Despite being just 18 years old, Grace Bowers is a shining light for the future of blues guitar. She’s been championed by the likes of Devon Allman, Margo Price, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, and Susan Tedeschi since releasing her debut album, Wine on Venus, last year.
Bowers' rise has been nothing short of meteoric, with her talents and fame belying her youthfulness. Having regularly posted clips of her playing on social media in recent years, the comments sections of those videos soon played host to some reputable names.
“My guitar heroes would start commenting on my posts,” she tells Classic Rock. “I’ll never forget the day that Brian May commented on one of them. That was when I had to step back and be like, ‘Wow, that’s wild.’ It was kind of crazy how things all just built up so big before we [Grace Bowers & the Hodge Podge] put a single song out.”
Impressively, Bowers already has nine years of playing beneath her fingers and says a certain top-hatted guitarist was responsible for drawing her to the instrument.
“Slash is the reason I picked up a guitar when I was nine,” she says. “I somehow found the 'Welcome to the Jungle' music video by Guns N' Roses,” she told Marty Music. “You know, Slash in that, with his Les Paul and everything. He looked cool. I wanted to look cool like Slash, so I asked my mom for a guitar."
The pair crossed paths at a show in July last year, providing a full-circle moment for her.
Hearing B. B. King’s "Sweet Little Angel" on the radio shortly after sent her on a voyage of self-discovery via blue music’s rich history.
“That’s the song that made me realize I love this, that I want to do this forever,” she says.
Yet, despite being drawn to the blues, Bowers is veering away from one of its archetypal trademarks. Wine on Venus is brimming with happiness and smiling riffs, rather than the tales of woe and stinging licks that typically define the genre.
“I don’t hate sad songs,” she tells CR, “but I don’t think I’ll ever write a sad song. Being in the studio with all those people, there’s no reason to be sad about anything. I think what came out in the music was how much fun we all had recording.”
Even when the core of a song comes from a place of hardship or tragedy, she finds light in the darkness.
“The title track was written about my nana and before she passed,” she reveals. “Before she died she would tell everyone not to worry because she’ll be drinking wine on Venus because it’s the brightest star. I like that idea, it’s so out there.”
Bowers has gone on to share stages with Dolly Parton and Gary Clarke Jr., and rub shoulders with Billy Gibbons, and Orianthi, earning her a Gibson endorsement at the tender age of 14.
Her fast ascent through the ranks, coupled with her age, has seen her face her critics but she’s intent on winning them over one gig at a time.
“I get disrespected before I even play,” the guitarist told Guitar World last year. “People take one look at me, a young female, and immediately get a thought in their head of what I am, and they don’t take me as seriously as they should.”
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