In an interview with The News-Letter, Judah Akers, lead singer of indie folk band Judah & the Lion, said that they make music, “for people… to point people to hope.” Their newest album, The Process, is a journey through the five stages of grief. Twenty-four tracks guide listeners through the thick of denial, anger, bargaining and depression all the way to acceptance.
Judah & the Lion’s live show, structured in these same five stages, does just what they’ve set out to do: take the audience through some of the band’s toughest moments, while also pointing toward hope. As Akers put it, The Process, on-record and in-concert, explores the difficult but worthwhile “process” of learning “how to hold space for every emotion.”
Writing came to Akers from a place of necessity. Growing up as a self-proclaimed “stereotypical jock,” he remembers bottling up his emotions. Influenced by his counselor mom, Akers found writing during a difficult time. It was an “outlet,“ he said, “to understand where I was actually at.”
Akers’ uncle, Paul, was an early musical mentor for him. He also cites his baseball coaches and high school choir teacher as other key influences, the latter of whom was the first to tell him that he might make a career out of music.
“Having people in your life that instill belief in you and allow you to grow and be terrible puts courage inside of you,” Akers said.
Much like Akers’ early writing, Judah & the Lion’s music today still serves as a place for them to unpack what is happening in their own lives. When asked how he brings himself to share such personal stories with the world, Akers explained that “putting yourself out there and being vulnerable is a way for someone else to not feel alone in their own story.”
He mentioned a recent show in Chicago where someone spoke to him about how they’d connected to and felt inspired by Judah & the Lion’s music. Interactions like these encourage the band to keep sharing what is true in their own lives. Akers defines the artist’s dream as being able to connect honestly and to help people feel less alone.
“If art’s not scary, if you’re not going to put yourself on the line, then what is it for?” Akers asked.
COURTESY OF KAITLIN TAN.
Judah & the Lion performed onstage in Silvers Springs on Oct. 18th, bringing their raw emotion to a Maryland audience.
College was a formative time for Akers’ musical career. It was at Belmont University that he met his friend and bandmate Brian Macdonald, and it was also during this period that the band played some of their first shows. When Judah & the Lion was first starting, he remembers how important it was for them to learn to play shows of five audience members with the same energy as they would a crowd of hundreds.
He points out, “What a whole lot of people don’t really realize about music is that it just takes a whole lot of work.”
For college students who juggle personal passions alongside academics, Akers cites perseverance and consistency as essential values. Especially with the pervasive culture of social media, Akers encourages people to stray away from comparison and to support your peers. He advises college students — and especially creatives — not to dwell on the many things outside of their control and to instead focus on creating a path of their own.
Akers reflected on The Process, what it means to him and what he hopes it will bring to others. “We’re really proud,” he said, “It tells the story of grief in a way that is, I think, hopeful. It’s definitely the most raw I’ve ever been in releasing or writing a record, so it was super healing and cathartic… what we’re seeing out on the road is that it has been a healing place for a lot of people.”
The band’s personal connection to their audience was evident in their performance at The Fillmore in Silver Spring, MD on Oct. 18th. Between folksy tracks and indie-alt anthems, Akers kept up a personal rapport with the audience. He explained what the mantra of Track 12’s “It Is What It Is” meant to him and his sister during tough childhood times; he celebrated his mom’s year of sobriety; and he shared a memory of his last moments with his grandfather. At various points during the set, Akers’ wife and sister, audience members at the barricade and openers Abe Parker and Gage Rhodes joined Judah & the Lion on stage.
In regards to who he hopes their music reaches, Akers said he believes that music “finds the people who it’s supposed to find...when it’s supposed to find them.” From the energy and enthusiasm both on and off-stage during their set at Silver Spring, one gets the sense that Judah & the Lion have certainly found their people. In that room, the sense of community and the band’s message of hope were clear.
