Elu Jay (Jan 2019)
If fear was within Elu Jay’s vocabulary, you would never know it. Both his music, and way of life, are filled with an undying sense of freedom, of hope and of happiness. Over the last years he has transformed himself into a mediative and reflecting individual who understands emotion, pouring it all into his art unflinchingly.
As he gears for a new release soon, he has come to peace with both his inner soul and his past mistakes, knowing full well the strides needed to exceed the bar he’s set for himself. With more life experience to draw from, his lyrics have become more honest than ever; with more listening, he’s learned what is others want to hear.
But most of all, by fighting the anxieties ever present within most artists, he’s built a self assurance in all he creates. There’s a confidence rarely seen and one that instills itself into every listener. Elu Jay does not know fear, and he is ready to erase it from the world’s collective mind.
Our first question as always, how’s your day going and how have you been lately?
I’ve had a great day just mixing my new album, Adojio.
That’s a great spot to begin, looking back to Jentrify, how have the last couple years looked for you as you gear up for the new release? What changes and developments have happened within your life?
Well, I took a break from University, took vocal lessons and picked up playing guitar. I also started songwriting more with producers from scratch and became more spiritually inclined with my internal self, which includes reading more, exfoliating, eating better and meditating. I basically changed my entire routine and started to become more centered. I’m a fake Buddhist.
Have you found the topics you write lyrics about to have become more centred in the same way? Has that complimented the shifting sonics?
Yeah, I’ve been writing a mixture of love songs intertwined with existential theories and those two topics mutually exclusive on their own. It develops a moral compass for me. It’s a spiritual thing for me when I write these songs. I’d say the meditating results in a clearer mind which has contributed to the betterment of my production sonically. I work well by myself but I love collaborative relationships. I’m very huge on producing material with others or by myself, whether it’s music or visual content. I have to see it all the way through.
Absolutely, that focus on both aspects is a basis to the vision you’re executing. As you find yourself within this time of spirituality and clarity, as well as shifting sounds, what influences do you find yourself currently inspired and interested by?
I’m very inspired by indie music, neo soul, jazz and hip hop as a whole. Specifically, I love Aaliyah, Timbaland, Connan Moccasin, D Angelo, Blood Orange and Toro Y Moi.
To touch back on your mentioning of collaboration, one of the unique aspects to your environment is your continued work with your girlfriend Eileen. it’s an incredibly special connection that comes through in the music. How did that work together come about and how does the space lend itself to the creation? and, who else do you hope to create with in the future?
Well, we just were in a relationship and she makes great music so I wanted to continue to push her sound boundaries. It didn’t take much thought processing. Anyone I’m around who I have love for I’m going to make sure they eat . I love being able to help people achieve their dreams. I wanna collab with Tyler the creator, Bjork, Kaytranada, the Neptune’s and Raphael Saadiq, hopefully.
Is helping to achieve other’s dreams also something aspire to with your listeners? Is that your goal with the music? Or is there a larger hope for what it can accomplish?
Yes, I hope that my listeners can be inspired to be whatever they put their mind to. I believe the root of happiness derives from inspiration. The biggest goal for me is to make music that I can enjoy years from now and look back and be like that was good ‘chune let me replay that. However, I don’t care about being super poppin and all that I want is to make good music. You can take away fame, money and fortune and any other source of material wealth, but you can’t take away someone’s inspiration to make art.
That’s a really unique outlook upon creation as a whole. Why is it that you find fame and money to be irrelevant to your pursuit of artistic truth?
Well how much validity does fame and fortune have on art ? None. Mutually exclusive things.
You seem to really know where to focus your energy and ideas, which is special. but, it also leads to the question of if you have any fears relating to your art and music?
What’s there to fear ?
That’s true, you know yourself very well. To shift a little, have you been looking towards playing more live shows within in the coming year and if so, how do you hope to bring your style into that environment?
Yes, I definitely am playing more shows and I’m very excited to play them. I just wanna do my best love by singing with tight vocals and range. Maybe experimenting by doing more jazz change and cooler dance moves.
If you could, with no stress of any constricting factors, build a music / creative space anywhere in the world, looking any way you want; where would you put it and what would make it yours?
I’d build one in London and it would be a loft with a bunch of zen shit. Meditation room, a studio and a modern kitchen and a coffee/tea room and a big table for dining. A guitar room too! And two big bedrooms with huge showers as well as a painting/ visual studio room.
That’s a really great choice, especially the painting room. Is that something you have a passion for outside of music, or do you just hope to one day explore such mediums later in life?
I do have a passion for other mediums like photography and different visual art stuff, I just have to give my 100% focus to music because I’m in the middle of a roll out. Once it’s over I’m back to free flow exploring of different art mediums far and wide
Do you have anyone to shoutout or anything to promote? The floor is yours…
Imma shout out Chris ‘Yunglame’ Williams, Benji and my lovely girlfriend Eileen sho ji syrop.
Follow Elu Jay on Instagram and Twitter
Listen on Spotify and Soundcloud