Indie pop artist cant be jake fights toxic masculinity with new song “boys dont cry”
Up next on the Finessed Finds stage, we’ve got cant be jake! His latest song “boys dont cry” drops TODAY, and it’s a special one. It wasn’t the easiest song to write, but he knew it needed to be out there. Check out this rising New Jersey artist!
Abby Martinez: How did you get started in music?
cant be jake: I started really young like 5 or 6. My older brother would play the guitar and I would jam with him. I had an uncle who got me into really good music when I was young. I played drums for most of my life and then I found hiphop when I was 7 or 8 years old. And I started writing raps. But I've always been a writer, you know, and then slowly over time became a songwriter.
As I got older, I found what I like and used to rap a lot so I started going to recording studios and making music with my friends. Over time I kind of just gathered my sound and that’s what I've like really honed in on what I want to do as far as music goes, you know, and I started producing myself.
AM: What is the story behind your artist name “cant be jake”?
cant be jake: So that's a newer name. I've been through a million names. It was time for me to drop the song that I wanted to put out and I was like, “Alright, I couldn't put a song out under my government name.” So “cant be jake.” It was kind of a joke amongst me and my friends.
AM: How would you describe your music to them?
cant be jake: I would like to say that it's refreshing. I hope there's a good piece of nostalgia in every song that I make. Positivity! I wanted to bring a positive vibe even if it's a sad song. I wanted to have an impact on someone. I'd say refreshing, energetic, positive, and nostalgic.
AM: Some artists write their music in the most unconventional places, such as in a closet or under their desk. Where do you usually write your music?
cant be jake: I write my music in many places. I write a lot of my best songs like “boys don't cry” that's coming out on April 15 on a Greyhound bus going to a studio in Connecticut from New Jersey. I write a lot of music in the bathroom. I come up with melodies in the shower all the time. Yeah, random places! I can be eating lunch with friends or my mom then something hits me and I write it down. I write stuff anywhere I am at any time. And I record a lot of demos and ideas here in my bedroom then I'll take it to a studio to my friends in Connecticut.
AM: Tell me more about “boys dont cry”. What is it about and where did you find inspiration for it?
cant be jake: It was really difficult for me to write about a topic that I tried to evade growing up. But in summary, it's kind of about my own insecurities growing up, my idea of masculinity, and what I was kind of taught about what being masculine was or being a boy was all about. I have sisters. Like I used to paint their nails. I thought painting nails was cool, but I also like to play baseball. I don't know like kids that play baseball don't paint their nails and stuff like that. So growing up, I really question my sexuality a lot. I question if I was a real boy, you know, it sounds weird. I had a military father and was real strict. And literally “boys don't cry, like get off the floor, get up, stop crying” and stuff like that. So that really affected me growing up. And I think as a man today, I'm very much myself, and I've done a lot of work to get here. I wanted to talk about it so I made the song.
AM: Which song out of your discography do you think will be a crowd favorite?
cant be jake: I actually have no experience really. I've never performed live yet. Johnny and I are working on that. But I've opened up for my friend one time when I did a song with him. And that was cool. I was terrified. But hopefully in the real near future we have some shows lined up!
AM: So what has been bringing you the most joy currently?
cant be jake: Over here in New Jersey the past couple days, especially, the sun's coming out and it's getting warmer. That really helps my mental state. Just being outside. I live right next to the beach. Being able to record in my room, having that ability and that privilege, that brings me a lot of joy. I have a certain couple of people in my life I’m grateful to have and I have a family which is awesome. So stuff like that brings me joy, real simple things.
AM: When you aren't making music. What are you usually doing?
cant be jake: Oh, I'm spending time with my family for sure! I like to cook a lot. I like to ride my bicycle a lot. And I travel a little bit. I cook! I'm a big pizza guy. Especially being from Jersey. I love pizza. Probably eat it two times a week!
AM: Do you have any hidden talents?
cant be jake: I'm extremely good at working with kids. It's not really hidden but yeah, it's one of my main passions in life, working with kids. I'm really good at four square.
AM: What are some artists that you take a lot of inspiration from?
cant be jake: Nirvana! Kurt Cobain, especially. I really like XXXTentacion and young artists like Russ as far as work ethic goes. I love The Kid Laroi and Post Malone.
AM: Of all your songs, which have you been the most proud of?
cant be jake: Oh, I think “desperate boy”. I wrote that a long time ago. I have like 21 mixes of it. Like when I finally got the version I was super proud of! I had a lot of people help me and finally had a product which I was confident and happy with.
AM: What song has been the most challenging to write?
cant be jake: To write “boys don't cry”. It was challenging to like to get myself to write about it, you know what I mean? It kind of wrote itself, but like bringing myself to the point where I was ready to talk about that was just internally hard. But once I did, it was super relieving and I'm glad I did it.
AM: What does your creative process usually look like?
cant be jake: I did start producing a little bit, and I'm really catching on pretty quick. Maybe I'll start with a melody or some sort of guitar melody. And that might just be what it takes for me to like tap in as far as singing. I'll come up with a melody real quick and then all the syllables that I want to do. Then I'll throw words on sometimes. I've been on the bus and an idea pops in my head. A lot of the time it's never a set in stone thing for me. It kind of just comes and then I get some solid ideas down and then I take it to Connecticut, or wherever I'm recording and we kind of just piece them together there.
AM: So do you have any advice to all the other rising artists out there?
cant be jake: Yeah, I think it's kind of like what I'm really working on right now. Johnny (Divert Productions) is teaching me a lot, like staying connected with your community and your peers online, on social media, and interacting with your followers. Even if you have five followers, really tap in with them. Work with others! I used to be like, “No, I want to be real self sufficient,” or I only trust you know, so and so. But now there's so many people out there that can benefit you, that can help you and you can help them. So I'm being more open lately. So I'd say try to tap in with people on the internet. There's a million people that can help you. You can help them. And it's a beautiful thing.
AM: Where do you see yourself in the future?
cant be jake: [Johnny’s] really working really hard trying to get some shows lined up. He's doing an awesome job with that. I don't really care about the streams, but I want more people in the world to hear it. So I want to be able to tap into that. Building a fanbase, playing shows, traveling…that'd be awesome. Helping children in some way. Maybe like doing free shows. I definitely want to have a youth program in the future whether it's music related or not to start a youth program!
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