Today we’d like to introduce you to Ian Jackson.
Ian, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’m from Indianapolis, Indiana. 317. Currently living in Burbank, California.
Throughout my journey through life, a constant theme has been to live outside of the box. My parents have always encouraged me to be myself. I played basketball in school, and always had an expectation of perfection as most aspiring athletes have but the game taught me so much about myself and about life. It taught me that real hard work pays off, it taught me if you want to go far, go together, it said, stay poised when adversity strikes, and so many more lessons.
Music has always been a passion of mine since I can remember. I was in the choir and learned music from a harmonic and technical standpoint. In middle school, I would pass love poems or sing to girls at lunch. In high school, I figured out how to crack AutoTune and Mixcraft (digital audio workstation) on a computer and started to record my own songs. In college, I took my passion and realized it was okay to embrace my artistry, I would record myself and friends in the dorm, stay up all night and go to practice in the morning. My coach would say, “you been up recording again?” It was just something I’ve always felt addicted to doing. My friends really supported me and made me feel like I could walk around as Iyn Jay. To me, I’m the same person but for some people, that’s all they know me as. The name Iyn Jay goes back to Myspace days. I put the “y” in my first name because I thought it would help with people mispronouncing it, and the Jay is just the initial of my last name spelled out. lol spell it however you like, just say it right.
Fast forward to now, I took my artistry to another level and now produce for other artists and have several self-produced projects ready to be released. I figured I know a lot about how to vocally arrange a song, it wouldn’t hurt to provide the canvas as well. Making beats has been so therapeutic and reinvigorating. I love that you can make anything from nothing. One of my favorite things to do is to finish a song and listen back with my eyes closed and just go to that world. I want my listeners to be on a journey when they listen to me, I want people to feel like they are in the driver seat. I want men to feel good about being a man, and I want women to feel loved and talked to from this real perspective.
Me and my brother started an entity called, BORN ART, and pretty much we do everything because the idea is to do the most with what you have. We are already the most valuable piece of art in our lives, we were already born masterpieces. Overall I want to use all these vehicles to push people to love themselves more, I want to challenge thought, and provoke real conversations. I want people to be cooler with each other knowing we all can win and eat out here. I want to educate people on how to win, not only in their careers but mores within themselves because once we master that part we can go out and face anything. Together we can go further, love is our superpower, knowledge will give you the tools to set you free. There’s so much more to talk about and I hope to get the opportunity to talk more on my journey.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Naysayers, people will always doubt what they don’t understand, don’t focus on that, just keep working to get better and let to predict speak for itself.
Understanding how the money moves haven’t detoured me in any way but not knowing can definitely put you at a disadvantage
Pick your poisons, (women, friends, drugs, distractions) They say the universe will give you the success but also the tools to destroy yourself. with the right team and self-control, we can take those things and use it to fuel our rocketship, not weigh it down. on your journey, these distractions will come, be prepared.
Confidence that you’re doing the right thing. Faith in something greater and belief in yourself will take care of that.
Please tell us more about your work.
I do everything. I try to learn as much as I can and invest in myself and the ones around me so we can be a strong team even if we aren’t in the same places, we share the same spirit. B O R N A R T.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
As of yesterday, my brother got nominated for a Soul Train Award for music which was really cool because it wasn’t expected and it was our first big nomination for our art like that. We don’t do it for that but to be as independent as we are it feels good to know the formula is getting good feedback.
I’m also proud of our team as a whole and how we pump out each project. In My Feelings, Rough Drafts pt 1., Rough Drafts pt 2., Love Is Light, Lay up Lines, etc.. Each has had its learning curves and has also been a milestone each time.
The Rough Drafts series has significance because we did it very independent, to the mix and stems, to routing the tour, which we sold out a few cities and sold out our merch.
All in all, I feel like we are headed in the right direction and I’m excited to see what the future holds for our team.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iynjay
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RealIanJackson
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/iynjay_
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHiEb0JRA9U
Image Credit:
Joyce Charat
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