Inspired by great artists like Led Zeppelin and Van Halen, Jamie Dupuis has some killer guitar chops himself. After competing against hundreds of artists, Jamie had plenty of fan support to land him as a finalist in the Musicians Institute Full Ride contest. As a finalist, he got flown out to L.A. with 9 other artists to perform live in a Battle of the Bands. Jamie came out on top, winning a full ride to Musicians Institute and $10,000 to cover living expenses! Post his big win, I got a chance to chat with Jamie about how he got his start, his recent success and what’s coming up for him.
How’d you get your start on guitar?
The guitar always seemed to have that “cool” image as a kid, and seeing a few of my friends with some cool looking electric guitars, it caught my interest. But it wasn’t long after that when I really got into actual music and not just the “cool image” thing.
I knew that it would take so much dedication to make the sound that I was hearing, and since then I’ve been inspired by many different styles of music and learned to appreciate music as a creative art form.
What do you hope listeners will get from your music?
Usually I strive for energetic feel when I play live. It’s always a good feeling to have the audience’s attention. But depending on what style I’m doing; classical, jazz or rock, I always try to capture the proper feeling for the pieces I perform and adapt to its stylistic sound.
Where do you get your artistic drive from?
Youtube has been my main source of inspiration, mainly because there are so many talented musicians that can only be found on Youtube. I also have to admit seeing Tommy Emmanuel live was such a great moment of inspiration and drive to keep working hard on my instrument. He’s always been one of my main sources of inspiration since I started to play fingerstyle along with Chet Atkins, Buster B Jones, Jerry Reed, Django Reinhardt, Guthrie Govan, and many more. My fans are also a big part of my drive to work on new material; it’s always great to communicate with people that appreciate my playing.
Many promoters say that an artist’s live show is their most important asset? Do you agree with this? How have you developed your live show over the years of playing?
Yes, I do agree that live shows are really important, for me I always try to express my music through emotions and energy, but at the same time I always have a focus to perform with accuracy. Also, in my opinion I think the general public remembers live music more than they do on the radio or video, if you’re just getting started.
Now on to questions about the Musicians Institute Full Ride contest? Why’d you decide to submit to this contest?
I’ve known about Musicians Institute’s program for a while now. It’s always been a dream of mine to go there and study. This school is such a great opportunity for dedicated musicians to actually focus on music and become proficient on their instruments in any style of music, which no other school can provide you with.
Musicians Institute is holding another contest for new applicants this summer. Do you have any tips for bands entering the Full Ride contest this time around?
All I can say is practice practice practice!! For any musician I think the most important aspect is to find something captivating and learn as many styles as possible.
One final question - Are you excited to start at Musicians Institute?
I am absolutely thrilled to start studying at Musicians Institute, with all the great students, teachers, and environment; this will help my music path. I am also really excited to collaborate with other musicians and have the opportunity to be exposed to great music and share my own musical ideas.
You can check out footage of Jamie’s performance at http://fullride.sonicbids.com/ and see which other artists placed in this year’s contest. For more information about submitting to this year’s Full Ride contest head here.
