LIGHTS FLASH across the stage, lighting up three guitarists as they bring to life the energy of ’90s rock. Behind them, at the drum set, sits James Briggs, providing the rhythm and drive that helps make The Mixtape Allstars a premium rock band. Briggs is not just a drummer — like the rest of The Mixtape Allstars, he is a dad, but he is also a retired staff sergeant and a veteran of the United States Airborne Infantry.
Briggs joined the Army right out of high school and ultimately spent 16 years in active duty, serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, Panama, Egypt, and many other places across the United States and the world. It was an experience that changed his life for the better. He didn’t have a father growing up or a steady background, and Briggs said that the military’s core values helped him become a good man and a good leader.
“[I] had to learn at a young age to take care of myself [and] be very independent, so there were a lot of things that I was doing already before I came in that the Army just fine-tuned,” Briggs said. “[The military] gave me those values to lean on and formed me to be the man that I ended up being. So it would’ve been a completely different story had I not joined the Army.”
The values went under the acronym LDRSHIP: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage. They led Briggs through his time as a soldier, and continued to lead him as he began taking on responsibilities and ranking.
“I spent [the] majority of my career as a leader, more than I was a soldier,” Briggs said. “I looked forward to it; I was really good at it.”
He held squad leader and section sergeant positions, and was in charge of the ammo section for an entire battalion — a responsibility usually reserved for sergeants two ranks above his own rank at the time.
Through that role and others, Briggs remained a true leader. He took care of his soldiers first, and he took his job seriously. While he was traveling, Briggs also took the time to learn about and appreciate the cultures he was around.
“I told my mom about it, and she was like, ‘Nobody in our family will ever go to Egypt, James — enjoy it,’” Briggs said. “So I did. Everywhere I went, when I was in the service, I always took it all in, I really engaged with people.”
In May 2012, however, Briggs’ time in the military came to a sudden end. Eight months into a deployment, he was medevaced out of Afghanistan and to Brooke Army Medical Center. After a year in the Warrior Transition Battalion, he was medically discharged because of his injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder. It may not have been what he wanted, but Briggs said it ended up being a good thing.
“I was getting so burnt out,” Briggs said. “So I look at it like a blessing. Things could have [gone] a lot differently had I stayed in.”
The transition into civilian life was difficult and full of depression and isolation. Throughout it all, Briggs said he kept seeing veterans serving around Lebanon. They invited him to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Briggs eventually got involved. The community and the work gave him a sense of purpose and a way out of isolation.
Since those first few years, many things have changed. The birth of Briggs’ daughter cut back what he was able to do, but he still volunteers with the veteran community center’s ride service, driving veterans to and from appointments.
“It’s my way of still giving back and helping the community out,” Briggs said. “I always feel good when I’m able to help out another veteran.”
Briggs also found purpose and joy in music with The Mixtape Allstars. He’d been in bands his whole life, from playing percussion in high school to participating in a Battle of the Bands in Seoul, Korea. Answering the online ad was a step out of his comfort zone, but he said playing music helps him tremendously, and doing similar things can help anyone struggling, whether a veteran or not.
“As difficult as it is transitioning from combat back to regular life, doing something you love to do is therapy every day,” Briggs said. “Whatever it is, just take part in it a little bit each day, doing something you love to do.” GN
