Exposed Vocals just caught an exclusive with J-Key – Interview and Music Review
Originally born in Mount Vernon, New York then raised in the Pacific Northwest of the United States in (Everett, Washington) – up and coming artist J-Key is what some would call a “rising star”. Between the ages of 14-16, J-Key began building a buzz and raising awareness for his music and brand by participating in local showcases, freestyle cyphers, and doing extreme hand to hand promotions that resulted in him generating a cult like fan base and immediate social media attention.
As things started to pick up, J-Key’s fascination for music seemed to fall short for his need to provide for his family and ultimately costing him a few months of his life. J-Key realized his only ticket out of his situation was through his music and in January of 2013 he made his official re-introduction with single “On You”, “Work” ft (Nipsey Hussle, Glasses Malone) off his debut mixtape entitled “Who’s Looking” hosted by (Dj Instyntcz). Was released the summer of his 21st birthday & party that was hosted by Natalie Nunn & Kirko Bangz.
Since the release of his mixtape, J-Key has been traveling throughout the Northwest, Southeast, Midwest, regions of the Unites States opening for acts in the likes of Kirko Bangz, T-Pain, Kid Ink, Mistah Fab, Nipsey Hussle, YG, and Teefli, while also co-headlining his own 27 city tour with Mark Battles. Generating a lot of notoriety through both his mixtape, single downloads, and touring resulted in him being featured in national publications and blogs such as (HipHopSince1987, TheSource.com, AllHipHop.com, JackThriller.com, MicrophoneBully.com, StarforceHipHop.com, etc) as well as being published in over a million copies of the Hip Hop Weekly magazines “Indie Grind Spotlight”
Currently, J-Key released his EP “Not A Kid Anymore” on May 29th on iTunes and TheOnlyJKey.com
“Music Review for J-Key ft Dice – Presents”
A lot of people say Washington might as well be Alaska because of how removed it is—both geographically and culturally—from the rest of America. Nestled into the northwest corner of the country, the state is buffered by miles of barren expanse, never-ending forests, multiple mountain ranges and an ocean. Not to mention the uniform blanket of grayness that shrouds the western portion of the state for the majority of the year.
Thankfully for all of us, there’s something about this isolation and solidarity that has produced some of the most important music of the past century, from Macklemore to Nirvana to The Lonely Forest.
Today, the Washington state music scene is livelier than ever. Still present is the furious energy that gave way to grunge in the late ‘80s, but country, folk and soul movements have swept over the region in recent years, and the Everett hip-hop scene is bigger than ever. Grunge may be dead, but music in the state of Washington certainly isn’t.
So let’s talk about J-Key and his hit single “Presents” ft Dice…
Jay-Key has a great capacity for rhythm and rhyme, delivered in a seamless, flowing way. Lyrically, he’s:
” ’bout to blow like New Years Eve and leave them mortified ”
Overall, this is an extremely well produced track that sounds very much of the current era. “Presents” is extremely suitable for the clubs and radio. I’d expect Jay Key to get some real buzz and serious airplay for this great track. This is a great choice for a single – it’s insanely catchy, very well produced and showcases Jay Key as a hip-hop artist with a strong personality and style. This is a powerful piece of modern hip-hop that packs a real punch, with an anthemic and instantly memorable chorus hook which makes it perfect to be released as a single. With a distinctive rapping style and overall sound, Jay Key is most definitely one to watch!
Check out “Presents” being played live on FM Broadcast (Kiss 104.7 FM) through the Exposed Vocals Broadcast Sponsorship Program.
Listen to “Presents” being played on Kiss 104.7 FM
By HBdidit – Exposed Vocals Music Reviewer and Breaking News Contributor.
A NYC fashion designer, music reviewer and lover of life!
Exclusive Interview:
Exposed Vocals: How did you hear about Exposed Vocals? What made you decide to sign up?
