check out jesseterrymusic.com for music, news, updated tour dates and free downloads!
With his down-to-earth appeal and deceptively sharp writing, Jesse Terry plants himself firmly among the most promising singer-songwriters of his generation. His 2009 debut, The Runner, which was licensed to popular MTV shows The Hills and The City, introduced him as an inspired prodigy with the potential to score big on the Americana scene. Michael McCall of the Nashville Scene lauded Terry for offering "a sophisticated melodic touch to his tender musings about love and finding his place in the world." While the sounds of popular music become increasingly inflated, he wades into the fray with graceful, understated arrangements that embrace his ambitious songs.
With a warm and precise baritone, Terry builds a kinship with the people he sings about---estranged lovers and lonesome drinkers, heartless women and hopeless romantics---and that special bond is always a sweet comfort. "I love how every day and every town is completely unique," he says. "I love how I can be in New York City one week and in Big Sky Country the next. As a writer, meeting all kinds of people from so many different walks of life inspires me and feeds my muse. Touring is truly an adventure for me and is something that I'll never get out of my system."
Born and raised in Connecticut, Terry spent his teenage years enthralled with the musical works of Jackson Browne and James Taylor, men who emptied their hearts for the sake of a song. He shares their careful devotion to avoiding emotional compromises. "I've always been spiritually connected to that kind of music," he says. "It's completely transparent, soulful and honest. That's always the kind of artist I've wanted to be, where there is no barrier between the audience and the artist."
It would be tempting for Terry to merely mimic his idols, but he takes great pains to find fresh ways to speak his truths. His sensitive, touching portraits about busted hearts and broken dreams are drawn from his own life. Terry marvels at how the power of song gave him renewed resolve on his darkest days. "My parents split up when I was five," he shares. "I think that's the major reason that I was compelled to write songs. I moved out of my parent's house when I was twelve and never returned for longer than a stretch of a few months. I spent the rest of my high school years bouncing around from runaway shelters, to reform schools, to best friend's houses, to my grandparent's house in the country. It was a crazy, turbulent time. In a lot of ways I think I started experiencing childhood when I turned eighteen."
Terry used music as a refuge during that dark period, eventually graduating from Boston's prestigious Berklee College of Music and gaining national notice as a charming, energetic performer. Now a Nashville resident, he's also attracted a wealth of talent within his professional orbit, including steel guitar virtuoso Dan Dugmore and hit songwriter Mark Alan Springer, who signed him to his first publishing deal. They, too, have been drawn to the compelling nature of his songs and his unique story. "Music completely saved my life," he admits. "Writing and performing heals me like nothing else ever has, and when I'm able to connect with a perfect stranger because of one of my songs, that is the ultimate reward and compliment."
A five-month performing stint in Australia and the South Pacific last year spurred a creative and spiritual rejuvenation for Terry. That journey culminated last July when he proposed to his girlfriend from New Zealand, Jess, in front of a sold-out crowd at Nashville's landmark venue Bluebird Cafe, where he's performed regular showcases for six years. Recently selected for a Premiere Showcase at Far West Folk Alliance, Terry plans a return to the South Pacific in support of his second album, scheduled for release next summer. The album encompasses folk, pop, rock and americana, and does so in a way that's both tradition-minded and contemporary. "I want the sound to be as close to a live show as possible," Terry says. "These days I'm much more aware of emotion and much less concerned about perfection. I wrote almost all of these songs while I've been out on the road and out on the sea, exploring the world."
I edited my profile with Thomas Myspace Editor V4.4 (www.strikefile.com/myspace)
Header Banner Made with MyBannerMaker.com! Click here to make your own!
