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DMV artist, Janae Music talks new project and finding balance in the industry
Music is the melting pot of our souls. It’s most likely one of the most powerful sources that bring people together. From R&B, Soul, Rock, Gospel, Country, you name it there is something for everyone. On your highest high and your lowest low - music pieces together the most vulnerable moments of your life and can make it feel like everything just makes sense. When slowed down you can feel your heartbeat matching the vibrations of the beat. Music just makes you feel good and that is exactly how I feel when I listen to emerging female artist, Janae Music hailing from DC. The melodic sounds of her voice are filled with pain and passion as her lyrics touch on her life experiences. Janae Music opens up to
Short N Sweet Ent about the love she has for music and what musical plans she has for her future.
When did you start singing and how did you know you wanted to make this your career?
I feel like I’ve been singing forever but I realized I can sing when I was about 9. I did the kids’ church choir and when I got to high school I did the school choir. Then later on I started singing in a Go-go Band. In DC we have Go-go music. I recently found the first project we did and I was losing my mind because I couldn’t remember all that we did. It brought back so many memories. Then I stopped singing for a while. I started pursuing music again around 5 to 6 years ago. I did a competition and I did really well. It was a performance-type show and I knew I could do it. Then I started to think about my life goals and all the things I wanted to accomplish and music played such a strong role in my life. I knew this was something I really wanted to do.
Do you do anything unique to warm up before you start singing?
Everybody that sings you know we all drink tea and we all drink honey. I am a huge Nipsey fan, I love Nipsey. Every time I have a show I play “Hussle & Motivate”. The song starts with
“Pull up in motorcades, I got a show today
It’s all I’m tryna do, hustle and motivate”
-Nipsey Hussle
I play that song every time I perform. The stuff that he talked about is real-life stuff. It aint nothing fictitious and everybody can relate to it at some point. That’s big for me and that’s what I think I like about him. His music helps me perform.
So you are from the DMV area, how is the music scene there?
It’s different music scenes out here and it’s a whole different vibe. In the DMV we have Go-go which is a compilation of regular music but we add our own spin to it with congos and drums. We also have different styles of Go-go. We have the bounce beat and the slow bounce. We turn up but then we also vibe. It’s a sway of emotions. We start chill and in the pocket – cool and calm to bring you in the door. Then we turn all the way up. That’s just one style of many that we have. Then we have another scene where we have artists who do regular R&B, rap, and hip-hop. Depending on where you go and whom you link with we connect and have collaboration music. It’s all love and energy. We comfortable here! You gon’ twerk, you gon’ fight, you gon’ vibe. It’s all different types of energy. When you go to a gogo party it’s going to be guaranteed fun. You gon’ sweet cause you gonna dance. There’s nothing about this music that’s going to make you standstill. You gon’ move. You can’t goggle it. You have to be here to experience it. When you in it you become a part of the wave.
I just saw you got back from Atlanta from performing at a showcase, how does it feel to be back on stage.
Honestly, it feels good. I have dealt with a lot emotionally. Before the pandemic, I got horrible news and it was the worst time ever. I really went through a lot of emotions at the beginning of it. It took a toll on me to not be around my friends and family. Going to Atlanta was the best thing I could have done for myself. It opened doors and connected me to people. It brought me peace. For a while, I felt like I was trying to escape from the reality of my pain but it was the push I needed. Getting back on stage felt like I could breathe again. Music is a form of expression and being able to get it out feels amazing. I’ve met so many people down there now. I feel like I’m connected to more artists. I love the energy that they have down there. Regardless of what’s happening around the world they are like we need this!
My favorite song is “Put It On You” because it makes me feel sexy and confident. How did that song come about?
I have so much fun performing that song and I usually end the show with that.
It’s like wait let me tell you something. I’m special as hell. I’m rare. I’m sexy. You have no idea what I’m working with. You can make all these assumptions and look at me and think this about me but when I step in the room though, this a whole new energy that you’re going to feel.
That’s what I really like about it but when I wrote it and created it. Honestly, it was a challenge. Initially, I was in the studio with someone. I don’t really go to the studio with a lot of people but when I do go it’s typically just my engineer. During this particular time, I had one person with me and he challenged me to do a sexy song. I’m very secretive when it comes to my sexuality because you just never know and that’s between me and who ever I am intimate with. I like to keep things private. I like for my person to feel special. So when this challenge came up I knew I could write a sexy song and when the beat came on it gave me that, “I got my T-Shirt and panties on” vibe and that’s exactly how I wanted to do it. I started the record and from there it was over.
Is there anyone that you would like to collaborate with in the future?
Yes, girl so many! Honestly, I would love to work with Usher, Chis Brown, J. Cole, Ari Lennox, Jazmine Sullivan, Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Cardi, and Meg. I really want to write for City Girls. That would be really fun and they have a lot of energy. You already know I would love to work with Wale – he from the home team. I can imagine if I’m sitting in the room with Wale all the stuff that we would come up with in terms of where we are from and all the things that we have experienced coming from the DMV.
What are some tips that you have for any females that want to come into the music industry?
Balance and that’s with everything in life. Life is about balance and I struggle with that because I go from zero to 100. The same thing goes for the music industry – balance. You gotta be able to be flexible but you also have to know when to put your foot down. You have to be strong and stern with who you are. On the flip side also understand that you may need some work and some artist development. Also, the balance between putting out music that you love and that expresses who you are instead of what everyone thinks what they want to hear. It’s hard but realize that balance is everything.
When can we expect something new, what do you have going on?
Right now I have been working on both rap and R&B music. It’s really what comes to me and what I be feeling. I think I’m going to end up doing two EP’s but not at the same time. I might do the rap joint in the summer and by the fall or wintertime, I’ll be ready for the “cuffin season” and drop some R&B.
Thank you Janae Music for sharing your talents with us and we can’t wait to see what is next for you.
To connect with Janae Music you can find her on IG at @janaemusic and stream her music on all music platforms.
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Until next post… Coach Tay
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