Show notes
Nashville based singer-songwriter Jesi Jones fell upon her passion for songwriting quite literally. At sixteen she took a tumble during her basketball team's state finals game which led to a series of knee surgeries, forcing her attention elsewhere. She wrote her first song during her time of recovery and soon after, formed the band Waiting for Iris. WFI toured for several years supporting two full length albums, playing over one hundred dates a year and opening for artists such as Nichole Nordeman, Joy Williams (Civil Wars), Point of Grace, Mark Schultz, Newsboys, Newsong, Petra, Fred Hammond and Wayne Watson. In 2006 Jesi began her career as a solo artist and quickly enjoyed success on Ourstage, the online indie community popularized by Spin Magazine. Here she garnered the Grand Prize twice, eight #1's, twenty- three top 10's, a slot on Paste Magazine's February 2009 CD Sampler (alongside artists such as Tom Waits, Neko Case, M. Ward), an opportunity to open for Grace Potter the Nocturnals, a feature on AOL Music and was recently featured on Nashville's Local Lightning 100 Spotlight. Jesi has had the privilege of working with producers Mark Townsend (Reliant K), Marc Scibilia (Sony/ATV), and "Bones" Hillman (Midnight Oil), the joys of performing and recording with Michael Rhodes (The Players), Steve Bowman (Counting Crows), Rich Redmond (Miranda Lambert), Matt Pierson (Derek Webb), Mike Payne (Matthew West), Ken Lewis (Sara Bareilles), Steve Brewster (Jewel) and the honor of having Charlie Peacock purchase a copy of her latest EP, Full Circle. Jesi has written over three hundred songs, many of which have landed on various independent projects. Her song "Hurricane" was placed in the Sundance Film Festival feature "Compliance," released August 17th, 2012. She has co-written with Stephony Smith (Faith Hill), Dennis Matkosky (LeAnn Rimes), Jeremy Bose (Plumb), Steve Wilson (Leeland), John Goodwin (Jeff Bridges), Monty Holmes (Lee Ann Womack), Tom Michael (Sonicflood), Sean Kelly (Sixpence None the Richer), Ron Alan Cohen (Rick Springfield) and many others. A classically trained pianist, Jesi volunteers as a private instructor at W.O. Smith School of Music, recognizing the gift of music as something not only to be shared but nurtured. It's no wonder her songs, a true reflection of who she is, have been richly defined as "an honest and relevant breath of fresh air." -Mark Townsend, Producer (Reliant K, Deas Vail)
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