What is your background? tell us where you grew up and some information about your upbringing/experiences as a youth:
I’ve lived in many places but I call the DMV home. I was born in DC and raised in a neighborhood known as Indian Queen in Fort Washington, MD, A suburb on the outskirts of the city in P.G. County MD where I went To Oxon Hill High School. My pops is from DC and my mom is from VA. So I got family and friends all over the DMV. I lived in SW DC for a few years. I was in the army and lived in Korea and I lived in Augusta GA for a few years. I’m from a lil bit of everywhere. Im the oldest of three, I got a younger brother and sister so being big bro I had to represent and lead the way. I developed a love for sports and music from the influence of my parents. My pops was a really good ball player and he taught me the game but by the time I got in high school I was really starting to stray more into the neighborhood life. When I was 15 one of my best friends moved here from the Bronx, NY. He introduced me to recording music and taking it more serious. We got with a few more of our brothers and formed a crew called Project Kamp. We was wild when I was young. A lot of my friends was in the streets. We used to skip school all the time. All we did was smoke and drink almost everyday. We wz hustling and pullin all types of moves. My youth was crazy. I saw a lot of my peers getting locked up and getting killed. Despite all of the above I still managed to graduate. My pops did over 20 yrs in the army so with not a lot of positives around me and me constantly getting in trouble he pushed me to get away and go to the army. That was a great experience for me overall but I wasn’t a fan of the authoritive structure, plus I was homesick. I end up getting in trouble in Augusta, GA and they locked me up for about 6 months. When I got out I end up stayin in Augusta, GA. I pretty much ran the streets hustling every and anything. I had great run but it was jah hot out there so i moved back home at the end of ’07. It was the best thing for me. Since then I have been on a path to success. I got a job as mechanic. A few years ago I had a daughter and it changed my life. I refocused got back in the stu and started putting out music . Through the years I have lost alot of friends to the streets, my best friend I mentioned earlier was recently killed in October. It’s been hard to deal with but its given me a different perspective on life and I’ve been tryna use it as motivation to go harder. I been thru a lot ,seen a lot, been broke had money lost it all and got it back. I stand on my own and take care of mines and I aint neva had no handouts. I gotta big heart if u keep it 100 wit me u gotta rider for life!
At what moment did you know that music was part of your life and what feelings did you have towards making an active impact with your music?
I don’t really know the exact moment. All I know is I believe in destiny and I know right now I’m living out my destiny. I feel like its always been in me. I’m a lover of all music but I fell in love wit Hip-Hop at an early age. The first time I spit a rhyme I was probably like 8 or 9 years old, but I was more into sports then. I started taking rap more serious when my best friend moved to my neighborhood from the Bronx. One day he let me record a song with him and I been hooked ever since.
What artists inspired/influences you and if you could collaborate with any artist (alive or passed) who would it be and why?
The artists that inspired me most would be 2pac,NAS,Biggie, the LOX, DMX, 50 cent,Lil Wayne. Im a big fan of Fabolous and I love down south rappers like Scarface, Lil Boosie ,and Young Jeezy and T.I. its so many great artist that I cant name them all and honestly if I could make music with any of those artists it would be an honor, but If I had to pick one artist to collab with of all time it would probably be JadaKiss. For starters hes a legend and I aint never heard him spit a wack verse. He would challenge me to make me come wit my best. He is super versatile so I think we would compliment each other well and if I can spit next 2 KISS than that speaks for itself.
What do you think about the current state of hip hop/mainstream music?
Honestly shit is getting watered down a lil bit. It’s a lot of copycat shit going on. A lot of gimmicks and the music to me is lackin in substance. When I grew up you turn the radio on and you might hear Dear mama, Never seen a man cry, song cry, Hard Knock life, the list goes on. Nowadays its rare to hear songs of that caliber on mainstream. It’s a few good soldiers still out there though that are making great music. They don’t get enough credit.
Currently, what projects do you have in the works that you are most excited about?
This summer I will be dropping a new Mixtape Titled “DA HEAT IS ON” the Official Mixtape. I also just finished shooting a new Music video for my single “On The Rise” that will be releasing soon.
What are your short term career goals within the next 6-10 months?
Short term wise I’m just focused on the release of my upcoming project and doing everything I can do to make sure its successful. I’m going to do some traveling around the country and promote my mixtape and my brand.
What are your long term career goals within the next 2-5 years?
I want the world chico… and everything in it. Seriously though. look out for a possible web series, a clothing line, and new artist from my label.
If you had one song out of the catalogue you have created to show a person what song would it be and why?
I consider myself to be a very versatile artist so normally I would say it depends on the person, but if I had to pick it would be my single “Rotation” because I love the lyrics to the song. It’s a true reflection of me, my thoughts my experiences all wrapped in to one.
To the person who had never heard of you what is it about your music and story that you would tell them to entice them to be a supporter?
I’m part of that movement that wants to bring lyrics back to the forefront of rap. If wanna hear authentic rap music that sounds current but still has bars then you will love my music. I have a lot of fun songs that you can turn up to but I also would like to use my platform to speak for my people and bring awareness to Social injustices we face on a daily, So I have songs like my OOOuuu remix “1831” which is one the hardest tracks you will ever hear! I’m a very versatile artists and no matter who you are or where you are from I guarantee that if you listen to my music you will like at least one of my songs if not all.
If your music could be described in five words what would those five words be?
Authentic High Quality Street Music
What do you bring to the game that is unique and different?
I think coming from the DMV area and having that New York influence from my homie Troublefield and going thru the trials and tribulations that I overcame give me a unique perspective. I think I’m one of the most versatile Rap artists you will ever hear. I grew up listening to oldies and goodies and classic 90’s R&B along with Golden Era hip-hop and Go-Go. so I think I do a great job at merging all those different musical influences with my own style. It’s been my recipe for success and so far its working out.
To the aspiring artist who is considering a career as a musician what lessons or advice would you give them to inspire them or to uplift them in the journey?
Be confident and follow your own mind. People always gon try to tell you what you should do. Aint no book on success. If u ask 10 people how they became successful you will probably get 10 different answers, so do you!!!
What are your social media profiles and where can people purchase/download your music?
You can find me at JAYHEAT248 on twitter/IG/SoundCloud. You can find my music on youtube by just typing in JAYHEAT. I have a mixtape on Datpiff.com. titled “DA HEAT IS ON” the Pre-Mixtape. I also have a new single “On My Way” Ft. Sweet Neesh that you can purchase on itunes and stream on tidal, spotify, google play and many other places.
What are your final words you would like to say to people that you have left out?
For those of yall sleepin on me, Im bout 2 wake that ass up!!! For those of yall who have been supportin me from day one I luv Yall!!! S/O 2 Moe Rock and NOWHIPHOP.COM for this opportunity! S/O 2 Sweet Neesh, and the whole SOUL GANG. RIP Antoine Troublefield and all the other fallen soldiers!!! S/O 2 Ft.Wash/Oxon Hill, and the whole DMV. Its JAYHEAT HustleEveryandAnyThing Stay tuned I got some HEAT dropping soon! DA HEAT IS ON!!!!