The Jacksonville, FL-based and Georgia-born artist, Jesabel, recently released “This Small Town,” which speaks about her hometown. The talented voice who had a crippling fear of singing in front of others, and not until the ripe age of 27 did she do something about it, is now going strong with her soulful vocals and her blending of genres of Pop, Folk, and a little Country. We had a chat with her and she let us dig deep into her conquering fear story and her latest single’s backstory.
- While growing up, you didn’t play music, but what genres and musicians did you listen to?
My musical taste has always been eclectic. My first real concert was The Judds. In high school, I was obsessed with Stevie Wonder and Frank Sinatra. Also in my first car’s 6 disc rotation (yes, I’m that old) was Evanescence, Vanessa Carlton, Elton John and a burned cd with everything from Sublime to Ludacris. As a young kid, I would secretly attempt to sing anything by Celine Dion or “Blue” by LeAnn Rimes. Guess I always admired the powerhouse vocals even if I didn’t possess them at the time. It was pretty wild a couple years ago when LeAnn reached out with love on Instagram over my cover of her rendition of “Swingin’.” It was such a beautiful and ironic full circle moment. I mean I’d hide in my bedroom singing her track as a young kid to later have her personally reach out two decades later after I finally sang publicly. Just wild.
- Fortunately for your fans, you overcome your fear of performing in public. Would you mind telling us what happened when you were 27 that made you conquer your fear?
I was a new mom at the time. Pouring everything I had into this new little being. But in doing so, I unintentionally ended up letting go of my creative outlets. Without any form of self-expression, I lost that connection to who I was. Artistic beings must create or we become numb and don’t feel like ourselves. During pregnancy specifically, I would sing all the time but never when my husband or anyone else was around. I was never a shy person, but there was a real and severe fear preventing me from comfortably singing in front of others even those I felt most safe and comfortable with. I’m all about self-growth and I became fascinated by why my throat would literally seize up when I wanted to sing but couldn’t when others were around. I started secretly videotaping myself singing along to YouTube karaoke tracks to try to understand what I sounded like and work on the fear. I eventually played one (just the sound) for my husband who was shocked. I told him I wanted to take a voice lesson to overcome my fear and climb out of this rut. He was so loving and supportive. That voice lesson spawned everything. From overcoming the singing fear, to later teaching myself guitar and writing songs. Now, this as my full-time profession. Pretty wild, right? I never dreamed one choice to conquer a fear would have rerouted my life path entirely.
- Your sound combines Pop, Folk, and Country elements. Do you consider yourself to have found your niche? or if you’d be willing to experiment with different genres?
To be honest, I kinda hope I never find a niche. I just want to create free of genre expectations or self-imposed limitations. I notice trends and patterns in my writing, but I also write really random ones that make me go, “hmmm, where in the world does this one belong?!” The possibilities are endless, and that’s liberating to me.
- How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard it before?
I often say, “Singer-songwriter with a soulful twang.” But, don’t even know if that fully encompasses it. Quite honestly, I’ve always found it difficult to describe my music. It’s never cleanly fit into a genre, and I don’t have a particular artist that’s influenced my sound. I think that’s why I really love song reviews and chatting with folks at shows cause I get their interpretation and digestion of my sound. Some place me in Country, others Folk. I’ve gotten a lot of references to Jewel, Fiona Apple, and Phoebe Bridgers which I found fascinating cause these are artists I wasn’t too familiar with but have since gone back through their catalog to connect the dots.
Don’t miss This Small Town review here.
- Your latest single, “This Small Town,” is heartfelt and moving. What provoked your nostalgia and inspired you to write a song about your hometown?
Processing & Self Reflection. There’s a drastic perspective switch that happens from when you’re a kid discovering yourself verses when you’re an adult who’s now lived a full life. This song is really a stream of consciousness shining light on both of those perspectives regarding where I grew up. A full circle moment if you will. I was a girl who challenged norms and bolted out of that town at 18 to chase dreams. Now, I’m an adult re-visiting this town with my own kid. I can’t help but grin ear to ear with the stories on every corner. The irony and truthful beauty behind all of it and how it molds and shapes us even as adults, I just find so moving. The love and positive support I’ve gotten from my hometown on this song since the release has been overwhelming. It’s the peace offering I hoped for and more.
- For a self-taught songwriter, you’re doing a spectacular job! Please walk us through the process of writing “This Small Town.”
Ahh thank you! For any writing I do, it’s first got to come from a soul-stirring space. That’s what motivates me to write. It was all about the lyrics on this one. Doing my best to paint an authentic picture of where I’m from but most importantly through my lens, my personal experience. I sketched out the song both musically and lyrically. Then collaborated with my long-time co-writer and producer, Jonathan Grant Berlin. From there we edited, restructured, rewrote. I actually sat with the completed musical track for months rewriting the bridge and last chorus lyrics. Words are important to me and this piece needed time to evolve, so I let it breathe till the right closing words came.
- The music video seems so natural and bright. Would you take us behind the scenes of the production?
This was such a fun video to make! My insanely talented photographer/videographer friend, Dan Florez, filmed this. We hopped in the car and took a road trip to my hometown in Georgia. We spend 2 days filming. No crew. Just us two developing the story as inspiration and serendipitous opportunity struck. Energetically, Dan is someone who has the gift of making those around him comfortable, so there’s automatically this nature ease that comes through his lens. He did such a great job capturing real authentic moments while weaving in iconic spots in town. We were gifted some divine timing moments too like the perfectly placed turning big rig with the American flag in the closing shot, the train that zoomed by while my nephew and his friend tossed the football, to the sweet couple going for a stroll. They were real moments. The natural state of this small town and I love that organically gets to shine in this video.
- What comes next? Are there any upcoming releases? Gigs?
Recording and lots, and lots of shows. My calendar is filling up and that feels so good after the last two years of performance unknowns and cancelled shows. I am also buckling down in the studio. Gearing up for more releases. You may be the first publication to get the skinny that I’m looking to drop my first Christmas song this year. Pretty excited about that!
- Thank you for your time! You’ve gained a new fan indeed. Would you give a word to those who have let fear back them down?
There is no timeline, so it’s never too late. You are never too old or too young to start anything. If there’s a tug at your heart to do something, try something new, it’s for a reason. Listen to that intuition. Most times we just have to get out of our own way for the real magic to start happening.