Summer House Star Jesse Solomon Talks Reunion Leaks and a Timely Tour

It’s been an insane past few months for fans of Bravo’s Summer House and, in turn, castmate Jesse Solomon. The reality show follows a tight-knit group of friends who party in a Hamptons share house; when a scandal breaks, it affects them all.

First, in January, longtime couple Amanda Batula and Kyle Cooke announced they were separated. That one wasn’t a surprise: Cooke and Batula have been at the center of the show since it started in 2017, when they were in an on-and-off relationship. Their consistent late-night — and daytime — arguments were a constant driving factor of the drama, even in the season leading up to their 2021 wedding. Then, as Batula begged Cooke to give up his partying ways, he became a DJ — aka, one of the few careers that almost requires you to party. The tenth season, which is airing now, covers the stress that decision — as well as financial issues with his business, Loverboy — put on their relationship.

No, the real surprise came just a few weeks ago, on March 31, when Batula and castmate West Wilson confirmed rampant rumors that they were hooking up, which they had previously denied. For those living under a rock, Batula was best friends with castmate Ciara Miller, a nurse and model who previously dated Wilson and expressed lingering feelings for him throughout the current season, while also sharing meaningful remarks about what it means to be a Black woman on reality TV in an interracial relationship. On top of that, Cooke also believed Wilson was a friend of his, making for a multi-layered betrayal that Bravo hasn’t seen since Vanderpump Rules‘ infamous Scandoval. All of a sudden, Cooke’s verbal lashings of Batula were no longer an issue for some fans, who began rewatching the season through a new lens.

The reveal sparked instant headlines as well as conspiracy theories across Reddit, where someone on production leaked audio from the cast’s recent reunion taping (Bravo confirmed this person has since been fired; one theory is that Bravo superfan Jennifer Lawrence helped find them). And the leaks keep dropping, with two more posted up as recently as April 27.

Sometimes when you’re surrounded by chaos, it’s necessary to bow out. And for Solomon, who joined the show in its eighth season alongside Wilson, with whom he quickly bonded, his tour came right on time.

Solomon has been releasing new music ahead of his debut album, including an upcoming single about falling in love with your best friend, which he recently teased on the show. Now, it may take on a whole new meaning. But as a two-time testicular cancer survivor, Solomon has been through worse, and he knows how to navigate the tension.

He spoke with Westword about what to expect from the tour, which stops at Globe Hall on Saturday, May 16, as well as his new music and his unexpected career as a reality-TV star.

Westword: Your tour started recently. How’s it going so far?

Jesse Solomon: It’s good. I couldn’t really ask for, like, a better show. The crowd was into it, and, you know, I was trying to be — I had a cold the first night of the show. I wasn’t where I wanted to be, but we still put on a good show and had a lot of fun, and it can only get better from here.

Tell us a bit about your background — where you grew up, how you got into music.

I’m from the suburbs of Chicago. I went to University of Miami for vocal jazz performance, and I studied music business and singing at Miami. I moved to New York after college to work in the music biz at WME, and did that for a few years, kind of ended up getting further and further away from music, and was working in finance when I got into Summer House, which just kind of reminded me about the entertainment world and that singing is what I wanted to be doing this whole time. And so I started releasing music and it feels great. People seem to connect with some of my songs, which has been a pretty incredible feeling. I mean, I’ve been single since my bar mitzvah, so I’m glad to be singing again. I was always singing in the shower…

Who were your musical inspirations growing up and now?

Growing up, I listened to a lot ’70s Motown — Temptations, Stevie Wonder. Then in college, it turned into more Sinatra and crooners, Tony Bennett. And I’ve always listened to a lot of male vocalists that I’ve tried to emulate. I mean, John Mayer is, like, my favorite dude of all time. I listen to a lot of Red Hot Chili Peppers. John Bellion is an inspiration, Charlie Puth is a guy that I love and respect. I listen to a lot of Bublé. I’m just trying to find my sound in between, like, modern pop music and an old-school jazz crooner vibe.

You’re also a two-time cancer survivor. How has that informed your music and approach to life?

I just wrote my first song about what it feels like being on the other side of having cancer. And you know, I’ve hinted at it in lines of other songs, but just generally with my approach to music. I have a more carefree attitude about life in general, because, you know, you go through something like that, you just realize that things can change any day, and it’s silly to waste time doing anything but the things that you love. If anything, it’s kind of pushed me back towards the direction of enjoying what I’m doing with my life. I’m just really grateful that I had a good network of family and friends to support me and good doctors, and I caught my cancer early. I just try to inspire others who are going through something similar that, hopefully, this is just a short period of time that’s going to suck and you’re going to be better for it on the other side.

Your song “What Would Jesse Solomon Do” was a big hit with your castmates. What advice would you give to those who are going through scary medical situations?

I would say, try to just be patient. I know it can be frustrating that people you’re friends with are still living their normal lives and going about their day, and it’s just unfair. But I can say that having cancer was one of the best things that’s ever happened to me; it gives you a great perspective on life, and if you can just get through this shitty period, you will be a better person for it.

In that vein, Summer House has been making a lot of headlines lately. What advice would you give your castmates at this particular time?

