Paul's 2007 demo "BTSTU" received widespread blog coverage throughout 2010, and has been played on UK national radio by DJs including Gilles Peterson, Zane Lowe, Nick Grimshaw, Reggie Yates and Fearne Cotton.
In December 2010, Paul was longlisted for the BBC Sound of 2011 poll.
"BTSTU (Edit)" was playlisted on BBC Radio 1 following its release as a digital download on April 21, 2011, via XL. The single received favourable reviews, and was made 'Hottest Record in the World' on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show.
On May 20, 2011, Canadian hip hop artist Drake leaked a track titled "Dreams Money Can Buy" via his blog. Shortly afterward, "Till The End Of Time", a song by American R&B artist Beyoncé surfaced online. Both tracks feature a sample of Paul's "BTSTU" demo. On August 30, 2011, "BTSTU (Edit)" was included on Radio Nova's "Nova Tunes 2.4" compilation in France, and on October 25 of the same year the track appeared on "Annie Mac Presents 2011" in the UK (listed as "BTSU").
On March 30, 2012, Jai Paul uploaded a new demo titled "Jasmine (Demo)" to his SoundCloud page. The demo was given an official release via XL on April 9, 2012. Pitchfork named it “Best New Track” within an hour of its appearance on Paul’s Soundcloud page, where it clocked over 500,000 plays within a month. On April 2, "Jasmine (Demo)" was played on BBC Radio One by Zane Lowe, who chose it as his Next Hype Track. On April 9, Annie Mac named it her Record of the Week. "Jasmine (Demo)" received universal critical acclaim in the media, with The New York Times praising its “Prince era sensuality” and The Guardian simply describing the production as “amazing.”
There has been media speculation about Paul's background and motivation, as he has remained out of the public eye. The British publication Clash commented on Jai’s mysteriousness, saying “Hype is a fascinating commodity. Where some quickly melt down the attention for liquid purpose, promising talent Jai Paul removed all his music from MySpace and went to get his shit together”. XL Recordings founder and owner Richard Russell acknowledged Paul's unpredictability, saying, "Jai is a wizard...the way he's going about things is, I think for many, baffling. But...he's going about things in the most Jai Paul way you could possibly go about things. And who knows where that may lead."
On April 14th, 2013, an unknown user leaked a number of his unfinished tracks on Bandcamp as a self-titled project. The leak is believed to have come a misplaced burned CD, according to Jai, himself. The music press would soon report on this release and would publicize the release as his debut album. Because of this, the album leak would end up on two year end lists by both The Guardian and Pitchfork, as the 28th and the 20th best album of 2013, respectably, as well Pitchfork's 2014 "The 100 Best Albums of the Decade So Far" list at 99. The music press would also call into account if the release was orchestrated by Jai and his record label, XL. The leak would deal a heavy blow to Jai personally, and following a City Of London police investigation into finding those reasonable for the leak and refunding the money from sales of the album from their PayPal accounts, Jai would find it hard to deal with those in the public and the media who believed his was the one behind the leak, and would be in his words, the main reason he felt a "loss of trust" and why he "withdrew from life in general" for a few years. In the meantime, Jai and his brother, A.K. Paul, would launch the Paul Institute in 2016, where he would work on the production for some of its single releases.
It wouldn't be until 2019 following "therapy of various kinds", that he felt it was time for him to return to music and officially release the unfinished music that was leaked 6 years earlier. On June 1st, 2019, Jai and XL Recordings would officially release the leaked album under the title "Leak 04-13 (Bait Ones)" alongside the 'double B-side' "Do You Love Her Now" / "He". The release of the album also came with a letter from Jai in which he addressed the leak and his hiatus from music. Following its official release, the album would included in Pitchfork's "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s" list, as the 95th best album of the decade, and Jai provided miscellaneous production on Childish Gambino's song "Time" off his "3.15.20" album. Reissues of "BTSTU" and "Jasmine" on vinyl followed suit.
