“There ain’t no need for me to be a wallflower,
‘Cause now I’m living on blues power”
Eric Clapton
“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness”
2 Peter 1:3
“Every good thing and every perfect gift is from above”
James 1:17
ONE OF THE GREATEST CONTRIBUTIONS TO WESTERN CIVILIZATION HAS BEEN AMERICA’S GIFT OF THE BLUES. ORIGINATING FROM THE SLAVES’ FIELD HOLLARS AND CHURCH SERVICES, IT HAS BECOME THE BEDROCK OF AMERICAN FOLK, JAZZ AND ROCK MUSIC, INFLUENCING STYLES AND GENRES OF SOUND ALL OVER THE WORLD.
ONE OF THOSE INFLUENCED WAS ANA POPOVIC, IN OF ALL PLACES, THE MEDITERRANEAN COUNTRY OF SERBIA.
INITIALLY INTRODUCED TO THE BLUES BY HER FATHER, ANA TOOK THE MUSIC TO HEART AND HAS MADE PLAYING ELECTRIC BLUES HER CALLING AND CAREER, HAVING PLAYED WITH SUCH LUMINARIES AS JEFF BECK AND BB KING.
SO MUCH SO, THAT EVEN IN A TIME OF A RECENT HEALTH CRISIS, SHE WAS ABLE TO USE THE MUSIC AS A FORM OF PHYSICAL HEALING.
HER MOST RECENT ALBUM, POWER, IS A TESTAMENT TO THE HEALING ENERGY THAT COMES FROM MUSIC, WHICH OF COURSE, IS A GIFT FROM GOD ABOVE.
WE HAD A CHANCE TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH MS. POPOVIC, WHO WAS AS ENGAGING AND ENTHUSIASTIC AS HER MUSIC.
YOUR SERBIAN DAD GOT YOU INTERESTED IN THE BLUES. SO, HOW DID HE GET INTERESTED?
He was a blues fan for as long as I could remember.
I was lucky enough to be born in a family that loved blues, rock, loud music, jam sessions and guitar magazines. That’s what everyday life was; we just watched tape of concerts and listened to lps, comparing guitar styles and players, different bands. That was how I grew up in Serbia.
Most of it was American music; I grew up on that style
When I moved here and started touring, I felt like I was coming home.
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“We just watched tape of concerts and listened to lps, comparing guitar styles and players, different bands. That was how I grew up in Serbia”
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WAS THERE ANY PARTICULAR GUITARIST OR SINGER THAT CONNECTED WITH YOU IN YOUR EARLY STAGES, WHERE YOU SAID “I WANT TO BE LIKE THAT”?
There were so many!
Since was three years old I was exposed to Howlin’ Wolf, Elmore James, Robert Johnson , BB King, Albert King, Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan, so I can’t pick just one.
I was just drawn to it at an early age and wanted to play “live” as a musician.
I remember when I was thirteen, I went to my first big stadium concert. I saw Tina Turner, and I was never the same after that. Seeing this big production was so unique.
My dad and I went to many concerts that were much smaller, as well as jazz and blues festivals. We’d see BB King and Buddy Guy, but Tina was something special. It was a big production, and I thought “I want to do that”
AS A PROFESSIONAL, DID YOU EVER GET INTIMIDATED BY ALL OF THE GUITARISTS THAT HAVE PRECEDED YOU, MAKING YOU WONDER WHAT CAN YOU BRING TO THE TABLE?
I don’t think “intimidated” is the right word.
At an early age I did have the understanding that if I want to do this, I want to build up my own signature licks.
That was something I learned early on. You listen to BB King, and there’s that lick again on every song. To me, that was it. If you spend your life and come up with some of that which people can just put on your solos for five minutes and hear your specific tone and specific licks, and they can recognize it as you, that is what I wanted.
So, it wasn’t jealousy; it was exciting. It makes you work. There are so many new possibilities, and you’ve got to make your own style fit your own style in between with all of these amazing musicians. The search for that particular thing can last forever, but it’s a good motive to keep going.
You don’t want to be just shredding around up there; you want to make an impact. You want to have your own personal stand. In that sense, there is still so much open out there to be tackled . You can throw in your own signature to the blues and take it anywhere you want.
