Jesse Ray performs at Rockford Brewing tonight (Friday) with a new record on the way. The Artist Spotlight, plus this week’s radio podcast featuring fresh tracks by Michigan artists.
‘I’d Much Rather Sing About Being Happy’: The Reverend Jesse Ray (Photo/Anna Sink)
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The Jesse Ray of 2026 isn’t the same Jesse Ray that burst onto the scene as a wild, aggressive and crazy duo with The Carolina Catfish 14 years ago.
While The Reverend Jesse Ray – now purely a solo act – still embraces the raw rock, blues and rockabilly-leaning music that’s made him a familiar and popular performer across the state, the artist and songwriter has honed his approach, changed his lifestyle and adopted a new attitude.
“I’m a better guitar player than I’ve ever been, that’s for darn sure,” the West Michigan musician quipped. “And I’ve got more influences and I’ve dug deeper. I used to just kind of scratch the surface and say, ‘All right, this is OK, or this is close enough.’”
But there’s more to it than that as The Reverend Jesse Ray prepares to release a new solo album, “Collector,” on June 26 after recording the project at Grand Rapids’ Goon Lagoon with engineer and producer Tommy Schichtel.
“I used to write a lot of angry music and I think that it was purposefully angry. But in this record, I wrote a lot about love, relationships, the way I see the world, my upbringing. I put a lot of myself into this record and I was pretty honest and I just hope that comes out well.”
In the vein of being honest, Jesse Ray (aka Jesse Ray Cahue) also has transformed his personal life.
“I’ve been sober for over five-and-a-half years at this point and that’s probably the biggest change in my music in, in my career and in my day-to-day life that I live. I woke up one day and I decided I was going to choose music. You can have a lot of fun playing music,” he said.
And in terms of love, Jesse Ray plans to get married in September after moving to the lakeshore, with his fiancée, Noah Cotton, providing vocals on a couple of tracks on the new album.
“I’ll say she’s got me writing a lot of sappy love songs these days. That affects it, too,” he said. “But I’m just happy. … I don’t ever want to feel like I’m hurting people with my music or keeping somebody in a certain space because of what I write about. I’d much rather sing about being happy and I’d much rather be happy and I’d much rather other people be happy as well.”
VIDEO: The Reverend Jesse Ray, “Break These Chains”
Live for Local Spins at Rockford Brewing
PLAYING A LOCAL SPINS ANNIVERSARY SHOW TONIGHT WITH MORE TOURING HEAD
The Reverend Jesse Ray unfurls some of that new material tonight (Friday, May 29) at Rockford Brewing Co. in Rockford as part of Local Spins’ 14th anniversary celebration and official release of Local Spinsation Ale (brewed in tribute to Local Spins). The show starts at 8 p.m. Details here.
It’s not surprising that the guy who’s described in his bio as an “artist with an old soul and a lead foot” regards “Collector” as his first bona fide record – coming out more than 12 years after the six-song “Tattoos and BB Guns EP” recorded as Jesse Ray & The Carolina Catfish.
With Schichtel at the helm and Kitten Redman playing bass, Jesse Ray says he returned to his roots and found his voice in the studio – oozing a “vintage feel” while embracing a “more mature and thoughtful” sound on what he considers his best record.
Jesse Ray Solo: No rules except for the ones he sets. (Photo/Anna Sink)
“A heavy rocker with no B-sides, no dumb lyrics and all attitude,” he writes in the liner notes. “This record is my heartbeat, my soul and my daily life that I’ve chosen to share with the listener.”
It’s also a confirmation of his metamorphosis as a true solo artist, now performing on his own with a foot drum, guitar and harmonica.
“I can move easier,” he said. “I’ve been doing this a really long time and changing drummers, training new people to perform the songs. Would I love to get up on stage and jump off a drum set every now and again? Sure I would, but it’s easier for me. I can move easier and … I don’t have to compromise at all.
“I don’t have any rules except for the ones that I set. It’s just nice. It turns out I’m not such terrible company on my own.”
After a short tour out West, and several northern Michigan shows in Negaunee, Petoskey and Gould City, The Reverend Jesse Ray hosts his album release show at Park Theatre in Holland on June 26, with Kitten & The Tonics and Rowdy Fingers & The Ready Boys also on the bill. Tickets are $15 in advance and available online here.
For this week’s edition of the Local Spins Michigan Music Showcase, Jesse Ray performed his new song, “Break These Chains,” live. Check out the video above. The show also featured the track, “Kiss and Hug,” from “Collector,” along with new music from these Michigan artists: The JR Band, Katie Thor, Wagon Wheel Effect, i.am.james, Gnat Theory, Christopher Samuels, The American Hotel System, Stovepipe Stover and John Richard Paul. Listen to the interview and full radio show below.
The Michigan Music Showcase airs at 11 a.m. Fridays and 5 p.m. Sundays on WYCE (88.1 FM) and online at wyce.org, and on Interlochen Public Radio at 7 p.m. Saturdays. Check out previous show podcasts online here.
PODCAST: Local Spins Michigan Music Showcase (5/29/26)
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