As a teaser for his residency at The Metropolitan Room in 2016, blues and jazz performer John Minnock will delight audiences with a show on August 22. He answered some of our questions about what we can expect from the show and his upcoming album.

What's the theme for your show on August 22?

This show is a review, a reintroduction, and often reimagining of jazz and blues: classic tunes, jazz versions of recent stuff, jazz history and factoids – all in a very upbeat, very fun atmosphere. Jazz and blues never really crossed the demographic boundaries into a more diverse crowd, and I'm out to change that. The people who come to my shows are from all across the board in age, background, music knowledge, etc. This is what really makes it a fun, rewarding experience for both me and the audience. I recently got a cool compliment when a woman came up to me after a show and said “my boyfriend doesn’t like this kind of music or any song you sang, and he had a good time.” Bingo. The energy and drive have to make it worthwhile to come out to a club, plunk down a few bucks for cover and drinks, and fully enjoy the performance. I think this show accomplishes that.

How do you select the songs you perform on your shows? Is it hard to leave some out?

It's hard to structure a show, make it arc, make it build. The songs we choose have to 'say something' – it has to be something I'm communicating. To find songs I talk to friends, folks who come to the shows, and I do research on my own.

Doing your research for the shows, what have been some of the most surprising things you've discovered about songs you love? Does your research affect the way you perform the material?

I am always astonished when a song takes on its own life, completely unplanned and unanticipated, when the band and I start doing it. And because I’ve studied music, I get a lot from understanding the perspective, the time period the song comes from, or the references the song is making.

I recently did a song for the first time, a Bill Withers funk tune called “Use Me.” The bass started playing something we didn’t rehearse, I couldn’t hear my opening note, but I closed my eyes said “fuck it” and jumped in… and it turned into one of the best tunes we do.

People often try to define voices by comparing them to other artists in the genre. Can you comment on who were your influences growing up, and what artist's career would you most like to follow?

A few years ago a friend of mine turned me on to Ruth Brown. She was performing in a small room, and she brought her on-the-road blues experience into probably the most entertaining small-room show I've ever seen. I also really respected Mel Tormé at Michael's Pub, and Bobby Short at the Carlyle. And don’t forget Feinstein. All these opened the doors of what is usually called “cabaret” into all genres of music being able to succeed in that arena. And this is what allows me to expand into funk, R&B, and other music not normally performed “cabaret-style.”

You're releasing an album soon, can you comment on what will be included in it?

The current title is "Every Day Blues,” and like the live show, we’re exploring and adapting these various genres into a smaller-instrumentation and more intimate format.

You're starting a residency at the Metropolitan Room in 2016, can you comment on why it's essential to keep the nightclub/cabaret scene alive in New York City?

It's all in the immediacy, the spontaneity. The energy in the room makes us excel to something that just can't be packaged and canned. I even keep things a little unstructured with the band (a trio of piano, bass, and drums) to allow the show to go somewhere we didn't anticipate.

How do you think younger people/people who have never been to a cabaret show can become interested in the artform? Are there false impressions or misconceptions about cabaret that you think people need to get over?

There are different kinds of cabaret. Many people are familiar with the show-tune based shows, and that's a great area of the business. There are also comedy-based shows and drag performances that can be done really well in a cabaret setting. But there are also more music-based shows, and I think I fall more closely into this category. I like to mix things up in my show, so I’ll do some classic tunes and then I’ll do stylized versions of contemporary songs by say, Sara Bareilles or Sam Smith. I try to stay true to the artform and focus on the music, so people who know or appreciate good music – this show is for them.

John Minnock’s next performance is Saturday, August 22 at The Metropolitan Room. For more information click here.