. To say that, today, Blake is a country music artist would be vague at best. He plays selfdubbed hickabilly music. “It’s a fusion of everything; I figure if I make up the name describing my music, then anything goes.” Blake waxes his own brand of philosophical on the topic, “I made up hickabilly. I don’t know what the billy is, but I know what the hick is and that’s me.” Blake applies the same abandon to his songwriting that he uses to slash through his guitar strings. “When I write a song, I don’t write it with a certain intention. I just let it be and it finds its audience,” Stamper says. Often though, Blake’s Kentucky roots wander to the heartfelt Texas audience. Stamper grew up on a Kentucky farm outside of Louisville and remains there to this day with his family. But it was a brief jaunt in the Lone Star State where Blake got his “country loving heart.” The Air Force Drummer Bugle Corps brought him to Texas and the people there have left a lasting impression. “Texans are pure in their listening and appreciate honest and good music,” Blake explains. You see Texans are a breed of their own: fiercely loyal to what they love and not impressed by the glitz and gimmicks the music machine feeds the rest of the country. If you can win over Texas, your music can stand anywhere. With that, Blake feels his music translating to the Texas audience then to national appeal, would be the pinnacle of success. And with the raw, fast guitar licks, quirky stories, and vocals, there is no doubt Blake will endear the Texas fans, and they will adopt him as one of their own. “I think everything built slowly tends to last longer; it builds a strong foundation,” Stamper says of his musical career. Blake has put in the weary years playing the club and bar circuit to be eligible to for the title of next “over night success”. He says he has been patient, biding his time until his world aligns. In the meantime, biding his time has meant owning an excavating business, fleet of dump trucks and a bulldozer. Blake humorously sums up his day job, “Dirt work, ya know.” It’s that ever present aw-shucks humility in Blake that seems unbelievable until well, you meet him. One can only admire how genuine his intentions are. “I want to be honest with my music and touch people’s hearts and thoughts. I would be happy just playing for good crowds.” It boggles the mind how he dodged the slings and arrows of sarcasm and pessimism into adulthood. You can only wish more superstars had their feet nailed to the ground like Blake does. Normally, that much talent and presence being uncovered comes with the levity of the head, but for some reason that condition has avoided Blake. Unable to put into words tangible goals of superstardom like a number one single or a 50 million dollar grossing tour, Stamper just wants to stay real. “It would be really cool if everybody I’ve ever known and been associated with was proud and thought of me as a good man.”