Sevendust Singer Lajon Witherspoon on ‘All I See Is War,’ the Grammys + More – Interview
Story by Anne Erickson, photo by Travis Shinn
Sevendust singer Lajon Witherspoon chats with Anne Erickson about the band’s new album and more in this in-depth interview
Atlanta metal titan Sevendust is back with a new record, “All I See Is War,” and there’s one big difference in the band from when the guys released their last album, 2015’s “Kill the Flaw.” This time around, Sevendust is Grammy nominated. “Kill the Flaw” was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 58th Grammy Awards. It was their first Grammy nomination and a moment lead vocalist Lajon “LJ” Witherspoon will never forget.
On the heels of the release of “All I See Is War,” LJ spoke with Anne Erickson of Audio Ink about that Grammy experience, the deep meaning behind “All I See Is War” and more. Read on for the interview with LJ below, and listen to the full chat on Apple Podcasts here.
Anne Erickson: Congratulations on the new album, “All I See Is War.” That’s a great, dramatic title. Tell me about the meaning behind “All I See Is War.”
LJ Witherspoon: “All I See Is War” is actually lyrics in the song “Dirty.” Through the process of making an album, I never really go straight in and say, “It’s going to be called this.” You never know. Even at the very end, we didn’t know what the album was going to be called. I kept thinking in my head, “All I See Is War. All I See Is War.” There are things going on in the world. That’s what you see when you turn the news on and what’s going on around. “Dirty” is a story. To me, it feels like a story. When I was writing it, I thought it could be a solider or a man or woman or kid on a bus getting ready to go into the world– not necessarily going into war, but it could be going into war. So, it’s kind of a spin-off of that.
The lead single, “Dirty,” is doing well on rock radio. What made you pick “Dirty” as the first taste of music off the new album?
“Dirty” was one of the first songs we put together, so I’m very happy that was the song picked as the single. It’s a fun song, a driving song and a powerful song. From the band sort of being on a hiatus, that we’ve been able to come out with this kind of song is cool. It’s still got that Sevendust dance groove, too!
Sevendust is now a Grammy nominated band. That’s such an honor! What was it like getting nominated for a Grammy?
It was crazy! That was so fun. I got to take the whole family down and walk the red carpet. What an experience. Being a kid and watching the Grammys, I couldn’t wait to see it. So, for me to sit down beside my wife and the band and to be three rows away from Stevie Wonder, I mean, it was like, “What in the world is going on?” It was crazy! I still think about it. The experience was incredible.
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