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".
chix
Jai Paul Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm always on the scene
Your time and your company
Let me get you home with me
You, you can help me
Your time and your company
Let me get you home with me
The lyrics of Jai Paul's song Chix are somewhat ambiguous, but they convey a certain feeling of loneliness and a desire for connection. The singer says that he doesn't understand what the other person means, but he is always on the scene, which could mean that he is always around but feels disconnected from others. He then mentions how the other person's time and company could help him, indicating that he is looking for someone to share his time with and create a meaningful connection.
The chorus of the song, "Let me get you home with me," reinforces the idea that the singer wants to bring the other person closer to him, perhaps in a physical sense. However, it could also imply that he wants to create a deeper emotional connection with someone and that he needs this connection to overcome his loneliness. The song ends without really resolving these emotions or providing any concrete answers, leaving the listener to interpret the meaning in their own way.
Overall, the lyrics of Chix are open to interpretation and can be seen as expressing various forms of longing and desire for human connection.
Line by Line Meaning
I don't know what you mean
I am unclear about your intentions and desires
I'm always on the scene
I am constantly present and aware
Your time and your company
I desire to spend time with you and enjoy your presence
Let me get you home with me
I would like to take you to my home and potentially engage in intimate activities
You, you can help me
I believe that you can assist me in fulfilling my desires
Your time and your company
I continue to desire to spend time with you and enjoy your presence
Let me get you home with me
My desire for intimacy with you remains and I hope to take you back to my home.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Jai Paul
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind