Cover photo © 2026 Marilyn Stringer
In this day and age, it can be hard to find a band that rocks with the primal force of the Rolling Stones or the Blasters in their prime.
In February at the Winter Blues Fest in Des Moines, Iowa, sponsored by the Central Iowa Blues Society, Nikki Hill and her stellar band did all that and more. Hill commanded the stage, a whirling bundle of energy in search of release the only way she knows how. Backed by the twin guitars of her husband, Matt Hill, and the award-winning Laura Chavez, powered by the masterful rhythmic foundation from veterans Marty Dodson on drums and Nick Gaitan on bass, Hill finished off the fest with a magnificent set that no one wanted to end.
Her original songs, steeped in blues, gospel, and R&B elements with the ever-present passion of rock ‘n’ roll, are another integral aspect of her artistry, delivered by a voice that can be raucous one moment, beguiling the next. But, as she is quick to mention, it is the contributions of her band members that give her an edge up.
“Over the years, a lot of it was being able to pick up people regionally and just locally where we lived. I know it’s slightly cliche, but the current line-up really did come together very organically. When I was looking for a bass player to take out on these longer road trips, I ended up just calling up my Houston friend, Nick Gaitan. Both Matt and I had seen him play with different bands.
“We’re fans of his solo project, Umbrella Man, and I saw him play bass with Billy Joe Shaver, and it was really just a kind of a casual reach out. I heard good things about him. He was a great hang. That one really sort of flowed together well. At the time Matt and I were living in New Orleans, and there’s always a great Houston, New Orleans connection, musically, culturally.
“I had played with Marty Dodson the first time I came out to the West Coast. He was backing Matt and I when we were doing double duty shows at that time, trying to just build our crowd up. Marty was playing with Nathan James. They backed us and we just kept up a great relationship. I have always loved Marty’s playing, as does any blues and roots player that you talk to that knows about him. We’re both just big fans of all kinds of music, really reaching beyond the scope of blues, but with ultimate respect and a nod to the blues and everything that it teaches you, especially about drumming. So I knew that would be a really cool pairing when I gave him that call to join. My drummer before that, Chris Reddan, was great, but he had an injury, so getting Marty has definitely worked out in a beautiful way.
“And the same thing with Laura Chavez, our amazing guitar player. We met when she was playing with Candye Kane. They came through St. Louis where we were living at the time, and her and I hit it off really well. I had just started doing local gigs in St. Louis when we met. Laura and Candye were super fun to hang out with. I was a fan. And then, a little later into playing, I wanted to add another element to the band, and I decided on two guitars, have someone pair up with Matt’s heavy rhythm guitar playing to be able to add a little more tone and essence to the songs, especially playing live.
“I had that idea and went on the road with another guitar player. The schedule got really busy, and I needed someone that could roll with that. Finally I said, “Man, screw it. I’m going to call Laura. It would be so fun. Let’s see what she says,” and she immediately said yes. We’ve just been rolling that way ever since.
“It’s all just really been great, holding onto these friendships with these really amazing musicians. I’ve been so lucky to have people that believe in what I do, dig what I do enough to just say, “Hey, yeah, I want to go out here and do this.” And, man, they’ve stuck with me since then, so it’s been good. They certainly leave me speechless sometimes!
“I’m also very proud of myself too, and proud of Matt and I for just being able to do this together and live this life with such a killer band. You see it at our shows. It’s amazing when things in your head really come together in reality as a result of them playing together.”
Being married and playing in a band together has often been a recipe for disaster. Hill is thankful that her relationship with Matt developed over time, giving them a much firmer foundation that allows them to weather the usual marriage issues plus the stress of many nights on the road.
“We were both hanging out in some similar friend circles. I used to work at a music venue and bar in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, called Local 506, meeting musicians and artists, and that eventually led to us meeting through mutual friends. A lot of our connection was definitely music, and we were both on the younger end of our peer group, so it was just really cool to find a younger person that was into the same styles of music with a lot of the same ideas. We were friends for years and then started dating well after that. I used to see Matt before we were dating, see him playing with people like Bob Margolin, or see him at different blues shows or festivals we both were booked on.
“We came from similar backgrounds, but had different things to share with each other, a lot of which really crossed over. One of our biggest similarities was a lot of the artists that we were into fed our desire to just keep reaching further back. Whoever we were into, what did they listen to, and then who did that person listen to? And that all eventually taps into the blues, gospel, country music. It definitely adds something to the way that we perform together.
“It’s like any relationship that you really value and care about, just having a foundational friendship first has really helped. So we’ve seen the good, bad, and the ugly before, during, after kind of a thing. That means we are able to say, “All right. We’re partners, we’re married, but you’re one of my best friends in the world.” We do things out of that point of care, out of that point of respect and communication.
