He’s known in Brooklyn by many, not exactly for the right reasons, his reputation in his hometown is that of a hell raiser. Jay-C has done almost every cliché in the book on his path to self destruction, he was born into a broken family with connections to drug dealing which led to his father being in prison for the majority of Jay’s life, moving apartments regularly and being kicked out of school are just the beginning in his life.
Drugs of course, alcohol you bet, partying all night long definitely, violence regretfully so and now he‘s on the straight and the narrow … well almost.

“I started with drugs at 16 and by 17 I was completely fucked up by it, I wasn’t a Rockstar but I was living the life, money wasn’t a major issue because I had connections you know, something I regret. I had friends who were hugely rich due to drug dealings and they would always see me ok. If I was crashing on bedroom floors they’d find me somewhere to stay, they’d provide me with drugs at a very low rate and it was an easy life for me, I didn’t need to get a job, I had my friends providing for me.

And there was this moment at an all nighter where I had complete clarity, it was like an out of body moment where I thought, “What the fuck are you doing.” I was 18 years old and I was living the life most 18 year olds would dream of. I was at this party with a bunch of people I’ve never met in my life, each room you go into someone was fucking someone and it was after 2 o clock and I found myself in a room with I guess four chicks, they may have been whores they may have been regular Brooklyn girls but I found myself in some sort of sex/drugs orgy, All I remember is snorting coke off some chicks naked body and then fucking and that would be like a never ending cycle and the next day, a hangover to take out the whole of New York, I think to myself, I can only remember that one part of an all night party and I’m not even doing anything to make it happen, I don’t work all week and unwind at the weekend with crazy partying, I don’t earn money but I still get to live like a fucking god. I wanted that to change and that’s when I started to change things around.

It took a while and then something happened to make me go, “Fuck this, I’m not gonna live like this.” My mother died and that was the signal I needed to really make a go at things, I cut tie’s with the people who had introduced me to drugs and crime and got the worst job I could, I started part time work at a fucking food mall just so I could afford some one room apartment. When I was 20 I was completely clean of drugs and things were looking up.

At 21 I started to dream, I was in control of my feelings for the first time in four years and I found something in Rap music which triggered something deep inside of me and I fell in love with it again, it was something I lost when I was fucked up and I had managed to find this love again. I began writing and seriously considering a career in music. I auditioned for 3 New York based record labels and was knocked back each time and it wasn’t look like happening.

Nothing happened for a long time, I just concentrated on writing and focussed on perfecting it, I worked at the food court through the day and I spent the rest of the day at home writing, I was so far away from what I used to be and although I wasn’t rich and hadn’t had any sort of success I was still happy because I had turned my life around and I felt pride in myself.
In 2008, at the age of 24 I headed over to Los Angeles to record a demo and sent it to over 40 record labels across the US and never heard back from any of them at all. I continued to write and continued to work but at night I’d play these legendary clubs on the hip hop scene and people seemed to like what I was doing, so I continued at it and I was given a permanent place at the Down-Lo, a club in Brooklyn, they were paying me to perform and although it wasn’t very much it was still better than 4 years previous.

It was this year when I finally got a break, some A&R talent scout for Hot Eye Records saw me playing the Down-Lo and put in a word to the owner Stephanie Fierce and she got back to me and I was given the chance to audition at the label HQ in front of Stephanie and a couple of other guys. She liked what she saw and within like a week, I was finally a signed artist, She helped get me into a much more high class apartment and has helped me out massively. I spent a few months away in Hawaii because she felt it was important to get me away from Brooklyn and get a new sense of perspective, experience a new type of life and she got me over to Hawaii to focus on my music and it helped creativity a lot, it was a massive risk on her part to send me away to Hawaii but it was the right decision.

I don’t feel like another drop out from the hood, I feel like a real person with something to add to the world, I never made a real go of my education when I had the chance but right now I’ve been given a second chance and I’ve realised just what I missed, you’d have never expected me to read a book or go see to a theatre but right now anything is possible. I still get crazy sometimes and forget myself but with people like Steph around it reminds me of what I can be, I owe a lot to her and I just want to repay the faith she‘s had in me.
And now I’m starting work on recording my debut album, I’ve got some people lined up to work with and the songs I’ve got excited the fuck out of me.”

OOC: As stated previously, my knowledge of rap is almost non-existent so just go with it even if it's not very realistic.

Jay: Thanks Allura, I just don't want people to think that I don't deserve a record deal or a music career, I ain't gonna fuck it up, I'm gonna put everything into this because it's where I wanna be. I'm looking forward to hitting the studio with you, your fucking incredible babe.