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“At an early age I did have the understanding that if I want to do this, I want to build up my own signature licks”
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SO, IN ORDER TO CREATE YOUR OWN STYLE, DO YOU TAKE SOMETHING FROM ONE PERSON AND SOMETHING FROM SOMEONE ELSE, OR CREATE ‘EX NIHILO”?
Lots of things were from nothing.
But “nothing” is not really “nothing.
When I’m on stage, I follow what the groove tells me. I lock into the pocket with the rhythm section and let myself go. Don’t worry about the scales, or what I need to play or what the audience wants me to play. I just let go and try to really feel the beat, play around with licks and play around with whatever is in my heart that I want to project that night.
From doing that for many years there are certain licks that keep coming out, but obviously before that I was studying various guitar players. I would sit down and listen to Joe Pass, Jimmy Hendrix or Sonny Landreth. I spent many hours studying Sonny and Ronnie Earl, different guitar players.
I studied music in the conservatory, and I had my fair share of just sitting down and playing those licks, trying to nail them.
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“you’ve got to make your own style fit your own style in between with all of these amazing musicians”
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BECAUSE OF THE DISCREPENCY OF MEN TO WOMEN IN THE BLUES GENRE, DID YOU EVER FEEL YOU HAD TO PROVE YOURSELF DIFFERENTLY BECAUSE YOU WERE FEMALE?
Back in the day, yeah.
When I was starting, there were just a few ladies out there, and it wasn’t really popular to be a female guitar player.
As time went by, you stand strong, and have enough shows, you keep playing and putting out good records and finally don’t have to work as hard to explain yourself as to why you do what you’re doing.
You’re on the circuit, you’re playing and doing a lot of shows and people start taking you seriously. The record producers take you more seriously, too.
On top of being a female guitar player, I’m also not an American, so I’m coming from Eastern Europe and trying to do some work here in making a record with American producers.
I always had various ideas that not always had just blues. I also wanted to be on the edge of the style, ***and to mix styles, trying out new things. Not everyone wanted that, but you put it out there and people find out what kind of artist you are. You try to push the genre towards something new and different. I still do that. I want every record to be different, for it to have a new taste or something I haven’t done before.
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“You listen to BB King, and there’s that lick again on every song. To me, that was it. If you spend your life and come up with some of that which people can just put on your solos for five minutes and hear your specific tone and specific licks, and they can recognize it as you, that is what I wanted”
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IS THERE A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MEDITERRANEAN FANS AND MUSICANS AS OPPOSED TO AMERICANS?
European bands sound a bit different, and the audience respond differently. That’s why it’s nice to be me, playing one morning in Paris and then in Dubai.
There are also younger audiences, as if when I play in Spain, Italy or Portugal, the blues audiences are much younger than in America. I think that it’s the same for jazz.
SPEAKING OF DIFFERENT STYLES, YOUR TRILOGY BOXED SET REALLY SET THE STANDARD FOR THAT, WITH THREE ALBUMS OF THREE DISTINCT MOODS.
That one is my pride and joy.
I handpicked the musicians. They were incredible, over thirty of them playing on the three volumes. New Orleans, Nashville, Memphis playing funk, rock, soul , jazz and blues. I wrote all of the songs, and hand picked each musician to show case each style. That’s my baby.
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“When I’m on stage, I follow what the groove tells me. I lock into the pocket with the rhythm section and let myself go”
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WHICH BRINGS UP A POLITICALLY INCORRECT POINT-THE FIRST TIME I SAW YOUR ALBUMS, I NOTICE THAT YOU’RE ALL DRESSED UP IN TIGHT SKIRTS, ETC. LIKE YOU’RE GOING OUT FOR A PARTY, INSTEAD OF LOOKING “LIKE A MUSICIAN”. SO, MY FIRST THOUGH IS “IF SHE’S DRESSED LIKE THIS, HOW GOOD COULD HER PLAYING BE?” 1235
SO, IS YOUR SEXY ATTIRE SIMPLY WHO YOU ARE, OR SOME SORT OF MARKETING A WOMAN HAS TO DO THESE DAYS?
