“Music has a way of finding you, even in the darkest of places.” — Max Mayfield, Stranger Things

It’s 3 a.m. and intrusive thoughts are keeping you up. Anxiety is making your heart pound mercilessly in your head. You’re not sure why the world is the way it is, and you worry you’ll never fit in. As your thoughts spiral, you feel broken and alone.

But you’re not. You’re not broken. And you’re not alone. I promise.

Jess Urwiler has lived these types of moments. She’s had her share of dark nights of the soul and learned how to challenge those voices that whisper, “There’s something wrong with you.” Her debut EP, roots, is a beautifully rendered work of art that details her intensely personal journey through adolescence, young love, and heartbreak. It’s a comforting hand on your shoulder that reminds you that you are going to be okay. You will “make it out.” You can keep moving forward and find who you are and where you’re meant to be. 

Jess’ exquisite guitar work, delicate arrangements, and vulnerable lyrics embrace you. There’s more than words and music on this EP. Urwiler has revealed a private side of herself. As she sings, you realize that you’re not broken. You don’t need to be “fixed.” You just need someone who understands. Someone who hears you. And that’s the magic of roots; by listening, you know you’ve been heard.

Jess was kind enough to answer a few questions about her life, her struggles, her music, and how she’s come to appreciate her uniqueness.

I read in your press materials that you grew up in Bucks County. There are some pretty big artists, such as P!nk and Sabrina Carpenter, who are from here. Do you like the area?
I currently reside in Philly near Drexel’s campus, but my real home is still in Bucks. Overall, I’d say I like Bucks because it’s where I grew up; most of my memories are there, but I don’t think the area serves me in this part of my life.

How did growing up in Bucks County help you become the person/artist you are?
Growing up in Bucks was pretty good. Neshaminy School District gave me the tools to become the musician I am today — even though I am glad to leave that part of my life behind. High school was an inspiration for a huge part of this EP, for a positive and also somewhat negative reason. For example, one of my best friends and I won homecoming queen and king, and we got booed by the student section when driving around the stadium (because my best friend is gay and we were in marching band). So, your typical high school, but for a while, I thought it was different.

Living here made me feel like an outcast, which I don’t think is a bad thing — I know it made me who I am today. When I began to find my style, people stared at me/made comments. When I began to speak up about current issues I feel strongly about, I would get responses from peers that show their ignorance of certain situations. Basically, it inspired me to leave Bucks and find some place that serves me better, and right now that’s the city of Philadelphia. Being around people who care to be educated, who work towards important goals in their life, who care about community and acceptance, and who don’t judge as much as people in small towns do has made me more confident as myself. Philly is more of a community and very real — people don’t try to be who they’re not. And that’s helped me find my voice.

Which came first for you: guitar or voice? Did you do any other creative activities, such as dance or art or journaling?
I’ve only been playing guitar for about 4 years, but I’ve been singing for my whole life. From my first moment of consciousness, I remember loving to sing. I would put on performances for my family, I was in choir as soon as I could be, I did the musicals, took voice lessons, and loved performing. I did dance for about 7 years — hip-hop and lyrical most of that time. I also regularly journal and write. Being creative and creating any kind of art has always come naturally to me and brought me the most joy.

When did you decide you wanted to pursue a career in music?
Honestly, it wasn’t too soon before deciding to come to Drexel. I was originally going to major in biology or environmental science because I thought I had to do something “real.” 

Did you have support from friends and family?
My family being supportive played a huge part in me majoring in Music Industry at Drexel — without that, I don’t think I would’ve made the decision to do it. My friends encouraging me definitely helped, as I didn’t get too much praise from my teachers. But I was mainly focused on production and recording. I decided to begin releasing my music around 2023/2024, when I decided I really want to give being an artist a try and build my discography. Getting the self-confidence to release music has definitely been the hardest part of that, and it took me almost all of my college experience to be able to share my music confidently with people, and I’m still working on that.

What was it about Drexel that made it the place to go for you?
Honestly, when I decided I wanted to go to college for music production, I searched up “best music tech schools” and Drexel was among the top few. I applied and got into Temple and Berklee as well, and ended up deciding between Berklee and Drexel. The thing that did it for me was honestly the vibe of the campus. I toured Berklee in Boston and I just wasn’t thrilled. Drexel felt more of a match for me, and thank God I came here, because I don’t think I would’ve liked being at Berklee nearly as much as I do Drexel.

What was the most important thing you learned while there?
The past 3 years have been so educational and informative. Academically, the most important thing I’ve learned is how to record, produce, mix, etc., so that I can achieve the goals I’ve had. Aside from classic academic teachings, the most important thing I’ve learned (even though it sounds cliché) is to be myself. Being myself in my music, in social settings, when performing, when I’m in class, etc. has been the most freeing and beneficial thing I think I’ve learned, and it’s made my quality of life so much better.

