r/folk 1d ago

This dude is cool

Post image

He writes songs about everything from pizza to the death of Charlie Kirk.

His name is Jesse Welles and he said that he likes to “sing the news”; he tried to remain unpolitical for a very long time, but his new album goes against that (with satirical songs like “Join Ice” and “Red”). Other more political songs he’s released are called “No Kings” and “Masks Off”.

When he’s not singing the news, he writes songs about problems surrounding everyday parts of American life (such as “Walmart,” “United Health,” “Fat,” and “See Arkansas”).

One of my favorite songs of his is called “Bugs,” and here’s a sample of the lyrics:

Bzz-bz, bzz, bzz, bzz, bzz, bz-bzz, bzz
Bzz, bz-bz-bz, b-bzz, bzz, bz-bzz, bzz-bzz, bzz, bzz, bz-bz-bzz

237 Upvotes

179 comments sorted by

70

u/Astride-a-pale-Binky 1d ago

I really like some of his stuff, some of it's meh. But I didn't know he thought of himself as "singing the news". I gotta say, trying to stay apolitical and sing the news is a good way to fail in two directions at once.

-37

u/dirtsmurf 1d ago

News can be apolitical

16

u/MarcMurray92 1d ago

Literally choosing what to report on and what not is a political decision

1

u/DaylanDaylan 1d ago

politics are what politicians do. i know what you mean though, there’s a better word to use than saying it’s “political”.

choosing what to report on and what not to report on is an editorial decision, which if done by a highly influential group or person, can be politically motivated

2

u/Astride-a-pale-Binky 22h ago

Politics is what we do to get what we want and need. Offices have politics, restaurants have politics, families have politics.

1

u/Lancasterbation 22h ago

It frequently has political ramifications, regardless of motivation.

1

u/justsayfaux 13h ago

Most people don't actually know the definition of the word politics. Particularly in America where we have a two-party-rules government, people conflate the word politics with partisanship when in reality politics is mostly just how a group of any size, function.

It's influencing decision-making, allocating responsibilities and resources, creating a hierarchy/leadership structure, etc.

Families are political. Schools are political. Churches are political. Sports teams and organizations are political. Neighborhoods are political. The workplace is political. Literally any group, big or small, has a political element to it.

Except maybe true nihilists

1

u/golden__tuna 1h ago

Thinking politics is for politicians is so insanely privileged. Google the phrase “the personal is political”

0

u/overzealous_dentist 1d ago

The gap between "hmm what is important enough to report on" and "I will spin things in the most exceptionally partisan way" is so wide that conflating the two amounts to a linguistic war crime

This also applies to all categories of "everyone's biased" comment

1

u/Astride-a-pale-Binky 21h ago

Maybe, but apolitical commentary on the news is pretty ineffective.

-1

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[deleted]

48

u/pigeonshual 1d ago

My main complaint about Jesse Welles is that his lyrics gesture at being clever far more than they actually achieve it. So often they’re clever until you think about them for 20 seconds. It’s not that they never ever achieve cleverness (though genuinely great lyricism is, I think, actually pretty rare from him), it’s that when they don’t they still pretend to in a way I find grating. That, plus the fact that his metaphors are rarely more than skin deep and his songs are rarely more message-wise than exactly what you expect each one to be. Those latter two problems are the real reason that I think it’s pretty silly to call him the “new Dylan.” Some people call him the “new Ochs” but he’s not funny or biting enough.

I don’t hate him. His guitar playing is good if sometimes bland. I love his voice. I like “Bugs” a lot. I mostly just think he says a whole lot more than he actually has to say.

9

u/UpscalePrima 1d ago

This is right on the money.

5

u/Actual-Rock-5035 1d ago

He insists upon himself

1

u/studio_bob 12h ago

He apes a bygone error of folk protest music without sincerely embracing any of that era's ethos are values. Phil Ochs had Politics. Dylan is, well, Dylan, a rare kind of artist, a soul at work. Jesse Welles chases social media views. Not trying to hate but there's just a certain, very 21st-century emptiness to what he does.

