Jason Jones Follows His Heart Into Country Music With Debut Single and New EP

Jason Jones has been charming country music fans for the past several months with his movie-star good looks and darling dimples, but it’s his music that is getting people talking today. His debut single, ‘Ferris Wheel,’ shipped to radio this morning nationwide and is getting everyone fired up for the summer months.

His highly-anticipated debut album is slated to his stores later this year, but fans can log onto his website now to pre-order the singer's six-song EP that includes ‘Ferris Wheel,’ which will be available on May 31. Taste of Country was fortunate enough to sit down with the young star on the rise, and we are thrilled to introduce you to Warner Music Nashville’s Jason Jones.

You've been in Nashville for close to 10 years now … tell us about the journey that has led you to this point in your career.
It'll be 10 years on August 14. I was in college and went through my first semester at [Florida State University]. I had already done two years at community college, and I had the summer off. I went to a talent competition thing down in Texas, just for fun. I didn't really know what was going to happen. I was still kind of shy at this point and had stage fright. So I was trying to do the more concrete thing by getting a degree, and then maybe do something with my music later. But the end result of that talent competition was that it gave me a boost of confidence. I did really well in a lot of other categories, as well. You had to participate in all these other categories like acting stuff, cold reads, impromptu reads, and I did really well. I had no idea I had it in me. It was just an amazing experience, and I met some amazing people -- managers, agents, booking agents, publishers and record label people. I got invited to Nashville by one of them, and since music's what I liked most, that’s what I was there for. So I went to Nashville to visit for a week, and I was sold. Went back home, told my dad I was dropping out of school, went back out there and found a place to live. Basically went to that talent competition, and then two months later I was living in Nashville.

Your debut single is titled ‘Ferris Wheel,’ which ties in perfectly for playing at fairs and festivals this summer.
Yeah! It's exciting to have all these fair shows lined up to debut 'Ferris Wheel.' The first time I heard the song, I thought about going to the fair as a kid. It's one of my favorite memories. My cousin Tommy and I would always try to impress girls by wasting all our money on stupid prizes and just staring up at that big Ferris wheel. It's a fun summer song about young love and falling in love on a Ferris wheel!

How has your experience been working in the studio on your forthcoming album?
I’m working with a guy named Brett Beavers, who also produced Dierks Bentley, and he's a great guy. He’s a perfect fit for me. I have trouble articulating what I want to hear and describing it with words like "thing-a-majig" and "whatcha-ma-callit" that doesn't really work so well in the studio, but he gets it. He gets what I'm trying to say. I just love working with the guy. We wrote a few songs that are going on the album that I'm excited for people to hear. It's just been a really fun experience.

It sounds like you are pretty comfortable in the studio environment.
Brett makes it a relaxed situation. I don't ever feel like I can't step on the producer's toes. On ‘Ferris Wheel,’ there's a couple little loopy things ... that's us sitting in his office. He's on his chair at a desk, playing on his computer, and I’m sitting there on a futon in his office playing the guitar. He said he is going to do a little loopy thing, and I started to pay attention to what he was doing. He was trying to get it right and couldn't quite get it to happen. I could hear it in my head, and I said, 'I don’t know how to work any of that, but can I try it?' So he put it on the keyboard and was doing like percussive stuff … it's cool. It really added to the fun of the process.

When did you first start writing songs?
Well, I started playing guitar when I was 13, and I wrote my first song when I was 14. It was awful! I think it had seven verses, no bridge, no modulation, no chorus -- just verses! So I hope that never resurfaces. I found it once years ago -- I think it was a couple years after I wrote it -- but I don’t know what ever happened to it. It was for my girlfriend in the 8th grade. I just kept writing songs here and there, and I was in a rock band in high school. I was a real shy kid though, so I didn't want to be the frontman. I just wanted to play guitar, write songs with the guys, so that's what we did. Eventually, it got kind of old for me because I was more into country music. So I quit the band [and] did my own thing. We'd get out of rock band practice, and I'd go home and pull out my acoustic and learn Garth Brooks, Kenny Chesney, George Strait or Vince Gill songs. So that's always where my heart has been.

So far, what is the best part of the job as a “country music star”?
Stage and studio are my two favorite parts of what I do. Being onstage with the crowd's energy ... some people like to jump out of planes, some people like to climb mountains, [and] I like to get onstage in front of a huge crowd and sing my songs. That's my jumping out of planes. In the studio, I love creating. Until it's recorded, it didn't exist before. It's a neat process. There are amazing musicians who work on the stuff. It's amazing. I love how they do it. I don’t think I will ever get tired of being in the studio.

Watch Jason Jones Perform His Debut Single 'Ferris Wheel' Live