R&B Rhythms chilled with J-City for an exclusive interview. We discuss his start in music, musical influences and much more so check it out.
I2G is here with J-City how’s it going?
It’s going AMAZINGLY. Thank you so much for taking the time out to spotlight my work, I really appreciate it.
Tell me a little bit about how you got your start in music and who are some of your musical influences out there coming up.
I started out over a decade ago as part of a group called Cn3 with my brothers Trig and Luv Jones. Since then I’ve had a couple of situations in the industry (the most recent being the one I had with All-Pro records). I’ve had the opportunity to work with and alongside some of the greatest artists of our generation and I’m extremely grateful for every opportunity that has come my way. It’s definitely had it’s ups and downs, but every moment of it has been part of the experience of watching my life’s greatest dream coming true. Though I must admit, with all that I’ve been through up until now, I’m especially excited about what’s going on right at this moment and all the things we have in the works for the next few months and beyond.
I’m an 80’s baby, so I got to grow up listening to a lot of the great crooners and groups like Teddy Pendergrass, Marvin Gaye, Luther Vandross, Shai, Silk and so on. But my greatest musical influences would have to be Michael Jackson, Jodeci, Donnell Jones, R. Kelly and Joe.
We premiered your new single entitled Drunk Off Her on the site this month. Tell me a little bit about the single.
It was one of the most fun records I’ve ever recorded. The idea behind it is pretty straightforward and self-explanatory, but we came up with it on the fly. We pretty much freestyled about half the song. It was just one of those nights….
Tell me a little bit about your upcoming projects that you are working on.
We just finished my debut mixtape entitled “Last Call” (which feels much more like an album to me than a mixtape), and we’re already working on the next one. I’ve got some pretty big features in the works also, but I’ll keep the details on those under wraps for now. Let’s just say we’ve got some surprises in store.
Any upcoming videos?
We actually just released a video for another song on the mixtape entitled “Guilty” (which you can find on my youtube channel “JCITY tv”). We’ve got the video for Drunk Off Her coming next and then one or two more off this mixtape before we move on to visuals for the next one.
What are your thoughts on hip hop in 2014?
I’ve always loved hip hop as both an art-form and a culture. I feel like it has been steadily taking a turn for the better again and hope that it stays consistently on that path. There are a lot of songs and new artists out that are showing that you can still have fun without being stupid and that success doesn’t always have to be built on a foundation of negativity and degradation. The music feels like it has meaning again. I hope the trend continues and hip hop fully reclaims the status it deserves as the voice of a generation.
What’s some singles or albums that you are currently playing that you are feeling at the moment?
My favorite song at the moment is the “I luv it” remix by August Alsina Featuring Trey Songz and Chris Brown. But I like a lot of what the R&B scene is coming with nowadays. I keep artists like August Alsina, Neyo, Bruno Mars, K. Michelle and Tamar Braxton in STEADY rotation.
Do you have any upcoming shows or tour dates?
Not yet, I’m focusing on finishing the 2nd mixtape and making it even better than the first one, then I’ll start hitting the stage. I want to have the sound perfected and give people a chance to get to know me as both an artist and a person.
What is your website information?
Facebook.com/AllProJCity
Twitter.com/AllProJCity
Instagram @Jashawnsworld
Appreciate your time, any last words?
Definitely just want to thank you again for this opportunity and for supporting the music.