J-Key: My team actually informed me about you guys but after doing my research I’m a fan of the way you stay in contact with unsigned/independent artists. Because we need people in our corner.
Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?
J-Key: I grew up in Everett Washington. And the love of music persuaded me to chase after my dreams of becoming a hip hop artist because in order to be happy you have to do something you love for a living. I’m just blessed that I actually get to!
Exposed Vocals: How did you come up with that name? What was your inspiration behind it?
J-Key: The first initial of my actual name begins with a J. And the word “Key” represents being unstoppable. If anything has a lock on it, such as your dreams, but you have the key then you’re unstoppable. Key is also an acronym for “Keep Educating Yourself” because I believe highly in education.
Exposed Vocals: What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?
Artist: I love it. And I give away a lot of music for free. It gives the fans a chance to really know you and love you and then reward you with the things they actually pay for. The free songs are just samples, you know?
Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?
J-Key: GET A FANBASE. If someone won’t give you a show, you go out there and build a fan base and get your own! If the radio won’t play you, make Soundcloud.com, Spotify, and other streaming apps your radio station. The internet works better than the radio now days anyway.
Exposed Vocals: Do you ever make mistakes during performances? How do you handle that?
Artist: Of course. I just repeat the mistake in a few more bars and make it look like I did it on purpose. Haha. Or if I tripped or something I make it look like a dance move. But the moral of the story is NEVER stop the show. No one knew what you had planned anyway.
Exposed Vocals: Do you tour? Anything interesting happen on tour that you think our readers would enjoy hearing about?
J-Key: I have been on multiple tours. Forewarning. it’s not all parties, booze, and women. Tour is like being a truck driver, or some other type of on the road job. You must stay focused because you’ll be on the road again soon.
Exposed Vocals: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?
J-Key: If I hear something, I jot it down. I hum it and record it. I take heed to my craft wherever I am. Then I write all the rest of the song in my room in front of my stereo.
Exposed Vocals: Do you have a band website? What online platforms do you use to share your music?
J-Key: Theonlyjkey.com is my website. I use Soundcloud.com, iTunes, Spotify, Twitter, Facebook, etc. All the social media. But mainly my website.
Exposed Vocals: What are some really embarrassing songs that we might find on your mp3 player?
J-Key: None. I only listen to the coolest music. Sike. The stuff that I think is old and not relevant. It’s embarrassing playing a bunch of songs no one knows.
Exposed Vocals: If you were given half a million dollars and a year off, what would you do? How would you spend it?
J-Key: I don’t think that if someone gave me a half a million that I could take a year off. I’d be trying to turn it into 5M.
Exposed Vocals: Any planned studio upgrades? What are you working with now?
J-Key: Protools. I really don’t know what version. My engineer handles all of that.
Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?
J-Key: My team and I focus on grass roots promotions. Hand to hand, word of mouth, etc.
Exposed Vocals: If you could perform anywhere and with any artists (Dead or Alive) where and who would it be with? Why?
J-Key: I would probably perform somewhere in Europe like London or Berlin because I heard they get crazy over there. And I would perform with Michael Jackson. He’s the best performer ever.
Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?
J-Key: The Not A Kid Anymore EP is out right now on iTiunes. And I just dropped two music videos from the project called “Edges” & “Presents”.
Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?
J-Key: I would be getting my doctorate in Psychology. Or being an entrepreneur opening businesses.
Exposed Vocals: Do you remember buying your first album? Who was it? What was going through your head?
J-Key: I think the first album I ever purchased was “Be” by Common. I just knew it was going to be some really good soulful music.
Exposed Vocals: How do you juggle the rest of your responsibilities while trying to stay ahead in your music life?
J-Key: I do it paying great attention to detail. It’s hard for me to decipher which parts of life I need and how much time to dedicate to music because I want to give all my time to music but I have real life that goes on so I cant.
Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in 2015?
J-Key: I think fans should look forward to seeing more growth. More clothing designs for the merchandise and more music. Definitely seeing things taken it to the next platform.
