Ray Dylan

While his roots lie in country music, South African songwriter Ray Dylan’s artistic impulses have pushed him to explore glossy pop, rock and even driving dance rhythms throughout his career. Born Jacobus Frederik Jersich in the gold-mining town of Odendaalsrus in 1978, Dylan released his full-length debut, New Kid In Town, in 2002, embracing dreamy synths on tracks like the Restless Heart cover “When She Cries”. But he became a star in his home country on the strength of his 2006 release, Hokaai Stoppie Lorrie, which featured songs in both English and Afrikaans, including the pumping title track with a chorus that chugged along on a righteous rock ‘n’ roll riff. In the years since, Dylan has explored throbbing, epic love songs (2008’s “Jessica”), offered interpretations of classics like Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s “Islands In the Stream” (2009) and The Traveling Wilburys’ (subtly rechristened) “Handle Me With Care” (2014), and unleashed arena-sized country-pop with undeniable dance beats (2017’s “Uitbasuin”).