Jeffrey James – DREAM TOUR

In this Dream Tour segment, the singer-songwriter, Jeffrey James, reveals who he would want on his ultimate tour lineup. You can check out their picks, after the break.

So I’m basing my dream tour on who I, selfishly, would want to watch perform every night. Under that umbrella are so many artists. But the two that stick out the most in my mind are David Byrne and Janelle Monáe.

David Byrne has been an idol of mine for some time. The Talking Heads’ performance documentary, Stop Making Sense, was a revelation to me when I discovered it about 12 years ago. My mind exploded with ideas about what a live show could look and sound like. His concepts of art, music, and performance, were a huge influence on me while I was discovering my own voice and sound. David recently doubled down on his G.O.A.T. performance skills (yeah, I said it), with his American Utopia Tour. They filmed it for Disney Plus last year. Go check it out! You won’t be disappointed. And no, I’m not paid by Disney to say this, ha.

Janelle Monáe is a force of nature when it comes to talent, both as a musician/songwriter and performer. She can destroy a power ballad with her voice (a la “Primetime”), and then turn around and have the audience dancing their asses off to one of her many, funky-as-hell, pop jams (“Make Me Feel,” “Q.U.E.E.N.,” etc…). And she always has one of the dopest/most fun to watch bands of anyone touring. She’s a fully rounded, flawless, artist and brand. It’s no wonder Prince worked with her so much before he passed.

I’d be equally honored and terrified to tour with David and Janelle. And I know I would push myself to the limits of my abilities to feel like I deserved a place on that stage. That sounds like a damn good time to me!

Keep up with him on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.