Jontavious Willis facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jontavious Willis
Jontavious Willis at Chicago Blues Festival in 2023
Background information
Born	1996 (age 28–29) Greenville, Georgia, United States
Genres	Country blues
Occupation(s)	Singer, guitarist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, harmonica, banjo
Years active	2014–present
Associated acts	Keb' Mo', Taj Mahal

Jontavious Willis, born in 1996, is a talented American musician. He sings, plays guitar, writes songs, and can play many instruments. He is known for his country blues music. Jontavious has released three albums so far. His second album, Spectacular Class, was very popular. It reached number 12 on the Billboard Blues Albums Chart in May 2019.

Two famous blues musicians, Keb' Mo' and Taj Mahal, have helped guide him in his music career.

About Jontavious Willis

Jontavious Willis was born in Greenville, Georgia, in the United States. He grew up singing gospel music with his grandfather. They sang together at their local Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church.

When he was 14, Jontavious watched a video online. It showed the legendary blues musician Muddy Waters performing a song. This video made Jontavious fall in love with blues music.

Learning to Play Blues Music

Jontavious taught himself many styles of country blues. These included Delta, Piedmont, and Texas styles. He became very good at playing the guitar. He learned to play using different techniques. These included fingerpicking, flatpicking, and slide playing.

As a teenager, he became a multi-instrumentalist. This means he taught himself to play many instruments. Besides the guitar, Jontavious also learned to play the harmonica and the five-string banjo. He also studied at Columbus State University. There, he focused on sociology and anthropology.

Early Career and Mentors

Jontavious got a big chance in 2015. The famous musician Taj Mahal invited him to play on stage. After their performance, Taj Mahal called Jontavious his "Wonderboy." This special moment helped Jontavious get noticed.

He started performing at music festivals. In April 2017, he released his first album, Blue Metamorphosis. Music magazines like Living Blues and Blues & Rhythm gave it good reviews. Another blues musician, Paul Oscher, said that Jontavious would help keep the blues alive. In 2018, his album won the 'Best Self-Produced CD Award' from the Blues Foundation.

In 2017, Keb' Mo' and Taj Mahal released an album together called TajMo. This album won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album in 2018. Jontavious Willis was the opening act for their tour. He played before them at several concerts.

Releasing New Music

On April 5, 2019, Jontavious released his second album, Spectacular Class. This album was released by Kind of Blue Music. Taj Mahal was the executive producer, and Keb' Mo' was the producer. The album had ten songs, all written by Jontavious.

He sang and played acoustic guitar on the album. Keb' Mo' played electric guitar. Other musicians played bass, keyboards, and drums. Spectacular Class was a success. It reached number 12 on the Billboard Blues Albums Chart in May 2019. It was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album in 2020.

Since 2019, Jontavious has performed in many places. He has played concerts in the United States, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Canada, and Puerto Rico.

Music Albums

Here are the albums Jontavious Willis has released:

See also

• List of country blues musicians