There's a new generation of folk protest singers on TikTok Artists are adapting the traditional genre for a digital age

toggle caption Hannah Gray Hall; Bao Ngo; Zayne Isom

The set-up for a typical Jesse Welles video is simple: the 32-year-old stands in an open field under a string of powerlines, clutching an acoustic guitar. From behind a tousled, curly mop of hair, he stares straight into the camera and starts singing.

"If you're in need of a gig that'll help you feel big, come with me and put some folks in detention," he deadpans in one song, a scathing critique of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. "We can sneak around town, hunting working folks down, I hear they get a great benefit plan."

"Join ICE" is just one of the dozens of songs Welles routinely shares on social media. They're often short and satirical tunes, riding on his coarse voice and fingerpicked guitar strings, that respond to the major headlines of the week. They challenge the narratives presented to Americans by governments and corporations; they draw historical parallels and unearth underlying tensions that lead people to blame one another for institutional injustices.

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On the Internet, Jesse Welles' songs are major hits. Thousands of people flock to the comments, calling him a modern day Bob Dylan or Woody Guthrie. Since he started regularly posting clips last year, Welles has amassed more than 3 million followers on TikTok and Instagram combined, not to mention his over 600,000 YouTube subscribers. The Recording Academy has also taken notice; last week, Welles received four Grammy nominations in the folk and Americana categories. He's become one of the most visible examples of a new generation of digital-savvy artists bringing folk traditions to a modern medium.

"We've never been this informed," Welles tells NPR about Americans today. "Pair being informed with being disempowered — being that aware and having so little hard influence on the aspects of your life that you're so awake to. I think that explains a lot of people's frustration."

Welles wasn't always a country-leaning singer-songwriter.