Getting To Know: Jordan Mills

Jordan Mills has been writing and performing his own music for the past ten years. Growing up in Portsmouth, UK, Jordan began his musical journey singing in a local choir, honing his skills through street performances and gigs at local venues. As the frontman for the well-known Portsmouth cover band Brit Pop Revolution, he further improved his stagecraft and developed his unique style.

With a sound rooted in indie-pop and folk, Jordan's music often draws from personal stories and relatable themes. He has already released two albums and is gearing up for the release of his third. Join us as we delve into Jordan's musical evolution, his inspirations, and what fans can expect from his upcoming album.

1. You've been writing and performing music for the past ten years, starting from singing in a local choir to fronting the Brit Pop Revolution cover band. How has your musical journey evolved over the years, and what key experiences have shaped your sound.

My musical journey started at the age of 7, singing in local choir groups run by Portsmouth Music Service. A few years later, I picked up the guitar, starting with group lessons and eventually teaching myself through online tutorials. As I was home educated, I had quite a lot of time to work on the things that interested me - and music was one of those, from very early on.

When I was 17, I backpacked around India and Nepal with my dad for 6 weeks. I bought a guitar there, wrote and recorded an EP as I travelled across the country by train and even carried my guitar up the Himalayas, performing in mountain tea houses.

During the COVID pandemic, I built a makeshift studio in my flat, made from bits of wood and foam, where I wrote and recorded my first two albums. Later, I set up a more permanent studio in my loft, where I continued to improve my production skills. I've also produced several music videos myself for my songs using both filmmaking and animation.

Over lockdown I also created an alter-ego, Johnny Blue, a 1960s psychedelic rockstar, which has been a really fun and creative outlet, leading to three albums—two released and one on the way very soon!

I became the frontman for a new Portsmouth based 90s cover band, Brit Pop Revolution for a few years. We've played gigs in many pubs and venues around the area. I've also been involved in organizing music events, helping to run the music and sound for the Big Eat Festival in Southampton and managing the acoustic stage at Gosport Sunset Festival.

For the past few years, I've been making a living from music, starting with busking and now performing several gigs each week. I've found it easier to get gigs where I perform covers but I'm starting to perform my original material a lot more.

I also run the open mic at a pub in Southsea (The Bold Forester) every Thursday, where I sometimes work behind the bar too. I've been working on my third album this year and hope to release it within the next couple of months!

2. Your music often features personal stories with relatable themes within the indie-pop/folk genre. Can you share the inspiration behind one of your favorite tracks and the story it tells?

One of my favourite tracks is 'Landmine', which was about my struggle with cigarette addiction and the internal conflict that came with trying to quit, along with the moments of weakness and the situations that would lead me to keep coming back to them. Addiction is a theme many people can unfortunately relate to, nowadays more than ever, whether it's cigarettes, alcohol or any other vice. I think a lot of aspects of modern life including loneliness and division in young people have left a lot of people feeling a need to fall back on substances to cope with stress. Plus the constant barrage of dopamine hits from platforms like TikTok and Instagram can leave us always needing more comfort, and substances can fill that gap.

3. With two albums already released and a third one on the way, how do you approach the songwriting and production process? Has your method changed since your first album?

My approach to songwriting usually starts with the guitar. I play around with different chords and riffs until something strikes me, and then I try to follow that wherever it leads. Sometimes I'll plan vocal melodies by singing gibberish over the instrumental to quickly get an idea of what hooks and syllable placements will work and stand out. This helps me avoid juggling every aspect of the songwriting process all at once. I often record and produce as I'm writing, so I can layer and loop certain parts, which enables me to get a bit more experimental than I would otherwise be able to with one instrument alone. When it comes to lyrics, in the early days I think I used to sometimes be a bit vague and poetic, often to the detriment of the meaning (which definitely isn't always a bad thing), but these days I usually prefer to start by outlining the general theme of what I want the song to be about and creating a sort of mind map of the different ideas and feelings that relate to the core subject and then think about what angle I want to come at it from.  But I really think that there is no right or wrong way to approach making any type of art, it's all down to what works best for you and it's always great (and fun) to try out as many different methods as you can.

4. Performing on the streets of Portsmouth and at local venues must have given you a unique perspective on connecting with your audience. How do these experiences influence your live performances today?

Busking is a brilliant way for any musician to improve their performance skills. It definitely helped me in loads of ways that are impossible to really learn without just getting out there and doing it, such as which types of songs resonate best with different audiences, how to communicate with a diverse range of people that might come over and give either positive or negative feedback, as well as just getting used to playing in front of people, without having to rely on being booked for gigs (which can be difficult to secure when you're starting out). The more you do anything, the better you get, and live performance is a skill like any other. 

5. As someone who has transitioned from performing in a cover band to creating original music, what advice would you give to aspiring musicians looking to find their own voice and style?

I've been creating original music for as long as I can remember, but I think having played in a band really helped me to understand and get to know other genres and instruments that I was maybe not so familiar with, like bass and drums. Playing and jamming with other musicians is always gonna give you fresh perspectives on music that you might not have thought of otherwise. Music is a language and it's always easier to learn a language by communicating with and being around other speakers of that language. In terms of finding your own voice and style, I don't think it's something you can really push in a hurry, but over time, as you follow what sounds good to you, you'll develop your own unique ways of doing things and with a bit of constructive feedback, you'll learn what aspects of your sound you might want to lean into more.