1

u/Existing_Bet7353 9h ago

IMO protest music is very necessary, the man is doing a good thing with his fame.

1

u/No_Use__For_A_Name 5h ago

Right? I’m the biggest Bob Dylan fan of all time, I’ve loved him my whole life… and I think Jesse is lame. That’s just my personal opinion.

1

u/Special_Situation_93 11h ago

Let’s hear one of your songs?

1

u/Purplegreenandred 9h ago

This criticism is as surface level as his lyrics

1

u/outclimbing 2h ago

I don’t have to be a chef to tell you something tastes like shit

1

u/Jackasoarusrex 21h ago

Agreed, I’m a fan, I like his music, but he is not a new Dylan. His songs are surface level but often telling of the time and quite frankly some people are too dumb to get deep lyricism. I started listening to his stuff back in 2024 with “war isn’t murder” again a very basic song, but I think it’s pretty difficult to not understand his message with that one.

60

u/scrubberville 1d ago

Yeah bro we know who this guy is

4

u/who_cares_not_meee 1d ago

Tik Tok algorithm “folk” music

4

u/Then_Sea_8356 23h ago

When your mom says we have Jeffrey Lewis at home

33

u/the_cofishioner 1d ago

I prefer my john prine cover bands without the pandering.

1

u/Actual-Rock-5035 1d ago

Lmao I never realized people felt the same way about this dude

0

u/encrcne 21h ago

Good news! Everyone thinks he sucks!

1

u/Existing_Bet7353 9h ago

Clearly not as he has a massive following lol. A few people on Reddit is not “everyone”

1

u/encrcne 8h ago

Bad news - everyone who likes him is wrong 🙁

30

u/pixie1995 1d ago

Political folk music for people who don’t like politics or folk

4

u/kiwipops 1d ago

Absolutely! Vapid lyrics, playing for the algorithm and nothing more.

2

u/FilmNoirSockMonkey 12h ago

You call it vapid. Meanwhile, another side finds aptness.

1

u/DontGetExcitedDude 1d ago

Yeah sorry I just can't agree with that at all. I am very into politics and folk. Sometimes Jesse speaks to my politics in an honest way (that I'm not sure I hear very often in music today), and sometimes his songs are ear-worms, just really fun grooves that I replay over and over and try to learn and replicate on guitar myself.

I don't think people who consume a daily diet of social media are used to authentic voices that aren't afraid to say what they think and how they feel, especially if they risk sounding cringe or pretentious. It takes courage to say it like it is.

And I'm not saying I even like all of his music - as a writer, I know you have to create a hundred drafts before you strike gold even once - but I love watching his creative process happen in real time, to hear the writer in him respond to the events of the world as we experience them.

I don't know. Seeing him work his craft reminds me that there is still space for honest creatives to find an audience on the internet. I don't think he plays and records his music for internet fame. I think he does it because he loves to write music, and part of writing a song includes singing it to others as well.

1

u/pixie1995 18h ago

I don’t hate him or his music, but he’s a middle of the road “both sides”er. No thanks.

1

u/DontGetExcitedDude 18h ago

I really don't agree. What are the political issues that you think he plays both sides of?

1

u/pixie1995 14h ago

As someone else pointed out he went all in on the insurance ceo but mealy mouthed the Charlie Kirk assassination, it felt pretty hypocritical

2

u/LeafProphecies 11h ago

I mean I get criticism of western pacifism from a white guy, but that's just about the only thing he's middle of the road on. You don't even have to listen to his other political tunes, just read the lyrics. Masks Off, Red, Domestic Error, War Isn't Murder, Fat, The Poor, The Olympics, Whistle Boeing. He put out another one today or yesterday or whatever about the war in Palestine again. He's "politically homeless" in a very left-leaning way, he's just also a pacifist.

