Jake Isaac is at the forefront of a British soul renaissance. Fusing a soul voice and sensibility with the craftsmanship of classic songwriting, he expresses in song the vulnerabilities that men rarely feel comfortable discussing.
A kindred spirit to his friends such as JP Cooper, Jacob Banks and Michael Kiwanuka, Jake Isaac nonetheless operates in his own lane, his artistry connecting with fans (150 million+ streams to date) and iconic artists (Sir Elton John, Sting) alike.
Now Jake aims to go deeper into the conversations that give his songs such a striking emotional intensity with his new music, beginning today with the single ‘Start Again’.
Entirely self-written, produced and performed, ‘Start Again’ is what Jake describes as South London soul - a sound informed by the timeless traditions of the genre, but flavoured with a raw urgency informed by channelling his feelings into his vocal delivery and tinged with production flourishes rooted from the modern underground scene. “Before you go, I love you so,” he implores, the rich timbre of his voice overflowing with feeling, “Maybe we can start again.” On the surface it’s an impassioned final plea to salvage a relationship, but it’s more universal than that - just think how many situations in life can be improved if we can step back, learn from our mistakes, and start again.
Jake says: “Calling this song “start again”; is an attempt at an honest take on my musical journey as much as it is a take on a relationship journey. I really wanted to make a record that oozed a bit of passion as well as remorse…as a guy sometimes it’s hard talk about these types of things, so I tried to put as much of it as possible into song…”
Appropriately enough, ‘Start Again’ heralds a new chapter for an unadorned love of music that stretches back to childhood. Jake’s father is Street Pastors founder Rev. Les Isaac OBE, the founder of the Brixton community charity initiative Street Pastors. Jake started drumming in his father’s church in Crystal Palace at the seemingly impossibly young age of three. Similarly inspired by Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’ album, Jake’s talents continued to develop and he completed his grade eight drum exam by his mid-teens while also teaching himself bass, keys and guitar as well as songwriting.
By the age of 19, Jake was working as a session musician and a songwriter, while also holding down a job as a marketing manager, all valuable experiences for a life in music. One simple truth stood out to him: making a connection with listeners is of far greater importance than the opinions of the industry around him. And as he embarked upon a solo career, that’s precisely what he did, with landmark moments including a set at Glastonbury’s Other Stage as well as the release of his 2021 album ‘Honesty’, together with its subsequent Deluxe Edition.
Currently preparing much more new music to come in 2023, Jake also has other creative projects on the horizon. He has been cast in a secondary role in an upcoming Topkapi Film feature by Dutch director Aaron Rookus and has been writing a film script, a redemptive story about fatherhood and family dynamics.
