Jai Paul is back
Chances are you've either been listening to Jai Paul for the last 13 years or you've never heard his name. The 33-year-old British-born producer and singer is one of the most influential artists of the past 20 years, yet he has only released one project. Why is that? Let's go back to 2010. He dropped his debut single "BTSTU," which was later followed by "Jasmine." Both were absolute hits, especially in the blog era, and Jai was really making waves. His blend of electronic and R&B was like nothing we had ever heard before. Seriously, listen to his early 2010s music and compare it to the genre now. Everything sounds like it's playing catch-up with Jai Paul. His sound was not only original, but extremely complex.
Fast-forward to 2013, just before his debut album was set to release, his laptop was stolen and his life's work from 2007-2013 was leaked on Bandcamp unfinished and poorly mixed. This sent Jai into a long hiatus away from music. He eventually tinkered with the leaked demo and officially dropped it on Spotify. In 2019, he released two more songs, "He" and "Do You Know Her Now." It seemed like he had found his footing and was set to drop more. Then, radio silence. But what has he been up to since then? Well, between 2011-2019, Jai’s music was featured by some elite artists. Beyoncé sampled "BTSTU" for "End of Time," Dr. Dre and Kendrick Lamar sampled Jai's "Str8 Outta Mumbai" on good kid, m.A.A.d city's "The Recipe," and Drake also sampled "BTSTU" for "Dreams Money Can Buy." I mean, if you're going to clear your music for anybody, those are some pretty solid choices. In 2023, Jai was credited for writing on Don Toliver's new album, “Love Sick.” Jai also made a cameo appearance on an episode of Atlanta in Season 3 Episode 3, where he discusses capitalism and racism with Darius at a house party. It’s great.
Still, what was next? Was he going to drop more music? Well, I can't believe I'm going to say it, but Coachella saved the day. On January 10th, 2023, Coachella 2023 was announced, and Jai Paul performed live for the first time ever on Sunday. Fans are rejoicing, and it seems Jai is taking back what’s his. The artist performed shows in London and Brooklyn, shortly after his Coachella performance. Glad to have a trailblazer back in the game.