I guess it depends on which castmate. It’s just sad to see. We’re all so close — or at least, we were — so I’ll be curious to see how things unfold from here. It’s honestly similar advice: If you’re going through a hard time, there’s no reason that — if you’re just patient and change your behavior, do the right things — you can’t learn and grow from this experience. And sometimes you need something like this to happen in your life to wake up and realize what’s actually important. What are your values? I’m hoping that everyone can grow and learn from this situation, and after the reunion we could turn a new page.

There have also been leaks from the reunion. How are you feeling about that?

How am I feeling about the leak? I’m just surprised it happened. I mean, when I joined the show, it was a successful show; seven seasons had happened. Now, it just feels like everything we can do or say can spiral really quickly. And I’m just surprised that with this situation in particular, it just seems to be never-ending. Like, I just can’t believe that more shit keeps happening, a leak of the audio of the reunion — I just never would have expected that. So, yeah, I guess I’m grateful to the fans that they care so much about us and the show and that they’re invested. But obviously, you hate to see the hard work of not just the cast, but mainly the crew and the production team that put countless hours over months and months into making this show. And for their work to just get completely undermined by somebody who thought it was funny to take audio of the leak and release it to the public is really disappointing.

What made you decide to go on a reality show in the first place? Had you watched Bravo shows before?

I hadn’t really watched any Bravo. I just got reached out to.I had met Kyle, and then the production team reached out to me, and I don’t know, I’m just kind of like a yes man, and it seemed like a good opportunity. And like, if there was any reality show that I could kind of like be good at, it seemed like partying in the Hamptons in a share house would be a good setup. I mean, I was already going to the Hamptons every summer. I was like, “You guys are gonna pay me to do this? Sounds like a good opportunity.” So I quickly watched season seven. I watched most of it, just to get a sense of what the show was, and then I showed up, and the rest is history.

And it’s a great launchpad for doing what you went to school for, as well.

That wasn’t my exact plan. I kind of thought, worst-case scenario, nothing comes from this. Hopefully, people will connect with my cancer story, and that will help people go and get checked and all that. But no part of me was like, “This would be a nice way to, like, start a singing career.” It just kind of happened.

So tell us a bit about your tour — it must be a nice distraction right now. What is the show structure like?

It is fifteen songs — ten originals and five covers. I play some of my early music. I play some more modern pop stuff, and I play some jazzier stuff. So there’s a wide range. It starts fun and light, and then I sit down at the piano and bring the energy down a little bit, and then we build back up and have a big party towards the end. And it’s a lot of fun. So, yeah, I think it’s like a nice arc. And I’m trying to just really tell a story with each song, and try not to think so much about, musically, every little piece of it and more just giving people that feeling of enjoyment, connecting emotionally with the music and just having a good time.

Could you tell us a bit about your songwriting and recording process for the upcoming debut album?

Typically, I’ll go into the studio with an idea of what I want to write about, and I’ll just hang with the producer and songwriter, and we’ll decide on an idea that excites everyone. And then we will just make stuff that sounds good and it’s really fun. I just write down song ideas, and I have a ton of voice memos in my phone. So sometimes I’ll bring something into the studio. … The beauty of music is that it’s a collaborative process. I’ve got one more single I just released, a song called “Overrated,” about, you know, kind of falling for your best friend. And that is like a ballad, and shows a different side of my musicality. And then the next song that I’m releasing is a big pop anthem, and I really believe in that song. It’s called “Wildfire,” and I’m excited to release that one. And then in the fall, my plan is to go to L.A. and flesh out a full album. I’ve got a lot of songs already written, and some are recorded, but I just kind of like writing, producing, and recording more. So yeah, I’m really excited.

And is this song about falling in love with your best friend about anyone on the show?

I think everybody can kind of relate to having feelings for someone that you’re not supposed to, and it’s what you do with it that really is the deciding factor. I wrote this song a long time ago and always planned to release it when I released it, so it had nothing to do with the current drama.

Have your castmates been supportive of your tour? Have they given any advice for it?

Yeah, they’ve all been supportive…some of them are like, have some fun out there. And some of them are like, don’t have too much fun. But yeah, I just feel blessed that I’m in a position to be able to do this with my life, and I’m grateful for all my friends’ support.

What do you wish more people knew about you outside of what they see on TV?

A couple of things come to mind. One is, I’m a human being, and not just a character on the show. The show’s 42-and-a-half minutes. So there’s hours and hours of footage that gets boiled down into these episodes. I think it’s important for people to realize that there’s a lot more to me and everybody on the cast than just what you see on the show. You know, the show is like a group of friends in a share house in the Hamptons. So you get a lot of partying and whatever. But we all do a lot more than just party, and everybody works really hard. And I think it’s hard for people to conceptualize that just because we don’t have typical nine-to-five jobs, that we do anything with our lives. I mean, people in the cast work harder than some of my friends from when I used to work in finance; it just looks like a different type of work. And honestly, it’s much more enjoyable, because the things that we get paid to do, I feel really lucky to be able to do them.

But I think just generally, we all have real feelings, and we’re not just characters on a show. And I would say the main thing, though, is that I do take music really seriously. This isn’t just a reality TV guy trying to make it as a DJ for fun. I care about the music and I care about the craft, and I’m not skipping any steps. I’m taking it seriously. I don’t think that really got explained on the show this season.

If you could choose a song that encapsulates your experience on reality TV, what would it be?

That’s such a good, deep question. And I don’t want to, like, just give a flippant answer. [Long pause.] I don’t know, it could be a love song. [Long pause.]

[Begins singing “Is This Love” by Bob Marley.]