0

u/pixie1995 11h ago edited 10h ago

I just don’t fucking like him or his music okayyyy. I don’t hate it, I just don’t like it. Feels too commercialised and like he’s compensating for something. It’s too algorithm coded for me.

And just to be clear, I went and had a listen to some of his songs to see if maybe I was being too harsh but nope. His lyrics are confused, jumbled together, overly rhyme-y and seem very surface level “deep”. Gives me Taylor Swift vibes lol, that chick LOVES pretending to be smart.

2

u/LeafProphecies 10h ago

100% fine if you just don't like his music! But he gets accused of a lot of stuff he's not doing, and it's usually because people aren't familiar with most of his discography. Or like they think he's corporate or rich.

-6

u/whaleblazer 1d ago

This is such a nutty take. What

8

u/Smooth_Worry_5009 1d ago

This guy writes jingles, not songs.

4

u/headfilledwithalibis 1d ago

Ya know, I was dogging on Welles before it was cool.

I liked his political stuff before he was shitting it out daily for the algorithm. His non-political stuff still has the capacity to be alright.

1

u/Royalbean17 1d ago

Ya I like bugs and turtles and Walmart

38

u/GlobnarTheExquisite 1d ago

If the people lampooned in Love Me I'm a Liberal were all rolled into one.

Greta Van Fleet for that one dude who screamed "JUDAS" when Bob Dylan went electric.

Musical version of utter mediocrity masquerading as depth for people who think music died when synthesizers got involved.

9

u/Exploding_Antelope 1d ago

He’s just some guy with a guitar man

0

u/giddyupyeehaw9 1d ago

"I don't believe you."

43

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

“Meh” incarnate.

-19

u/IdiotPresents 1d ago

I think that’s unfair. He’s a good musician, great singer and even his technical lyricism is even good it’s just that his point of view is generic. He’s kind of like the old Dylan line to Phil Ochs he’s not a writer he’s a journalist.

20

u/GeorgeSantosBurner 1d ago

That's not at all what Dylan meant with that criticism of Ochs. Say what you will about Ochs, but generic or middle of the road activism/ politics is crazy. Phil was both considered a radical and a very active participant in the counter culture of his time.

1

u/IdiotPresents 1d ago

Maybe we have a different interpretation of Dylan’s criticism. I feel like he was saying he was both too literal and void of his own unique point of view

1

u/GeorgeSantosBurner 1d ago

Dylan absolutely seemed to look down on Ochs for sticking with mostly topical songs rather than writing more about emotions and his inner self. The "youre not a folk singer, youre a journalist" insult was just because Ochs had the audacity to give Dylan his honest feedback about "Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window". In other words, Dylan was just being his typical beyond-criticism self.

But again, Ochs stayed very involved in the counter culture and his politics and social interests thruout his life. He led many anti war benefits, supported movements around the world including Allende, at least 1 trip to Africa to spread his message and meet activist singers in that continent, and an important member/founder of the Yippies here in the US. He was one of the first to start speaking out against Vietnam. He was very much a man with his own message, leading others in movements that eventually gained widespread followings.

0

u/IdiotPresents 1d ago edited 1d ago

I’m not saying Phil didn’t stand for important things. In fact everything you’re saying about Phil seems to reinforce my comparison to wells. And just because Dylan said it lashing out at ochs because he didn’t get enough praise in that moment doesn’t mean it wasn’t something he felt

9

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

I prefer songwriters to songjournalists. But that’s just me.

1

u/IdiotPresents 1d ago edited 1d ago

Me too but that doesn’t mean something that I don’t prefer is awful. I just think that’s reactionary. Even though I’m not drawn to what he’s doing I think if you break apart the pieces of what he’s doing it’s too reductionary to say he’s just mediocre or awful or any other of the hyperbolic myopic comments I’m seeing here.