This is what women do nowadays!
I don’t have to look a certain way to be a blues player.
I’m just a modern woman, and I want to look great. This is my night out, every night on my shows. I love it; I want to look great. I want to feel attractive; I want to dress for the stage.
That’s how I am at home when I want to go out, or if it’s for one of my shows.
I want to bring that feminine side to the whole blues genre. Why do pop artists dress up but blues and jazz artists can’t? We’re all performers.
I don’t need to have a major company behind me to look great and feminine
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“you put it out there and people find out what kind of artist you are. You try to push the genre towards something new and different”
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WHO GAVE YOU THE BEST CAREER OR LIFE ADVICE?
I’ve had a lot of conversations with people like Jeff Beck, BB King and Buddy Guy many times. What I like most about them was their down-to-earth soul. They weren’t trying to boss me around or tell me how to do things, but just do what you love.
BB King was on the road 350 days of the year, and he was the nicest person back stage. We would talk about eating healthy food on the road, everyday things like that. The bigger the stars, the more down to earth they are.
Every career is so different, you can’t say “this is going to work for you” simply because it worked today for them.
Back in the day, we didn’t have social media. Even if you have a social media post that goes viral, that doesn’t necessarily sell the tickets. What is the important thing to do for the younger audience? Are you going to chase the social media or are you chasing your music?
What you need to do is make sure that your show is great, your songs are great, that you put out quality records and give people a reason to come back and pay for the tickets. That’s the bottom line for me, but everyone has a different way of doing things.
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“I don’t have to look a certain way to be a blues player…I want to bring that feminine side to the whole blues genre. Why do pop artists dress up but blues and jazz artists can’t? We’re all performers”
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YOU’VE SHARED THE STAGE WITH MANY GREAT ARTISTS. WAS THERE ANYONE IN PARTICULAR THAT IMPORESSED YOU BY THEIR MUSICALITY?
No one in particular. It’s incredible to just witness and be a part of these amazing talents.
It’s all over the place. Robben Ford-unbelievable. Jeff Beck, Joe Bonamassa, I could go on forever.
I was part of the Hendrix Experience Tour, and was one of the few women ever to be a part of that. The incredible lineup of guitar players, all who tried to pay respect to Hendrix and play his music. That means you have to step out of your comfort zone.
There was one core band. You don’t even have your own band with you; you don’t play your own songs, and you’ve got this huge pressure of having incredible people around you. Joe Satriani, Billy Cox, Buddy Guy, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Dweezil Zappa and Jonny Lang. You just do the best you can to impress the audience with your take on Hendrix.
That was a huge lesson for me. You just put on your “A” game and go for it.
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Are you going to chase the social media or are you chasing your music?
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IT’S LIKE THEOLONIOUS MONK. HOW DO YOU PLAY MONK WITHOUT SOUNDING LIKE HIM?
We would just get together in the bus and watch old Hendrix recordings. We all knew Hendrix, as we grew up listening to him.
But now, looking at him from the perspective of a musician, you come to play his music and your respect **for him just grows. 1850. It’s like “How did he do this, and so many years ago?” And we still can’t top it. And it was all in such a short amount of time that he had on this earth to do what he was meant to do. It just renews your respect for him
LETS TALK ABOUT YOUR BATTLE WITH CANCER, WHICH WAS COMPOUNDED BY THE COVID LOCKDOWN. WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION AND STRATEGY?
It was rough
We had lost my mom three years prior to breast cancer, and I was just paying a visit to my hometown and sort out things with my family, and try to move on, although you’re never really ready for doing that, even after 3 years.
I then find out that I have breast cancer. My sister lives in Italy, I am here in LA and my father is in Serbia. So, we all got together when I found out, and it was all such a hit.
I can’t explain it. I’m thinking, “Well, it’s been a good career, and I’ve lived great.” We had just built a house in Manhattan Beach from the ground up (as I’m into interior design), just the way I wanted it. It’s super modern. But now, it’s like “What am I doing?”
Should we sell the house and move back to Europe? Stop performing? I didn’t know what life was going to throw at me. Maybe I should just leave the music alone and concentrate on just getting better and on my family.
