Jay Electronica has yet to release a full-length album but has released two official singles to date, "Exhibit A" and "Exhibit C," which won a Sucker Free Summit Award for Instant Classic. His music so far has been made available through the internet, either through being leaked to what URB magazine describes as "obscure web forums", or through an appearing and disappearing MySpace page (currently two seem to be in existence, at /jayelect and at /jayelectronica). Erykah Badu has questioned whether he ever will release, in her words, "actual albums". From New Orleans, LA he has lived in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Denver, and Detroit, where he recorded his Style Wars-era music with several J Dilla beats, meeting the producer subsequently to ask for permission to use the recordings as a demo. Detroit is where Electronica met producer/engineer Mike "Chav" Chavarria, who introduced him to both J Dilla and Mr. Porter, and who is now a regular collaborator.
Jay Electronica first gained significant attention through Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge), made available on a MySpace page in 2007. It is 9:13 continuous minutes of music, without drums, built from Jon Brion's soundtrack to the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. There are five segments or movements, marked by changes in music and mood, raps by Electronica, and occasional snippets of sampled dialogue (children arguing in Kurdish, Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka). The first segment is spoken word by Just Blaze and Erykah Badu describing the artist over piano music. The nature of the piece of music, along with the nature of its appearance, led to a slow build-up of interest in Electronica as an enigmatic figure. Songs circulating online as the Style Wars EP gained wider circulation, and other songs, such as the dream-inspired "Dimethyltryptamine", soon appeared. In January 2008, Gilles Peterson's 90-minute Gilles Peterson Worldwide was devoted to the rapper. Hiphopdx.com in 2008 called him "arguably...the most talked about new emcee last year ... at times...more like a myth or urban legend than an actual rapper", and URB ran a cover story on the artist under the banner "Jay Electronica: A Spotless Mind:: An MC’s mystery revealed", which referred to his wanderings as his being "like some sort of hip-hop Jack Kerouac".
Jeff Weiss' piece for the L.A. Weekly, "Jay Electronica: Much Better Than His Name Would Suggest", acknowledged that the rapper could be fairly described as "one of the most buzzed about rappers of 2008", but attempted to temper the hype somewhat, describing Act 1... as "ambitious, wildly original, if not slightly pretentious", while endorsing only to an extent the comparisons URB had made (referencing an "abstract rhyming style") to rappers like Nas and Pharoahe Monch.
According to URB, Act II: Patents of Nobility will feature Nas, and will be the second of a putative trilogy. URB also reported that digital EPs with both Guilty Simpson and producer 9th Wonder were planned. His most recent music as of November 2008 is the Just Blaze-produced track "Exhibit A (Transformations)".
According to a Filter TV interview, Jay Electronica has partnered with Decon to release his debut project. It is being described as a multi-media release and footage from the project which was partially shot in Nepal and Dubai has begun to surface online. The first clip to leak is titled "Dear Moleskine" and can be found on YouTube, the track was produced by Just Blaze and the clip was directed by Jason Goldwatch from Decon. In June of 2009, Decon and Jay's "The Dogon Society" released "Exhibit A" digitally. "Exhibit C" was released on iTunes December 16, 2009 and quickly shot to the top 10 of the iTunes Hip-Hop charts. The following week it was chosen by Hot 97's DJ Enuff as the Heavy Hitter pick of the week. On February 9, 2010, it was announced Jay Electronica will appear at the 2010 Bonnaroo Music Festival. Further proof of the continuing buzz about this artist saw On Jay Electronica sell out 2 nights at the Jazz Cafe Jazz Café, London (UK) on Feb 17, 2010.
Jay Electronica continued his scattered release practice, dropping "A Million In The Morning" on April 4, 2010. The song features a weary Electronica trying to keep himself awake to escape his nightmares.
On April 30th, Jay Electronica debuted "The Ghost of Christopher Wallace" via his Twitter. The song features P Diddy and is produced by London beatsmith Quincey Tones, who is known for producing such acts as Young Jeezy and Royce da 5'9".
On 12th November 2010, Jay-Z announced that Jay Electronica was officially the newest member of his own 'Roc Nation' record label/management company, which boasts such acts as J. Cole and Willow Smith.
Jay has been travelling the world and was in London, United Kingdom for an extended period of time completing his debut album 'Act II: Patents of Nobility (The Turn)'.
Jay Electronica and Erykah Badu have a child together, a girl named Mars Merkaba, born on February 1, 2009.
Renaissance Man
Jay Electronica Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I know that you're afraid, you're afraid of us,
you're afraid of change. I don't know the future, I didn't come here to tell
you how this is going to end, I came here, to tell you how it's going to begin.
I'm going to hang up this phone, and then I'm going to show these people what you
don't want them to see. I'm going to show them a world...without you, a world without
rules and controls without borders or boundaries. A world...where anything is possible.
Where we go from there...is a choice I leave to you."
*Background = Marvin Gaye "God is Love" sample*
Jay Electronica :
Ladies and gentlemen, you are now tuned into the sounds of Jay Electronica
Please remove all coins chains keys and foreign objects from your pockets
We gonna have a good time tonight
Yeah....here we go...
