Years
before
forming
one
of
Nashville's
most
genre
-
bending
bands,
the
members
of
Judah
&
the
Lion
grew
up
in
separate
corners
of
the
U.S.,
listening
to
every
type
of
music
that
came
their
way.
They
loved
it
all:
the
twang
of
folk,
the
beat
of
hip
-
hop,
the
drive
of
rock
&
roll,
the
punch
of
pop.
Later,
after
college
brought
all
four
musicians
to
Tennessee,
it
only
made
sense
to
co
m
bine
those
different
backgrounds
—
and
different
sounds
—
together.
With
their
second
full
-
length
album,
Folk
Hop
N
Roll,
the
guys
shine
a
light
on
the
place
where
their
influences
overlap.
It's
a
wide
-
ranging
sound,
with
fuzz
bass,
hip
-
hop
percussion,
distorted
banjo
riffs,
and
super
-
sized
melodies
all
stirred
into
the
same
mixing
pot.
"There's
no
boundaries,"
says
frontman
Judah
Akers,
who
shares
the
band's
lineup
with
drummer Spencer
Cross,
mandolin
player
Brian
Macdonald,
and
banjo
wiz
Nate
Zuercher.
"We
wanted
to
make
something
raw,
something
with
attitude.
We
all
grew
up
loving
these
hip
-
hop
beats,
so
why
not
make
an
album
that
has
the
grit
of
Run
DMC
or
Beastie
Boys,
along
with
all
the
folk
instruments
that
we
play?"
Like
Kids
These
Days
—
the
band's
debut
record,
which
climbed
to
number
four
on
the
Billboard Folk
Chart
and
number
two
on
the
genre
-
wide
Heatseekers chart
after
its
release
in
September
2014
—
Folk
Hop
N
Roll
was
produced
by
award
winner
Dave
Cob
b
(Jason
Isbell,
Sturgill
Simpson,
Chris
Stapleton).
Cobb
captured
the
band's
new
songs
in
a
series
of
quick,
inspired
takes,
aiming
for
performances
that
sounded
real
and
raw
rather
than
polished
and
perfect.
Everything
was
done
in
just
two
weeks.
The
goal
was
to
fuel
the
album
with
the
same
electricity that
fills
the
band's
live
show.
An
independent
band
whose
success
has
arrived
not
on
the
back
of
some
big
-
budget
major
label,
but
through
the
band's
own
touring,
Judah
&
the
Lion
have
built
a
large,
loyal
fanbase
on
the
road.
They
played
150
shows
in
2015
alone,
stretching
their
gigs
all
across
America
and
Scandinavia.
Along
the
way,
they
shared
stages
with
artists
like
Mat
Kearney, Drew
Holcomb
,and
Ben
Rector
.
That
sort
to
drive
—
the
commitment
to
chas
ing
down
their
dreams,
one
encore at
a
time
—
also
fuels
the
lyrics
that
appear
on
Folk
Hop
N
Roll
,
a
record
whose
songs
spin
stories
of
struggle,
triumph,
and
all
points
in
between.
"This
record
was
made
for
the
live
show,"
Akers
promises.
"Our
shows
are
all
about
the
experience we
share
with
our
fans.
We
know
that
people
work
everyday
jobs
or
go
to
school,
and
they're
dealing
with
life,
and
yet
they're
still
choosing
to
spend
the
night
with
us.
We
don't
take
that
lightly.
We
give
them
an
experience.
We
throw
an
absolute
rage.
And
all
the
songs
were
made
with
that
in
mind.
They're
fun,
carefree,
and
youthful,
and
we
live
our
lives
that
way,
too."
Anthemic
and
wildly
creative,
Folk
Hop
N
Roll
is
unlike
anything
else
in
modern
music.
It's
a
rule
-
breaking
record,
with
Judah
&
the
Lion
creating
a
sound
that
belongs
entirely
to
them.
From
the
earthy
stomp
of
roots
music
to
the
bold
bounce
of
hip
-
hop,
Folk
Hop
N
Roll
casts
a
wide
net,
proof
that
Judah
&
the
Lion
—
who
are
now
four
releases
into
their
career
— have developed quite the roar.