Today we’d like to introduce you to Jahah Berry
Hi Jahah, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
One day my friend Demetrius stopped by my house with a dual cassette player (we called them boomboxes), a Radio Shack microphone, and two cassette tapes. I had no idea what he was doing with all this stuff but I let him in and he said, “I wanna show you something fresh”, Fresh was the word for cool back then…
Demetrius plugged his cheap microphone into the boombox, popped a blank tape into one of the empty tape decks, and queued up the other tape with instrumentals in the second tape deck . He then pushed play and record simultaneously on the tape deck with the blank tape, and play on the tape deck with the instrumentals. Seconds later he started rhyming off the top of his head…rapping about everything around him and bragging about how incredible he was as an entertainer. After a few minutes, Demetrius stopped both tapes, rewound the the tape deck that had the blank tape and pressed play.
Wow! We were now listening to everything he just rapped about and it blew my mind! At the time I didn’t know it was even possible for me to record myself and hear my own voice on tape. In my adolescent mind, only celebrities and people on the radio had access to record themselves. As Biggie would say years later, “It was all a dream…”
As I reflect back on how I started making music, Demetrius was the catalyst and spark that influenced me to start writing raps. I wrote two corny little raps on this day with Demetrius and I’ve been at it ever since. As of 2024, writing songs and making music is simply a way of life for me. It’s what I do as an outlet to cope with whatever I’m going through.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No. Had I known what I know now, I may not have pursued being an artist/producer in the music business. The music business can be a very fickle world, engulfed by greedy people who prey on the young and gullible. Luckily for me, I’ve been protected by a Higher Power that hasn’t allow me to go down a dark hole.
I’ve been in rooms with the LA Reid’s, the Diddy’s, and other major label record executives. For whatever reason, my deals with some of these key players have always fell through. Stankonia (Outkast label) decided to go another direction. Noontime showed interest but never signed me, and I was working/producing for Coach K (Migos) before the Migos blew up.
At the end of the day, I took the independent route and ended up releasing a couple albums in Japan via the label DayTrack along with several features on Speech (from Arrested Development) EMI, Japan releases.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a producer/singer/songwriter from Atlanta. I specialize in making soul music (RnB) and focus on writing songs that come from the heart. I sing about love, relationships, breakups to make-ups and songs that hopefully empower people and raise their vibrations. I try to spread love through my music.
What sets me apart is that I will not waiver in regards to my message. When it’s all said and done, I do not have to be anyone but myself when I’m out and about. I do not have to play a role that is outside of who I really am…What you see and hear from Jahah is what you get in real life. No facades baby!
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
My mother and father deserve a lot of credit for who I am today. My parents have been divorced since I was a little kid but they’re two of my biggest influences in life. I’ve been blessed to have two parents who are driven and providers for me and my sister…they alone have been a great example because (though divorced) they set the tone with a strong work ethic. My parents haven’t ever let me go without the essentials.
Musically speaking, I consider Speech (of Arrested Development) my mentor. I met Speech when he was at the top of his game selling millions of records and receiving Grammy awards. Speech never made any promises but he definitely heard something in me and always kept his word. Speech is also one of the main reasons I had a deal in Japan and my affiliation with him opened up many other doors that allowed me to tour abroad.
Lastly, Alicia Moore aka P!nk. My girlfriend (at the time) Nique Heard introduced me to P!nk when she was signed to LaFace and in the female singing group Choice. P!nk and I hit it off and she was gracious enough to record a few songs with me before her debut album was released. What I learned from P!nk was that I had a singing voice as well. I wasn’t actually singing at the time (I was an emcee) but I would sing the hooks to songs I wanted P!nk to come in the studio and re-record. P!nk let me know I had potential as a singer and showed me how to stack and record background vocals. To this very day, I still use many of the techniques P!nk shared with me.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jahah_berry/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mamasonlyson/
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jahah
Image Credits
All Photos Shot by: Jason, Braxton, and Xavier Berry
