While attending the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL, computer savvy Jacksonville native J Dash produced “The Wop” in his dorm room, a song which would go on to generate over a million views on YouTube and thousands of copycat videos. Now that he’s gained a fan base, he plans to take them on a journey beyond a dance gimmick. I see the Wop dance is gaining a lot of popularity – you’ve got NFL players doing it in the end zone as their celebration dance. How did you come up with the “Wop”? “The Wop” was just a dance me and my friends came up with when we were in college. We used to dance to other people’s music in the clubs, and everybody was like, “What is that dance?” We didn’t actually have a name for it. One of my friends said, “We need to make a song for this dance.” So I went back to my dorm room in college and made the beat and came up with the name for “The Wop.” I put the video out on YouTube and came back a few months later and there was a half a million views on the video. I know you wear a lot of different hats, so was it always your intent to be an artist? Or were you more behind the scenes and it was just something that happened? It’s always been my intention to be involved in music, but did I know I was going to be an artist? No. Did I know it was going to be “The Wop” that did it? No. But I love that it happened that way. I’m a producer first. I’m a musician, a producer, and I dabble in engineering. I’m a computer engineer, so I wear a lot of different hats. What are the pros and cons to coming from that background? Most rappers come from more of a street background, as opposed to computer engineering. I don’t really identify myself as a rapper. I’m a poet and an artist. But there is definitely pros and cons to it, as far as having that street cred. I’m a geek, I’m a nerd, so I don’t have that street background, but I just love music. I think there’s a lane for that. When it comes to street credibility, what saves me is that I have a lot of friends that have street credibility. So you don’t always have to have that background. There’s a lane for just good, fun music. The Kanyes, the Drakes. Do you think it’s true that you get more respect coming out of jail than graduating from college? I think that can be true in certain circles. A
lot of people are going to talk behind your back. The haters talk, but when you get in somebody’s face, it’s different. People respect different things. If you’re making money, sometimes they will respect you just for that. But I definitely think I have a fan base that enjoys my music no matter where I come from or where my background is. What did you gain from college that has helped you in the music business? I think I just have a wider perspective on business. I was exposed to a lot of things when I was in college, but I don’t think it makes me better than anybody else. I always work hard. I’ll be in the studio in Miami and drive back in the middle of the night so I can be in class at 9:00 in the morning. I wanted those things so bad. So it’s really not about a college degree, it’s all about what you’re exposing yourself to and the goals you’re setting. Coming out with a dance record like “The Wop,” are you concerned about getting people to take you seriously as an artist? How do you move past that gimmick? I’m not nervous about it at all, only because “The Wop” was something that was fun for me to do. Artists are so multi-dimensional that you can’t try to pigeonhole somebody into one thing. I can make dance records, but that’s not normally what I do. As long as you have your fan base’s attention and put out good music, it doesn’t really matter. But I think the fans are going to appreciate where I take them next. I’m excited more than nervous about it. I have a record called “Tabloid Truth” featuring Captain Carlito, the last member of Menudo. It’s such a deep record, it’s the realest song I’ve ever done. It’s a spiritual record and I’m excited for people to hear that because there’s a lot of soul in it. Are you still independent? I’m with an indie label called Stereofame. We’re doing it independent with no major label support. It’s like a partnership; a family. We’re just letting “The Wop” grab some more attention before we look at putting out an album. It just broke in the West Coast and got picked up by twenty Top 40 stations last week. I’ve been doing a lot of interviews and shows and just getting out there with the people. I think that’s what’s most important right now – touching the people and letting them see that I’m deeper than one dance track. // Twitter: @TheRealJDash Facebook: TheRealJDash Web: TheRealJDash.com
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