Everybody told me to be patient
But who was sleepin from couch to couch and basement to basement
But Jay man
Satan trying to block my shine like Ray-Bans
Haters never wanna see you bubble
They rather to see you struggle
That's life my nigga
A lot of fakers in the place
Were invited to taste
And told me right to my face "Yeah thats tight my nigga"
"You reppin' that dirty south dog? Alright my nigga"
But they wouldnt lift a finger
To light the incent/incense or let the smoke linger
I ain't a hot boy but the flows jalapeno
I'm never yappin' bout how the calico'll lean ya
Magnolia crack soldier creepin' on the come up
My grandmother won't leave the fuckin' projects I gotta raise the slum up
These nerds at record labels played me dumb and dumber
So I showed the industry my asscrack like a plumber
Now ASCAP bangin' on my door like a drummer
The fall's 'bout to put a period on the summer
But back to the point
They wanna see me fucked up, kicks scuffed up
Laying back with a joint
They said good things come to those who wait
Well I don't know about that
And if you can't feel this rhyme then sorry jack
You don't know about rap
And if you don't know struggle you don't know about black
And I don't give a fuck what Bill Cosby said
'Cause the problem gon' exist when Bill Cosby's dead
And I don't think the revelation from the supreme beings
Residing or hiding out in Bill Cosby's head
This just the thoughts of a soldier
And if you don't like it play dead and roll over the game is so over
The reign is so over
Tone :
So over
And they call him Jay
Electronica
What you say
I'll monitor
I'm just so high
Off this guy
He's so hot
He's so hot
In Jay Electronica's "Renaissance Man," the lyrics start with a spoken-word intro from the character Neo in The Matrix. It sets the tone for the entire song, which is all about breaking free from the chains that society has placed on us. The other verses are about Jay's struggles and triumphs as an artist. He talks about how people told him to be patient, but he had to work hard to get where he is today. Satan, or the negative forces in the world, are always trying to bring him down, but he refuses to let them control him. He also talks about the struggle of being a black man in America and how he doesn't care what Bill Cosby says about the problems facing the black community, as they will persist long after he's gone.
Line by Line Meaning
Ladies and gentlemen, you are now tuned into the sounds of Jay Electronica
Attention everyone, you are about to listen to Jay Electronica's music
Please remove all coins chains keys and foreign objects from your pockets
Make sure you do not have any items in your pocket that might interfere with your listening experience
Everybody told me to be patient
People always told me to wait for success
But who was sleepin from couch to couch and basement to basement
Despite being homeless, I kept pursuing my dreams
But Jay man
But listen, my name is Jay
Satan trying to block my shine like Ray-Bans
The devil is trying to stop my success like dark sunglasses
Haters never wanna see you bubble
People who dislike you never want to see you succeed
That's life my nigga
That's just the way things are, my friend
A lot of fakers in the place
There are many insincere people here
Were invited to taste
They were allowed to attend
And told me right to my face "Yeah thats tight my nigga"
They complimented me to my face
"You reppin' that dirty south dog? Alright my nigga"
They asked about my hometown and were okay with it
But they wouldnt lift a finger
However, they never did anything to support me
To light the incent/incense or let the smoke linger
They were not even willing to light a piece of incense to create a relaxed atmosphere
I ain't a hot boy but the flows jalapeno
I’m not a drug dealer, but my rap lyrics are spicy hot
I'm never yappin' bout how the calico'll lean ya
I never rap about using guns to hurt anyone
Magnolia crack soldier creepin' on the come up
I’m a soldier from Magnolia housing development, rising up to success
My grandmother won't leave the fuckin' projects I gotta raise the slum up
My grandmother still lives in the poverty-stricken neighborhood and I must work hard to improve it
These nerds at record labels played me dumb and dumber
Record label executives treated me as naive and ignorant
So I showed the industry my asscrack like a plumber
I revealed the ugly truth about the music industry like a plumber shows a clog
Now ASCAP bangin' on my door like a drummer
The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers is now interested in my music and wants to work with me
The fall's 'bout to put a period on the summer
The end of summer is represented by fall, and it shows that everything comes to an end
But back to the point
But to return to my original idea
They wanna see me fucked up, kicks scuffed up
People want to see me fail, my shoes worn out
Laying back with a joint
Relaxing and smoking marijuana
They said good things come to those who wait
People say that patience pays off in the end
Well I don't know about that
I'm not sure if that's true
And if you can't feel this rhyme then sorry jack
If you don't understand my rap, I’m sorry
You don't know about rap
You don't truly understand rap music
And if you don't know struggle you don't know about black
If you have not experienced hardship, then you do not understand the struggles that black people face
And I don't give a fuck what Bill Cosby said
I don’t care about Bill Cosby's opinions
'Cause the problem gon' exist when Bill Cosby's dead
The issue will still exist even if Bill Cosby, a famous icon, died
And I don't think the revelation from the supreme beings
And I don’t believe in revelations that come from supreme gods
Residing or hiding out in Bill Cosby's head
That supposedly reside or hide in Bill Cosby's mind
This just the thoughts of a soldier
These are just the opinions of a military veteran
And if you don't like it play dead and roll over the game is so over
If you disagree with me, stop paying attention to me because the era of my music is coming to an end
The reign is so over
My era of power and influence is coming to a close
So over
It’s already ended
And they call him Jay
They refer to me as Jay
Electronica
My stage name is Electronica
What you say
What do you mean?
I'll monitor
I'll keep track of the situation
I'm just so high
I’m really enjoying myself
Off this guy
Because of Jay
He's so hot
He’s so talented
He's so hot
He’s so famous
Contributed by Isabella J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.