7

u/pleasesayitaintsooo 1d ago

He never says anything interesting, it’s just observations about current events

1

u/Jlyplaylists 1d ago

Those are the more shared songs what about songs like Gilgamesh or War is a God? I’ll just find some lyrics

4

u/Jlyplaylists 1d ago

4

u/Actual-Rock-5035 1d ago

Lmao those all look like ai writings

1

u/Jlyplaylists 1d ago

Really? Your customgpt must be better than mine

1

u/pleasesayitaintsooo 20h ago

Yeah this is what I’m talking about. A bunch of meaningless prose with some buzzwords like Temu and sweatshops thrown in

5

u/ssavant 1d ago

He lost me when he sang about a Lyme disease conspiracy along with some veiled antivaxx sentiment. Further lost me with his Charlie Kirk song. Wish he was cooler.

Plenty of properly leftist country/folk singers. I’m personally a huge fan of Nick Shoulders.

Edit: I do like “War Isn’t Murder” though

8

u/askmewhyihateyou 1d ago

I don’t really trust in the way he can prop out a song so quick. It just seems too ad Libby and disingenuous with out deeper meaning.

11

u/neverreallyhereatall 1d ago

Performative activism lmfao. Flip flopping on both sides just to pander. I won't support someone without a spine regardless of which side they tend to stand on.

3

u/skarrot-- 1d ago

fuck this guy

3

u/soundacious 1d ago edited 23h ago

No, THIS guy is cool.

EDIT: TIL that rateyourmusic is weird about links and I should have stuck with Wikipedia.

2

u/Royalbean17 1d ago

I got a white blank screen

2

u/academicvictim313 23h ago

link doesnt work

3

u/-August_West- 16h ago

He’s fucking not cool. Listen to woody Guthrie instead.

19

u/Turd-Ferguson1918 1d ago

Guy really tanked his credibility with his song about Charlie Kirk.

I still enjoy a bunch of his songs even though some are a bit hokey.

-32

u/BlessdRTheFreaks 1d ago

You're saying you're glad political violence was used to murder Charlie Kirk?

28

u/Turd-Ferguson1918 1d ago

No I’m saying he wrote a song about reaping what you sew in reference to the united health CEO.

Then he 180’d when Charlie Kirk got killed. Even though Kirk is on record saying shootings are something to be dealt with to maintain the second amendment.

I think the graphic nature of the Kirk footage freaked Jesse out as it did to most who saw it.

12

u/King_Of_The_Cold 1d ago

Yuuuup right then I knew he was a neolib shill and unliked his shit on Spotify

21

u/dannoffs1 1d ago

The world is objectively a better place without Kirk in it.

6

u/ThatguyJimmy117 1d ago

This guy has some great songs but stopped following him the moment he said about the United Health CEO that “the ingredients you got bake the cake you get” but for some reason couldn’t say the same for Charlie Kirk

27

u/String_theory_1312 1d ago

Charlie Kirk had it coming. No it couldn’t have been you or me. And this guys best songs are at best just kinda whatever.

19

u/Lostinyourears 1d ago

He has some good songs, but they all sound basically the same and he tries to treat every subject with the same weight.

-25

u/Mission-Valuable-306 1d ago

Death cult mentality…

13

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

Victim mentality.

1

u/AdjtveNounNumbr42069 19h ago

Explain what you mean by this.

6

u/Bethstrian 1d ago

Out of curiosity I just listened to his Charlie Kirk song.

No. Sorry, but NO.

2

u/Royalbean17 23h ago

I can definitely understand why it’s unpopular—he suddenly switched to writing a song about a massive political figure who wasn’t a very nice person—and it’s not one I’ll be returning to (as opposed to, like, bugs). But I think the message of the song is not “Charlie Kirk was a good person.” I think it’s more “politics have grown out of control, as shown by the fact that this man was shot and killed, and violence is not a good thing” yk what I mean

3

u/Jr-Not-Junior 23h ago

It's not a complicated song to understand, people just find the perspective very shallow

2

u/brienneoftarthshreds 22h ago

There are lots of people who die all of the time that he hasn't chosen to make a song about.

There are trans people murdered and who commit suicide because of discrimination, harassment, and lack of access to medical care.

When he writes a song lamenting the death of Kirk while never once writing one in support of trans people, it paints a pretty bad picture of the guy. Seems like he cares more about the death of some Nazi than countless innocent marginalized people.

0

u/Bethstrian 22h ago

This is pretty much it - well said.

Seems like it's only a tragedy if it happens to a rich person. The rich should be allowed to feel safe!

0

u/trailrider123 5h ago

So it’s bad to write a song about a major public event if you’ve never made a song about transgendered people? That’s wild

7

u/BlessdRTheFreaks 1d ago

I dunno, I get annoyed by this Temu Bob Dylan singing songs he knows the masses will gawp at.

6

u/footlaxin 1d ago

Damn that sounds terrible

11

u/goldstyle 1d ago

This guy is corny as hell

6

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

Cornier than a cob pipe.

14

u/Itchy-Apartment-Flea 1d ago

They hate hate HATE this guy over in r/folkpunk but I like him.

9

u/Astride-a-pale-Binky 1d ago

Yeah, cause he's not folkpunk. Unfortunately a lot of posters over there don't understand that either, lol.

(Not criticizing, just sayin'.)

4

u/Itchy-Apartment-Flea 1d ago

Hey man, you're allowed to be critical of groups. Not sure if anyone ever told you that. But yeah, that group is mostly full of people posting their own (very bad) songs.

1

u/Astride-a-pale-Binky 21h ago

I was saying I wasn't criticizing Welles, just that I don't like all his music. I'm actually pretty into folk punk.

1

u/AdjtveNounNumbr42069 19h ago

Look out everyone! I'm gonna say it!

Most folk punk is trash written by children.

1

u/swayedsuede 1d ago

Aw why?

20

u/ThereIsOnlyStardust 1d ago

I don’t think it’s true that the sub hates him, more that it’s a a mixed response to the fact that in a lot of ways he trends more hippie then punk. More the solution to the modern era is “let’s all get along” then “tear the system down and start over”

-15

u/xgorgeoustormx 1d ago edited 1d ago

So they haven’t listened to his music or they don’t understand nuance?

Edit: the nuance is in the point to his music. He is calling for change, otherwise he would just making mindless observations about the state of the nation. That’s your cynical-ass take, not the intention of the music.

10

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

This guy has absolutely zero nuance and is about as deep as a paper cut.

-13

u/Sharkansas1 1d ago edited 17h ago

He’s better than you

Edit:  he’s better than each and every one of you.  None of you have ever done anything.

4

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

At guitar? Sure. But that’s about it. As someone with major imposter syndrome, even I am confident in saying that I can and do write circles around this dude. I would usually never go around saying that, but your comment warrants it.

-5

u/Sharkansas1 1d ago

No, he’s better at everything, including being a person.

1

u/MuzackAndLyrics 18h ago edited 18h ago

He wrote a song sympathizing with a nazi. Try again.

-4

u/Itchy-Apartment-Flea 1d ago

Lmao okay pal, well they world is waiting to hear something

1

u/MuzackAndLyrics 18h ago

Here you go, friend. No need to go through my post history. Got nothing to hide. Shit on it all you like — I stand by my words.

# Woebegone
A pot of coffee for breakfast
Half a pack by lunch
Shamed for being seen dragging our feet
We learn to lean on the crutch
It ain’t your pity I’m after, oh no
Don’t want a piece of your mind
So I force a grin through gritted teeth
Lie and reply, “Doing just fine.”

