I know that some artists maybe chase a darker path because they think that the angst is going to make it that way, but I’m learning to love myself, so I don’t want to be in that place. Do you have the challenge of not being able to tap into certain emotions anymore? But in that same token, you’ve said you’re a lot happier now. I think that’s sick.Ī lot of your songs deal with heartbreak, and you’ve previously said you write better when you’re in angst. That’s that quintessential line and he just made it something else where it sounds unique and it adds elegance and it adds visuals. “Put your pinky finger to the roof.” He’s saying put your hands up in the air. So many songs say “put your hands up.” Wicked songwriting is what Bruno Mars did. There’s nothing new under the sun that hasn’t already been talked about.’ The key to having something beautiful is being able to convey a normal human emotion but say it in a way that’s never been said. He’s like, ‘Jessie, the world’s been around for so long. That’s your bait.’ He also told me another piece of advice that I’ll never forget. He was like, ‘The first line matters a lot. He was one of my mentors in The Remix Project. You could have said “I’m crazy,” but instead said “My straitjacket’s custom made.” How do you push your pen beyond just saying what’s already been said?Ī lot of thought goes into it. You call yourself crazy and loco as almost an endearing thing. On Kiddo, you kind of redefine what it means to be crazy. I remember printing out receipts and if it was a slow night or something, I would just be there and I would be singing and I would be writing. I remember writing songs on the backs of receipts. That for me is people singing back the lyrics at a show is like seeing the tip of a tree uphill. If the journey’s been uphill when you finally start seeing just a little bit of the view, that feeling is sick.

I feel like that’s how you appreciate the view more. I had to go through those things to feel the struggle. It’s a matter of working smart, which I learned after the fact. If you don’t have that shit online that’s like having a commercial for a product that’s not ready. It’s sad though because sometimes that won’t make the most difference, you know? That doesn’t make a difference for the people in the club.

Like, I’ll send you a free shot bro, just throw my track on. Any bar that I was working, you can guarantee that I was in the DJ’s ear, before or after my shifts.

So would you say you were you using bartending to expand your network?

Jessie reyez kiddo buy digital albums