Ana Popovic: Energetic blues musician makes political points

Ana Popovic proves the blues can come from anywhere.

Born in Belgrade, Serbia, Popovic grew up listening to her father's record collection. She says the blues came naturally after that.

"When you're growing up in a home where there's Elmore James and Stevie Ray Vaughan, that's what you pick up. I thought it was groovy music and you could dance to it," she said from a cell phone in Memphis.

"It was honest and there was something true feeling about it. I don't know what attracted me, but it was the groove. You really learn to learn the roots of it too and that gave me the freedom to explore."

Popovic lives in Amsterdam and her only connection to America is through touring and working with American blues musicians.

She prefers American musicians because she says it's the "only way for her to sound American."

On stage, she's a fireball of blistering guitar and sweaty blond curls. Popovic's vision is to capture the sonic energy of acts like Cream and Jimi Hendrix.

Popovic calls her music a fusion of rock, "jazzy stuff" and compelling lyrics. But the message of her latest album Still Making History is noticeably political. Although she grew up in a middle-class family, she saw the tough times some of her friends and their families had.

"I think my songs are delivering a message and some are really political considering where I came from. They talk about third world countries and the people struggling. I came from Belgrade and I wanted to make the blues my living," she said.

"I'm really struck by the way the people live in third world countries and I am sending a message for them to be strong and live the one life they have to the best they can."

Early in the album, on "Hold On," Popovic makes her message clear: "The place I was raised was poisoned/Power in dangerous hands/ All life long, we've paid a price."

Not exactly a pretty picture, but that's what the blues means to her. It's a path to catharsis that meets the road of inspiration.

"I haven't lived in Serbia for a long time, but I know what's happening over there. It was difficult for a lot of people," she said.

Most of the last album was written in a place far away from Serbia. Popovic went to Venezuela to relax and clear her head.

The reception her music gets varies around Europe but she says Americans connect with her sound more than anyone else.

"It's natural for American musicians to play the blues and for people to like it. You don't get that in Europe. There's a lot of copies of Clapton and Stevie Ray Vaughan," she said. "The history is different in America. They appreciate something new and they like something different."