This EP feels personal, like you’ve let us into your innermost thoughts. Was that intentional, or was it just how the songs turned out?
Most of my music is insanely vulnerable and personal, which is very intentional. When I sit down to write a song, it’s usually to uncover feelings that I’m having and can’t really understand. Usually, writing helps me figure out what I’m actually feeling, and it helps me work through those emotions. I definitely picked the more personal and descriptive songs I have to put on the EP in order to tell the story that I aim to tell about my life, and produced them accordingly. I originally wanted it to be just guitar and vocals — all kind of like how “blue” sounds — but it felt like the songs needed more life when I recorded them. Every single part of the EP is definitely very intentional and done on purpose, to tell the story of my songwriting and my life experiences that have got me to where I am today.

Can you give us a little peek into your songwriting process?
Writing is an emotional release for me, kind of like a musical journal. Most of the time I have no idea what I’m feeling until I write a song, and then I can figure it out based on what I write. Because of this, my approach to songwriting is usually different every time. Sometimes I can write a full song in 20 minutes; sometimes it takes months to finish. Usually, I’ll come up with a guitar tuning or key to start in, and fiddle around until I find a melody/progression I like. I usually do words and melodies at the same time — the cadence of the words and syllables really matter and impact the melodies I write. I rarely edit my lyrics unless I think they absolutely suck, because I’m a big believer that the way I wrote the song is how it’s meant to be. Not to be cheesy, but when I write, it feels like I transcend consciousness, and when I’m done, I come back into my body and realize how I’ve been feeling and what emotions I’m processing. And that I just wrote a song.

Which is more important for you to share: words or music?
I think, for me, words and music go together — I wouldn’t be sharing the words I do in my songs if they were just a poem, or just a passage. The words and music are both equally my voice, and I think the words without the music just don’t have as much emotion or feeling or context as I want them to.

Where does your inspiration come from?
If my inspiration is not from an emotional state of mind, it’s usually from experiencing other live music. Most of the time I can tell that I’m feeling a very strong, intense emotion, and if distracting myself from those feelings doesn’t work, my next step is to write a song. That’s usually why most of my songs are on the sadder side. I also get inspired when I get to listen to live music that invokes those kinds of emotions in me, like I can only hope my music can do for others.

What do you hope listeners get from your music?
I hope listeners feel emotion when listening to my music. Any kind of emotion, really. I hope people can feel comfort from my music, or relate to it, or at least sympathize with the feelings I’m articulating.

When writing about the song “inside” from your roots EP, you said, “After a certain age, I’ve never been able to escape the feeling that there’s something wrong with me.” Where does that feeling come from? Do you think this is something everyone experiences at some point in their life?
Kind of going back to the Bucks County thing, I’ve always felt like an outcast growing up. I do think everyone at some point feels like an outcast, or like there’s something wrong with them, but I have felt like it’s a little different for me. Growing up, I constantly felt excluded, and that didn’t really change by coming to college. A lot of people who I considered friends showed me that they didn’t feel the same, and it felt like everyone else could have normal relationships, but I couldn’t. My freshman and sophomore years of college were some of the worst years for me mentally so far — my anxiety and depression were insane. I couldn’t talk to anyone without thinking they hate me. I couldn’t go to class without intense nausea and sometimes having to leave to go cry in the bathroom if I had to present something or work in groups. I didn’t drink, go to parties, or really make too many friends. It felt like the whole world had rules, or that everyone was in on some huge inside joke, and I was completely unaware of it. Like I had missed the lesson on how to be a human being. It got so bad that I knew something had to change, and thank God for therapy and medication. 

Have you been able to move beyond that feeling?
After growing into myself, I feel a lot less like there’s something “wrong” with me, and more like I’m unique and my own person. I hope others can listen to my music and relate, or feel comforted, and also make them realize that maybe there really isn’t something wrong with them.

Is there anything we’d be surprised to learn about you? A fun fact?
I’m a black belt in karate. Shout out to Trevose Action Karate. I almost tested for my second-degree black belt but started dancing instead.

It also surprises people when I say that I’ve only really been making music like this for maybe 4 years? I’m a classically trained musician in voice and flute. Flute is actually my main instrument — the one I feel the most comfortable on and can play the best. Voice has always been my favorite kind of performance, and I LOVE to sing classical pieces. Choral singing and solo classical singing are my favorite kinds, and that’s where I really started. Pop singing is fairly new to me.

Another random fun fact: I’m allergic to a good amount of fruits and vegetables. And no, I’m not lying. I won’t die (well, at least I don’t think) if I eat a fruit I’m allergic to, but it’s very, very uncomfortable.

What’s next in your career and/or your life?
In my last year of Drexel, I’m using my senior project to experiment with different kinds of music. I have an alternate ego for my DJ persona named dj meow, and I’ll be releasing 2 EPs under that name — one hyperpop/electronic pop, and the other more grunge/dreampop/shoegaze etc. Life wise, I’ll hopefully be staying in Philly after graduating and finding a job that I can live off of. I’d love to produce for other artists, and I hope to find a way to do that after graduation.

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Jess Urwiler’s roots is an intoxicating moment of calm. Her songwriting is honest, her voice is genuine, and the purity in her arrangements contains a bewitching elegance. Jess’ music is a peaceful reverie that helps quiet the discord between the world and the inner spirit. You can follow and support this artist via the links below.

Jess Urwiler links:
Instagram • TikTok • Spotify • Apple Music