Jake Aarons is an independent English-language singer-songwriter from the Czech Republic. He began as a folk singer-songwriter, but subsequently felt the urge to experiment further with genres to fully express himself, so he is currently releasing Lo-Fi Hip Hop, Bedroom Pop, Pop Punk/Pop Rock, etc.
In 2017, Pierre Leck, a French producer living in Berlin, discovered Jake Aarons and invited him to his studio. They recorded his debut EP, “4 songs of grief,” which was released in 2018. Since then, Jake has performed live around the Czech Republic, ranging from tiny concerts in cafés, restaurants, and bars to larger performances in Prague and a music festival called VARY GOOD FEST, which features the top names in the CZ&SK music industry. Since then, Jake has released a few more singles and music videos, and on December 30, he published his debut album titled “Baby Blue,” which consists of 12 songs and features artists from the Czech Republic as well as the rest of Europe. Check out the album and the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?
JAKE AARONS: Hi, I’m Jake, 25 years old and I’m from the Czech Republic. The short version is I got lucky a bit. I was at a gig as a fan, made a video of the singer, posted it on Instagram, got e-mail from a producer and also her keyboard player asking if he can post the video on his Instagram as well because he’s in it. We talked a bit, I told him I wrote a few songs, he wanted to hear some… and then he invited me to Berlin to record my first EP.
But in the background of course, it took me years to be even confident enough, to say it out loud, that I’m writing lyrics and stuff. I guess it was the old ‘right place, right time’.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
JAKE AARONS: Self-taught. I was always too shy. So I was singing in my room when nobody was home, I was trying to learn the guitar etc. I was worried that people would laugh at me when I was younger. It felt like doing sports, being into cars and stuff like that was the only acceptable thing for boys, feel me?
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘JAKE AARONS’?
JAKE AARONS: The first one was Ed Sheeran for sure. I loved the idea that he can do it all just by himself and a guitar. He’s also one of the best songwriters in my opinion, and lyrics were and still are the most important thing for me.
Alright, the name… It’s kinda weird story, but here we go. There were these rumours going around back in 2012ish that you shouldn’t put anything personal on Facebook and stuff. So I made up the city I live in, city I was born in, didn’t post my face, and also made up the name. And it’s an English name just because I had many international friends that were not able to pronounce my Czech name haha. So years later, I kept the name for my music.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
JAKE AARONS: Raw, honest, straight-forward emotions. I’m not playing around when it comes to lyrics, not being mysterious. Real situations, real feelings. I think it’s easier for the listeners to connect.
And how would I describe my sound? Honestly, I have no idea. Moody? It always reflects the way I feel at the moment, a different stage of my life. Multi-genre. Acoustic folk, Pop, Lo-Fi Hip Hop, Pop-Punk, Pop-Rock, Spoken Word… You’ll never know what to expect, because neither do I, haha.
5. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?
JAKE AARONS:
Definitely the creative work. I’m an introvert and kinda anti-social to be honest. Which explains a lot I guess. I don’t even talk much about how I feel. But when it comes to lyrics… Oh lord. I’m an open book all of a sudden haha. So I love the process of creating.
I do enjoy gigs too of course, but it’s still a big step out of my comfort zone and makes me hella nervous to be honest.
6. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?
JAKE AARONS:
Everyone should be free to interpret it however they like for sure. Music is such a wonderful individual thing. If people interpret it the way I serve it, great. If they interpret it their own way, even better! Create to create more. Art makes more art. I love it.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
JAKE AARONS:
I guess people never have enough. Especially artists. I love the creative process, not so much the marketing process. But it goes hand in hand, if you wanna grow. So to answer exactly, I am expecting more, expecting to grow. But if I’m satisfied with a song I release and it doesn’t perform that well (streams, views), it doesn’t change the fact that I’m happy with it and therefore feeling fulfilled.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
JAKE AARONS:
Depends. Sometimes I’m so full of emotions that I just write and write. I remember the old days in school, writing lyrics in my notebooks. By the end of the lessons I could have like 3-4 full songs written if there was a lot of things happening in my life at that moment. But when there’s not so much going on, I sometimes just play the guitar or listen to some instrumentals and the vibe of it can give me an idea for lyrics.
9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
JAKE AARONS: Definitely growing up. The way life changes, your priorities do too and you can no longer just mess around, you know? Losing people, not having so much free time to do whatever you feel like doing… Yeah. That was and still is difficult.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
JAKE AARONS: Speaking of music… Getting noticed for sure. By big media or music professionals as an independent musician. When I released my first single of my debut album, it was the first time I got into Spotify’s New Music Friday, which was huge for someone who had like 100 monthly listeners or less. And also now after the album release, one of the biggest Czech music magazines posted an article about it. Yeah, that felt amazing.
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