Arundel senior’s voice goes national

Nicholson’s rendition of national anthem makes a hit on social media

Jackson Dean Nicholson doesn’t use his last name publicly.

“Jack Nicholson” is taken. “Jackson Nicholson” is a mouthful, plus there’s another musician already using it, a heavymetal artist.

Anne Arundel County’s “Jackson Dean” is anything but that. He grew up on classic rock and country, living on a dead-end road with nothing but a gun range and a swamp behind him.

Yet over the past few days “Jackson Dean” became a national name.

It started Friday when Nicholson, a defensive end for Arundel High School’s football team, stood before a microphone and a crowd of fans before the team’s game against Chesapeake High. It was the second time he’d played before a football crowd.

“I’m not really nervous when I have to sing in front of people. First five times you do it, the butterflies just go away,” said Nicholson, a senior. “We knew we were Arundel senior Jackson Dean Nicholson’s performance of the national anthem Friday night has drawn nationwide attention. going to videotape it, and I think I was more anxious about that.”

He started strumming chords to the national anthem, and when he opened his mouth to sing the familiar words, his voice sounded to many as if it belonged somewhere bigger than Gambrills.

When he was done, his teammates flooded out from behind him. The stadium cheered.

The video was uploaded by Marci White McElhaney on Facebook and to the Jackson Dean YouTube page, and went viral. By late Monday the performance had 600,000 views on Facebook and more than 5,000 on YouTube.

It’s been played on country stations around the nation. People Nicholson has never met are sharing it on Facebook and Twitter.

“Social media’s been growing every day. Since the video’s been out, we got like 200 followers in the last 48 hours,” he said. “Facebook’s been going. I’m not really big on Twitter — I don’t know how to tweet.”

His version of the anthem fits into his brand of music. It’s smoky, folksy and slow. He didn’t want it to sound at all like the mainstream top 10 that cycles on country radio.

Performing the anthem before a football crowd “was something people don't normally get,” Nicholson said.

“It was very cool. I probably knew 90 percent of the people sitting in those stands, and they had no idea I was doing it till I brought my guitar out,” he said.

His coach, Jack Walsh, first learned about his defensive end’s passion around Nicholson’s sophomore year. A few of his teammates come out to shows to see him, though admittedly not all of them are keen on country music.

“We support it as much as we can, and he does a good job managing between football and that,” Walsh said. “How do you tell an 18-year-old not to chase his dreams?”

Nicholson says this fall will be his last season with football. He’s not aiming to play in college; he’s not even planning for college.

He has high hopes for a music career. He’s collaborated with music producer Frank Green and has worked on a record, splitting time in Baltimore and Nashville studios. He has performed on stages in both cities as well.

Nashville is a far cry from his hometown, where he admits that as a youngster he “spent more time in the woods than with actual people.” But for someone who was always drawn to music, it’s a dream worth pursuing.

For Walsh, the fact that one of his players found something outside football is encouraging.

“There’s life after football and a lot of our guys are starting to realize that as the season winds down,” Walsh said. “We’re all supportive of him taking the next step towards his future and his goals.”