Our interview with Nashville recording artist Jake Hoot

Winner of NBC's The Voice, Jake Hoot, headlined opening night of Schaferpalooza 2022

This past weekend marked the third annual Schaferpalooza, a two-day live music event founded by Dan & Toni Schafer of Houston, Ohio. The entertainment included a strong lineup of performers, headlined on both Friday and Saturday by a couple of Nashville recording artists in Jake Hoot and Noah Smith. Fish Report got the opportunity to go backstage on opening night and meet the Texas-born Jake Hoot before his 9:30 show. Jake talked about a variety of subjects including winning NBC's The Voice back in 2019 and playing the Grand Ole Opry 14 times. Below is our Q&A with the rising country music star.

FR: First of all, welcome to Ohio Jake! When was the last time you’ve been to the Buckeye state?

JH: This is the second time in probably a year I've been up here. The last time both Noah Smith and I were opening for Collin Raye. That's also when I met the Schafer's and they invited me up to play Schaferpalooza.

FR: Are you aware you’re performing tonight in Houston (HOW-stun), not Houston (HUE-stun)? Also, some of these fans came from a town about a mile away spelled R-U-S-S-I-A, but pronounced ROO-she.

JH: I did not know that! That's awesome. I've been telling people I was heading to HUE-stun Ohio for a show and how do pronounce the other town, ROO-she? I would have been concerned if I was told my next show was in RUSH-uh. I'm going to talk about that with the crowd tonight, this is going to be fun!

FR: Around this part of Ohio the way of life pretty much revolves around family, faith and sports. I read that’s kind of how you grew up too?

JH: Absolutely. I'm one of nine kids and my parents were missionaries. We all loved sports and I was actually blessed enough to play college football. Those three core things - family, faith and sports are very monumental in my life. My wife and two daughters back home are everything to me and I still carry those values with me today.

FR: You mentioned playing college football and I know that you played for Tennessee Tech. I also read you played baseball in a Dominican league at one time?

JH:  Yep, we moved to the Dominican for a while when I was 9-years old. Playing baseball is probably a pretty loose term. I was more like the kid chasing butterflies in the outfield when balls were rolling past me. I was a switch hitter and my brother was a pitcher. Our team was okay, we weren't great. Kids in the Dominican are playing at such an elite level and even when they're young. There wasn't enough contact and I got bored, but it was definitely a good learning experience.

FR: Growing up I'm guessing you had more thoughts of being a professional athlete than a professional singer?

JH: When I was playing football at Tennessee Tech there was maybe a split moment where I thought I could be a pro, but it didn't work out and God has his plan. To be honest, I never thought about being a professional singer until after I won The Voice. I was working in radio and playing guitar on the weekends at the time when The Voice came along. When they announced my name as the winner and I later processed what happened, that's when I thought maybe this should be a full-time gig. I'm just very blessed and very excited to be doing what I love.

FR: Let's talk about The Voice some more. Other Nashville recording artists have found success on that show. Danielle Bradberry won in 2013 and she's enjoying a fine country music career. Morgan Wallen was on the show in 2014 and didn't win but he's one of the hottest tickets in all of music these days. What are your thoughts about the show after your win?

JH: The way that the show is built, they do an incredible job of taking people and not changing who they are. Just taking their story and putting it out on national television. This sounds corny but having success on The Voice is mainly about your voice! I found out afterward there are so many people that watch the show. I can be in the most random place and folks will come up to talk about seeing me on the show. It was an incredible experience and I recommend it for anyone. It was fun, everyone there was very genuine and the notoriety of being on the show helps your career whether you win or not.

FR: You’ve been on a lot of big stages now including the Grand Ole Opry. I have to imagine that's a dream come true?

JH: Absolutely! I used to go there when I could afford tickets and I would tell my grandparents how awesome it would be if I could play the Opry some day. Now I've played it 14 times. A lot of country music artists probably don't count how many times they've played certain venues, but I think most count the number of times they've played the Opry. It's such an incredible stage and my favorite place to play. It's also the only stage I still get nervous before going on. I'm very blessed they keep having me back.

FR: What are you enjoying most about your career right now?

JH: One of the most addicting things is to get on stage and watch people sing the words back to a song I made up in a room. Not only that but to have people come up and tell you how that song impacted them in some way. When a song is able to be a conduit or a tool to help people going through whatever they're going through, whether it's a death or heartbreak, it's just an incredible thing. And being out here in the country and seeing all these farms, these farmers are the ones busting their backs every day. I realize I get to sing songs for a living and feel very fortunate about my career.

FR: What kind of show can fans expect here tonight?
JH: I haven't figured that out yet? No, just kidding! We're going to do a couple songs I played when I was on The Voice, just for the folks that watched the show. I've been writing a lot in Nashville lately. So, I'll be playing a lot of originals, some that haven't been released yet and some that have. I love to have a good time and include everybody. So, we'll do some sing-along stuff and I'll probably pick on a few people from the stage to get some laughs.

FR: It sounds like new music is in the works?

JH: All the time. I feel like if you're not making new music you're just kind of stagnant. I've been fortunate to get in the room with some really great writers and we're writing new stuff every week. Picking the songs that you want to record is the hard part. We've got quite a few new songs that are coming out this year and next year as well. We're excited.

FR: I’ve been told you like to give back to charity as much as possible. What causes mean the most to you right now?

JH: I call myself the modern day Clark Griswold. I love Christmas and everything about it. Last year I was introduced to a man by the name of Frank. He has a non-profit up in New York called Baking Memories for Kids. Each holiday season they bake and sell cookies with all the proceeds used to send terminally ill kids and their families to major parks down in Florida like Disney and Universal. I was able to be apart of one of the giveaways last year. I went to a little boy's house and gave him and his family a trip to Disney. It's partnered with Christmas and I'm happy to be a part of it. We also try to help out with the Habitat for Humanity back in Cookeville, Tennessee and building local houses. 

FR: Finally, if folks want to find out more about you or listen to your music what’s the best way?

JH: The website is jakehoot.com. I'm on every social media if you search Jake Hoot or Jake Hoot Music. I'm constantly posting crazy things. Send me a message, I love hearing from folks.

Backstage at Schaferpalooza with Jake Hoot