Not slowing down: Singer-songwriter Jess Williamson brings new music, show to Tumbleroot Brewery & Distillery

The days before a tour are spent doing a lot of planning for Jess Williamson.

The Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter is headed on tour in support of her latest album, “Time Ain’t Accidental.”

“I’m practicing a lot,” Williamson says. “I’m going to hunker down and stay at home and play a lot of music. We’re adding four more songs off my new record to the set. It’s that funny thing where I have to relearn my own songs. It will be a lot of running errands and practicing before I head out on tour.”

Williams is slated to make a stop in Santa Fe at Tumbleroot Brewery & Distillery at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18. It will be her fourth time performing in New Mexico.

“I really enjoy performing in New Mexico,” she says. “There’s something special about the area, especially Santa Fe.”

“Time Ain’t Accidental” was released on June 9, and features 11 tracks.

Since the record was released, she wanted to play all the songs on this tour.

“On my last tour, we played all but four of the new songs,” she says. “These songs are a little more challenging for me to sing because they are more sad. I felt like I wanted to save the sad songs for when the album was out, and I could perform the album in full.”

Williamson says it’s interesting to see how slower, sadder songs seem to change the set.

Being aware of that, she plans to pepper in the songs throughout the set.

“It’s about creating moments,” she says. “I recently saw Taylor Swift in concert, and she has mastered that. She goes into this soft space and then comes back stronger than ever. It can be done, and I’ll be able to pull it off.”

Williamson began writing songs for the album in 2019. The album was completed in August 2022.

For nearly a year, she waited for the album to be released, which was a lesson in patience.

“The dates usually come from the record label and it’s smart,” she says. “Vinyl takes a long time to produce and I had just released an album in October 2022. We did that tour and waiting to release the album gave me the opportunity to make music videos and give the two albums their own place. I’ve been able to see the direction I want to go with this album and tour.”

As the singer-songwriter continues to evolve in life and music, she noticed the changes along the way.

“What’s happened is I enjoy performing more,” she says. “I understand it more. When I was first starting to play shows, it was just a learning process and getting comfortable with myself on stage. I’m more comfortable now and I connect with an audience. That makes the whole process more fun for me. There’s always a huge learning curve because the industry changes so much. I’m grateful because I’m able to tour again. When I released the album in 2020, I didn’t get the chance to share it with the world in a live setting. Every moment is so special to me when I’m able to share my music.”