That’s when my bass player and music director Buthel said “You can’t retire now! We’ve got to touch people with our music. You were born to do this.”
After a few talks with him , I told him “Let’s get to writing!”
And that’s what we did. In the midst of all of this tragedy, we would get on Zoom and start writing together. The songs are not about cancer or anything like that, but to the contrary, they are about friendship, love and the joy of making music.
It was a motive for me to get up in the morning. I could have thought “Oh, my gosh, what’s going to happen to me?” or I could start thinking about the music and songs, and that’s what I did.
Throughout the years I was witnessing what music could do to people, but I never witnessed first hand what music and the guitar can do to me. I mean, it always made me feel great, but this was a full-on recovery process, fueled by guitar! Making songs and writing
My family and friends never took it as looking down and feeling sorry for ourselves. I realized that I will get on the good side soon, but my working on the music was giving me the power. That’s why the new record is called Power.
Now that it’s over and I’m feeling well, and the whole thing is behind me I’m telling people about it. It’s been a year and we’ve done 150 shows. I now want to focus on the process of getting better.
People are getting messages about health and what life throws at them every day. I want them to feel empowered by what I’ve gone through, to look at me and think “She has this wonderful music video that empowers me.” That even with the things that life throws at you, that you can still feel confident, attractive, sexy and even direct your own music video, play your own drums. This is all I’ve done in just a year. I wrote the songs, directed the videos and have even more in the bag
I wanted to give people hope. I want to show people the quiet fight. I have many fans; I didn’t need people’s input on Facebook. I wanted to fight it with just a few people, and now that it’s behind me I feel that maybe I can help a few people who need hope and strength to get to the other side.
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“You just put on your “A” game and go for it”
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DURING THAT TIME, WAS THER A PERSON, ADVICE, PHILOSOPHY, RELIGION OR BOOK THAT HELPED YOU GET THROUGH THE ORDEAL?
The music.
My friend, bass player and music director, Buthel, takes things from the religious side, so we have a lot of conversations. We still keep talking about what the musical impact is, and what life is all about. We have a lot of conversations because we’re always looking for things to put in our songs, but he comes from the religious side; I come from the more rational.
We grew up in different parts of the world. He grew up in Michigan, I grew up in Serbia. But we met half way and love the same music and look at life similarly, but from different angles.
It’s a nicer way to write songs, when he takes a song like “Luv’n Touch”. It’s a beautiful ballad with a gospel feel. When I sing “I need your presence” in “Luv’n Touch”, it can be religious, it can also be a friend, a loved one or anyone. That’s the nice thing about our songs; you can take it any direction that you want.
What really gave me the strength to go through it all was my guitar and music.
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“Throughout the years I was witnessing what music could do to people, but I never witnessed first hand what music and the guitar can do to me..What really gave me the strength to go through it all was my guitar and music..”
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HAVE YOU CHANGED YOUR DIET SINCE BEING TREATED FOR BREAST CANCER?
Yes. I stopped drinking.
I never had an alcohol problem, but now its virgin mojitos.
I was a huge wine fan, but that’s got to go now.
WHAT DID YOU LEARN ABOUT YOURSELF THAT YOU DIDN’T KNOW BEFORE?
No matter how you look at life, from whatever angle, as with me and Buthel, as we co-wrote all of the songs, produced and arranged them, we were able to do this even though we grew up in totally different families.
I grew up in Eastern Europe, and he grew up in an African American religious family in Saginaw, Michigan, but we both loved the same music. We were both crazy about the “Detroit Sound” and through music found out all of the actual similarities between our families.
So what I learned about life was that no matter from what perspective you look at life, it all comes down to the same thing. It doesn’t matter how different you are or how different your upbringing is, there are still so many similarities between people. That’s where unity comes to the point, and why my cover looks the way it looks.
It’s to show that we need more unity in this world. That unity will be what will save this world. Until that is done, we will keep having something to fight about.
We need to be more about inclusiveness, and treat people the way they want to be treated, no matter the skin color and all of the rest. The problems that women face in the world today in the continents…we want love to be for everybody. People just need to accept other people, no matter their religion and where they come from. Don’t turn a blind eye to it if you think something is not right. You can help the progress, and don’t slow it down.
