Biography

Why You Should Care: Though just 20 years old, Music City native Jaelee Roberts, is already more than a little familiar with — and to — the music industry. Born to veteran music professionals, she grew up backstage at the Grand Ole Opry and in the middle of rehearsals, business meetings and recording sessions, along with plenty of festivals and concerts. She got her start singing in church at an early age, which eventually led to winning music and dance competitions and attracting attention for her rich voice and interpretative ability. She’s recorded with her father, The Grascals’ Danny Roberts and with the Tom T. and Dixie Hall-backed Daughters of Bluegrass; and been a vocal track participant in the industry-leading GRAMMY Camp. More recently, Jaelee appeared in the 2020 IBMA Songwriter Showcase and made her first singing appearance at the Grand Ole Opry as a guest with the IBMA’s Entertainers of the Year, Sister Sadie.

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Following the contemporary rush of “Something You Didn’t Count On” and the traditional sounds of bluegrass gospel on “Still Waters,” Jaelee Roberts reveals yet another side of her musical palette with “Think Again,” her third single for Mountain Home Music Company. Penned by a couple of veteran Music Row hitmakers, Marla Cannon-Goodman and Shane Stockton, it’s a well-crafted excursion into the country side of bluegrass that suggests once again that Roberts has a rare degree of interpretive conviction and depth for a singer just emerging from her teens.

Produced by Balsam Range’s award-winning bassist, Tim Surrett, the ballad features a top-shelf group of musicians—IBMA Mandolin Player of the Year Alan Bibey, Steve Martin Prize-winning banjo player Kristin Scott Benson, veteran country and bluegrass fiddler Jimmy Mattingly and guitarist Tony Wray, plus Surrett himself—who provide subtle, sympathetic backing. Still, it’s Roberts herself whose emotionally complex performance stands front and center, as she reels off a series of warnings to a newly minted ex, starting with the song’s devastating opening lines:

If you’re thinkin’ that the lights that you’re seeing down the road coming round the bend
Belong to me, better think again

“Think Again” is such a well-written song that goes straight to the heart,” notes Roberts, who recently made her Grand Ole Opry debut as the newest member of the IBMA’s Entertainers of the Year, Sister Sadie. “My Sister Sadie bandmate, Deanie Richardson, brought the demo to me, and the very first time I heard it I knew immediately that I had to record it…it’s just that kind of song! When I sing ‘Think Again’ I can see the story unfolding in my mind, because the words are very visual and I think that most people will relate to it. Who hasn’t experienced that final good-bye when you absolutely know that a relationship is over and it’s time to move on? This song tells that classic story with emotional lyrics and a beautiful melody – and a little bit of attitude, too!”

With its delicate opening, deftly unfolding story line, exquisitely understated fiddle solo, an extended outro that gives Benson, Bibey and Mattingly room for an instrumental conversation—and, most of all, Roberts’ nuanced yet compelling vocal—“Think Again” will be welcomed not only by bluegrass fans, but by anyone appreciating a good, old-fashioned heartbreak country song.

About Jaelee Roberts
Though just 20 years old, Music City native Jaelee Roberts, is already more than a little familiar with—and to—the music industry. Born to veteran music professionals, she grew up backstage at the Grand Ole Opry and in the middle of rehearsals, business meetings and recording sessions, along with plenty of festivals and concerts. Roberts got her start singing in church at a very early age and began her journey as an instrumentalist at age 4 with fiddle lessons; since then, she has added guitar, mandolin and piano to her musical arsenal. Jaelee participated in and won numerous music and dance competitions, but as she began her teen years, she found herself drawn more to performance than competition. Soon, she was attracting attention for her rich voice and interpretative ability, recording not only with her father, the Grascals’ Danny Roberts, but with the Tom T. and Dixie Hall-backed Daughters of Bluegrass, and by the time she finished high school, she’d been chosen in two consecutive years as a vocal track participant in the industry-leading GRAMMY Camp. More recently, Jaelee appeared in the 2020 IBMA Songwriter Showcase and made her first singing appearance at the Grand Ole Opry as a guest with the IBMA’s Entertainers of the Year, Sister Sadie.