Born in a family with immense musical background, J’ray has been preparing himself to become a musical superstar since his birth.
It is no surprise that there are so many creatives trying to make a name for themselves whilst also doing it independently. J’ray is one artist that has caught the eye with his hardworking nature. His ability to continuously dish out quality music on every release has made him one of the best amongst his peers.
Being an African diaspora in the United States generally poses a lot of danger to established and upcoming artists, but J’ray has dealt with it well by distinguishing himself with his knack for making good music. Even at such a far distance, he still connects well with his local audience, and never strayed away from what made him into the superstar he is today.
In this piece, our correspondent discusses in details with the burgeoning act topics about his career, his latest release with long time collaborator, Mista Bradley and also his plans for the future.
A-T: Let us in on some personal details details about you.
J’RAY: My names are Morojuoluwa Oke. I was born and raised in Nigeria. Did most of my basic schooling program in Nigeria too, until I came to the United States in 2014 to pursue my tertiary education. I graduated from Texas Tech University with a Computer Science degree in 2020.
A-T: How did you get in tune with music to become an artist currently?
J’RAY: Music for me began at a very young age, probably as early as 7 or 8 years of age. Like a lot of artists, I began in the choir very early because my dad was heavily involved in the music scene back then. I wasn’t actively writing songs back then, but I sang and knew I could hold a note. I started off singing, then while I grew up I picked up other instruments like Piano, Saxophone, Guitar, Drums and more. That is probably why I do a bit of everything now.
A-T: Let’s rewind a bit, talking about your early musical influences, which artists had an impact on you?
J’RAY: Like I said earlier, my dad was actively involved in the music scene back then. He had a record label, Fres Jolly Entertainment. He worked with different artists, of which Sir Shina Peters used to be affiliated with. So my dad actually worked with a few highlife artists including Sir Shina Peters, who I would say I listened to more and I was heavily influenced by the afro juju genre of music while growing up.
A-T: Wow, that’s great. You had a music filled background, I guess it wasn’t that hard to be influenced with music.
J’RAY: Yeah, it wasn’t at all. I was naturally pulled to music and it was only a matter of time before I put out my own record.
A-T: What fueled the ultimate decision to make music?
J’RAY: The ultimate decision actually came sometime in 2016 when I left school to come back to Nigeria. I had so much time on my hands, the talent, and the passion for music so it was just about finding the right producer. I did get what I needed in Timi Jay, one of Nigeria’s hottest sound engineers right now. He’s been very instrumental.
A-T: Let us in on the highs and lows since you made that step?
J’RAY: I look back at the decision now and I still feel like it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made in life. It has opened so many doors that I didn’t expect. When my first official single “Sisi ” was released in 2017, the reception and love I received was enough to let me know I wasn’t gonna stop this music game. I have been here since then.
I’m really grateful for how smooth my journey has been so far. Especially when I look back at my first record, I could remember that back then, I only had a few friends who stream my music, but now I’ve got listeners in over 70 countries. I’ve had quite a number of peak moments doing this music thing. I can recall working with one of Nigeria’s biggest producers Kiddominant in 2018, to recently performing alongside Afrobeat stars Ruger, Omah Lay, Fireboy, and Adekunle Gold. Also, having my music being listened to in over 70+ countries is something I’m proud of. However, I think my biggest challenge, I wouldn’t necessarily call it a low, would be promoting the music once it’s released especially with being an independent artist.
A-T: How have you been navigating it, putting your music out to the right audience.
J’RAY: I’m heavily focused on building an organic following. Apart from social media promotions, I try to do as many shows as possible, performing in front of a new audience, and earning new fans to my art while I’m at it.
[LISTEN] Cruze by J’ray & Mista Bradley.
A-T: You’ve been on a roll this year, “Cruze” is your fourth release of the year. What’s the decision behind the unusual run?
J’RAY: So this year we had a plan. Truly, this has been one of my most active years when it comes to the dropping music consistently. My team and I actually planned on dropping a single some two months apart this year. Although, the biggest driver was because last year I dropped only one full self owned single all year, which is “1942”. So this year was strategically focused on bouncing back.
A-T: How did the link up with Mister Bradley on “Cruze” come about?
J’RAY: I’ve actually been working with Mista Bradley since 2019 when we worked on my collab “High Notes the EP”. Bradley and I have actually not met physically, all of our interactions have been virtual. Though we should be meet up soon for the official video of Cruze.
Cruze really came about with Bradley sending me the beat and I just happened to be in my studio at that time. The moment I heard the beat, I started writing on it naturally. I recorded on it and sent the files to Bradley and he did the magic behind the scenes. He sent me the final version after some few adjustments, which is exactly what we released. I must add, Bradley is very fun to work with and he’s very good at what he does. He was very important in piecing Cruze together plus we got a very good connection.
A-T: Going on, is there any body of work around the corner?
J’RAY: Currently, I don’t have any plan on dropping a body of work this year. Certainly, I will probably put out a few more singles and also a few collab tracks.
A-T: Which artists do you admire so much in the industry?
J’RAY: There’s quite a lot of talented artists I admire in the Nigerian music scene currently. But if i have to list, I’ll pick Fireboy DML, Burna Boy, Davido, and Asake for sure.
A-T: On the other hand, which artists would you like to work with?
J’RAY: Fireboy DML, Burna Boy, Asake, Davido, Olamide, Rema are top on my list.
A-T: What should we look forward to you doing soon?
J’RAY: More near term, I will be performing at a few shows out in the US. Starting with the Dallas leg of Ruger’s US tour, then at an Afrobeat Festival out in Austin, Texas. Then it’s pretty much business as usual, pushing and promoting my songs.
[LISTEN] Cruze by J’ray & Mista Bradley.