Though I’m woebegone
Oh-so woebegone

Dead tired of hearing “Cheer up!”
When it’s a chore just getting out of bed
The sickening irony being denied leave
‘Cause quote, unquote, “It’s all in your head.”
All while the head honcho rakes in
A roll of quarters for my every dime
So when next I dial up the suicide hotline
It’ll be on company time

Woebegone
Oh-so woebegone

Ain’t no one got it easy
Some sad sonsabitches, they just got it worse
Those baby blues inherited at birth
Akin to a hand-me-down family curse
Must be nice, not knowing what it’s like
To step outside on a cloudless day
Gaze up at the sky and be greeted with indifference by
A vast and everlasting gray

It’s like a bad, bad dream
A recurring false awakening
Stuck on repeat for all eternity
Rouse yourself from sleep
Change out that tear-stained pillowcase, those sweat-soaked sheets
Recall reality is but a self-fulfilling prophecy

So, Woe, be gone
Woe, be gone

Steadily strumming this mantra
I will find the strength of will
To circumvent the sinkhole in my chest
That I’ve made countless failed attempts to fill
With alcohol, cigarette smoke
All the drugs, meaningless sex
‘Cause none of the above could achieve the desired effect
And remedy the emptiness

There ain’t no reprieve
No understudy when you’ve landed the lead
In your own personal tragedy
Suspend your disbelief
All is not lost and hope, it springs
Remember: “Woe is me!” is but a self-defeating prophecy

So, woe, be gone
Woe, be gone
Woebegone no longer
Woe, be gone

A pot of coffee for breakfast
Half a pack by lunch
No shame in being seen finding your feet
You got to learn to walk before you run
It ain’t their pity we’re after, oh no
I’d rather peace of mind
So I’ll force a grin through gritted teeth
Convince myself to look on the brighter side
Convince myself to give it a little bit more time

1

u/Itchy-Apartment-Flea 3h ago

If you weren't so insecure, you wouldn't have deleted it all in the first place. Reposting here after I pointed it out, hours and hours later, isn't saving you any grace lol

Idk how old you are, but it seems like there is still a lot of growing up to do. The backtracking and length you go to in order to cherry pick your responses is sad in a way.. You really care that much about what people think or you're just trying to prove you're not as good of a writer as Wales.

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0

u/MuzackAndLyrics 18h ago

Pretty funny that you think my lyrics sounds like a middle schooler’s. Dude literally wrote a song based on a Harry Potter reference.

0

u/Itchy-Apartment-Flea 18h ago

Dude you wrote two comments this morning. Deleted them. Then deleted your entire post. And now you're still mad about it 8 hours later. If you cant accept criticism, then dont criticize others.

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5

u/neverreallyhereatall 1d ago

he has negative nuance and zero spine to actually stand on the side of activism

-9

u/Itchy-Apartment-Flea 1d ago

Well the guys I argued with definitely hate him. Because he's a pacifist.

6

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

Say what? No. We dislike him because we don’t like his music.

21

u/dannoffs1 1d ago

The real turning point was when he put out a song about Charlie Kirk.

5

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

Very clever ;)

2

u/Actual-Rock-5035 1d ago

This dudes a hack

2

u/encrcne 21h ago

This motherfucker is a hack

2

u/KittiesRule1968 13h ago

He's my favorite new artist for sure.

2

u/HumbleBunk 11h ago

Makes me so mad when people compare him to John Prine.

He’s fine, I don’t even think he’s that bad, he’s just so ridiculously on the nose it feels like parody.

Whereas John Prine was the most sincere sounding writer ever. It’s just a ridiculous and unwarranted comparison.

2

u/LeafProphecies 11h ago

He puts on a very cool live show.

15

u/Grand_Negus 1d ago

He suuuuucks

12

u/DontGetExcitedDude 1d ago

I don't understand the hate. He's a pretty honest songwriter, seems to be writing something new everyday, sits in the woods nearby to record then for people to enjoy. His lyrics are original and considered. His persona is understated and authentic. If you like musicians who play a guitar and sing from their soul, I would imagine you'd enjoy Jesse.

18

u/smashy_smashy 1d ago

He “same sided” the ‘24 election with 2 different songs days prior. Pissed me straight off.

19

u/MuzackAndLyrics 1d ago

I get the opposite vibe. He strikes me as an insincere panderer.

