Joe Bonamassa – HuffPost 5.25.12

Mike Ragogna: Joe, I ask this question of everyone I interview, what is your advice for new artists?

Joe Bonamassa: Well, you have to take the good with the bad. What you do, you have to do with conviction. Never follow the trends, never let anybody tell you what you should be doing musically. Take all of the advice in the world, listen to it, absorb it, process it. Some of it is good advice, some bad advice, but never let it change what you’re doing down deep because at the end of the day, basically, it’s your life. If you win, do it on your own terms and come out of it on the other side and it’s something to be proud of. If you listen to someone else that derails you, you always have that thought in your mind, “Maybe if I stuck to my guns, it would have happened differently.” So young artists getting into a trailer and going across The Great Plains of the United States or into Europe, it’s not an easy thing to do, but it’s not impossible. If this bozo with you on the line right now, can pull it off, anybody can.

MR: (laughs) If you were to have even more words of wisdom, what would they be?

JB: When it comes to guitar playing, everybody can shred. The guy at Sam Ash or Guitar Center can shred. The guy who’s a line cook at Denny’s can shred because he plays everyday. How can you put it together to make it different so it’s a total act? Why do some people make it through and some don’t? They sing, they write songs, or they have an act. So it’s important to work on not only the playing, but also working on the product — what’s going to make people get up, book a ticket and come out when it’s raining on a Tuesday night in Topeka, Kansas.

MR: That’s really more advice for new artists.

JB: It’s really critical you look at it in those terms, the spectacle.