On Stories, Music, and Place: An Interview with Hope MacGregor
Story and Photos by Hannah Gore
If you have lived in Jackson very long at all, chances are you have heard the name “Hope MacGregor” before. You even may have seen her perform at local venues and events, such as the Baker Bros. Barbecue open mic night, Hub City Brewing, the AMP, or her live recording session at Turntable Coffee Counter. With her rich and powerful vocals, down-to-earth personality, and witty banter with her audience, it is no wonder that she has become a beloved figure in the music scene here in the Hub City.
Hope has been a friend of mine for the past year. However, I recently had the chance to sit down and interview her and learn more about her life, career, and how music became a driving passion for her. She also talked to me about how she connects with others in music communities, both local and beyond.
I may have known her for a little while, but Hope MacGregor is one of those people that you sit down with for the first time and feel that somehow you have known her for your entire life. She is a musician, songwriter, veteran U.S. army helicopter pilot, lawyer, daughter, sister, aunt, dedicated dog mom and also one of the most laid-back people that you will meet.
During our interview, Hope spoke about her experiences growing up. She explained that the places where she spent her childhood through young adult years played an important role in her music, influencing her style, her writing process, and her ability to tell stories through songwriting. “Place absolutely matters,” Hope said, regarding how the places she has lived have impacted her music journey.
Hope was born in Norman, Oklahoma, but moved to Texarkana, Texas, when she was young. She then relocated with her family once more to Rochester, Illinois, where she spent most of her childhood. “Illinois isn’t known for its musical history, but where we landed in Illinois, we landed in a musical basket of plenty,” Hope explained.
Growing up in central Illinois, Hope was surrounded by American history. She told me that she lived near President Abraham Lincoln’s historic home in New Salem. Her proximity to the home of such an iconic American president and other historical sites inspired her interest in stories and history and, especially, the ways that she could weave them together in her music.
Hope always has had a passion for music. Her grandmother would say that Hope could sing “The Hills Are Alive” before she could speak complete sentences. As a child and teen, she loved singing in choir, particularly the high school choir at Rochester High School in Illinois. Hope’s high school choir had an especially profound effect on her because the entire group was committed to excellence in everything they did. Hope loved being part of this extraordinary team as they worked tirelessly to make something beautiful: Music. Her experiences with the choir also showed her how important and profound staying in the moment can be. Her ability to live in the moment would play a significant part in her next steps.
Hope graduated from West Point in 2011, and attended flight school, graduating the following year. She initially was stationed at Fort Campbell in Clarksville, Tenn., until she was deployed to Afghanistan in for the first nine months of 2014 as an active-duty helicopter pilot. She continued to explore her passion for music while in Afghanistan, leading worship on Sunday mornings at Bagram Air Force Base with only her voice and guitar.
Upon returning to the States in late-2014, the army divested the model of helicopter that Hope piloted and shut down her unit. After her time at Fort Campbell Hope was stationed at Fort Liberty (formerly For Bragg), North Carolina. She remained on active duty while at Fort Liberty, but without the helicopter she was trained and experienced in flying. During this time, Hope also considered her next steps.
In August 2019, Hope was officially out of uniform. It was then that she decided to pursue a career in law. From 2019-2022, she attended law school, earning her J.D. from Campbell Law School. During her time in law school, Hope picked up songwriting once again, this time more earnestly. In June of 2022, she released her debut EP just a month before taking the bar exam. After completing the bar exam, she moved straight here to Jackson, Tennessee. This move propelled her passion for music to the forefront of her life.
“I moved to West Tennessee, drank the water, and got the blues,” she says. Her move to Jackson was the start of the most eventful season of Hope’s life in terms of her writing and performing her own music. Despite her desire to be involved in the music scene and put herself out there, Hope explained that she still experienced some fear of trying to integrate herself into the music community in Jackson. “In the music world, there are no clear markers of success,” Hope said when talking about the time when she wondered if she was ready to be in the spotlight. Eventually, though, she discovered the open mic night hosted by Hunter Cross at Baker Bros. BBQ. Hope began regularly attending and playing at this weekly event and began to get connected to other local musicians including Laura Grisham, Jake Davis, and Mason Henson.
In July 2023, Hope began recording her first full-length album, “The Matriarch,” at Jaxon Records. With sounds blending country, blues, folk, and classic rock, the album boasts hints Hope’s midwestern roots. On the topic of style, Hope explained that Oklahoma and Texas give her music that “red dirt root,” and that Illinois gives her music the “storytelling root.” In her album, Hope’s raw, bluesy vocals combine with rock n’ roll riffs and solos in each track to create, not only an album, but a series of stories within each track. The project features collaboration with musicians from Jackson and beyond. “Where you are rooted changes the flower you produce,” Hope said as she explained how working with other local musicians and doing life here in West Tennessee has played an important role in shaping her style, songwriting, and other elements of her music since she moved here in 2022.
“The Matriarch” was officially released in October, 2023, with a dinner and concert at Hub City Brewing to mark the release of the album. Guests enjoyed a preview of Hope’s album performed by her and her band. “The Mac Attacks.” The show was a hit and launched Hope into the public eye. She is now one of the stars of Jackson’s bustling music scene.
In March of 2024, Hope collaborated with Anthony Kirk of Turntable Coffee Counter to host a live recording session. The evening featured live performances of unreleased songs recorded in the coffee shop in real time. The session also featured a Q&A with host of the Podcast "Professionally Offensive"--Joseph Cabrera, a live painting session from artist Josh Blankenship, and drinks served by Turntable Coffee Counter.
Most recently, Hope and the band performed on the main Hitachi Energy stage at the second annual Vintage Maker’s Festival, kicking off a full summer of performances for Hope MacGregor and the Mac Attacks. Among other performances and concerts this summer, they are slated to perform at the Dancing Turtle Fest in Stillwater, Oklahoma, in June and in Texas in August. On August 23, Hope and the band return to Jackson where they will perform at The Amp, Jackson’s popular outdoor amphitheater.
Hope is promoting the concert on social media, and her fans expect an exciting and enjoyable evening.
For more information about Hope’s upcoming shows, events, or to keep up with her music journey, follow her at @hopemacgregormusic on Instagram, find her at Hope MacGregor Music on Facebook, or visit her website at https://www.hopemacgregormusic.com/. All her music can be streamed on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music.
Hope will be performing at theAMP in Downtown Jackson on August 23 at 7pm.