Life & Work with Jess Hess

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jess Hess.

Hi Jess, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I was born and raised in Lancaster, PA. I’ve been singing as long as I can remember, and writing almost as long. My parents were smokers, and whenever we drove somewhere I’d stick my head out of the car window and sing to get away from the smoke.

That’s how I taught myself to sing. I’ve been keeping a journal since I was 5, so putting singing and writing together and becoming a songwriter was a natural step. When I was in college for a vocal performance, my father passed away from complications after lung surgery. I dropped out of college to be with my family, and about a year later my niece, who I had grown up with like a sister, died in a car accident. I don’t think I would have survived that time in my life if it wasn’t for music and writing. A lot of my music is centered around that grief.

I moved to Nashville on a whim when my friend from college needed a roommate. That friend, Steve Barnett, and I spent the next four years writing and recording music in our Nashville home. We decided to polish nine of my recorded songs into an album, and called it “Soil in the Rain.” I finally released that album in 2020. Since then, I’ve been making more music, writing, and sharing it all on socials.

I’ve released a couple of singles since my debut album, and I have another full-length album in the works, which I cannot wait for!! It’s so much bigger and louder than anything I’ve ever done.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It’s really hard balancing being an artist and working a job that pays for me to be an artist. It feels like I’m being pulled in two directions all the time, and I wish so bad I could just write my little songs and not have to pay for anything! Haha, but that’s not how life works!

But it is really difficult to make money from your music if you are an independent artist right now. People don’t buy music anymore because streaming platforms make us all (me included) feel like we are entitled to art. At the same time, I don’t want to gate-keep my music.

I just feel like there has to be a better way because artists are struggling right now, even when they have the numbers to be doing well and making money.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a songwriter and sometimes a poet, too! I have an album out called “Soil in the Rain,” which I recorded with my good friend Steve Barnett. That album is probably my proudest accomplishment so far! (Although I’m releasing another album next year I may be even prouder of it!!)

I went to school for opera and I like all kinds of music under the sun, so I don’t always stick to one genre. I love to experiment in the studio, but ultimately I write every song with just a guitar or a keyboard in my bedroom. It’s all very personal stories about me at the end of the day. About my grief, my heartbreaks, my depression, my burnout working a 9-5, my belief in astrology, hahaha nothing too lofty or unreal. I released some demos on socials and one of them blew up a bit.

I wrote this song when I was hungover thinking I should probably drink less, and I did not realize how much it would mean to so many people. That song’s called “Sober,” and I’ll probably be the most proud of that when I finally release the studio version next year!

How do you think about luck?
Sometimes I feel like I have the worst luck! But going through what I have can make you feel that way. In truth, I’m not sure I believe in luck.

I believe in karma and optimism. If I believe that good things will happen, they probably will. What you send out, you get back.

Contact Info:

• Website: JessHess.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/jesshessmusic
• Facebook: Facebook.com/jesshessmusic
• Youtube: Youtube.com/jesshessmusic
• SoundCloud: Soundcloud.com/jesshessmusic

Image Credits
Natia Cinco