In 2023, the world was again shocked as Paul announced his intentions to debut his catalogue at Coachella. After his critically acclaimed set, "Leak 04-13 (Bait Ones)" was released on vinyl for the first time. Paul followed suit with a number of band-backed live performances internationally, as well as supporting Paul Institute creative Fabiana Palladino on the 2023 single "I Care".
100000
Jai Paul Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tell me where you got this from
Why? Because it's mine and, my, I've missed it so long
Oh, I know you don't really know what it is
I've spent a hundred thousand light years on this
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
I'll be a
Are you gonna go with me?
But, no, you were scared, and scared is all you will be
Whoa-oh-oh, when you think you know where I've been
A hundred thousand light years to see
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
I'll be a
Are you gonna go with me? (Tell me where you got this from)
But, no, you were scared, and scared is all you will be
(Why? Because it's mine and, my, I've missed it so long)
Woah-oh-oh, when you think you know where I've been (oh, I know you don't really know what it is)
A hundred thousand light years to see (I've spent a hundred thousand light years on this)
And when you think you know what I know (I'll be a hundred thousand light years away)
A hundred thousand light years to go (I've spent a hundred thousand light years on this)
I'll be (oh)
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away (oh)
Hundred thousand light years away
Yeah, I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
I'll be a (oh) hundred thousand (woo!) light years away
I'll be a
Tell me where you got this from
Why? Because it's mine and, my, I've missed it so long
Oh, I know you don't really know what it is
I've spent a hundred thousand light years on this
I'll be a (yeah)
The lyrics of "100000" by Jai Paul suggest that the singer has created something very significant and unique, which has been missing from his life for a very long time. He confronts someone, asking them where they got it from, insinuating that it was taken from him. The person doesn't really seem to understand what they have, and the singer laments that he has spent a hundred thousand light years working on this creation.
The singer then invites the person to come with him, but they refuse, too scared to follow him. The singer implies that this fear is all they will ever feel. He then talks about how the person thinks they know where he's been, but he has actually traveled a hundred thousand light years to see and create what he has. The final verses reiterate that he will be a hundred thousand light years away and that he has spent a hundred thousand light years on this creation.
The song could be interpreted in different ways, but one possible interpretation is that the singer has created an artistic work or an invention that has been stolen from him. He is frustrated that someone seems to have taken credit for his work, or maybe profit from it, while he has been deprived of it. He has invested a lot of time and effort into this creation, and his passion for it is reflected in the repeated phrase "I've spent a hundred thousand light years on this". Overall, the song appears to express the feeling of loss and the desire to reclaim something that is rightfully his.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, oh
The singer expresses an emotion of surprise or astonishment
Tell me where you got this from
The singer is requesting to know the source of something
Why? Because it's mine and, my, I've missed it so long
The singer is explaining the personal significance of something and how long it has been gone
Oh, I know you don't really know what it is
The singer recognizes that the listener does not understand the true value of something
I've spent a hundred thousand light years on this
The singer has devoted a significant amount of time and effort into something
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
The singer plans to distance themselves from the current situation
I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
The singer repeats their desire to distance themselves from the current situation
I'll be a
The singer leaves this sentence open-ended or unfinished
Are you gonna go with me?
The singer is asking if the listener will accompany them on their journey
But, no, you were scared, and scared is all you will be
The listener declined the offer, likely due to fear, and the singer believes this is a reflection of their personality
Whoa-oh-oh, when you think you know where I've been
The singer thinks the listener presumes to know their experiences
A hundred thousand light years to see
The singer emphasizes how far they have traveled to gain knowledge and understanding
And when you think you know what I know
The singer thinks the listener overestimates their shared knowledge and understanding
A hundred thousand light years to go
The singer emphasizes how much further they have to go to reach true understanding
I'll be (oh)
The singer leaves this sentence open-ended or unfinished
Hundred thousand light years away
The singer repeats the distance they plan to put between themselves and the current situation
Yeah, I'll be a hundred thousand light years away
The singer repeats their desire to distance themselves from the current situation
I'll be a (oh) hundred thousand (woo!) light years away
The singer leaves this sentence open-ended or unfinished
I'll be
The singer leaves this sentence open-ended or unfinished
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Jai Paul
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind