'Nashville' Star Jonathan Jackson Signs Record Deal
Credit: ABC
Avery Barkley has struggled to make it in the music industry after blowing his record deal in the first season of ABC's Nashville. Hopefully, the actor who plays him won't do the same.
Jonathan Jackson has landed a record deal with Loud & Proud Records, his first deal after having spent years working independently.
"It felt like the perfect timing for everything," Jackson says of the record deal. "The last decade, really, I've had an amazing time just working really hard developing a sound and continuing to write songs and play everything. So I'm really grateful for the time that we've been doing things independently, but at the same time it feels great to have this happen."
Jackson is no stranger to the difficulties of the entertainment industry, having made his mark in his Daytime Emmy-winning role as Lucky Spencer on General Hospital, in addition to the male lead role in the film Tuck Everlasting. Along with his drummer brother Richard and bassist Daniel Sweatt, Jackson has been frontman for the rock band Enation, formed in 2002. However, his exposure on Nashville has been largely as a solo artist (save for a his storyline fronting a band quite similar to Enation).
"Being a part of a show like Nashville, [with] the music side of it, I knew from the very beginning that it was extremely important and that they were obviously putting a lot into it," says Jackson. "It was pretty easy to see that at the least, I would get more exposure as a singer. For years, I've thought about a project or a way where I could do acting and music together, and I never really thought that would happen. Then Nashville came along, and it was like a dream come true to marry both of those worlds."
Jackson continues, "At the same time, the last however many years of my life, I've started to get to the place of not having expectations about how things are supposed to turn out and really just try to live day to day. So I haven't thought about the specifics much, but I knew the exposure was there."
Label head Tom Lipsky told Billboard he's incredibly excited to work with Jackson and his band, recalling his first meeting with the actor/musician. "It was a combination of his music and how charismatic he was," Lipsky says. "His band did a private showcase for my team -- about a 45-minute set -- and I came away thinking [Jackson] was an absolute, unequivocal rock star."
The feeling of fondness is more than mutual, as Jackson explains. "Tom has been extremely enthusiastic and supportive," said the Nashville star. "He has a unique model of transparency with artists, and especially since we've been doing it independent as long as we have, we felt good about his vision. They have a great track record with promoting their bands and having a long-term vision for careers."
Although Jackson intends to remain a rock act, his time on Nashville will have some influence on the product he puts out. "Being on Nashville and working with some incredible people like T Bone Burnett and Buddy Miller -- so many wonderful, incredible musicians that I've been blessed to play with and observe -- that has continued to shape the process of arranging music, writing music."
There's no timetable for the album's release just yet. Nashville airs Wednesdays at 10:00 PM on ABC.