About two years ago, I attended Robert Glasper’s show at City Winery. It was my first time seeing him live, and I was excited! The show throughout the night was remarkable, as one would expect. Now, having seen him a second time at a different space, the show felt like a traditional jazz show. The main difference was that, among all of the musicians, Jahi Sundance had his turntable set up, not in the shadows, but as an instrumental player of the group. Little did I know that, following the show, I would receive a message from Robert asking how we could celebrate that same DJ’s birthday.

I coordinated with Robert and one of my favorite vinyl bars in the city to bring in some of my favorite DJs to spin throughout the evening. I even had a box of Trader Joe’s truffles with a card waiting for Jahi, only to learn that he was no stranger to these delicacies and that TJ’s is very much woven into his California identity. Since then, I’ve followed Jahi’s journey on Instagram, paying particular attention to his shower ratings as he travels to different hotels. If you know me, the only thing I care about in a hotel, and the main reason I bought my place, is the bathroom. That specific story highlight made me feel seen and understood, since many people prioritize the kitchen. But the shower is just as important.

Jahi’s dry sense of humor and banter on stage is not to minimize his craft, however. As I spoke with him over Zoom, I realized the intricacies of his relationship with music and his career. Growing up in a musical family with a saxophone-playing father, Jahi was no stranger to his house being flooded with jazz, which created the soundtrack of his adolescence. He mentioned in our interview that he was expected to pick up one musical instrument, and after trial and error with a few different ones, opted to follow in his father’s footsteps and learn the sax. As he got older, he focused his attention on DJing, feeling that it was honestly just younger and cooler. However, Jahi wanted to reshape the notion of DJing, ensuring he wouldn’t be left as an afterthought by opting to stay behind the decks. Instead, he cemented his role as a band member, ensuring his knowledge and mastery of the turntables would be felt, heard, and used as a quintessential element in every song.

In our interview, Jahi and I had a raw, open conversation about his upbringing, DJing, solo work, and much more. You can check out our interview below, where you’ll hear a slew of giggles, lost trains of thought, random tangents, and, as always, zero plan of action on my end. And Jahi followed along wonderfully, giving me what may be one of my favorite interviews.

As Jahi mentioned in the interview, he has a project streaming everywhere titled Love Isn’t Enough. The project is the first of a three piece series, with part two set to release later this year. Follow along with his socials to learn more about this release. A big thank you to Jahi for his vulnerability when addressing this project, as well as his advice for fellow artists. My version of his music is this blog, with each piece that I write being the most true version of myself. It can be daunting to release your work and your creativity, but there is at least one person that will resonate with it. What sat with me the most following the interview was when Jahi’s support system asked where he had been with all of this music and why it took so long for him to release it. In my opinion, time is relative, and it is never too late. If you think you waited too long to do something with your work, there are those around you who have been okay with waiting for it.

You can listen to Love Isn’t Enough below, and check out the music video that we reference as well.

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