Jay Electronica

Jay Electronica
Birth Name	Timothy Elpadaro Thedford
Born	c. 1977
Also known as	Je'Ri Allah, Jay Elect
Origin	Magnolia Projects, New Orleans, United States
Genre	Hip hop
Label	Control Freaq Records
Associated acts	J Dilla, Nas, Just Blaze, Erykah Badu, Lil Flip, Guilty Simpson

Jay Electronica (Je’Ri Allah) (b. circa 1977) is a rapper and producer known for his use of percussionless film soundtracks as a background for raps, his abstract lyrical style, and his associations with Erykah Badu, Just Blaze and Nas. He produced the first track, "Queens Get the Money", on the 2008 Nas album Untitled. The unconventional nature of much of his music, and the lack of conventional release methods for that music, have since 2007 made him the object of much attention. He is perhaps best known for the piece of music Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge).

Music and reception

Signed to Badu's Control Freaq Records, Electronica is yet to release an album or single. His music so far has been made available through the internet, either through being leaked to what URB magazine describes as "obscure web forums", or through an appearing and disappearing myspace page (currently two seem to be in existence, at /jayelect and at /jayelectronica). Badu has questioned whether he ever will release, in her words, "actual albums".

Originally from the Magnolia Projects in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A., he has lived in Atlanta, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Denver, and Detroit, where he recorded his Style Wars EP with several J Dilla beats, meeting the producer subsequently to ask for permission to use the recordings as a demo. Detroit is where Electronica met producer/engineer Mike "Chav" Chavarria, who introduced him to both J Dilla and Mr. Porter, and who is now a regular collaborator.

Jay Electronica first gained significant attention through Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge), made available on a myspace page in 2007. It is 15 continuous minutes of music, without drums, built from Jon Brion's soundtrack to the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. There are five segments or movements, marked by changes in music and mood, raps by Electronica, and occasional snippets of sampled dialogue (children arguing in Kurdish, Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka). The first segment is spoken word by Just Blaze and Erykah Badu describing the artist over piano music.

The nature of the piece of music, along with the nature of its appearance, led to a slow build-up of interest in Electronica as an enigmatic figure. Style Wars gained wider circulation, and other tracks, such as the dream-inspired "Dimethyltryptamine", appeared. In January 2008, Giles Peterson's 90-minute Giles Peterson Worldwide was devoted to the rapper. Hiphopdx.com in 2008 called him "arguably...the most talked about new emcee last year ... at times...more like a myth or urban legend than an actual rapper", and URB ran a cover story on the artist under the banner "Jay Electronica: A Spotless Mind :: An MC’s mystery revealed", which referred to his wanderings as his being "like some sort of hip-hop Jack Kerouac".

Jeff Weiss' piece for the L.A. Weekly, "Jay Electronica: Much Better Than His Name Would Suggest", acknowledged that the rapper could be fairly described as "one of the most buzzed about rappers of 2008", but attempted to temper the hype somewhat, describing Act 1... as "ambitious, wildly original, if not slightly pretentious", while endorsing only to an extent the comparisons URB had made (referencing an "abstract rhyming style") to rappers like Nas and Pharoahe Monch.

Electronica met Nas during the recording of Nas' Untitled, through Badu's friendship with Nas' wife, Kelis. He gave Nas a CD of his recordings, causing Nas to invite him to produce for the album. Jay Electronica provides the music for the album's opening track, "Queens Get the Money". Nas describes him as having provided "the Jay Electronica sound". He toured North America with Nas, and was part of the Rock The Bells International Festival Series in 2008.

According to URB, Act II: Patents of Nobility will feature Nas, and will be the second of a putative trilogy. URB also reported that digital EPs with both Guilty Simpson and producer 9th Wonder were planned. His most recent music as of November 2008 is the Just Blaze-produced track "Exhibit A (Transformations)".

Personal Life

He and his long-time girlfriend Erykah Badu welcomed their first child together, a girl named Mars Merkaba, on February 1, 2009.

Recordings

Much of the details of title, order and production in the list below necessarily come from the blog postings and internet forums where this music surfaced, and as such may not be accurate in every case.

• Style Wars EP
  • "Renaissance Man" (Featuring Tone Treasure) (Track produced by J Dilla)
  • "So What You Sayin'" (Track produced by J Dilla)
  • "Something To Hold Onto" (Produced by Nottz)
  • "I Feel Good"
  • "Be Easy"
  • "Trolley Stop"
  • "Spark 'Em Up"
  • "Dealing"

• Miscellaneous Tracks
  • "Attack Of The Clones"
  • "Colors [Snippet]"
  • "Retro Electro"
  • "Hard to Get" (Featuring Mr. Porter) (Produced by Mr. Porter)
  • "Bitches and Drugs" (Track produced by J Dilla)
  • "Dimethyltryptamine" (Track produced by J Dilla)
  • "Victory Is in My Clutches" (Featuring Tone Treasure) (Track produced by Madlib)
  • "My World (Nas Salute)"
  • "Get 'Em (Featuring Guilty Simpson and Mr. Porter) (Produced By Mr. Porter)
  • "Uzi Weighs a Ton" (Produced by Jay Electronica)
  • "Walk With It" (Featuring Lil' Flip)

• Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge) (Produced by Jay Electronica and Mike Chav, Music by Jon Brion) (Sometimes listed as below)
  • Intro
  • ESOTSM
  • (...Because He Broke The Rules)
  • Paper Thin
  • Voodoo Man
  • FYI

• From Act II: Patents of Nobility
  • "Abracadabra"
  • "Departure"
  • "Jay Electronica"
  • "A Prayer for Michael Vick & T.I."
  • "When the Levees Broke"
  • "Extra Extra" (Produced by Madlib)

• From the Guitar Center compilation Fresh Cuts Vol. 3 (Music By Guitar Center Employees)
  • "Exhibit A (Transformations)" (Produced by Just Blaze)

• FWMJ & Jay Electronica present Scratches & Demo Tape Volume I
  • "Anakin's Prayer"
  • "Hagler Demo"
  • "Not Too Far From Nothing"
  • "Who's Gonna Save My Soul (Jay Electronica Remix)"
  • "Swagger Jackson's Revenge"

• Guest Appearances
  • "Posers" by The New Royales (Produced by DJ Khalil)
  • "The Cauldron" by Zed Bias

External links

• www.mikechav.com - Producer/Engineer Mike "Chav" Chavarria
• URB Jay Electronica cover (left) (.gif)
• Giles Peterson Worldwide (.mp3, 80MB) - Lengthy interview and music
• Classic Drug References interview - Helpful interview
• rappersiknow - Maintained by acquaintance of the artist, occasionally posts music, artwork and information