Adorable 5-Year-Old Slays Cover Of Johnny Cash’s ‘Folsom Prison Blues’

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Johnny Cash tunes have arguably been covered more than those from any other country artist. From professional artists of all genres and country music hopefuls alike, Cash covers are incredibly popular thanks to their unique sound and edgy lyrics. But, one Cash cover we found is unlike anything we’ve ever heard before. 

The performance comes from Wesley Kotas, a student at Heartwood Guitar Instruction in Seattle, Washington. The video, recorded in 2009 at the Spring Coffee Shop Jam at the Columbia City Theater, shows then 5-year old Wesley perched on a small stool with a miniature sticker-laden guitar in hand. The song he plays is immediately identifiable as he picks out the opening rhythm for Johnny Cash’s ‘Folsom Prison Blues.’

When he starts singing the well-known lyrics, an audible sigh from the crowd is heard as the preschooler adorably can’t pronounce his r’s and l’s. The opening line alone is enough to make one want to hear more. 

According to a blog post made by Wesley’s mom, he started taking lessons when he was only 4. His instructor, Rob Hampton, shared his approach to teaching someone so young.

“Wesley was always really excited about music, but even so, a lot of his first year of lessons involved just learning how to take a guitar lesson–how to focus on something for an hour! That’s a pretty new concept for a kid that age,” Hampton wrote

We think you’ll agree that the result was worth it as Wesley’s confident and entertaining performance at age 5 was quite impressive. Check out the video below! 

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