“It’s another benefit of just having that grounding when you’re out on the road, especially as often as we’re doing it. This shit is chaotic when it comes down to it. It might be our life and what we do, but moving around a lot and constantly changing schedules, different sleep schedules, it’s really something else. At the end of the day, even with any difficulty, having someone there that can help you through that, hold your hand through it a little more intimately than a band mate, it’s really just a beautiful thing. We’ve been touring full time since 2014, been together 24/7, 365 days for that long, give or take two or three days out of that whole time. That’s pretty special for me.”
Growing up in Durham, North Carolina, Hill’s introduction to vocalizing came from the church. The lessons she learned have stuck with her through the years since.
“It wasn’t necessarily something that I chose to do. If you’re a young kid in the South, and if your parents go to church, you are going to go to church, and that’s just the way it is. So it was Sunday school and service, and then vacation Bible school in the summertime. And throughout that, I was in the church choir, so we’d have rehearsals once or twice a week, and then we’d be the ones singing during the service.
“So I started that really young. And obviously, as a young kid, sometimes you just hate being told what to do or where to go, and to sit still. But, it’s one of those things that I definitely appreciate a lot more now, knowing what it really showed me and how I utilize that, in ways I never thought I would at the time. I never had any dreams of singing beyond that, so it’s pretty special.
The church experience gave her a firm foundation for what was to come, lessons on how to shake the rafters and deliver the promise of the Holy Ghost spirit.
“Well, I went to what I’d call a holy roller church. Music was a big part of the service. It was always really lively. We had an incredible choir director, and great band, which started out very stripped-down, all vocals. So first off, you’re learning melodies, harmonies. You’re learning direct interaction with the crowd. It’s automatic rock ‘n’ roll show when you’re in church, and you’re pushing and pulling with the crowd.
“There’s call and response. There’s dance. It’s never been a thing for me to have to connect or disconnect gospel and roots music. Everything I’ve seen in church, I later saw as a teenager going to see live music. You know what I mean? It’s that same energy, that same good feeling it gives you, that same power of the presence of the room and the people in the rooms. And that’s really the basis of where I start when I’m thinking about rock ‘n’ roll, roots, soul, blues. Yeah, the church really taught me a lot.”
As impressive as Hill can be live, some audience members may have concern about how hard she seems to be pushing her voice, with an intensity level that is often dialed up to the proverbial “11” mark.
“It’s so funny to hear that, especially when I’m out at the merch table talking to people. I think about some of our favorite artists, blues artists and jazz singers, performers in these smoky clubs and bars, them smoking packs of cigarettes, and still being able to unleash these incredible voices or musical performances.
“I feel like I’m at the base end of the vocal stressing. But there definitely is a technique and, not that I’m always using that as I’m untrained, but definitely over the years I’ve had to think about the way I push certain things vocally. But, man, adrenaline is a hell of a drug. If we could bottle that up and sell it, I don’t really know what the outcome would be, but it’s amazing in the moment what you’ll push yourself to do, and then your body just gets rid of it. I can’t explain it in any other way. But some of those squalls and screams, they’re more performatively stressful than they are actually vocally stressful.
“But the concern is valid, so I drink lots of tea and water. I stay very hydrated, try to stay healthy, and even over the years of learning it, there’s definitely things I did when we first started touring that would really stress me out now,. People always talk about the importance of sleep and hydration, and that shit really matters. But I definitely still have a problem with going to a loud bar after the gig, hanging out, talking and drinking all night. I don’t do it as much, so that’s progress.”
Hearing her music, one soon starts to pick up on some of the artists that have inspired Hill, especially with her songwriting
“The Staple Singers, just clearly for so many reasons, musically, lyrically, just the raw, unfiltered vibe of it, definitely is a big inspiration. On that same note, I love artists like Otis Redding. I love girl groups from the ’60s, like The Ronettes and The Supremes. And I love rock ‘n’ roll and punk rock, like Bad Brains and Little Richard, who I would consider very punk. Gosh, it can really spread out there, but those are some of the main heavy hitters for me.
“When it comes to songwriting, I have my phone, which I pray every day will not fall apart in my hands because it’s very old, but I have so many voice notes. I typically start with a lot of melodies, and I’ll match that to things I’m writing. The melody comes first, and then an idea kicks in that follows behind that. A lot of times when I’m writing, it’s honestly not leaning towards songwriting, it’s just writing to get feelings out. For the upcoming album, there’s no covers on it. I usually leave the covers for the live show.”