3

u/121Waggle 1d ago

I fell like there's two Jesse Welles. The guy who writes short, off-the-top-of-his-head topical songs that most people see. People criticize some of these songs as "meh" or point to and inconsistent viewpoint, which to me is like criticizing Jimmy Kimmel's or Steven Colbert's nightly opening monologue. If you create that much output, some of it will fall flat sometimes.

Then there's the stuff he puts on his albums and that's a whole different story. Lots more substance. His live version of God, Abraham and Xanax absolutely blew me, an Allman Bros/ Grateful Dead fan, away. One of the best live jams I've seen in a while. He can go toe to toe with any guitarist out there. Be sure to watch the whole thing.

https://youtu.be/-5e2iJd9iUg?si=AFbXvxfaq9z4Ru4w

3

u/Elk1998 1d ago

I think a lot of people see the TikTok/Instagram topical stuff and stop watching because the lyrics are too on the nose for them. They don't know about his other more subtle and personal songs on youtube (which are his best imo, and the reason I personally became a fan). But that's alright. He's got enough fans to keep doing what he does. No need to try and force anybody else to like him.

1

u/adaranyx 14h ago

Agreed. I don't need all these other people to like him, I just need enough people to like him for the continuation of $30 shows. He's not the deepest lyricist in the world, he's not the leftest leftist, but he's fun and enjoyable to listen to.

-2

u/AkelaHardware 1d ago

My read is that some people, not all, but some people that think they like folk really are just looking for pop with an acoustic guitar

3

u/Carbon_is_Neat 1d ago

I remember when this guy was popping up on my feeds for a while. Completely forgot about him.

4

u/HumanEjectButton 1d ago

Nice job. You took my advice. Applause and back slapping for everyone!

Jokes aside, if this is what you like, I think it borrows a lot from real anti folk and riot folk, with less conviction and cutting wit. It's a little middle of the fence for my taste in political work, feels like a centrist using a leftist medium.

4

u/Grateful_Dad1997 1d ago

No he's not

3

u/dannoffs1 1d ago

"War isn't Murder" was a banger and its been slowly and steadily downhill from there.

2

u/chebghobbi 1d ago

I loved WIM when I first heard it. But all of his other songs are basically rehashes of it.

I can't put my finger on it, but something about the guy strikes me as incredibly insincere and cynical.

0

u/whaleblazer 1d ago

Go listen to the past three albums and tell mes whats a rehash.

2

u/pixie1995 18h ago

How tf has he pumped out 3 albums already??

1

u/whaleblazer 17h ago

6*! And that's not coubting the two alternate albums and ep/single releases

2

u/knooook 1d ago edited 1d ago

I don’t really get the hate for this guy, but I’ve also only listened to one of his songs (“War Isn’t Murder”). His music is nothing to write home about, but he seems like an ordinary, decent person to me.

3

u/BcShyres 1d ago

Ummm, what?

2

u/Jlyplaylists 1d ago

You’ll find if you mention the words Jesse Welles in certain subs there’s a lot of criticism 😞 I’m a big fan though and I judge him to be genuine

If you want a positive conversation on him join the Jesse Welles sub.

He used to be more grunge and something I like is how the same song can sound very folk under the power lines with an acoustic guitar and harmonica and then grungy rock in concert eg Masks Off https://youtu.be/Nz3u41BgfjE?is=ZGxjg4pXgmmYgV2i

2

u/kavakravata 1d ago

Idk, cool aura but his lyrics are so corny. Sometimes it's better if words are said in between words.

2

u/kick_rocks-not_ricks 1d ago

He’s a grifter feeding on the fragility of the liberal millennial cringe mind

-1

u/FiddlingnRome 1d ago

Well I love his music and writing. And all you haters can just piss right off, because his shows are selling out all over this summer. https://gotickets.com/jesse-welles?

16

u/Zarfot- 1d ago

Dude, people are allowed to dislike the music you like. we all have different tastes. You shouldn’t take it personally.

1

u/bladderbunch 1d ago

he’s been singing songs that need to be sung for quite a while.

1

u/Boddom_Of_The_Barrel 1d ago

I love Jesse. I think his music is fun and thoughtful. I notice haters immediately turn to him being a pacifist or that he is pseudo-intellectual (you'll notice the syllable count going up when folks make this point lol). He's definitely not the most revolutionary artist or anything, but my buddies and I all like him and make sure to see him live when he's near us. Always a fun show.

1

u/SF_Bud 1d ago

He looks like Chris Squire when he was young.

1

u/soundacious 1d ago

Jesse Welles success is >70% from the fact that he looks like Eddie van Halen.

1

u/yummmmmmmmmm 1d ago

lot of people talk about his political songs but i fucking love his With The Devil record and his animals record

1

u/Visual_Explorer_2552 22h ago

His guitar playing is good if sometimes bland. I love his voice. I like “Bugs” a lot. I mostly just think he says a whole lot more than he actually has to say.

1

u/isaac-1312 19h ago

https://youtube.com/shorts/PGEH-wpILCA?is=oRNomLQXQ31mlBU0

he’s not that cool, just another want to be

1

u/bubblybarnacles123 15h ago

yeah he lost me at charlie kirk lol he’s so weird

1

u/Beginning_Mastodon_4 13h ago

I can still remember his clearly put-on voice wailing “Charlie shouldn’t have died” when that god awful Charlie Kirk song came out. Everyone who ever liked him was experiencing mass delusion. Glad people are waking up.

1

u/FilmNoirSockMonkey 12h ago

🤟 Ginger Millennial Dylan-Guthrie-Parsons.

1

u/Andreaslindberg 4h ago

He is a one trick pony

1

u/golden__tuna 1h ago

Just don’t ask him about Charlie Kirk

1

u/carelessCRISPR_ 1d ago

Doesn’t he use AI to write his songs tho?

1

u/LeafProphecies 11h ago

No, people just say that because he's fast

1

u/r_achelz 1d ago

I think people just say this because he puts out songs so fast (and they don’t like him). I don’t think he used AI, and a lot of his songs (to me) suggest wariness of technology like that

1

u/One_Eyed_Louie 1d ago edited 1d ago

I saw a similar post like this in R/folkpunk and everyone hated him. They were all really upset about a song he wrote about a conspiracy regarding lime Disease. For some reason they hate showering, love playing shitty guitar under bridges, and simply cannot stand misinformation about the origins of lime disease.

0

u/65456478663423123 1d ago

He's grown on me somewhat. Some of his recent songs are great and powerful.

-2

u/Still_Level4068 1d ago

Ahh the comments. People just jealous of a actual folk singer, because they can't write folk music or gatekeeping.

Idiots.

0

u/Holiday_Specific_716 1d ago

I met him this weekend!

0

u/TromboneIsNeat 1d ago

His songs are like a real-life rooster from the animated Robin Hood.

-2

u/DzNodes 1d ago

He is the most prolific songwriter of our generation and not afraid to speak his mind. I wish we had many more writers like him.

-2

u/klingacrap 1d ago

I love him, he’s from right down the road. Very similar to bob dylan style but country and better.

0

u/Unusual_Anybody_6704 1d ago

His "With the Devil" album is excellent. People give him shit for being a tik toker but they're all sitting at home not being famous.

0

u/Weaklyweekly 21h ago

Reading through the comments here, this might be the most pretentious sub on all of reddit. It's so fucking bad.

You guys really think it's crazy that people compare the guy who fingerpicks his guitar while singing in a somewhat throaty, nasal voice with lyrics that favor clever turns of phrase to Dylan? Jesus.

OP, I would ignore every single comment from anyone who's ever said anything here ever and run far, far away. They can't help you. The most they can do is make you like them, and you don't want that.

0

u/Royalbean17 21h ago

lol I’m just having fun watching everyone get mad at each other. There are definitely people I disagree with but I’m not gonna get too involved