The senior woodframe houses of Wesleyan University are renowned for their manifold capabilities. Arranged and rearranged to accommodate potlucks, cocktail forums, dance rehearsals, meetings, movie nights, movie shoots, performances, thesis workshops, fitness classes, and, on rare occasions, parties, they morph, with few constraints, alongside the visions of the students that inhabit them.

For Judeley Jean-Charles ’24, Ethan Park ’24, and Pelumi Sokunbi ’25, the inspiration to harness the modularity of one such home on Pine Street came on an unremarkable Monday evening.

While roommates engaged in mundane weeknight routines, Jean-Charles, Park, and Sokunbi transformed the second floor into an active recording studio. A three-piece sofa had been taken apart, rotated on its side, and fashioned into a semi-soundproof cubicle. In under an hour, the structure’s walls, which housed a laptop, microphone, acoustic guitar, and recently composed lyrics, witnessed the pinnacle of groove. By the time those downstairs had washed their final dinner plate, a new song was born.

Albeit spontaneous, the Monday night project was by no means the first time Jean-Charles had used his production talents. As the founder of TrueLife Records, his dedicated collaboration with student artists has given Jean-Charles an impressive music resume, with nearly 30 songs recorded over the fall 2023 semester alone.

“Music has always been a part of me but I didn’t fully embrace its creative side until working with Ellis,” Jean-Charles said. “He did a song for Black Raspberry, and I realized he had amazing songwriting skills. The energy from our first trip to the studio sparked something new. I became really inspired by the musicians around me and was motivated to start a record label to recognize the talent on campus.”

TrueLife, whose name is partially derived from Jean-Charles’ artist name, Truey Judes, is a record label that seeks to promote artists’ talent, bring out their strengths, and nourish their unique musical identities. Jean-Charles seeks to cultivate a safe, familial space, as noted by Ellis Carter ’25, one of the artists who works with the label.

“[Jean-Charles’] kindness, his care, and commitment to love for the world and the music that keeps us afloat truly guided me [out of] a space where so many find themselves lost,” Carter said. “Music has been a part of [me] my whole life but being able to express it the way it deserves to be expressed does not always come so easy. Judeley reminded [me] of a lot the words I didn’t think I had to express how I felt, what I saw, and all that I couldn’t say, and that is not only powerful but necessary…. To a great extent, Judeley and the experience of living his dream gave me the confidence to call myself an artist, a musician, and be proud of it.”

Carter’s experience with TrueLife has been anything but an outlier. For Kailer Brothers ’25, who was lovingly described as a future pop star by Jazmin Davis ’24, the decision to work with the team has transformed the prospect of being an independent artist from a personal dream into a reality (or true life, if you will).

“I have always had a love for music…but I never actually thought I could do it,” Brothers said. “Working with TrueLife has really given me the ability to step out of my comfort zone and do something that I have always wanted to do–to not just be a part of a group but to create something that’s my own and share my personal voice. I felt so grateful because Judeley saw in me something that I couldn’t see in myself.”

Recounting her initial experiences with TrueLife, Brothers revealed that the genuine interest and support from the team helped her combat anxieties and insecurities.

“When Judeley first asked me about getting in the studio and what type of music I wanted to make, I sent him a bunch of demos that I had sitting in my voice memos for literally years,” Brothers said. “I was really nervous, because I didn’t know how he would react, but I was met with such an enthusiastic response that I knew it was something I had to at least try. He was literally like, ‘Kailer, what!? If I knew you had all these demos I would’ve reached out to you a long time ago! I’m gonna do whatever I can to help bring your sound to life.’ In that moment I felt so proud, because all the little songs I had sung to myself over the years were met with so much love, and I knew that in order to make them real I had to continue doing things that scared me.”

Despite TrueLife’s strong focus on fostering distinct artistic identities, the genuine, intrapersonal atmosphere of the space has made it a support system and platform for students aspiring to be involved on the backend of the music industry. Whenever she’s not in back-to-back rehearsals in the Usdan practice rooms, Davis works closely with Jean-Charles on developing the label’s Artists and Repertoire (A&R). She connects Jean-Charles with potential artists, collaborators, and resources; organizes performances and music releases; and helps artists in the studio with musical decisions and brainstorming.

“The vision for the label was inspiring, but I was initially unsure of my role in all of it apart from playing guitar,” Davis said. “But through messing around at Red Feather [Studios], I realized that if we put our minds together, we could really do something substantial. After Ellis’ performance and Kailer’s official introduction to campus as an artist, I realized I was actually really passionate about this…. This experience allowed me to combine my passions for music and people—understanding how to connect with them, make them feel comfortable expressing themselves in a vulnerable and creative setting, and help their artistic vision come to life. I got to flex my music muscles in more ways than just the guitar, and was able to commit to keep creating music in every way I can before I graduate.”

Beyond the walls of the studio—or sometimes woodframe—TrueLife has enabled affiliates across campus to participate in live performances, starting with an extraordinarily elaborate Tiny Desk for Carter that took place in November 2023. With coordinated wardrobes, spoken-word interludes, instrument changes, audience participation, and even choral accompaniment, the showcase highlighted the immense care and attention to detail that has gone into each of the label’s undertakings.

“Live performances can have a huge impact on the connection between the community and the artist,” Jean-Charles said. “It is more than just music.”

Shows, for TrueLife, serve as opportunities to organically extend the branches of its family tree in inventive directions. Brothers emphasized the strong community of the label and the opportunities to collaborate with unfamiliar musicians, as well as friends.

“I remember walking into one of the Usdan basement practice rooms and all of the musicians were already there, rehearsing for the set for Battle of the Bands,” Brothers said. “I played “Obsidian” [an original song] for the musicians, and they just went to work figuring out each individual part. After about literally 10 minutes, maybe less, the whole arrangement was figured out and it sounded so amazing. I was actually shocked at how quickly everyone picked it up, especially because the drummer and bassist were people I had literally just met during that rehearsal and I don’t even know if they had heard the song before. Everyone was so willing to explore, and it was so cool to hear the song come to life right before my eyes.

Following its recent set at the Battle of the Bands, TrueLife has been taking major strides in production. Carter’s album, “Among Ruin and Stars,” has recently become available on all music streaming platforms, while Brothers’s is scheduled to release on the April 5.  This coming Sunday, March 31, Jean-Charles will also be giving an interview to WESUFM about how TrueLife works behind the scenes.

While the upcoming show might be one of the last TrueLife performances for graduating seniors, the team has put in commendable effort to ensure that the label remains an accessible way for students to achieve their musical dreams.

“Not many people in our age group have the confidence to be innovative, and everyone should get a chance to explore themselves and each other,” Jean-Charles said. “Many of the current label artists are juniors, and they should get to continue [having] a space to become big figures, a testament to dreaming and achievement. I would love to keep being engaged in the campus community, and hope to continue to scout artists with open arms to Wes.”

Varia Voloshin can be reached at vvoloshin@wesleyan.edu.