GRAMMY-Nominated singer, songwriter, and guitarist Jontavious Willis has released his new single “Ghost Woman” — the song is taken from his upcoming album West Georgia Blues, out August 16th via Strolling Bones Records.
“This song is a folk duo in the key of D with me on guitar and vocals, accompanied by a double bass,” explains Jontavious. “The inspiration came from George Carter, which was a pseudonym for Charlie Lincoln, a twelve string Georgia Blues musician, and Ida Cox – another Georgia Blues musician. The song is about a fellow losing his lover who’s gone on to the next life. She visited him as a ghost but has stopped, leading him to go crazy and at the point of doing anything to be reacquainted with her.”
Jontavious Willis is a modern-day blues revivalist, drawing on the blues’ rich history as well as his own Georgia heritage. With a nod to the lively juke joints of the past, Willis is bringing the vitality of the blues to new audiences.
Born and raised in rural Georgia, Jontavious first achieved widespread acclaim as a teenage phenom when he accompanied living Blues legend Taj Mahal—who would go on to dub him his “Wonderboy”—onstage in 2015. His first opportunity to tour nationally soon followed; he opened for Taj Mahal and Keb’ Mo’ during their joint TajMo tour in 2017. In 2016, his debut album Blue Metamorphosis won the Blues Foundation’s International Blues Challenge Award for Best Self-Produced CD. Spectacular Class, his 2019 GRAMMY-nominated sophomore album, saw Jontavious survey an array of Blues styles with dynamic ensemble performances.
Joyous and resonant, West Georgia Blues is an invitation to everyone out there to connect with the very universal emotions captured through the blues. Entirely self-produced, the forthcoming album comprises fifteen original songs that tackle time-honored themes from heartbreak and loneliness to celebration and self-discovery. Jontavious also reminds us that the blues are meant to bring us together in times of celebration through song and dance.
Tour Dates:
July 19-20 – Lugano, CH – Blues to Bop
July 29-August 4 – Port Townsend, WA – Port Townsend Acoustic Blues Festival
September 1- Bremerton, WA – Kitsap Blues Festival
September 7 – Evanston, IL – Evanston Folk Festival
September 8 – Bowling Green, OH – Black Swamp Arts Festival
September 19 – Nashville, TN – AmericanaFest
October 4-5 – Eureka, CA – Redwood Coast Music Festival
October 26 – November 2 – Blues Cruise
November 7- Pensacola, LF – WUWF RadioLive
