Jake La Botz
Born (1968-11-23) November 23, 1968
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter, actor
Years active1990s–present
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2006⁠–⁠2008)​
Websitejakelabotz.com

Jake La Botz (born November 23, 1968) is an American blues singer, songwriter, actor and meditation teacher from Chicago, Illinois, United States.

Early life

La Botz dropped out of high school in his early teens. He later briefly attended Shimer College, a small Great Books school then located in Waukegan, Illinois.[1]

Career

Music

La Botz learned to play the blues from the last of the prewar bluesmen living in Chicago in the late 1980s and early 1990s: David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Homesick James, and Maxwell Street Jimmy Davis.[2][3][4] He has been touring nationally and internationally for many years, and since 2006, has been known for his Tattoo Across America Tour, in which he performs at tattoo parlors across the country.[5][6][7] His original compositions are featured in many films and TV shows.[8]

Film

La Botz began his acting career after catching the attention of actor, director, and independent filmmaker Steve Buscemi, who cast La Botz as a blues-singing convict in his 2000 film Animal Factory. La Botz performed two original songs in the film, "This Ain't the Way I Came Up" and "Lay Down the Bottle."[9] In the next few years, La Botz appeared in Terry Zwigoff's arthouse film Ghost World[10] as well as in Buscemi's Lonesome Jim.[11] In 2008, La Botz starred in Sylvester Stallone's Rambo, in which he performed two songs from his album Graveyard Jones, "The Wishing Well" and "Tiny."[12] Other notable film appearances include Timur Bekmambetov's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Walter Salles's film adaptation of Jack Kerouac's On the Road, in which he performs his song "Hard to Love What You Kill."[13][14] La Botz's 2015 film credits include the lead role in The Grace of Jake, an independent film directed by Chris Hicky, and a starring role in Isaac Florentine's action movie Close Range.[15][16]

Television

In season two of the highly praised television show True Detective, La Botz portrays country singing legend Conway Twitty.[17]

Theater

In the spring of 2012, La Botz starred as the satanic character The Shape in the original stage musical Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, written by Stephen King and John Mellencamp with musical direction by T-Bone Burnett, which premiered at the Alliance Theater in Atlanta, Georgia.[18][19] Over the next couple of years, Ghost Brothers went on to do two national tours, with La Botz reprising his role as The Shape.[20]

Meditation

La Botz has been practicing and studying meditation since 2001 within the Tibetan Buddhist lineage of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and is a close student of Buddhist scholar, teacher, and Dharma Ocean spiritual director Reginald Ray.[21]

Discography

  • Original Soundtrack to My Nightmare (1999)
  • Used to Be (2002)
  • All Soul and No Money (2004)
  • Graveyard Jones (2006)
  • Sing This to Yourself (2008)
  • I'm a Crow (2009)
  • Get Right (2013)
  • Sunnyside (2017)
  • They're Coming For Me (October 18, 2019)
  • Hair on Fire (Sept 9, 2022)

[22]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
2000Animal FactoryJesse
2001Ghost WorldBlueshammer Member – Blues Club
200213 MoonsRight to lifer
2004The GreyHomer
2005Lonesome JimPhillip
2006One Night With YouEddie
2008RamboReese
2010Sinners and SaintsMelvin
2011Fully LoadedJake
2011Ordinary MadnessHimself
2012On the RoadOkie Hitchhiker
2012Abraham Lincoln: Vampire HunterBull Run Private
2014Bad CountryJacket
2015The Grace of JakeJake Haynes
2015Close RangeWalt Reynolds
2018RelentlessTattooed Man

References

  1. ↑ Kavner, Lucas (May 4, 2012). "Jake La Botz". The Days of Yore. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  2. ↑ Doerschuk, Robert L. (March–April 2005). "Jake La Botz: Sweet Home Chicago". No Depression. Archived from the original on February 8, 2013.
  3. ↑ Newman, Melinda (October 5, 2006). "Coming to a tattoo parlor near you". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  4. ↑ Leggett, Steve. Jake La Botz Biography at AllMusic. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  5. ↑ Iwasaki, Scott (October 27, 2006). "LaBotz finds fans at tattoo parlors". Deseret News.
  6. ↑ Bowen, Bliss (November 2, 2006). "Pasadena's Jake La Botz took his blues on the road --- to tattoo parlors across the country". Pasadena Weekly. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  7. ↑ Rose, Chris (August 6, 2009). "Jake La Botz brings his 'Tattoo Across America Tour' to Uptown". The Times-Picayune.
  8. ↑ Jake La Botz Soundtracks at IMDb
  9. ↑ "Animal Factory Soundtrack". IMDb. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  10. ↑ Ghost World at IMDb
  11. ↑ Lonesome Jim at IMDb
  12. ↑ Baker, Cary (July 8, 2008). "Jake La Botz to release 'most depressing album ever' as he prepares for third annual 'Tattoo Across America Tour,' performing music at tattoo parlors from coast-to-coast". Conqueroo press release.
  13. ↑ On the Road at IMDb
  14. ↑ Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter at IMDb
  15. ↑ The Grace of Jake at IMDb
  16. ↑ Close Range at IMDb
  17. ↑ Orr, Christopher; Kornhaber, Spencer; Gilbert, Sophie (July 5, 2015). "True Detective". The Atlantic. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
  18. ↑ Okamoto, Sandra (November 9, 2011). "Atlanta's Alliance Theater announces casting for 'Ghost Brothers of Darkland County'". Ledger-Enquirer.
  19. ↑ "Emily Skinner, Shuler Hensley, Justin Guarini and More to Haunt Stephen King and John Mellencamp's Ghost Brothers of Darkland County". Broadway.com. November 9, 2011.
  20. ↑ "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County Presented by Stephen King, John Mellencamp and T-Bone Burnett". AEG. September 30, 2014.
  21. ↑ "Meditation in the Tattoo Chair". Beacon Reader. February 17, 2015. Archived from the original on July 6, 2015. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  22. ↑ "Jake la Botz Announces New Album 'Hair on Fire'".
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