“You never feel ready” - Chris Potter on growth, practice and staying the course
A conversation about albums quickly turned into something broader; how a career actually unfolds over time. We spoke about evolution, doubt, practice, and what it takes to stay in it for the long run.
Q&A
Q: When you hear yourself playing at 18 or 22, what do you hear now?
A: There’s a through line. I don’t hear a complete break or reinvention. It feels like an extension of ideas I had when I was very young.
When I listen back, it almost sounds like a different person, so it’s easier to hear it objectively. But I still recognise the core. The sound has developed, but it hasn’t fundamentally changed direction.
Q: Has that evolution been conscious, or does it just happen?
A: It’s gradual. You follow what sounds right to you at the time.
Over the years, you absorb more - more music, more ideas, more ways of thinking. Then each situation pushes you somewhere slightly different. You might hear something on a record and think, I want to explore that kind of phrase. The audience might not hear that reference, but it shapes how you approach things.
You only really see the change over long periods. In the moment, it just feels like continuing.
Q: What did you take from working with Dave Holland?
A: That’s been one of the most important musical relationships in my life.
What stood out was how he leads. Many of the musicians who played with Miles spoke to his generosity as a leader and Dave took this into his own bands. He has a clear sound in mind, but he gives space. He wants the musicians to bring who they are into that musical world, not fit into something fixed.
That’s something I’ve carried into my own projects. Also his focus and persistence - he commits to the music fully, regardless of external validation. That level of clarity is powerful.
Q: Your projects move across very different styles and formats. Is that planned?
A: It doesn’t feel like a conscious strategy. Different groups bring out different parts of your musical personality.
I grew up with a wide range of music - from Charlie Parker to Stevie Wonder and James Brown. So moving between acoustic and electric worlds feels organic.
You respond to the sound around you. A small group, a larger ensemble, an electric setting - each one shapes what you play. It’s like having different conversations with different people.
Q: You once said “I feel ready now” - what did you mean by that?
A: You never really feel ready.
There’s always something you can’t quite do yet. You think, maybe I’ll wait until I can get that together. But eventually you realise you’re never going to arrive at some perfect version.
At some point, you accept where you are and let the music exist as it is. That doesn’t mean you stop improving. It just means you stop holding everything back waiting for perfection.
Q: How has your approach to practice changed?
A: I’ve never had a fixed system.
It’s more about consistency. You pick up the instrument every day and find something you can’t quite do, then work at it from different angles - rhythm, harmony, technique, sound.
Some periods are focused - specific exercises, time, or technique. But mostly it’s about showing up and staying with it. After years of doing that, things accumulate.
Q: How do you balance practice with performance?
A: They’re almost opposites.
Practice builds the tools. Performance is about letting go of them. You have to be free enough to respond to what’s happening in the moment, not what you were working on earlier that day.
That balance is always there - preparation versus instinct.
Q: What sits beyond the instrument - what makes someone an artist?
A: A lot of it is attention.
Noticing things. The details of life - sound, memory, emotion. Those experiences are what give the music meaning.
When people listen, they’re giving you their time. That’s the most valuable thing they have. The responsibility is to make that time worthwhile - to connect with something real.
Q: How has the industry shaped your career?
A: It affects the opportunities, so you can’t ignore it. But I’ve tried not to let it define the work.
There’s a danger in tying your value to external success. That can become limiting. The focus has to stay on the music - doing it as well as you can.
I’m just going to work on the music, and make it as good as I can make it. If there are five people in the room or five thousand, the responsibility is the same.
Q: What have you learned about longevity?
A: It’s everything.
When you’re younger, setbacks feel final. They’re not. Over time, you see that consistency matters far more than any single moment.
The people who keep going - musicians, promoters, labels - they build something over time. It may not always be visible in the short term, but it holds. It will break through if you just don’t give up!
