First of all, tell us about yourself, who are you and what do you do?

 My name is Jackson Vert and I play Guitar/Bass for Club Paradise/Ghost Signals respectively. I am a songwriter in Club Paradise and also have transitioned into the demo producer.

Why did you choose to become a musician/songwriter?

I thought playing guitar was cool and it was the only thing I was ever really interested in. I had lessons at an early age and it was only later in life that I wanted to focus on getting songs. After that I created my first band and I’m still in that today.

As a young musician/songwriter, who were some of your biggest inspirations?

The Kooks were probably my earliest “songwriter” inspirations. I thought their melodies were fantastic and I wanted to try replicate that to some extent. After The Kooks I’d say Elliot Minor were probably another huge inspiration, their album flowed really well and I wanted to explore how songs can relate to each other in that type of medium, which has led to me experimenting with live set transitions. I also grew up on The Beatles so I was exposed to their music my entire life which has landed a hand in harmony.

What do you feel is your biggest achievement in music so far?

Currently it’s being playlisted by Spotify, but previously it was having a song we had written at 16 get onto XFM (Radio X) and Made In Chelsea. At the time I thought it was cool but I didn’t really understand the significance and wish we had capitalised on that a bit better. Another achievement is locally having people who’s talent I admire compliment the work I do whether it be Club Paradise or Ghost Signals. Just means a bit more when you respect the person who’s saying it.

What are your biggest aspirations within the music industry?

To earn a living. Also support Bombay Bicycle Club/White Lies.

If you could go back and give yourself one piece of advice as a young musician/songwriter, what would it be and why?

Taste is subjective and stop being a little dick about people not liking indie music. I would tell myself that because indie music isn’t the be all end all of music and it doesn’t matter if it’s perceived as cool by peers. I’d tell myself to explore folk and emo music and not be ashamed that I like emo/rock. On a songwriting level, I’d tell myself to trust myself and not worry if “it sounds too much like X”. We scrapped countless parts/songs at an 16/17/18 because we wanted everything to sound like nothing else but that just doesn’t exist. At the moment if I hear where the song wants to go in my head I don’t stop it, sometimes the easiest song to write is that for a reason. Forcing yourself to change parts desperately trying to be unique instead of wearing your influences on your sleeve I feel may have stopped me progressing as a songwriter earlier. Someone on a video which I can’t source (forgot sorry) said “I try to write songs like my influences just not as well and then it comes out in my personal style” and I think that’s what has happened with myself.

Why is music education so important? 

Theory is so important and people refuse to acknowledge that locally. I’ve had countless sessions where the producer doesn’t know the key of the song and I’ve had to explain how to figure that out. People who are paid a lot lot of money don’t know how to figure out the key of a song, it’s insane. Music education in general gives people a chance to improve their craft. Knowing chord progressions and augmented chords create tension is also great for musicians to know, I’ve had to teach too many people what a D minor 9 is.