JERUB, 'Feel It': A Powerful Message

22-year-old artist JERUB manifests raw emotion through his new single, ‘Feel It’, paying homage to Black Lives Matter as he pushes for antiracism while simultaneously adding his voice to the growing movement of peace and equality.

Throughout his captivating performance, JERUB demonstrates fluidity and control in his soothing tone and RnB/alt-Pop sound. ‘Feel It’ stands out from his catalogue as it goes beyond an expressive ballad; his heartfelt penmanship reinforces the pain of seeing Black men unfairly portrayed as ‘dangerous’ and ‘unimportant in mainstream media’ meanwhile conveying an honest and therapeutic message - ‘no one can tell you how to feel about the things that hurt you’.

Accompanied by powerful production, we sense a rising tension of call and response between music and words, until the listener is ultimately hit by a passionate explosion of release in the second chorus. Here the words ‘Help me, help me feel it’ feel like an overwhelming ‘declaration of freedom’. He adds, “it’s me saying that I’m not waiting to be given permission to feel it...I can give myself that permission and I hope listeners will hear this song and give themselves permission to feel what they feel."

Since debuting in April 2019 with ‘Paint Me in Gold’, the Nottingham emerging artist has received high praise from BBC6 Music to Dean Jackson. Read more about JERUB below:

JERUBS INTERVIEW:

I understand your song was made in inspiration of Black Lives Matter in 2020. What made you choose this specific topic as your debut release?

For me and for many others, the death of George Flyod was incredibly difficult to process. I sat down with a friend to write a song and this topic was what spilled out in attempt to process. When processing, I realised that as a black man living in the UK, I couldn’t turn a blind eye to the killing of someone like me in a different country, it would be more comfortable to do so and as a society we often chose our comfort over feeling the pain and hurt that others feel. We don’t have to understand it all but we can make a decision not to ignore it and choose comfort but choose to ‘Feel It’. And I love that although this song is written from my perspective, its words are dynamic and can apply to human.

How would you describe your creative process during lockdown and what was going through your mind as you wrote music?

Lockdown definitely had its ups and downs when it came to creating. I had many moments of creative energy and motivation and had many blips also. But like everyone, I got used to writing songs over zoom and doing online gigs in front of my camera. I just wanted to do the best I could with what I had and I was grateful that I could still do what I loved.

What do you think you can bring to the industry as an emerging artist?

There are so many amazing and talented artists out there and I am such a fan of music, I want to do it for as long as possible. I just love to write songs that are real, that have come from a genuine place. My true aim is to connect with people’s hearts.

Who are your influences and who would you like to collaborate with?

I grew up listening to a lot of different music. I started singing in a choir so listened to a lot of gospel. I listened to lots of singer-songwriters like Ed-Sheeran and Adele but also love the old soulful voices like Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding and Bill Withers. In addition, I listened to a bit of hip-hop, Kanye, Chance The Rapper, Kendrick, so a bunch of different stuff. There are so many people I would love to collaborate with. Adele, Alicia Keys, Ed Sheeran, Jon Bellion.

What are your future plans as an artist?

I’m looking forward to releasing more music this year, more regularly. Hoping to put out my first project also. I love playing live music and really connecting with people so as soon as we can, I can’t wait to do some more gigs and a few festivals.