As a part of this year’s Philly Music Fest, Delco native Devon Gilfillian is set to headline at Underground Arts this Saturday, Oct. 26. Ahead of his return to Philly, Gilfillian spoke to Metro Philadelphia, touching on his inspiration, the impact of his family, the influence of music, and more.
Easy one, are you excited for Philly Music Fest?
I’m so excited to get back home to Philly and see some homies, some fam; stop by my old burger spot, Charlie’s Hamburgers in Ridley.
Your dad is a musician, too, right?
[My dad’s] a singer, percussion player, and he was a wedding singer for most of my life, but also started playing in this band, Café Olé, back in, like, the 80s, and yeah, man, they’re cool. They’re like, rock and roll and soul and jazz and fusion, kind of like Steely Dan mixed with Little Feat, kind of vibes like, yeah, really cool stuff.
How did your father impact your love of music?
If it wasn’t for my dad, I wouldn’t have the vocabulary or the influences that I have, like Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, all that came from my dad. When I was a kid, seeing him performing and seeing Café Olé when they’re having reunions, and getting to see him do his showcases every now and then for his wedding band. That gave me the green light as far as I want to perform. I can get on stage and do this. But it wasn’t till I was 14, when I started playing guitar, that I really was like, Whoa. Okay. This is what I want to do.
How would you say living in Delco, so close to the Philly music scene, affected your sound and your growth in music?
I was aware of all the greats that came out, you know, like Hall and Oats and all The Delfonics, and the old soul, and, of course, The Roots, and then you got Dr. Dog and The War on Drugs and, there’s all these different generations of greatness that’s come out of Philly, but I kind of felt a little separated.I wasn’t really in the city to sniff out the original music scene that was happening there.
And in college, I started playing at bars, playing at the Grape Room in Manayunk every now and then, but I feel like I didn’t fully dive in. I’m just now getting to meet Charlie Hall and the War on Drugs and work with them, and work with Eric Slick, who plays drums for Dr. Dog. It’s funny, 12 years later, after moving out of Philly, I’m now working with the big Philly cats.
What stands out to you as an important milestone in your career so far?
One thing that really stands out is; I got to play at this theater in Lynchburg, Virginia, and I got to open for Mavis Staples there. And I’ve been a fan of The Staple Singers for a long time, and Mavis is such a huge influence on me as a singer and as a human.
We were actually the first Black people to play that theater. It was just refurbished and opened, it was closed for four years, but we were the first Black people to play in that theater on that stage. And getting to break down a barrier with Mavis Staples, who has already broken down so many barriers for Black people, that, to me, was a really insane moment.
How do you look to have a similar effect on the next generation of artists in a way that is similar to the influence she had on you?
I hope that I influence people to speak out and use their voice in this country. Use music as as a weapon, as Fela Kuti would say, and use music as a power to push people in the right direction.
I want to influence people to pick up the guitar, and sing, and dance, and make music that makes the world a little bit brighter and better. Sometimes music is dark, and that’s great too, that still actually makes the world brighter and better because it’s a reflection of us as artists and being true to yourself, and that can still be positive.
What does it mean for you to help the next generation grow and find their own sound and voice?
I think that’s the most important part of this business. Reaching down and pulling artists’ hands and pulling them up and putting them on the stage, just like so many artists have done for me. To me, it’s what makes this such a beautiful, fun, collaborative environment because there’s no lack of talent in this industry; it’s just recognition, is what it is. There’s so much talent out there that doesn’t get recognized. Being able to help artists that are underwater get out above it is everything to me.
You can see Devon Gilfillian perform at Underground Arts on Saturday, Oct. 26, at 7 p.m. with Mondo Cosmo, The Tisburys, and Emily Drinker as part of Philly Music Fest’s week-long festival. For tickets and additional information, visit phillymusicfest.com
