J. Phoenix
“Authentic, that’s the genre,” says ASCAP award-winning and Dove Award-nominated songwriter and vocalist J. Phoenix when asked about his music. He is not being facetious. He’s serious. Every lyric and ever melody comes from some place deep inside his soul leading him to create the type of songs that are cherished for decades.
J. Phoenix has been compared to Jill Scott, Anthony Hamilton and Eric Benet. Great compliments, but his sound is all his own. Music journalist, Brian Cogan described him this way: “He is by no means a soul singer in the traditional sense. While trace elements of Al Green and Sam Cooke can be detected on the Geiger counter, there is just as much craft as a typical Disney show tune, somehow funneled through Seal.”
J. Phoenix is a singer and songwriter who does not snugly fit into a particular category. The genre-defying scope of his music—recorded by others, featured in films and on his album, and some still sitting on the shelf—is impossible to pigeonhole. Check it. He is the same man who wrote contemporary Gospel group Anointed’s Dove Award-nominated “Adore You,” Tupac’s mega hit “Thugz Mansion,” and Joe's R&B hit "All That I Am" from the platinum-selling album of the same title. He is the same writer who penned “Whatever It Takes,” featured in From Justin To Kelly and “Be Around,” featured in The Brothers. While the diversity speaks volumes, what’s most impressive is the precision he brings to each song. Yes, the variety is astounding, but the more time spent listening to his catalog the less disparate he appears. It is here that the J. Phoenix-specific language that unites a love ballad to a message song to a Hip Hop hook becomes clear.
In an industry that insists artists stay in their lane, it is ironic that there’s a term for songs that reach far beyond the intended audience—crossover. Well J. Phoenix has a term for his artistic presentation as well—authentic. “Look at it this way,” he says seriously, “no one feels exactly the same all the time. I know I don’t. So, as a writer, my melodies and lyrics reflect different moods and different sensibilities. That’s what makes the music authentic. It’s about being country and city, rockin’ and laid back, soulful and mainstream.” What also makes his music authentic is the response of others. Take for example his song “I Fall So Deep,” featured in the film B.A.P.S., several fledgling filmmakers on YouTube have used it to illustrate their personal stories. Jazz vocalist Eloise Laws, country vocalist Patrik Michael, British pop artist Gary Barlow, and R&B group ELO have all recorded the song.
During his career his songs have also been recorded by legendary jazz vocalist Nancy Wilson, Michelle Wright, one of Canada's premier artists, renowned jazz guitarist George Benson, hitmakers Earth, Wind & Fire and Randy Brecker and artists in the Phillipines, and Korea.
J. Phoenix songs have been heard on television shows in Australia, Great Britain, Canada, Sweden and Taiwan, and on tell-all television shows in the U.S. such as E! True Hollywood Story, Revealed, Access Hollywood, and Facing Fame. In 2006 he was heard, along with American Idol, Bo Bice, in a commercial campaign for Hasbro's Monopoly™ board game; and in 2007 he was featured on a Tupac album for the second time.
In the vernacular of his peers J. Phoenix is gangsta. “I had to make a decision and a move,” he states emphatically. “It became real clear to me that getting my career to where I want it is on me.” So in 2008, with his hustle all the way on and his eyes keenly focused on his paper, he incorporated his publishing company, From The Soul Music, and independently released his 13-song debut album, MASTERPIECE to great reviews.