Jacob Paul Allen - Live at The Burl | Rugged Revival
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There's something about watching an artist answer questions about their home state that reveals the bones of who they really are. When Jacob Paul Allen sat down at The Burl in Lexington, Kentucky—that legendary venue that seems to anchor every conversation about the city's music scene—he wasn't there just to chat. He was one of five artists competing for a fully-funded UK tour through the "For The Love of Appalachia" showcase, and the stakes were real. But listening to him talk, it became clear that the real prize wasn't necessarily waiting overseas. It was in the kind of music he's building right here, rooted in the red earth of his homeland.
Jacob Paul Allen calls his sound "Appalachian Red Dirt," and that's a phrase worth unpacking. It's bluegrass coursing through his veins—the kind that stays in your heart whether you're singing it or not—but it's also Texas country twang, the kind of rootsy swagger that comes from understanding both mountain hollers and wide-open spaces. He's not a purist, and he's not apologetic about it. In a genre that sometimes demands absolute fidelity to tradition, Allen sounds refreshingly comfortable existing in the blur between what Appalachia gave him and what he's chosen to become.
I'm writing more on reflection than stuff I'm actually experiencing, and those reflection moments really hit hard for me.
The conversation reveals an artist in a particular phase of life, one that's sharpening his songwriting in ways experience alone can't achieve. Allen spoke about debuting a new song that night—a reflective piece that's been growing on him the older he gets. There's something in that shift, he explained, from writing about things you're living through in the moment to writing about the things you've survived and what they mean. At two kids in and further down the road than he might have once imagined, the songs are coming from a different place now. They're hitting harder because they're earned.
That journey wasn't handed down from some dynasty of musicians. Allen's first memory of music was his grandmother's fierce devotion to Elvis, watching those old films and learning to move like the King when he was barely tall enough to see over a stage. Later, his mother worked in bars where musicians performed, and young Jacob was always front and center, absorbing everything. That's not the background of someone trained in a tradition—it's the background of someone hungry, someone who understood early that music was something you could chase and catch.
At the end of the day, as long as you're being authentic as possible, authenticity just goes a long way.
What makes Allen's presence at The Burl particularly interesting is that he brought something distinctly his own to a night that was asking five artists to represent Kentucky's independent scene. This wasn't nostalgia. This wasn't preservation. This was an artist actively synthesizing influences into something that felt contemporary without abandoning its roots. When he talks about the balance between staying true to yourself and evolving creatively, he doesn't offer easy answers. He talks about that "fine line" between writing from the heart and writing for an audience, and the only solution he's found is authenticity. Keep it real, find the common thread, and let that be what resonates.
It's a philosophy that matters, especially in a marketplace increasingly dominated by polished, algorithmic country music. Independent artists like Allen are choosing something harder: the work of building an audience one show at a time, one song at a time, without the infrastructure that major label backing provides. The fact that he was competing for a UK tour opportunity speaks to something worth considering. International interest in roots-based American music is growing precisely because audiences outside the States are hungry for the genuine article—the kind of music that comes from a specific place and a real person, not from a formula.
The full podcast conversation with Jacob Paul Allen is worth your time if you're interested in understanding what's happening in the margins of American country music right now. He represents a growing movement of artists from Appalachia and the surrounding regions who refuse to choose between honoring their heritage and building something new. That's the real revolution in roots music happening today.
