Detroit-bred, Los Angeles-based rapper/songwriter/guitarist/producer
Chris Jones a.k.a. Jonezen presents the LiForm Film &
Sound-directed video for “Tear The Club Up”, featuring Gucci Mane
and fellow Concore Entertainment artist Natalia Damini. Recently the
subject of an AllHipHop interview asking “Is Jonezen The Next
Eminem?” (read),
Jonezen is preparing for the release of Beautiful Disaster,
also set to feature appearances from Michele Wylen, Ashleigh Munn,
Micki Consiglio, Jordan Michael and Lauren Ashley as well as
production from Soundroll-Music, 2DEEP, Runaway Muzic, Adamack, Sinima
Beats, Kajmir Beats, Will Shine, Diamond Style Productions and Platinum
Sellers Beatz. Videos have already been released for Beautiful
Disaster cuts “Bombs Away” (watch), “Peep Game” (watch),
“Feels So Good” (watch) and “Do It Myself” (watch).
The winner of last year’s Los Angeles Music Awards for Best Hip-Hop
Artist, Jonezen has just been nominated for Hip Hop Artist and Solo
Performer of the Year for this year’s awards. Jonezen recently signed
with Concore/Universal, home to Brazilian singer Natalia
Damini, launched his VEVO channel (watch “Dedications” on VEVO), was featured in The Source
(read) and made the cover of
Ovaground Mogul Magazine (link). “This is an all-round banger,” Jonezen says. “It’s about to
be the record that takes me to the next level.”
How
did you hook up with Gucci Mane? What was the experience of being in
the studio with him like? Any interesting stories regarding the
experience to share?
I wish I could say that we kicked it and did the record but we didn’t.
Lots of features these days are done via email and that’s how we banged
this one out. His manager and my manager are boys so they just worked it
out between the two of them. They sent his
verse, we sent the beat to Natalia to do the hook, then I did my part
last. The song came out dope though and has a sound that the album was
missing and brings something to the project as a whole. So far the
response from the record has been great.
What
made you move to Los Angeles from your hometown of Detroit? How do you
like the city, particularly with regards to being a rapper?
I always wanted to live
in Cali so when I was 20 I threw my stuff in a car and drove out with
the crew. I think we had the classic “let’s move to Cali and do this
music thing” idea that lots of people have. For
us it worked out. When I started I was with a group called Outta
Control and we lived in South Lake Tahoe. We dropped our first album and
started booking our own shows around town. Before we knew it we were
selling places out and got picked up by the local
promoter up there and he had us opening for some big names. Tahoe got
too small so we left and moved to San Diego. Same story there – kept
grinding, booking shows and releasing music. In Diego I really bottomed
out. My drinking got to be terrible and it was
really affecting my relationships with the other guys in the group and
our focus in general. I moved to LA without the other members of my
group (still a member) with my girlfriend. I was trying to do anything
to change my situation. I thought moving would
help me regain focus and get control of my life. That wasn’t the case. I
really bottomed out in LA, went to rehab, and that’s where Jonezen was
born. I love being in LA. The city has treated me well. There’s lots of
competition, lots of people claiming they’re
in the business, lots of BS to weed through, but if you can rise to the
top and stay focused this is where it all happens. This is the
entertainment capital. Being able to win the LA Music Awards two years
in a row for Hip Hop Artist of the Year is a huge
accomplishment.
You’ve
been sober for quite some time following a long battle with alcohol.
How does this affect your day-to-day life particularly with regard to
being a rapper?
It doesn’t. Not
anymore. When I first got sober it was a concern. Not an issue – a
concern. I didn’t know who I was, period, let alone who I was going to
be as a sober rapper. I didn’t even think that was possible.
I had never once recorded a song sober until I went to rehab. Or
performed sober. Now it’s normal and I do it without thinking about it.
I’m in bars, clubs, venues all the time where people are drinking,
smoking weed and doing whatever else they do and it
doesn’t affect me. I do me, they do them, and we all get along. One
thing I struggle with is my image. What do I portray? And am I going to
alienate some of my fan base and lose fans because of things I do in
videos or talk about on record? I get fan mail
all the time from people saying I inspire them and that’s a huge honor.
But I am not out here to tell people what they should do with their
lives. I have lots of friends that drink, I go to the club with them, I
pour some drinks for people and I wonder how
that comes across to people who listen to my music because I am a sober
artist. So when they see me in scenes in a music video where I just
poured a drink for some girls I wonder how they will react. You know
what I mean? At the end of the day I just tell
my story on records and if people relate that’s dope. If they get
offended that I got a video where I pour some drinks then that’s on
them.
Tell me about your upcoming album
Beautiful Disaster.
Expect a classic. The early reviews on the
project have been crazy. The album has a little bit of everything. Lots
of different sounds, content, delivery and features. In my opinion
it really has it all. This is a REAL album. My last project was
Live From Rehab,
which I recorded in a treatment center. This album is the followup and
tells my story sense that point in my life. What’s happened, all the
feelings that go into having
to rediscover yourself as an artist, riding the success I’ve seen. It’s
retrospective and forward thinking at the same time. It’s got a lot of
heart and soul in it. There are only a couple songs that don’t really
have a point to them – that are just spitting
on some cocky “lets go hard on the beat”-type stuff. I’m excited to
drop the album and can’t wait for people to hear it. It was supposed to
drop in June of 14 but after signing with Concore we pushed it back so
the label could push a single through their network,
get this Gucci feature, and really just set everything up in a bigger
way.
What do you think the theme of your 2014 has been? What do you think 2015 holds for you?
The theme of ‘14 has been get set up for ‘15.
‘15 is going to be a huge year. We have a good team in place and lots
of moves that are being made. ‘14 was all about getting that setup.
I planned on releasing
Beautiful Disaster in ‘14 but pushed back
due to signing with Concore. It was all about promotion, establishing
myself in a bigger arena and getting things ready to release this album
the right way. “Tear The Club Up” is at radio
right now and doing well. Hoping that record really catches fire and
blows. If that happens you can look for me on the freshman cover and at
the Grammys.
