47 Facts About Jason Isbell

Michael Jason Isbell is an American singer-songwriter and actor.

In 2013, Jason Isbell released his solo commercial breakthrough, Southeastern, which debuted at No 23 on the Billboard 200 and appeared on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Jason Isbell has won six Grammy Awards out of seven nominations.

Jason Isbell's mother was only 17 years old when he was born and is the subject of a song, "Children of Children".

Jason Isbell's parents divorced, and he has two much younger half-siblings.

Jason Isbell's grandparents lived on a farm down the road next to the school that Isbell attended; they looked after him while his parents were at work.

Jason Isbell's paternal grandfather, who came from a musical family, was a Pentecostal preacher and played guitar in church.

Jason Isbell spent his childhood attending both the Pentecostal church and the stricter Church of Christ, which permitted only singing without musical instruments.

Jason Isbell started playing in a garage band and a country cover band when he was 14 or 15 years old with his friend, songwriter Chris Tompkins.

Jason Isbell attended the University of Memphis, studying English and creative writing.

Jason Isbell dropped out, being short one credit, to go on tour.

When Jason Isbell was a teenager, many musicians took him under their wing.

Jason Isbell got to know session bassist David Hood, father of Drive-By Truckers co-founder Patterson Hood, because David Hood was in the Florence, Alabama area and played around town on Friday and Saturday nights in local restaurants and bars.

Jason Isbell submitted demos and eventually got a publishing deal with FAME Studios of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, when he was 21.

Jason Isbell worked with FAME for 15 years, through his solo album Southeastern.

Jason Isbell recorded pieces of his solo albums at FAME Studios, as well as the Drive-By Truckers' The Dirty South.

In 2001, at age 22, Jason Isbell joined the Drive-By Truckers while they toured in support of their album Southern Rock Opera.

The band operated out of Athens, Georgia, where Jason Isbell lived while with the band.

Hood invited Jason Isbell to join the Drive-By Truckers after he sat in with the group at an acoustic house party when guitarist Rob Malone did not show up.

Jason Isbell recorded and contributed many songs to the Drive-By Truckers for their next three albums, 2003's Decoration Day, 2004's The Dirty South, and 2006's A Blessing and a Curse.

For most of his time as a band member, Jason Isbell was married to Shonna Tucker, who joined the band after Jason Isbell as bassist.

Jason Isbell had been with the Drive-By Truckers for six years.

On June 15,2014, Jason Isbell teamed with Hood and Mike Cooley for a benefit at the Shoals Theater in Florence, Alabama.

The sold-out acoustic performance was the first time Jason Isbell had performed with his former bandmates since they split in 2007.

Jason Isbell released his first solo album, Sirens of the Ditch, on July 10,2007.

In 2012, Jason Isbell supported singer-songwriter Ryan Adams on his tour.

On June 11,2013, Jason Isbell released his fourth solo album, Southeastern.

Southeastern won Album of the Year, Jason Isbell was named Artist of the Year, and the song "Cover Me Up" was named Song of the Year.

Jason Isbell's record received praise by artists like Bruce Springsteen and John Prine.

Jason Isbell said that compared to Southeastern, Something More Than Free has a feeling of celebration, which reflects his upcoming fatherhood and a forward-facing momentum.

One track on the record, "To a Band I Loved", is a love-letter to the band Centro-Matic, a now defunct band from Denton, Texas, Jason Isbell played with back in his Drive-By Truckers days.

Jason Isbell won the first two, while Chris Stapleton won Artist of the Year.

On March 13,2017, Jason Isbell announced a new album with the 400 Unit, The Nashville Sound, which released in June of that year.

In October 2017, Jason Isbell was announced to be the official artist-in-residence at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Jason Isbell contributed the ballad "Maybe It's Time" to the soundtrack of the 2018 film A Star Is Born, where it was performed by actor Bradley Cooper's character, Jackson Maine.

Jason Isbell worked with producer Dave Cobb on the album which featured guest vocals by David Crosby as well as Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons.

In February 2024, Jason Isbell was nominated and won two Grammys, for Best Americana Song: "Cast Iron Skillet" and Best Americana Album: Weathervanes.

Jason Isbell's first acting role came in 2016 when he guest starred in the animated TV series Squidbillies, providing the voice of pastor Kyle Nubbins.

In 2019, Jason Isbell had a cameo as a guitar-playing wedding guest in the HBO film Deadwood: The Movie.

In 2021, Jason Isbell was cast in Martin Scorsese's epic Western crime drama film Killers of the Flower Moon as Bill Smith, a victim of the Osage Indian murders.

Jason Isbell has spoken about the importance of his northern Alabama roots: "I definitely don't feel like I would be the musician that I am, or the type of songwriter, had I not come from that particular place," he said in 2012.

Jason Isbell was previously married to Shonna Tucker, a fellow musician from the Muscle Shoals community and a former bass player for Drive-By Truckers.

On February 8,2024, news was released that Jason Isbell had filed for divorce from Shires in December 2023.

Jason Isbell is currently in a relationship with artist Anna Weyant, who created the artwork to his tenth studio album, Foxes in the Snow, and inspired many of its tracks.

Jason Isbell was friends with Justin Townes Earle and played guitar on several of Earle's albums, including Harlem River Blues.

Jason Isbell is politically left-wing, frequently expressing his support for gun control, abortion rights, policing reform, LGBTQ and transgender rights.

Jason Isbell performed at the 2024 Democratic National Convention on August 19,2024.