The Detroit music scene has taken on so many personalities over the years that it’s hard to hone-in on what it means today. Jake Bass is one of the individuals re-defining Detroit and Music. Born into the trade and exemplifying what putting notes and sounds together truly means, Jake Bass has taken the industry by storm and is leaving a large impact on both new and old artists alike.
Graduating from Columbia College Chicago in 2012 with a Music Composition degree, Jake is no stranger to the mechanics of Music. An accomplished musician, Jake also produces and performs. To his own credits, Jake’s first published song came by partnering with Bizarre of hip-hop group D12, and working with Detroit-based rapper King Gordy on a song called “Fat Boy.” Jake impressed Bizarre with tracks burned to a CD – often Jake’s “calling card” when you meet him, to gain entry into working directly with him. While this accomplishment and relationship was built when he was only 17, Jake had many triumphs both before and after this.

Jake grew up in the studio environment, and just as a Detroit autoworker’s son would take to working the assembly line, Jake took to the only thing he had ever known … music.

In the early years, Jake started his journey at the age of 8, harmoniously playing “by ear” the piano, drums and at the age of 10 adding guitar and bass. At the age of 13, Jake began writing and producing original hip-hop, pop, and rock songs, building what today is a large vast library of dynamic sounds, audio tracks, and future-proof compositions. These were no small feats as Jake produced all of these efforts in his father’s basement studio. Even still, Jake’s music was on par at that age with many artists on the scene today.

Bass officially joined the “family business” working for FBT Productions and Jeff Bass Music in 2004, the caliber of which artists like Eminem and other fine artists made their very beginnings or early successes.

His most recent venture is producing and performing with deaf artist Sean Forbes, with whom he met in 2005. Jake has been bringing Sean’s work to venues across the country, delivering messages through both hip-hop and pop music. Sean’s debut single “I’m Deaf” resulted in a record deal in 2010 for Mr. Forbes, further leading to the launch of his visual album “Perfect Imperfection,” Jake’s first full-length production. From there they moved on to create more music videos and even a collaboration with Academy Award winner Marlee Matlin, who requested to participate in the next single’s music video, named “Let’s Mambo.” After that highlight came additional recognition for both Sean and Jake, now beyond the deaf community, with over one million hits and counting on Forbes’ music videos available on his website and on YouTube.

Jake has had much success in recent years, demonstrated by forming his own Publishing and Production Company, Boca J Music, LLC. In 2013 his talent was exemplified by the release of his own debut album, “1989.” In it, listeners were able to focus on numerous scores showing the range and dynamic flexibility of Jake’s own music instrumentals. As writer, producer, and engineer/mixer of the entire album, Jake dedicated himself to delighting the listener with a broad array of sounds and notes that one cannot help but think they’ve just watched The Grammy’s, or perhaps a movie filled with Jake’s soundtracks. Three years later he followed up his debut album with the release of his second instrumental album titled “My City: Detroit” in 2016.

Jake has had so many musical pleasures in his early career … from opening for such acts as Ludacris, LL Cool J, Neon Trees, and Mitch Ryder, to composing the original score to Ovation Network’s, “Motor City Rising,” to the honor and ability to delight audiences around the country.

In November 2016, Jake and F.B.T. Productions co-produced and performed the instrumentation on the 20th-anniversary remix of Eminem’s 1996 debut single “Infinite”, and produced the mini-documentary Partners In Rhyme: The True Story of Infinite. The single, available for the first time digitally, entered Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales chart at #9 with 28,000 downloads sold in its first week. The remix also entered the Digital Song Sales chart at #21, the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart at #37, the Spotify Viral 50 chart at #47, and The Hot 100 at #97.

During the spring of 2017, Bass and longtime collaborator Sean Forbes founded their own record label, Two Blown Speakers, LLC. Later that year, Bass opened his very own recording studio Bassment Sounds 2.0.

In late 2018, Jake signed artists RYN SCOTT and Mama Yaya and are currently working on their debut albums respectively.

On December 16, 2018, Bass produced The Deaf and Loud Symphonic Experience featuring Dame Evelyn Glennie, Sean Forbes, Mandy Harvey, and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. It was a groundbreaking event featuring a 60 piece orchestra performing original and Detroit centric material composed and arranged by Jake. Each song featured American Sign Language and lyrics displayed behind each performance. The show featured the most accomplished Deaf artists in the world as well as many special guests including; Grammy Award winners Paul Riser, Dennis Coffey, Martha Reeves, and Academy Award winners Jeff Bass and Luis Resto.

In February of 2020, Sean Forbes released his second album “Little Victories” entirely produced by Bass. The first week “Little Victories” peaked at #1 on the Hip-Hop charts on both iTunes and Amazon. The album entered Billboard’s Digital Album Sales at #17, the Top Current Album Sales at #59, and the Top Album Sales chart at #93. A feat that created history, no profoundly Deaf artist has ever made it on the charts.

Catch up with Jake at http://www.bocajmusic.com, spend some time getting to know him better as he will be setting the bar even higher on Detroit’s Music scene. Jake himself has said that “music must make you feel something,” and he stands by his mantra of realizing the best form of education is to watch and observe the masters at work.