I’ve mentioned before how I believe the word visionary is thrown around a lot in the music world with countless artists getting dubbed it, but after one listen and one viewing of Jake Wesley Rogers latest single I’m convinced he deserves his picture next to the word in the dictionary. He treats songwriting as an art, delicately crafting the melodies across his soundscape like brushes across a canvas, adding intricate details that mix together to form something that is as real as life and better than art. His music, his voice, his artistry and his vision all stem from his authentic queer storytelling refracted through a universal lens that invites everyone to behold it, but are special treats for those who know.

Middle of Love is a queer anthem that will undoubtably become so many people’s coming out anthem with the jubilance of the production that instantly will put a smile on your face contrasting his raw poetic lyrics that send shivers down my spine with one line specifically hitting me hard, “I don’t remember life before / I hope it’s worth dying for.” This one stunning and evocative line is what sets this track apart from others out there, it captures this willingness to die for who you are than masquerade as someone else your entire life because, as they say, a life worth living is one worth fighting for. This artist is something else and this track is sensational.

“I wrote ‘Middle of Love’ when I started to notice that love was causing destruction all around me. I saw my grandpa dying slowly after the loss of his wife, I read about my LGBTQ+ heroes who were mostly all murdered or exiled, and I witnessed my own romantic relationship exploding right before my eyes. When I finally sat down to write Middle of Love with Justin Tranter and Eren Cannata, it was the perfect storm; all my guts just spilled out.”