Music fans, and specifically pop fans, may know the rapper who goes by “Clever” from his feature with Post Malone on Justin Bieber’s 2020 hit “Forever.” But to country music listeners, Clever — born Joshua Huie — is mostly a complete unknown. The Alabama-born artist is on a path to changing that.
Over the last year, Clever has released a string of country songs, including “Buy One Get One,” “Undressed,” and, most recently, “Still,” that showcase his singing voice, tap into a country sound, and further the theme of overcoming life’s struggles that Jelly Roll has turned into a hot topic. Clever says he’s drawn more to the dark themes of country than its easygoing party anthems.
“There’s always been heartbreak songs in country, and people try to push me in the direction of wanting to do happier stuff. But I think Jelly Roll is in the same boat, just what we’ve been through in our lives, that’s the people that we relate to,” Clever says on Rolling Stone’s Nashville Now podcast. “I wish I was ‘way down yonder on the Chattahoochee,’ but I’m a little more Keith Whitley…than Alan Jackson.”
It’s worth noting that before his own country stardom, Jelly Roll also got his start as a rapper.
“Jelly Roll kind of started a wave,” Clever says. “You see Beyoncé coming through doing her thing. I think it’s great for the genre. But…I’m trying to do my thing to stand out.”
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Still, he doesn’t object to his name being mentioned alongside Jelly’s. “I don’t mind Jelly Roll comparisons,” he quips. “I think Jelly Roll’s great.”
Download and subscribe to Rolling Stone’s weekly country-music podcast, Nashville Now, hosted by senior music editor Joseph Hudak, on Apple Podcasts or Spotify (or wherever you get your podcasts). New episodes drop every Wednesday and feature interviews with artists and personalities like Charley Crockett, Gavin Adcock, Margo Price, Dusty Slay, Lukas Nelson, and Ashley Monroe.
