Jake Xerxes Fussell explores American folk history with a keen ear for tradition and innovation. The singer, guitarist and composer from Durham, North Carolina, incorporates archival recordings and folk songs into his own work. His latest album, When I’m Called (2024), released on Fat Possum Records, showcases him at his most soulful and subtle. The record was produced by James Elkington, with contributions from Blake Mills and Joan Shelley, among others. Along with Elkington, Fussell also wrote the music for Rebuilding, a film set to premiere at Sundance Film Festival in 2025.

“(Fussell) is one of the great magpies of American song, collecting forgotten, tarnished gems with a folklorist’s zeal…. his renditions aren’t so much cover versions as composites…”-The Guardien