Today we’d like to introduce you to J Snow.
J Snow, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My start was hella boring and difficult. As I imagine, most beginnings are for creators. It was 2012 and I was living in Compton and working in Irvine. My commute was an hour each way with a stick shift 03′ Mustang GT. That car was dope. I’m still mad about selling it because my knee started to have issues from that heavy ass clutch. I was a security officer for a company that made hard drives and it was BOOOOORING! Spending most of my days doing receptionist work and watching Youtube videos gave me the urge to do something creative. But writing was something I stopped doing long ago.
In school, I would always write. I’d write poems, stories for my family about my family etc… Watching Youtube videos made me want to tap back into that lost talent. Kids my age were making sketches, getting views, and making a living off of it. I thought I can do that, I’m way funnier than these dudes. So, I started writing again. Only I had to learn how to write actual scripts. So I (googled) researched which software to write scripts on. Then researched what cheap cameras I could get to shoot with, and what computer people would edit videos with. Then HOW to edit and with what editing software. Anything I didn’t know, Youtube had “how-to” video for. Which is funny because prior to this I tried two years in a row to get into Los Angeles film school, but couldn’t afford it. Film school didn’t stop me, nor Quinten Tarantino, because we’re Bosses! And that’s what Bosses do!
Eventually, I saved enough money to get a camera but still needed a better computer to edit with. I started the Youtube channel “JSnowPro” and got my friends together to shoot sketches. We started shooting so much that I began slipping at work. I would come in late or call in sick, or just be too tired to pay attention to the mundane tasks that I had to do. So, to make an example out of my behavior to the team, they fired me… The SUPERVISOR! The hardest working and best-looking security officer they had lol. This turned out to be nothing but a blessing in disguise. Even my boss knew it. She admired my drive and leadership skills so much. She said to me, “You shouldn’t be here, you have a bright light. Shine young black man… Shine!”. Okay, maybe not the last part, but she definitely said I shouldn’t be there and encouraged me to pursue my passion. Then she fired me. I took my last check, held it in my hands and said “this is the last shitty day job that I will ever have.” Then I cashed it, borrowed some money from a girl I was dating at the time, bought a MacBook Pro, and boom… Seven eventful years later that still remains the last day job that I’ve worked.
Comedy sketches have opened my world up in ways that I couldn’t imagine. From working with icons like Marlon Wayans to Russell Simmons and more. To traveling out of the country just to interview A-list actors about movies their doing. To being casted on and working on TV shows like Wild N Out, Joking Off, the BET Awards, Fear Factor, Hip Hop Squares and much more.
These days my focus has shifted from hoping to get hired for a project to creating my own. I’ve written and directed over a hundred sketches and a few web series. I’ve written feature films and TV shows that haven’t been made yet. I recently wrote, directed, starred in and produced a short film titled “FLAWD.” which will soon be in festivals. I plan to create more films and series for others and myself. I understand the power of media and the power that comes with finding your voice, then using it. I’ve always been filled with ideas, so why not bring them to life? Why cheat the world out of what I have to offer it?
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
My struggles come from a myriad of places. There’s the typical ones that everyone deals with. Doubt, fear, lack of motivation, depression, anxiety, family issues, personal issues, relationship issues, gossip, rumors, haters, fake friends, greedy bastards, liars, content thieves, distractions, writer’s block and more.
But my main struggle comes from a hereditary blood disorder called Sickle Cell. I was diagnosed with it at two years old. Since then, the hospital has been my second home. A year doesn’t go by without an admission or two or three or nine into the hospital.
I once got booked for the popular show MTV’s Wild N Out. A month before the show taped I came down with a severe case of pneumonia. It was BAD. SO PAINFUL. I spent about a week and a half in the hospital and missed Christmas, almost missed New Years too. A week after my discharge from the hospital I noticed that my raspy voice hadn’t changed. It was still low and weak. Like a 90-year old who smoked a pack a day since birth. I later found out that I had suffered a vocal paralysis. One vocal cord just said “Fuck it I quit!” and literally deflated.
If I had to attribute it to anything in addition to the illness, I’d say it was because the Nurses and Doctors at said hospital didn’t believe that my pain levels were as high as I said they were. So they didn’t treat me with the proper dose of pain medicine. They thought I was drug seeking. So for the first 48 hours I was there, I moaned and grunting in excruciating pain while they basically spit on a house fire by giving me very little pain meds to break the pain. This happens often for young blacks in hospitals but that’s a whole other story.
Two weeks after the hospital my voice still wasn’t back which cost me my spot on Wild N Out. I sounded like Mickey Mouse for THREE MONTHS before my doctors did anything about it. I had to get an injection of collagen directly into my vocal cord. That. Shit. Hurt. I recorded it, the video is on my Youtube Channel “JSnowPro” for anyone who doesn’t have a weak stomach.
My illness has always had a big challenge in my life. It’s affected a lot of things from work, to peoples beliefs in my capabilities as an entertainer. It’s affected relationships, friendships, and my mental health, which affects all of the above. It’s also shaped me into the very strong person that I am today. It’s pushed me find my boundaries and move beyond them. It’s forced me value my time more, to stop waiting and start doing. It’s also forced me to turn my pain into power. Which is what I’d encourage everyone struggling with something to do. Snatch that monkey off your back and put that son of a bitch to work for you!
J. Snow Productions, LLC – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
J. Snow Productions (JSnowPro for short) has always been the dream. My passion to create raw sketch content has evolved into my desire to create films. Actually, my desire has always been to make films. I just didn’t know how or where to start. Sketches was my entry into filmmaking and writing. My self-taught film school if you will. Those sketches or stories are what I’m most known for, and what I believe I specialize in.
Bringing stories to life is my passion. I’m proud to be able to create. Period. I’m proud to make stuff that people can learn from, laugh at, and relate to. I love that creating allows me to work with other dope ass creators. Comics, writers, producers, directors, cinematographers, gaffers etc… I get excited just thinking about it. When I watch movies or shows, I don’t just watch the screen, I watch peoples reactions. I notice the emotion that’s evoked. The power of storytelling is so fascinating to me. I want create a production company that makes content people get hyped about. Like when a commercial for a new show or film drops and the internet goes crazy. I want to do that. I know I have the ideas that can do that. J. Snow Productions will be that.
Everyone talks about how they want to see or make authentic, or “different” content, and many do. I think what sets me apart from others is that I’m not afraid to push past what’s normal. I like to take things left whenever possible. I like to take risks. Someone once told me if you don’t see the films and characters you want to see, make them. That’s what I intend to do.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
I personally define success by doing what my soul desires and not my personality. The soul is internal. The personality is external. My soul urges me to create from the heart. To be fearless. To follow my own path. To Create the things that will not only help me but help many others long after I’m gone. My personality wants me to follow others. To do what they do because it works for them. To create the things that increase my visibility and external power. My personality wants me to cut corners and not care so much about the content, just worry about the numbers, get the clout. But, I wouldn’t be at peace with myself. That’s not success to me. My definition of success is having your actions in alignment with what feeds the soul. Because feeding the soul doesn’t just help you evolve, it helps humanity evolve as well.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.Jsnowpro.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jsnowpro/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jsnowpro
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/jsnowpro
- Other: https://www.everybodygotflaws.com
Image Credit:
Portraits by: Maxwell Miranda
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