Vancouver Island singer-songwriter hits home run with MLB game soundtrack<\/p>\n
Published 5:30 am Friday, September 4, 2026<\/p>\n
The \u201cMetchosin one\u201d hit a gaming home run this spring that\u2019s providing dividends ahead of a fall tour. <\/p>\n
West Shore-based singer-songwriter Jesse Roper, whose home community gave him the affectionate moniker, landed a title on the PlayStation MLB The Show 26 soundtrack that launched in March. <\/p>\n
Does Anybody Know comes from what Roper deems his most popular album to date, Horizons album released in 2022. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe core soundtrack brings together a dynamic mix that mirrors the diversity of the baseball community,\u201d the company said in its launch release. \u201cMusic can swiftly propel a narrative forward or slow it down; it elevates the dialogue and helps create an emotional link between the screen, the controller, and the audience.<\/p>\n
The soundtrack features 47 songs, putting Roper alongside perhaps more widespread household names such as Bad Bunny, Benson Boone, Outkast and Teddy Swims. <\/p>\n
It helps fuel the beast, quite literally in some cases, as the cost of touring and performing rises. <\/p>\n
\u201cEverything goes up, it\u2019s a long way to breaking even, and I have never done that really. I\u2019m surviving on luck, and the MLB is part of that luck,\u201d Roper told the Goldstream Gazette, saying it outstripped previous placements in film and T.V. \u201cThankfully there are a lot of companies out there purchasing music and it\u2019s still preferential to use real artists.\u201d <\/p>\n
The announcement came as he was releasing new music, which also got a kick-start. Streaming numbers this time last year were averaging 250,000 a month and topped out around 300,000. It got up to 450,000 listeners a month when the PlayStation soundtrack launched. <\/p>\n
\u201cI get paid from that, not a whole heaping amount but \u2026 for them to double was like \u2018right on\u2019,\u201d Roper said. <\/p>\n
Life continues with more \u2013 writing, getting ready for tours, releases \u201cand more of me trying to find time to fit in other life.\u201d He hopes those streams turn into ticket sales as he starts his tour on Sept. 24 in Bellingham and moves across the country for the next several months. It finishes with what has become tradition \u2013 a show at the Brackendale Art Gallery in Squamish on Dec. 5. <\/p>\n
The tour is punctuated with 10 days in the studio in the middle. <\/p>\n
\u201cRinse and repeat, with sweet times in between,\u201d he said with a chuckle. <\/p>\n
Perhaps not the icing on the top, but a fun title nonetheless, Roper topped the polls in the Best of the City, where Victoria News readers vote on a variety of their favourite things to see, do, buy, and visit in Victoria. Roper was named best local band\/musician. <\/p>\n
Find the full list of winners in the Best of the City special publication at digital.vicnews.com<\/a>\/specialsections. <\/p>\n About the Author: Christine van Reeuwyk<\/a><\/p>\n