Rising Stars: Meet Nick Jongejan

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Jongejan.

Nick, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
When I was 16, I was a songwriter and guitar player in a few Pop-punk bands. I was always the person in the band who wrote the songs and made the demos. I quickly realized that pursuing music was the only way forward so I started studying guitar at one of the Dutch conservatories. While studying there, I fell in love with two things besides playing guitar. The art of producing & Modern Country music.

I had a mentor on the producing side of things with whom I learned the art of what we call ”American sounding” music production. (which basically means that the production is pretty slick and sounds full) Besides producing for other artists I started writing for my own project which turned out to be The Young River; My current band. We are one of the few acts in Europe that really embrace the sound of modern Nashville.

This genre is really difficult in Europe because most people think of Dolly Parton & Johnny Cash when they hear the term Country. Slowly but surely the Modern Country genre is gaining more popularity and as a band, we are right on the frontline when it’s happening. My band had a lot of influence on my production career. It basically ensured that 80% of the music I work on here is Country related which is pretty funny since it is such a niche over here.

This also created cool opportunities for collaborations with producers in Nashville. I think it is pretty funny that the largest part of my career is built on Country music without ever having been there. It is very high on the list but was not easy to realize due to Covid & a busy touring/production schedule.

Right now, I have two goals. 1 Making sure European Country artists get actually heard. 2 Making some writing trips to Nashville and making a name as a producer there as well.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Being a Country band in Europe is pretty hard since it is such a niche. But the good part is, that hard work gets noticed. By fans and by the industry. We found out that in the Netherlands the audience is a bit too small. This is why started focussing more on Europe in general. This has been a great move that led to multiple International shows.

My production career took off pretty rapidly. I was blessed to have a great mentor who taught me a lot and with whom I did lots of cool projects (Both label and indie). A few years back, I got the opportunity to build my own studio. It basically was a 2-year period of working during the week while the studio was slowly built over the weekends.

My band seemed to be a great marketing asset. People who needed Country related production knew very quickly where to find me. This also meant that my business became very niche which is a blessing and a curse. Luckily, people that know my roots also know where to find me for Pop Punk and Metal projects.

Besides the studio & band I also occasionally write toplines for dance artists. Which is a popular genre over here in Europe. It is definitely not where my heart lies but definitely nice for the royalties haha.

I think one of my current challenges is being able to find the right balance between my passion project and work life which I both love, but both ask a lot of me.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I specialize in writing & producing Modern Country music. In Nashville, this is a commodity. In Europe songwriters and producers in this genre are pretty rare. My week is basically divided into two parts. One half is writing/producing/mixing/mastering in my studio with and for artists.

For the other half, I am doing either management for or playing shows with my band The Young river. Since I also produce my band the lines between work and passion are getting really blurry. I think that is also one of the aspects I really enjoy. It is not really a job but more a lifestyle. It is not uncommon that I have to do a writing session, produce a song, mix an EP and play a few shows in 1 week.

This makes it really diverse. (But also very hard to navigate, haha). I think what sets me apart besides my taste in music is the fact that I can play almost all the string instruments & backing vocals needed for a Modern Country song. I also started co-producing tracks with Femke Weidema. She is a Dutch producer that has been living and working in Nashville for a long time now.

These Cross-Atlantic Productions seem to work really well!

Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
During Covid, I learned how important it is to have multiple streams of income. A part of my life was based on playing live. This was basically impossible for the last two years. Luckily, I was still able to do studio sessions and I also had royalties coming in.

Another thing I never did was remote productions. When the pandemic hit, I immediately invested in a remote setup which made sure that I was able to write and produce with artists while the whole country was in lockdown.

This also opened the doors for working with international artists and also led to the opportunity in working with Nashville-based producer Femke Weidema. Right now, I keep asking myself why I haven’t thought of remote production sooner!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nickjongejan.com/
• Instagram: instagram.com/nickjongejan
• Facebook: facebook.com/nickjongejanmusic
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2wrEbShKTNk7iWsM3scibM?si=mmz3XJ7ZToCcX3Qs2ERB6w

Image Credits
William Rutten, @photosbynonja, and Fay Zeilstra