Hi, Mr. YorMajesty. How are you?
YorMajesty: “I’m
good, Hope all is well with you as well.”
Who's was the most influential
Guitar Player, that made you want to become a Guitar Player?
YorMajesty: “Hendrix was
my first influence, but I would also have to credit Eddie
Hazel & quite a few others.”
When you were starting out, what
drew you to Psychedelic Funk over other music of the time?
YorMajesty: “Parliament/Funkadelic
had a profound influence on me growing up, to me they were
the world’s greatest band ever assembled.”
Where did you first hear Psychedelic
Funk?
YorMajesty: I had a friend named
“Lewis Christian”, that had the: let’s take
it to the Stage Album, in Washington DC.
How well do you read music?
YorMajesty: “About
as well as Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Hazel, B.B. King, Albert King,
Stevie Ray Vaughn, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Eddie Van Halen,
Joe Bonamassa, Eric Gales, Robin Trower, Muddy Waters, Prince,
Bootsy Collins, D'Angelo, Larry Graham, Lewis Johnson, Otis
Rush, Buddy Guy, T-Bone Walker, Gary Clark Jr, John Mayer,
Isaiah Sharkey, Philip Sayce, Ernie Isley, George Benson,
Bernard Allison, Elvis Presley, Pick Any One Of The Beatles,
& Even Michael Jackson, That's To Say Not At All.”
It’s well known that you
play Guitar, but what other instruments do you play?
YorMajesty: Bass
Guitar, Piano (Keyboards & Synthesizers), Trumpet, Digital
Drums.
What made you
decide to become a Recording Engineer & Producer?
YorMajesty: “Necessity,
started out with Digital Performer on a Macintosh computer
& was hooked on Digital Recording ever since, as I became
versed on DAW’s on both platforms (Mac & PC) over
the years, Producing was inevitable.”
Tell us about your album, "Ghetto
Prophecies."
YorMajesty: I recorded Ghetto
Prophecies in the late Ninety’s, it was a mixture of
Neo-Soul, Hip-Hop, with a slight R&B twist, I mostly recorded
it from the perspective of what I wanted to hear, not caring
if I sold a record, so I recorded it for Me, but fortunately,
Eleven Million People Liked What I Like.
Are there any well know artists
that helped you along the way?
YorMajesty: “Actually
Yes, glad you asked that question, I was homeless in LA for
2 years before the Jazz Pianist “Herbie Hancock”
got Me off the streets (I was blessed to go to his house in
Beverly Hills). I lived with the lead singer of the Marvellettes
(Gladys Horton) as a Multi-Instrumentalist for Her songwriting
team, she introduced me to many of the songwriters & producers
at Motown, also hung out with Brian La Roda (Stevie Wonder’s
Manager) He looked out for Me as well.
You have multiple Guitars, do
you have a favorite?
YorMajesty: It depends on what
day of the week it is, I love them all as if they were my
children.
How Many Guitars Do You Currently
Have?
YorMajesty: At
this moment, I currently have 88 Guitars (One For Every Key
On A Full Sized Grand Piano).
What do you think about the Collector
vs Player Argument?
YorMajesty: As far as I’m
concerned, it’s an invalid argument, Joe Bonamassa has
Hundred’s of Guitars, no one can say he can’t
play, and that goes for John Mayer, Billy Gibbons, Kingfish,
Steve Vai, Dweezle Zappa, Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix or whoever
else you want to name.
What made you want to become
a Luthier?
YorMajesty: Before
the Covid Pandemic, there were many Seattle Luthiers that
would work on My Guitars (Free of Charge Actually, just to
say they worked on My Guitars) a few for a minimal fee, but
Covid shut everything down, forcing Me to figure it out on
My Own. I was encouraged by Mike Hitt of Georgetown Music
(Who was let go as a result of the Pandemic) to try wiring
My guitar myself, he also offered to provide diagrams &
walk me through things, so that started Me down the path.
In your opinion are Vintage Guitars
better than Guitars made today?
YorMajesty: “The
short answer is No, but "Better" is subjective,
like asking 10 people the same question & getting 10 different
answers. Modern guitars should be better, but is not necessarily
always the case, as you would think with modern technology
people would be actually smarter than the previous generation,
but that theory doesn’t appear to be panning out either.
What side do you stand on, when
it comes to modifying Guitars?
YorMajesty: I’m going to
modify every guitar I get my hands on (Most of my guitars
have my name inlayed on the fretboard), usually I’ll
put Seymour Duncan, Dimarzio, Lindy Fralin’s or Bill
Lawrence Pickups in My Guitars, as well as no hole pickup
covers, I don’t like my pickup poles to show.
Do you use, or have a favorite
Guitar pedal, or pedals?
YorMajesty: I
almost always go through a Wah Pedal, Uni-Vibe, and Belle
Epoch Deluxe Echo Pedal, occassionaly Tru Tron 3X & MXR
Time Delay, but for the most part I like using Guitar Rig
5, because of the wide range of effects & Cabinet sets
to choose from.
In over a hundred videos, you
are not seen playing with a pick; do you prefer to play finger
style? Or do you sometimes use a pick?
YorMajesty: I rarely play with
a pick (Though I Can), but for the most part, I prefer Finger
Style.
Which Guitarist (Past or Present)
if you had the opportunity to play with would it be?
YorMajesty: Hendrix, Stevie Ray
Vaughn, B.B. King, Albert King, Carlos Santana & Eddie
Hazel.
With the advancement of technology,
in your opinion are guitar players better than guitar players
a generation ago?
YorMajesty: Guitar
players today, owe the past generation everything for setting
the example for them to follow ( Even if they are able to
improve on, or execute a piece played by a guitarist with
more precision (i.e Stevie Ray Vaughn playing Jimi Hendrix
Voodoo Child), does not make him better than Hendrix, he was
able to analyze & work from Jimi’s work, He did
not create a song equivalent to Voodoo Child on his own, that
made other Guitarist want to cover his original song (in fairness
maybe one (Lenny), but Jimi had a lot of Songs guitar players
wanted to cover).
You play multiple genres of music,
what is your favorite genre to play?
YorMajesty: I
like playing the Blues, it’s more conversational to
the listener in my opinion, I’m not at all a fan of
shredding (playing notes a million miles an hour is not something
I have an appreciation for), but to those who like it, I’ll
let them have that lane.
This interview was conducted
in March 2025 and was originally published in the February
2025 issue of Da Black Nation: The Official YorMajesty Magazine.