[Music] Hi guys, my name is Kenzie. I'm here with the Rugged Revival and >> Jacob Paul Allen. >> It's been a pleasure to come out here and support the burl and also for the love of Appalachia. If you don't know who they are, go check them out. I'll link them below. So, for the start, we're going to do a little bit of rapid fire Kentucky edition. So, >> I'm nervous. >> Start. Bourbon or beer? >> Bourbon. >> Perfect. It's what I prefer, too. >> Come on. >> Lexington or Louisville? >> Lexington. >> That's going to get hurt. >> Fried chicken or hot brown? >> Oh, fried chicken. >> Fried chicken. >> Yeah, I think fried chicken. >> I feel like that's the safest answer cuz people >> Well, I got the best fried chicken in the world on my hat. Max Country Store in Virginia. So, >> but uh not too many people know what a hot brown is. >> I I mean, I didn't. But you know what is it? >> All right. Cumberland Balls or Red River Gorge? >> Uh, let's go Red River Gorge. >> Hell yeah. Yeah. >> I love me some Gorge. >> Absolutely. >> Where's your favorite local venue to watch or play a show? >> Well, being as I'm not from here, uh, and I've never played in the area. I'm going to say the Burl. >> Absolutely. And I feel like >> pretty soon. >> I feel like every time I've asked this question, I've been at this venue. So, please take everyone's word for it and go to a show at the Bur. >> It's really cool. >> All right. So, blueg grass or outlaw country? >> Uh, bluegrass. Always in my heart. Yeah, absolutely. It's a tough one for sure, but I got to go bluegrass >> for sure. What's your first memory of music growing up in? >> Uh, for me, I mean, my first memory of music is is got to be Elvis. My grandmother was the biggest Elvis fan that ever walked the planet Earth. And, uh, I grew up watching all his movies and trying to imitate him as a kid. And then my mom worked in in bars and stuff like that when I was growing up. So, whenever there was a musician on stage, I was right there in front of him. So, started at an early age. >> Super. >> Yeah. >> All right. What's your favorite song that you've ever writt? >> Uh, that's that's a tough question and I should be more prepared for that. Um, there's one I'm going to debut tonight that um is quickly becoming one of my favorites the older I get and in in this career and start writing more on reflection than stuff I'm actually experiencing. Um, and those reflection moments really hit hard for me. So, yeah. >> What do you think sets it apart from other songs that you've written? Again, I think it's just that age, that phase in my life that um uh I've got two kids and it's just that puts a whole perspective on your life and appreciation things and what matters and and things you should, you know, that maybe you've been carrying you should let go of. Um so, yeah, it's just it's just more more from the heart. Yeah. >> Nice. >> If you could collaborate with another local artist, it doesn't matter if it's here in Kentucky, should be, or if it's in Virginia, who would it be? >> I got to go with one of my favorite songwriters living of all time. Uh Mr. Chris Knight. Nice. And if you would like to go see Chris Knight, he will be playing at the Maiden City Music Festival in October, October 3rd and 4th. Mark your calendars and it'll be a really good time. >> Yeah. >> All right. Can you describe your sound to somebody who might not have heard you before? >> I've come to call it Appalachian Red Dirt because it's got that bluegrass Appalachian feel to it, but I'm also hugely influenced by the Texas country sound. So, yeah, Appalachian Red Dirt is what I say. >> Nice. How do you balance staying true to your sound while also evolving creatively? >> That's a trick for I think for any artist out there. And uh you know, at the end of the day, you always try to write that fine line between writing from the heart and what matters to you and also writing to what might appeal to someone else. At the end of the day, I think as long as you're being authentic as possible, um you can add lib and you know, bring stuff in that may may or not be true, but authenticity it just goes a long way. Yeah. And that's that's just hard to do um for anyone, I think. Uh but you got to find that common thread that makes it hit. >> I agree. What's your go-to road snack anytime you're on the road? >> Man, I'm a sucker for beef jerky. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, >> put me in some small town gas station. I got those meat sticks right there by the register and I'm grabbing them. >> Ming Minga. >> Oh, I don't know. >> Uh I might be wrong on that. Might be wrong on that pronunciation, but it starts with an M. It's fantastic beef jerky. >> I'm gonna try it out for sure. I'll keep my eyes open. >> All right. What is the most uh that would only happen to me moment that's ever happened to you like in a recording session or even at a show? >> Uh usually it's like a bad way like uh well just recently I was I was opening for Wade Bowen and I was like going to go talk to him and I realized he was on the phone like it looked like it was a deep conversation. I was like ah I can't go talk to him right now and I never got to talk to him again for the night. You know, it's like situations like that. >> But sometimes I feel like you got to kind of just figure out a way to put your foot in the door. >> Yeah. You know, drop something in front of >> I'm sure wait and I'll connect again down the line. But yeah, just, you know, it's stuff like that happens all the time. It's like, man, I should have done that or I should have, you know, I just missed my opportunity. >> Could have, should have, would have. >> Dang it. >> Absolutely. >> Do you record videos with other creators? We have Rodburn Hollow Sessions, which is stationed out of Morehead. We also have uh Appalachia Untold which kind of covers a wide range of people throughout Appalachia. Any artists for you? >> Um you know I personally have not done a lot of work with other artists that are doing that right now. I mean I'm always fascinated and uh intrigued by the videos that I see online that are people that are doing that and would love to connect with whoever's out there that wants to create content. Um drop me a line. I'm I'm all about collaboration and getting in involved and stuff like that. Anyway, the music can get out there and I can share my music and also learn more about the community of that's going on here at Appalachin all around. >> Oh yeah. And that draws me into our last question is if you are going to reach out to him, where can we find you? >> You can find me um jacobpaulen.com and all the social links are all on there and uh yeah, Spotify and all that fun stuff. But just go to jacoballen.com. Do it the old school way and then go off find your links from there. >> Thanks guys. Come check us out and get outside and check out your local scene.
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