There is a new album in the works, and the singer is excited about releasing a recording that will showcase her and the band in all of their glory. Her previous releases include Here’s Nikki Hill, Heavy Hearts Hard Fists, and Feline Roots, all available at her website: www.nikkihillrocks.com
“I’ve actually recorded an album at Sam Phillips Studio in Memphis. Scott Bomar, who’s an amazing sound engineer, engineered the album, and I’ve done some collaborative work with him before, so it was really cool to get us all in there to Memphis and do that. Now I’m living the typical musician dream where I’ve got to find the money to get this shit moving. I’ve been testing out a lot of the songs on the road, and it’s a cool thing to see the reaction, especially after the show when people say, “Wow, I really, really like the new song.” I have the full band recorded on it, so it’s just been really special to make that happen.
“If it worked out, it would be cool to release the new album through a label, but with my previous albums I’ve done really great with licensing with a distributor, so that’s probably what will end up happening. But checking offers and reaching out, that’s all part of the game, so we will see.
Sometimes I’ve had various responses where the deals aren’t great, or I’ve even had labels say, “Hey, I really think you could do better for yourself than we can do for you.” And they’re saying that in a complimentary way, but I’m always like, “Man, I could still just use the money,” you know
“It’s been the same road of difficulty. I’ll hand it to the fan base and the roots music scene for being truly so supportive. It’s really amazing. I have people that come to the shows and they’re like, “Well, I bought this CD last time, but I’m going to buy it again!” And it’s really heartfelt, which is great. But the vinyl is definitely still having that upswing. As recession hits hard and people are watching their pennies, I’m wondering how much of that payoff is there with that giant expense of trying to supply vinyl.
“I think there’s going to be a discussion that gets really heavy, that has already started happening. A lot of people are uncovering some of the bullshit around streaming and paying for playlists and those different attempts and all the money that independent artists have been pushed to put into that. I’ll give it to folks listening to this kind of music, because it seems people still really want the live experience, or they want the physical product, or they’re personally asking, “What are other ways that we can support you?
“So fingers crossed, wishful thinking, but shit, I think we’re all kind of there in all different industries. Knock on wood, I’ve been really lucky with being able to keep up with merchandise sales. But the purchasing up front is honestly the hardest part in a lot of ways, investing before you get return. But again, that’s kind of the name of the game, right?”
For Hill, the live stage is her refuge. She is free to be herself, share her joys and pain with her legion of fans.
“I feel like being in the “zone,” is what we’re all reaching for when you’re on stage and I’d say even off,. There’s nothing like having a live show that moves you. It’s always really cool to be part of creating that. For me, performing is really just all about the freedom on the stage, something I don’t necessarily feel like I have day to day, but then on the stage, I know that for 90 minutes, it’s just about me and the band and the audience having a connection together.
“I do everything I can to just keep that as a cathartic moment, so that we’re not having to over-filter our movements, our expressions. It feels great to let loose in a fun way, but also in a way of just balling everything up, the rage, the sadness, the joy, all of it kind of coming together and, like I said before, it’s the same thing I felt would happen when I was in church, what church people call catching the spirit.
I don’t think that’s any different than when you’re at a punk show and people are in the pit moving around as one unit, or when you’re listening to a singer-songwriter and tears are brought to people’s eyes by the words or the tone of the singer’s voice. Just being able to take all of that in, it’s so human that it ends up touching people in the end, even if you can’t identify it. I think sometimes people stretch it a little far when they say, “Oh, there’s just no good bands,” or, “No one’s doing it like this.” My mind gets blown pretty often when I have a chance to go see live music. The amount of access we have is incredible, but I still feel like I’m digging, like the way I used to, searching for stuff to get me excited.”
She has being doing things her own way, and has no plans to change course. When you put it all out there, night after night, there is a price to be paid if you lose focus. For Nikki Hill, those moments when she can cut loose are strands in a lifeline that keep her connected to the human race, making the world a better place one show at a time.
“As I was getting into music and starting to perform,my mom was always saying, “Do it while everything works, while you feel good, and push it all out there.” And I’ve just always really taken it to heart. I hope I’ll be maybe one day a more mellow Nikki Hill. I might have that era in me one of these days, even though it’s not right now. It feels like a beautiful mission at the moment to really just push out that message of joy and compassion for yourself and for each other, and for courage. It’s really being up there making a cathartic experience. I want people to know you can be yourself, and, as long as you’re not a shitty person, the consequence isn’t going to be there the way you think it is.
“I’ve spent a lot of my career kind of messing up or having wrong things happening on stage. In moments like that, people can be a bit taken aback or amazed by what they are experiencing. I always hope in the end, our show encourages people to say, “Well, she went up there and did that and survived, and she’s got other gigs.” The independent artists like myself, the ones really pushing it and giving it their all, we’re not necessarily the ones getting seen. It is so important for me to really keep the faith that there’s more of us out there just to be able to keep going.
“I think I say it at every show. I just want to make sure you know my name, whatever that means. Because everyone’s got a different way of remembering, but just make sure you know my name, baby. It is my way of making sure that everybody remains courageous. We especially need that now, industry-wise and, of course, across the board as humanity in general.”
