Today we’d like to introduce you to Jelani Blackman.
Jelani, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started off doing Grime music when I was about 11. I was already playing Saxophone by that age so I had a more musical way of approaching the beats. I always wanted to find ways to bring melodies into the vocals or in the instrumentals. Grime back then was a lot hard beats and kind of harsh-sounding but I was drawn to things that sounded more like songs. I carried on working in that way until I met an indie rock guitarist Theo Ellis and RnB singer Rina Sawayama. Together we started a band and it was like a fusion of all those different styles. It was around then that I thought that music could be something I might be able to do as a career but I was still only doing it for fun. When I went to University (College) in Leeds, it really broadened my horizons. I met a guy called Jacob Manson and another guy called Fred Gibson. It was crazy, they were both so good and working with each of them changed my whole understanding of music. Jacob’s gone on to work with artists ranging from Anna of the North to Jason Derulo and Fred produced most of Ed Sheeran’s last album, even the track with Travis Scott. Before all that, though we worked together and became friends, and we still are friends. Jacob actually just produced most of my most recent EP ‘Average Joe’ – except for one track which I produced myself. I was signed to a major label for the past couple of years but decided to go independent at the beginning of this year and start my own. It was a lot of work to get to this point but it’s going so well. I love working independently and having control and it feels like we’re going from strength to strength.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The amount of time and favours you have to pull in to fund things is hard when you work independently. Another massive obstacle for me throughout my career is having than having to rely on other people to do things when you would have wanted to do them yourself quicker and better. It is harder to accept failures and problems when you didn’t create them yourself.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with 18 Records – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I run a record label. Currently, I’m the only artist and it’s going really well, I make Grime and produce. I think what sets us apart is how many different areas we have covered by such a small team. We do all of our creative direction and asset development in house alongside a management team, so there is a really clear vision we’re all working towards. It’s an exciting environment to be in and to be a part of. I’m most proud of how we managed to bring together a group of people who genuinely love what they do, are all individually amazing and care about the amount of work they put in. I think we’re different because we are so well-positioned to get into any are we want to in terms of the music industry, we will continue to evolve and shape ourselves as quickly as the rapidly changing industry we’re a part of.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jelaniblackman.co/
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: jelaniblackman
- Facebook: jelaniblackmanmusic
- Twitter: jelani_blackman
Image Credit:
Charlie Chich, Matt Pitman
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