JON B  (February 2007) | Interview By: Yash

   

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Interview was done in 2006

Questions Asked By: Yash

Jon B Gave Dubcnn.com A Shoutout! Check That Here

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Dubcnn: How you been man?

I’m chillin man everything's good in my life you know I can’t complain.


Dubcnn: We tried to get at you last year but it never happened so I’m so happy that we finally got hold of you. Where you at right now?

I’m at Pasadena California and it’s a nice day today man. *laughs*


Dubcnn: At what age did you start singing?

I started singing right around like when I was 8 or 9 years old


Dubcnn: Damn that’s young.

Well yeah man I had a natural thing for music.


Dubcnn: Do you have any musicians in your family?

Actually yeah, my whole family is musicians. My mother is a concert pianist and she teaches piano as well, I want to big my sister up of course The Large Street Cortet so people can check that out and also my brother Kevin is in the music business.


Dubcnn: Your whole family is into it that’s great man.

Yeah man.


Dubcnn: When did you feel like damn they really love my music and this is what I was born to do?

I was trying to imitate the songs that I would here on the radio and I would like play them on the piano and I would take and redo the rhythm.


Dubcnn: Who did you look up too when you were that young? Like who was it you saw on TV and you were like I want to be like them?

You know the earliest performance I can remember was the Bee Gees. *laughs* I mean as a kid you got to love the Bee Gees and then later on Michael Jackson.


Dubcnn: What have you been up too these past few years?

For the last 5 years I put out like 5 records.


Dubcnn: No I mean the recent years because you’ve been gone for a year and we haven’t heard from you.

Well you know a lot of people say that but not everybody knows what a publicist is and to determine how an artist is to be exposed and get him that proper exposure, because I had an album that came out last October.


Dubcnn: Yeah I was going to talk to you about that one because some fans emailed me from Spain saying that Sanctuary Music really did a bad job promoting your album over there, because they had De La Soul’s record released over there but they didn’t put your album out there.

Yeah it ain’t no secret that Sanctuary had problems you know.


Dubcnn: So what’s your label situation right now?

The new situation is Back 2 Love and we’re also dropping a Christmas album in December and this is the first time I’ve been moved to do something really spiritual like that.


Dubcnn: That’s kind of what we need right now I think.

Yeah it is, it’s a positive release man. I’m an advocate for peace and I ain’t got no problems doing a Christmas record man.


Dubcnn: Did you handle the production on that or did you bring in outside producers to help you out?

Actually I did all the production myself.


Dubcnn: That’s real dope because you do some real hot producing.

Bro I appreciate that.


Dubcnn: You know I heard you had a fire in your studio did you lose any important material?

I lost everything brother. Man I lost every single musical item I owned since I was 12 so it was a huge loss man. But you know God works in mysterious ways man. Now I’m full circle man I’m standing here and I still got my health I have a new studio now. Then I did some last minute bangers and threw in some last minute bangers like “Don’t Talk” and it ended up being the first single and it’s one of the most successful records I’ve had.


Dubcnn: Let’s talk about your album that’s coming out after this Christmas album called “Back 2 Love”. Will you handle the production on there too or do you have anybody else producing?

Well the Christmas album I did all of it myself and that was a record I did so the whole family could listen from beginning to the end and there wouldn’t be nothing provocative lyrics.

As for the album I’m putting out later I had some help because R&B is not R&B anymore it’s like Hip-Hop R&B so you really have to keep your ears close to the streets and what’s going on in the world so my boy Javon helped me out with that. And I’m also excited to say that I did a record with Paul Wall.


Dubcnn: You know you did some songs with Beenie Man. Would you consider doing a whole reggae track?

Actually I would love to do that. I love to play the drums and play reggae rhythms. I like listening to like House really soulful House music but nothing to corny you know what I mean?


Dubcnn: Yeah

I love a lot of rock music too man like The Killers and Duran Duran. It’s all kinds of music that I get into.


Dubcnn: Who have you learned the most from in the industry?

Babyface is probably the mogul of my career. Me being an amateur and he being a real professional. You know I met him at age 18 and he gave me my start man, he opened the doors of the industry for me. What a way to be welcomed… you know having someone of his status behind you.


Dubcnn: You know everybody knows you worked with Pac. Tell us how you hooked up with Pac and how did you get him on your album?

Well Pac and I had actually mutual friends. I went to my boy’s studio And he’s like “Pac listened to your shit” and I’m like “no way man that’s hot!”

So he put Pac on the phone and he was like we shooting a video why don’t you come down..That was a banging single at the time and they were shooting a video to it so I was like alright and went down there. I met homeboy and he was cool man he was really cool. Tupac’s wild man but he’s such a respectful cat he made sure to let everyone know that it’s all respect even if he was wilding out. I mean I watched him not only write and record “R You Still Down” but he knocked out at least 2 or 3 songs a day.


Dubcnn: Yeah everybody says that.

Yeah so you know for me it was a huge honour.


Dubcnn: Where were you when you first heard that Pac got shot in Vegas?

I was in the UK. I will never forget it because I was in this cathedral that was turned into a studio and I actually knew that he been shot but we were waiting and hoping to see him recover.

I remember we were in the studio talking about the future and he told me “Jon don’t ever waste your talent brother just keep doing your thing.” We spent like a few hours in the studio and there were all these Death Row cats in the studio and I’m like we did our work man I’m bout to be out and he’s like “you leaving already? Alright man but listen don’t waste your talent” and I was like “word.”


Dubcnn: What do you think of people remaking Tupac’s work like remixing it and adding people to the songs?

Well I mean Tupac is in a better place right now and I’m sure he’s smiling down knowing that people want to hear his voice. I don’t see it as being anything negative it’s to hold up the essence of his legacy.


Dubcnn: You also worked with another legend that has past away. How was it working with ODB?

You know actually the experience with ODB wasn’t as personal because I wasn’t there when he recorded his verse so I never actually got too see him record it. But it’s an honour to be on that record because he’s like shouting me out on the beginning of that record and I was like “Ah shit!” Because I was a huge ODB fan.

I’m so great full for all these opportunities that I’ve been blessed with.


Dubcnn: And we love the stuff you do with West Coast artists. For example that track you did with Kurupt was crazy!

There you go. Thank you man, yeah big up my man Kurupt too. That “Sunshine” joint was hot.


Dubcnn: Will you work with him again?

Oh yeah we gone do it... listen man I really don’t have much more time right now.


Dubcnn: It’s okay bro thank you for talking to us.

No problem man it was my pleasure.