Jai Paul is a British songwriter and record producer from Rayners Lane, Uni… Read Full Bio ↴Jai Paul is a British songwriter and record producer from Rayners Lane, United Kingdom. He is signed to XL Recordings.

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".

Jasmine
Jai Paul Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Are you with me, Jasmine?
Can you let me in?
Would you love me open?
Like a bottle of Gin
Jasmine
Is it 'cause I scheme?
Is it 'cause I knew?
She got the Jasmine

Moving it quickly past me
Jasmine
Jasmine

When I see you, Jasmine
What's a boy to do?
Please come back to me
Make my dream come true

'Cause when it comes to heartbreak
What's a guy to do?
When I'm close to her
Make my dream come true
Jasmine, yeah
Jasmine

Can I meet ya Friday?
Saturday? If it's your day?
I must be a real dream
'Cause it's all for me
Is it good without me?
Is it pulling in?
'Cause I think I'm wrong
'Cause you're thinking of me

When I see you, Jasmine
What's a boy to do?
Please come back to me
Make my dream come true

'Cause when it comes to heartbreak
What's a little boy to do?
When I'm close to her
Make my dream come true
When I see ya, Jasmine
I know what you're thinking
You look down on me
Don't you think I'm cool?

When it comes to heartbreak
I don't wanna feel this way
Just go come back to me, baby
Make my dream come true

Make my dream come true
Make my dream come true

Overall Meaning

The song "Jasmine" by Jai Paul revolves around a man who is longing for a woman named Jasmine. He asks her if she is with him and wonders whether she will let him in. He compares her to a bottle of gin, which suggests that he wants her to open up to him and reveal her true self. The repetition of her name in the chorus highlights his infatuation with her and his desire for her to come back to him and make his dream come true.

The second verse is more melancholic, as the man reflects on his heartbreak and wonders what he can do to win Jasmine over. He is willing to meet her any day of the week and believes that he must be a dream because she is all he can think about. He questions whether Jasmine is better off without him and admits that he may have been wrong in the past. The tone of the song is bittersweet and highlights the tension between the man's desire for Jasmine and his fear of rejection.

Line by Line Meaning

Are you with me, Jasmine?
Is there a possibility for a connection between us, Jasmine?

Can you let me in?
Are you willing to let me in emotionally, Jasmine?

Would you love me open?
Would you allow yourself to be vulnerable and love me, Jasmine?

Like a bottle of Gin
With the same intoxicating effect as gin does, Jasmine.

Is it 'cause I scheme?
Is the reason you're hesitant because you think I have ulterior motives, Jasmine?

Is it 'cause I knew?
Is it because I already know you, Jasmine?

She got the Jasmine
She possesses the essence of what you are, Jasmine.

Moving it quickly past me
Dismissing me and moving on too quickly, Jasmine.

When I see you, Jasmine
Every time I lay eyes on you, Jasmine.

What's a boy to do?
How do I handle the emotions you stir in me, Jasmine?

Please come back to me
Return to me, Jasmine.