Jay Roecker
... started recording, working in collaboration with other artists under the band name "Members Only" in January 2012. It began as an 80’s cover band but quickly morphed into a band of original music. He earned his chops performing in Deep Ellum in the Dallas music scene as well as at SXSW in Austin.
Electronic Symphonic is Jay Roecker's sophomore album delving into his passion for synthwave music echoing the past with a modern spin. The album is very introspective and personal. He welcomes you to turn each page of the story with each song on this continued journey of self-discovery and growth.
Thanks for your time and here we go with our first question, how would you describe the "person/human" behind the artist Jay Roecker?
The person behind the artist is authentic. For me that’s truly important to share insights from my own experiences. I like many others have had many challenges in life but strive to learn from those opportunities, harnessing that energy into something good. I have lived all over the United States and have been all over the world. To me it’s important to understand how and why people think/act. I am very relationship oriented, believing in lifting others up and helping them succeed.
"Sus" sounds great, finest Electro-Pop, I'd say, who or what was your inspiration and what's the story behind?
Sus came about because my son Clark says the word incessantly. He said, “Papa you should write a song about Sus.” So, I did. It was a lot of fun!
How do you decide that a song is ready for a release?
For me I like to build out the visuals with a video accompanying the songs. I completed the lyrics video then was able to storyboard and finish the official music video. The video includes several of my friends, Gossip Greg from 96.7 Kiss Fm in Austin, Starlexia (another artist) and Gisele Bolling. It was filmed, directed and edited by Cutdown Trees. Once I had all the elements completed, I lined up my promotional release schedule. I’ve been working on releasing new music once a month or two for 2023.
"Electronic Symphonic" has been released some days ago, what three songs would you recommend to our readers to get a good overview of your new album?
This is a tough question as each song is like a child of mine. I would say that the top 3 songs to listen to would be Pour on Me, The House and Mi Amor (I Had a Dream). Though they are all fantastic in my opinion. I know I am biased but think this is my best work to date.
What's your personal favorite song from the album?
Presently, my favorite song from the album is Thicker Than Blood as it allowed me to showcase the vocal talent of my friend Valimoor. It is a duet. It also speaks to the generational bonds that tie us together regardless of bloodline.
I have been on a journey of connecting with my parent’s bio family (both my parents were adopted), uncovering those stories while forging through the noise to further confirm that love transcends genetics, as it does with my own son Clark, who happens to be adopted also.
The portion about bottles of wine refers to the loss of my mother, which shook my entire life to the core but also sparked amazing growth. She is with us in all our family traditions. It is a very special song.
New album means gigs, any chance to see you somewhere live on stage?
I may be performing at the Unleashed LGBTQ conference in Dallas in September and more places. Stay tuned.
You are active on different social media channels, how important are facebook & Co for the music industry in your opinion?
Honestly, I have had more success on Tik-Tok than Facebook, but I think it is important to share your media on as many channels as possible. As an independent artist, I will take any promotion I can get.
... and finally, what's next for you?
For me I have the release of my next single ‘The House’ in May, it’s remix in June and “Mi Amor (I had a Dream in July). I will be navigating Summer with my son Clark while taking him on a trip to visit my sister and his cousins in Edinburgh Scotland in August.
.jpg)
.png)
