Jessica Meuse to take on iconic voice of Stevie Nicks for Black Jacket Symphony

When Black Jacket Symphony’s classic rock album-loving fan base connects with a hometown crowd full of “Meuse Mafia,” Montgomery’s in for a wild, spellbinding night of Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 album Rumours.

“It sounded like it would be a lot of fun, so I of course said yes,” said Jessica Meuse, the River Region’s 2014 “American Idol” finalist who is stepping into the vocals of Stevie Nicks.

The Rumours album is being performed Jan. 7 at 8 p.m. at the Montgomery Performing Arts Centre. Tickets are $35, and are available at mpaconline.org, or by calling 334-481-5100.

If you’re going to get tickets to the Montgomery show, get them now. Meuse said she’s already seen a “low ticket” warning from MPAC.

“I think Montgomery is going to sell out,” Meuse said.

As a young girl in Slapout, Meuse said she listened to Fleetwood Mac songs, but didn’t place the names with the music. She said people have always told her she sounds like Nicks.

“It’s not like I went out of my way to sound like her. It just kinda happened naturally,” Meuse said. “I guess it’s the vibrato.”

Released in February 1977, Rumours is Fleetwood Mac’s 11th studio album, which gave the band more of a pop sound. Along with Nicks on vocals, the band’s lineup had Mick Fleetwood, Lindsey Buckingham, John McVie, and Christine McVie. Those days of Fleetwood Mac were no stranger to drama. Relationship issues and breakups were common in the band, including between Nicks and Buckingham.

“Honestly, I can relate to that, so I think I’m the perfect person for this,” Meuse said.

From the album’s 11 tracks, there are several iconic songs like “Second Hand News,” “Dreams,” “Go Your Own Way,” and “The Chain.”

A note-for-note live recreation of the album requires a special team for Black Jacket Symphony. Along with Meuse, they have Sean Heninger for Buckingham’s vocals, Ben Owens for Buckingham’s guitar, Erika Crowley on keyboards and vocals, Patrick Himes on guitar, Heath Price on bass, and Nick Recio on drums. They’ll perform the entire album in the concert’s first half, then come back with more greatest Fleetwood Mac hits.

“We had rehearsal and they’re super professional,” Meuse said. “They know what they’re doing. It was refreshing for me.”

Meuse said she’s fallen in love with a Nicks song that was supposed to be on the Rumours album, but got cut — “Silver Springs.”

“I think it’s so pretty,” Meuse said. “It’s like unrequited love. I love the depth of it, and I love the melody.”

So what’s the biggest challenge from Rumours to recreate live? Meuse said it’s the ad libs.

“Sometimes, they’re not exactly what or where you would think they would be,” Meuse said. “In rehearsal, I realized that Fleetwood Mac is actually pretty complicated in their structure. You wouldn’t necessarily hear it as a consumer. But when you’re trying to play a song note for note in the form it was played on the album, you start realizing tiny little things. Like, it’s only half of a phrase here, or there’s an eight bar intro, but in the bridge there’s only half of that. It comes in really fast, even though you naturally want to do the eight bars. You have to be very awake and conscientious about where you are in the song.”

A part of Black Jacket’s quest is to even recreate original album “mistakes.” After relistening to “Rumours” for months, Meuse said that if any exist that they’re just part of the music to her.

“I don’t even acknowledge it as some kind of glitch,” Meuse said.

With months of BJS shows that stretch from Alabama to California, Meuse said that her heart is full from all the love and encouragement she gets from family, friends and her “Meuse Mafia” fanbase from “Idol” days.

“It means so much to me that everybody supports my dream so much,” Meuse said.

Meuse said she’s looking forward to the tour, and a chance to reconnect with fans at home and abroad.

“I’m very excited to be back on the road,” Meuse said.

With Rumours, Nicks was seen in an iconic black dress. In Black Jacket, the band is known for wearing black jackets with black outfits. So what’s Meuse going to wear for the tour?

“I’ve just honestly picked out clothes that I think are appropriate. Of course, I want to look good. I want to feel good too,” Meuse said. “I want to tap into the vein of Stevie Nicks, but not necessarily become her, because I’m not her. I can never be her, but I can be inspired by her.”

Meuse is bringing a touring buddy for BJS

As a frequent solo performer, Meuse is very proficient with — and protective of — her Taylor acoustic guitar. She’ll even be bringing it along on the BJS tour, though she won’t be performing with it there.

Guitarists often name their instruments — like B.B. King’s Lucille or Eric Clapton’s Blackie — but Meuse’s doesn’t have one yet. Given its history, she’s a little afraid to.

“It’s already been through so much,” Meuse said. “It was smashed by an airline. I had to leave it in Los Angeles at one point. I had fully accepted that I no longer had that guitar. That it was destroyed. It was too broken to ship home.”

About a year-and-a-half later, a kind and music-loving soul managed to fix Meuse’s guitar, and even mailed it back to her as a present.

“I was shocked,” she said. “But I’m afraid to get attached because of all the things it’s been through.”

She made it home for Christmas

Speaking of being on the road, Meuse probably had the song, “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” running through her head this year.

“It feels like it was a dream at this point,” Meuse said.

After being stranded in Connecticut on Christmas Day, she managed to get home to Slapout and have a slightly late Christmas with family.

“We really celebrated it (Monday) so I could eat the food and stuff,” Meuse said. “It was just us, just close family and the dogs. It was our puppy’s birthday on Christmas Day as well. We didn’t do presents this year. We didn’t want to. We just wanted to hang out, and we ate a lot of food.”

More from 2023 for Jessica Meuse

“I just want to focus on the future and being the best version of myself that I can possibly be,” Meuse said of 2023.

Along with more live performances, including her popular online video streaming concerts, Meuse has some major goals for the New Year that go beyond writing and singing music.

“I just know that at some point I’ll be relocating and starting over in a new place,” Meuse said. “But I will always come back to home, because this will always be my home. I’m not going to disappear any time soon, that’s for sure.”

Meuse is working toward a Ph.D. in psychology, and said she’s applied to three different graduate schools. Where she moves will depend on where she gets accepted.

Furthering her education doesn’t mean she’s going to stop doing music. Meuse wants the best of both worlds.

“I love what I do so much, but I also feel that I can help people in the psychology world as well,” Meuse said.

Montgomery Advertiser reporter Shannon Heupel covers things to do in the River Region. Contact him at sheupel@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Jessica Meuse takes on voice of Stevie Nicks for Black Jacket Symphony