We are very excited to present to you our first Freshly Squeezed article. Today’s artist insight is focused on our very own, Jinx The Natural. You can catch him in some crispy GTCO gear as well. We’ve also attached the album artwork for his project, Gods Must Be Crazy, which is releasing on August 31st. Check out our interview we did with him below, conducted by Bernie Niyonzima aka Ori. Excuse our language, we forgot to filter ourselves this time around. Photos by Alana Kittilsen.
Ori: So you’re from St.Louis, how did you end up in the Chi?
Jinx: I go to Columbia college and I major in acting.
Ori: Very dope, are you still pursuing acting?
Jinx: Music is going well now so I’m gonna continue to work this lane.
Ori: Haha fair. Who are some of your biggest influences in fashion?
Jinx: Fashion? Ti$a by Taz Arnold, Marc Jacobs, I fuck Kid Cudi, He’s a big inspiration as far as grunge goes, and I gotta say Kanye and A$AP.
Ori: I can absolutely feel you!
Jinx: Oh shit, forreal the way I got into this whole shit was Street Etiquette.
Ori: True. So can you explain Higher Learning to us?
Jinx: Fosho, Higher learning is a group of people, a collective, a regime, fuckin conglomerate. We got Roy French as the front man of Higher Learning, then Black Raphael, he helped start Higher Learning and he’s the reason why were all together. Then myself, and AJ Peace, Dey, Latwon Jones, DJ earn Money, J- FLOW, Just John and many more.
Ori: damn, squad.
Jinx: (Laughs), yeah and if I’m missing anybody they know! But yeah were just a bunch of people who wanna rock under the same name, and just build something great you know what I’m saying? We all love music and we all came from the same background.
Ori: So how did you link with Roy (French)?
Jinx: I got off the bus to come to chicago or what not, and I had on some fuckin like Wiz Khalifa starter kit. I don’t know if you know what that means but it’s like camo shorts, I had on some fuckin tube socks, some baseball ones, I had on the Ken Griffey’s that just came out and shit and like a super turquoise pullover (laughs).
Ori: (LAUGHING EMOJI)
Jinx: forreal, so he was like “DAMNNNN YOU FRESHHH AS FUCKKKK, I ROCK WITH YOU” and he said the thing he liked the most was my socks, and you could see now, like all he be rocking is tube socks, (laughs) I can see now that he was influenced by that. So I was like yeah I fuck with this dude and You Media was still poppin cause like everyone had just graduated from high school and shit so it was still super relevant.
Ori: Hell yeah that was the stain!
Jinx: So I would roll with like Ralph and Roy and I would see how they would perform, and it was only like 12 people in that bitch, but all 12 of them people reacted to their songs and new a lot of words to their songs, and I was just so impressed. The fucked up thing was I had to go up on after them. Since I was always rollin with them and buying weed I was like their lick or whatever (laughs). So they would be like yeah roll with us, roll with us, buy weed, buy weed. (laughs). Eventually they were like “yo you tryna preform”. of course I wanted to but my name was low on the list. They were like “Nah fuck that you’re going on now!”
Ori: That’s love, how’d it go?
Jinx: I was so fuckin nervous bro, I knew my music was good so I wasn’t worried but I was super nervous. Roy rocked with the performance as well, because for me to come up behind them after a live ass performance with 12 people and to still keep that energy was something he peeped.
Ori: I believe it. I remember the first time I watched you was at Splash Paradise! I didn’t know any of your songs yet but I was still along with the crowd going up! So there are rumors about you building a relationship with Twista, can you speak on that?
Jinx: Oh yeah, that shit is still in the works, Sonny woods is the connect between me and him, he’s his (Twista’s) DJ. He saw me at a show with St. Millie and came up too me showing a lot of love. So when they were chilling at Twista’s place Sonny threw on one of my songs and when it was over Twista was like “Hold up who was that?” and Sonny was “Oh thats jinx the natural” on some you haven’t heard type shit (laughs). So Twista runs the track back like 3 times then finally is like, “ok where’s dude at”. Sonny let’s him know I’m in chicago and had that Splash Paradise show coming up. So he comes through. but missed my performance. Eventually after a few more encounters with Sonny I finally got a text of this address like in the boondocks, just like forrest and mansions. We get to Twista’s crib and started laying down tracks and we’ve been working ever since.
Ori: Man thats crazy! Crazy how just having the right person hearing your music can turn into a priceless opportunity. The title of your newest project is called GMBC,(Gods Must Be Crazy). What was your inspiration or concept behind the title.
Jinx: At the time I was really influenced by (Kanye West and Jay Z’s) Watch the Throne, The Clipse, Yeezus had just came out, and and an artist under OVO, Jimmy Johnson. All of these artist had these really God influenced tapes. And it’s all about the energy you know what I’m saying? And I’m sitting in all these classes and we get into this race conversation and the movie “The Gods Must Be Crazy” came up.
Ori: Oh shit I love that movie, literally grew up on it. Super clown.
Jinx: Yeah, but there’s also that fucked up twist on it. The white people in the movie went to Africa but wouldn’t trust the black tour guide…FOR SHIT! And it just hit me so hard. The idea that “you can’t trust a nigga”. Then I started to see how the GBMC concept was working in my own experience in the music industry. Especially coming out of St. Louis and having a good amount of buzz off of a few videos and social media but still not really getting the looks I want or connections, like what the fuck, the gods must be crazy!
Ori: WOOOORD. Like what is that grind for? I got you. Well thank you for rocking with us. We see you making waves and excited for the future of Jinx the Natural.
FLEXIN’ VIDEO + HANDLE BARS AUDO FT. DALLY AUSTON ATTACHED BELOW.
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