Muhammad Abdul Jami

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Interview with Jami

Published on 11/7/2005

By Artistopia

Q. At what age did you realize you wanted to become a music artist and why? At the age of 7. Q. Most music artists have that special someone or thing that influenced their decision to do music. Did anyone or something in your life play a major role in influencing you to go into the music business? The influence of music in my life happened rather suddenly. I remember it now thinking back. In the 1st grade I found myself attracted to the first girl that took my heart every time I saw her. Her name was Sabrina and she was the energy that woke me up out of bed every morning to go to school. I did everything to get her attention and I played on the playground with her often. This effected me in a way that I started feeling music almost melodies in my mind. My first emotion for me would be to sing about her. I remember listen to George Michael’s “Freedom” on the bus ride back home from school one day and thinking that the chorus to the song wasn’t saying “Freedom” but “Sabrina” Her name filled my life and through her my music came into play. From there on I started singing and playing the Saxophone in the 2nd grade and I haven’t stopped. Q. In terms of the music, which major artist(s) influenced your style and why? Wow, there have been many. You can pick off some through my music especially the lightness of my voice. Artists include Savage Garden, Seal, Jamiroquai, Sevendust, Radiohead and Coldplay. I consider these artists very influential to modern music. I feel that they’ve forced us to listen to music in a different way and they pushed the boundaries and are their own artist which is what I am striving for. Q. With so many independent artists trying to make it, what makes you stand out from the competition? As an independent artist I have the ability to simply put music out and have others listen to it. They’ve liked it probably because I do all the production myself, at my desk, in my dorm room at Juniata College. I use 2 programs. FL Studio and Windows Sound Recorder. And I thank you Microsoft and Fruity Loops for two very impressive programs. Q. Music industry professionals are quick to say that being an artist means to gracefully fit a marketable niche in the industry. If you were offered an opportunity that asked you to be something you are not, would you do it to get your foot in the door? No. Q. Making music is one thing, selling it is another. What types of strategies do you use in promoting your artistic work and getting it heard by the proper professionals? I walk around with copies of my CD’s and I sell them on campus. Right now it gets me through the week. Very soon I will send it to the proper professionals when I get the contacts. Q. In regards to wheeling and dealing, how important do you feel business knowledge is to making it in an industry filled with much heartache? I am a performing arts Management major here at Juniata College and I think it's very important as an independent artist to have selling strategies and capabilities this is a very important aspect to the music industry and I think wheeling and dealing yourself to others is important. I actually want to share with you my very first heartache in performing. I was in NYC over the summer on an arts Management internship with a Dance company. Throughout that time I didn’t have a job and I was subjected to playing on the street for money. If I wasn’t playing on the street I was performing with other musicians in Washington Square Park. This was a great experience but I remember this one time I played with an old man that had a guitar and he was very friendly. I went and started to play with him and he started collecting money. Being that I had no money, I was wondering if he was going to split the money. 6 hours go by and it’s 2am in the morning and I’m in the park with no money at all. We finally stopped playing and he made 450.00. When he started off, he had little to nothing in his bucket, maybe like 5 dollars. I went to the bathroom in the park and then I came back to the spot where we were playing and he was gone. The feeling of hurt, despairity and hunger came over me. I’ve never felt such a feeling in my life. With no room for tears I decided to play on the street for money, you must understand something—this was 2am on a Monday night/Early Tuesday morning and I was 2 ½ hours away from home. I picked an empty corner I closed my eyes and started to play my saxophone. 15 minutes into playing a soulful sad solo, I was interrupted by a piercing light in my eyes…. NYPD was called onto the scene. They shined a light in my faced to signal me to stop playing. At this time I didn’t check how much I collected from playing in 15 minutes but I had no other choice but to quit or else I was in trouble with the law. I finally looked down into my small saxophone case and I was delighted to see that I collected 20.00 dollars in 15 minutes… I went home smiling. Q. Let's fast forward to 5 years from now. What advice would you offer to struggling independent artists? Keep going. Learn your style and learn about yourself, be persistent with the people that can help you attain your goal and true to yourself. Q. Most successful artists are involved in charitable organizations that stand for a cause that hits close to home. In that regard, once you reach success, what charitable cause(s) would you like to be involved in and why? The American Red Cross, My family because I come from a struggling family, and any Poverty fund that’s out there. Well, we thank you for taking the time to interview with us and certainly wish you the best in your music career endeavors. There you have it ladies and gentlemen, an inside look into the mind of an independent artist struggling to bring their hard work to fruition in an industry where perseverance and thick skin means survival. No one said it would be easy.



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Interview with Jami