Jake Wesley Rogers

One Liner: Pretty piano pop from a dude with a major change in his look

Wikipedia Genre: Pop, singer-songwriter
Home: Nashville

Poster Position: 16
Both Weekends.  Sunday.

Thoughts: Very serious juxtaposition between the look he has on the cover of his top single - bookish, studious, cute, like a 15 year old about to read a book in the shade of a tree where he thinks a cute girl will walk by in an hour and a half - and his 2021 EP Pluto - David Bowie's bastard nephew.

I honestly figured this was going to be country, just because of the name.  But it is pop instead.  Rogers grew up in Missouri and was doing music and theater in elementary school.  He came out to his family in sixth grade, but felt like he needed to hide it from the wider world of the Ozarks at the time.  Moved to Nashville for college and has stayed there for the music.

His top single, by quite a bit, is a cover.  The Pretenders' "I'll Stand By You," with 6.6 million streams.

In that video he looks more like Anthony Michael Hall's character in Breakfast Club, if that kid wore a doily for a shirt.  Beautiful song though.  That was a 2016 single, so back when he was launching his career.  Since then he has released EPs in 2017, 2019, and 2021.   They're fine.  None of them have gotten massive traction, but his voice remains strong and his piano remains ready made for a Gray Anatomy tracking shot.  His newest single is called "Lavender Forever," and the cover of it makes him look like a special purple hobbit who is advertising his lavender farm from the Shire.  595k streams.

I have no clue what the lyrics of that song mean - "sticky sticky fingers for life" is kinda gross.  But the happy tune and sunshine-y lyrics are really nice.  The video is creepy though.

It is nice music, I don't really see a reason to go find it at the Fest, but it is solidly done and pretty.