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"FacebookPinterest\n\nListen to \"Violent Shiver,\" the first single off Benjamin Booker's self-titled debut album, and you wonder: Where did this guy come from? He has the rasp of 10,000 Marlboros and plays guitar like his hands are on fire\u2014which explains why Jack White invited Booker on tour this summer but not why it's all pouring out of a 25-year-old who grew up in Tampa freaking Bay. The answer: He's a thief, in the best way possible. From his sound to his style, he's nabbed a little bit from everywhere.\n\nThe Gumbo of Rock\n\n \"I guess I would call my music blues punk. There's a lot of influences. When I was making the record, I was listening to a lot of things, from TV on the Radio to the Carter Family. I was all over the place.\"\n\nDress Like a Frontman\n\n \"I've been making music since I was 14, but for a while I was afraid to perform. Then someone said to me that people go to live shows to see someone who believes in himself and can be confident. Buying into that has helped me to branch out musically. Stylewise as well.\"\n\nFriends with Benefits\n\n \"I hung out with this girl while I opened for Drive-By Truckers last year. The first night, I didn't go home, so I borrowed clothes from her. I guess I borrow clothes from girls a lot.\"\n\n Guitar Hero on Line 1\n\n \"A few years ago, I was writing about music for my school newspaper. I just started playing with a full band last year. So when Jack White's people called, I was like, 'Oh, my God.' \"\n\nLosers Weepers\n\n \"On my last tour, I lost three-quarters of the clothes I brought. I had this perfect gray Levi's jean jacket that I had broken in and everything. And I lost it in Miami. I try not to get attached to clothes\u2014usually I'd just swing by a thrift store to pick up new stuff\u2014but I was so bummed out.\"\n\nWelcome to the Big Steezy\n\n \"New Orleans style is funky\u2014it's just as experimental as the city. There aren't any rules. If you want to wear a polka-dot shirt and some crazy pants, you can get away with it there. You gotta go there to really get it yourself, though.\""^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.gq.com/story/benjamin-booker>