Jarekus Singleton

Born on July 11, 1984, in Clinton, Mississippi, to a household steeped in church music, Jarekus Singleton grew up immersed in gospel as the future blues guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist. His uncle introduced him to the bass at age nine, the same year he joined his grandfather’s church band. After shifting to guitar, Singleton absorbed sounds across blues, rock, rap, and country, forging a sharp electric lead style that paired with an equally distinctive vocal approach. Basketball also captured his attention, leading him to a top-seeded national prospect ranking; he started at point guard for the University of Southern Mississippi over three seasons until an ankle injury ended that trajectory in 2009. For a period he focused on rap, crafting his own lyrics, yet returning to guitar fused those experiences into a contemporary blues sound rooted in personal expression and informed by rap. That same year he assembled the Jarekus Singleton Blues Band, which soon drew a regional audience across Mississippi. His independent debut, Heartfelt, arrived in 2011, followed by a signing with Alligator Records and the 2014 release of Refuse to Lose, his first nationally distributed album.