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“I was part of the Hendrix Experience Tour, and was one of the few women ever to be a part of that…That means you have to step out of your comfort zone”
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WHEN YOU WATCH A GUITAR PLAYER, WHAT DO YOU LISTEN FOR, AND WHAT IS YOUR PET PEEVE?
What bothers me is when they are not in the pocket. There are a lot of guitarists with a lot of flashy licks, but are not in the pocket. Too fast, too slow, too behind
I’ve seen some amazing guitar players with huge names, and they are not in the pocket. They spend too much time practicing those licks, so that when they are out there with the band they just want to play them. They’re very impressive licks, but they aren’t in the pocket. That’s really annoying; I can’t listen to that.
What I look for is tone, phrasing and something a little unusual. Basically, I want to hear something that’s free. Something not necessarily learned, but when your soul speaks through it, you let yourself go and you don’t think about it.
There are many guitar players that look like they’re thinking about it, and then there are the ones that are just free and let their art come out naturally. That’s what I’m looking for.
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“I wanted to give people hope. I want to show people the quiet fight”
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GIVE ME A MUSICIAN, LIVING OR DEAD, YOU’D PAY $1000 TO SEE PERFORM
That’s just a crazy question! (laughs)
If Hendrix was alive, would $1000 do it? I’d probably have to pay more than that to see him.
ANYONE IN WORLD HISTORY YOU WOULD LOVE TO SIT WITH FOR AN EVENING AND PICK HIS OR HER BRAIN?
Anyone from BB King to Howlin’ Wolf to Al DiMeola to George Benson. I have no preference, because you are going to find great things about the guitar.
WHAT GIVES YOU THE MOST JOY?
I get so much joy from different things!
One of them is me on stage; my moment and my time on stage.
Another is just walking with my children along the ocean. It’s just five minutes away. You can’t be stressed in Manhattan Beach, with wonderful weather. I do this every morning-coffee and then a walk along the beach.
I love playing the drums! I can jam for four hours. This is my new instrument.
***I’ve always been a fan of drums, and I now think that I almost missed my call on my real instrument! I’m not very good at it, obviously, but I love to jam out on my playlist and hit it hard.
I love interior design. I’m always reading some architecture magazine; it relaxes me. It amazes me to see what people come up with.
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“There are a lot of guitarists with a lot of flashy licks, but are not in the pocket. Too fast, too slow, too behind”
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WHAT FUTURE PROJECTS AND GOALS DO YOU HAVE?
I just want to keep writing good music.
I hope I can always be inspired like I have been through my career, with every new record being an explosion of inspiration.
I don’t ever want to take it for granted, because I might wake up one day and there’s nothing coming out for me.
I just want to put out music that I’m proud of. I want to top my songs with better songs.
I want timeless music and signature guitar licks.
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“Basically, I want to hear something that’s free. Something not necessarily learned, but when your soul speaks through it, you let yourself go and you don’t think about it”
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DO YOU HAVE A COMFORT GUITAR?
I have an old original ’64 Strat. However, I have to go with my ‘57 reissue that I got from my parents when I was 18. We went on a vacation in Holland and our car broke down. Everyone else had just enough money left to get their shopping done for the rest of the vacation. My father called a family meeting, and they decided to spend it all on my guitar. There was just enough money left for the guitar. So that one’s my absolute favorite.
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“I want timeless music and signature guitar licks”
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WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE PEOPLE TO SAY AT YOUR MEMORIAL SERVICE?
She was a nice person, and she made some timeless music.
WITH HER LATEST ALBUM, ANA POPOVIC HAS PROVEN THE HEALING POWER OF MUSIC. THROUGHOUT HER CAREER, THIS SERBIAN BORN LADY HAS DEMONSTRATED THE POWER OF CREATIVITY EXPRESSED THROUGH AMERICA’S CULTURAL FOLK MUSIC. BOTH MS.POPOVIC AND THE BLUES EMIT AN ENERGY THAT IS INFECTIOUS. TOGETHER, THEY ALSO INSPIRE.