Jahan Nostra

An interview by Bennett Kelly.

Jahan Nostra is a veteran hip-hop artist dedicated to spotlighting the history and range of the genre. With conscious lyrics and soulful beats, he’s drawn inspiration from the early era of essential hip hop while staying current from the mainstream to the independent and underground. 

“Essence” in his mind is the core, authentic hip hop and rap from when the genre was first ushered in, which indie rockers tend to also appreciate. “Usually when you have people that like rock, they also love the underground, independent hip hop,” Nostra said. “True essence hip hop,” in particular, is a combination of jazz, rock, soul, bebop, all intertwined together with hip-hop beats.

Here, he speaks with Look At My Records! reporter Bennett Kelly about celebrating fifty years of hip hop, the musical and artistic craft behind his new album Violet Skies, and his thoughts on J. Cole, John Lennon, vinyl records and much more.

BK: The birthday of hip hop is later this year, August 11, 1973. 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx. You've been to that site, right? What's it like being there?

JN: Man, it's great. When I was a kid, I lived in Mount Vernon a couple of years before I came to Connecticut. So I'm from the city, too, and the Bronx is right there. So, I've been by there many times. That was a place where Kool Herc, who is the Godfather of hip hop, had a party. It was a house party that he DJ’d, along with the other people were there. And that was when hip hop really got sparked and kind of blew up, and people came and they rocked out, and they had a great time. And I’ve heard they were being shut out from the system and a lot of the parties and stuff, and disco was going on, there were a lot of things they just couldn't get to. So they started doing their own parties. They basically started to be like, okay, well, the club is pushing back on us. We're a youth, we’re this and that, we're going to start doing our own parties. So hip hop has always been positive.

And Sedgwick Avenue is where it started. That's really the genesis of everything. And I had to kind of study that like a student, had to get my college on with that. I was a part of a group for a while. I'm more independent now, but I learned a lot from a lot of my friends in the Zulu Nation, which was an organization a while back that just was dedicated to hip hop and learning the culture and understanding it, which also a lot of its prominent members were some of the founders in hip hop as well. And a lot of artists, probably my age especially, they don't even know that. Some of them don't even know who Kool Herc was. Snoop Dogg had a guy come up to him at a club and the dude was like, “Yo Snoop you’re straight, but I don't know about this guy.” And Snoop was with Kool Herc. And he was like, “Are you crazy?! This is the guy who started hip hop! He coming in with me, get out of here." And that's kind of the situation where we live in today (laughs). Fifty years of hip hop celebrates people like him, Kool Herc, and he's the one behind that party.

So, yeah, it was dope to go there. Now with 50 years of hip hop, you got Fotografsika and all these places I've been going to lately in New York that are paying homage to hip hop. But when you go to the Bronx and you go by the area, it’s very nostalgic. It was low income, it was tough streets and stuff like that. But it's very much something that really helped me learn. 

BK: How are you participating in the 50-year celebration? You just released this album, but what else are you looking forward to this year

JN: I'm looking forward to a lot, man. Mass Appeal, which is a company owned by Nas, has collaborated to put together a great exhibit. They're having different events every month, every week. Last week I went to the Lyricist Lounge dedication with a guy named Danny Castro. Lyricist Lounge started 30 years ago and it basically gave birth to greats like Mos Def, Talib Kweli. The guy that everybody knows is Eminem. Marshall Mathers. Marshall started with the Lyricist Lounge. I mean, he had done a lot of underground rap battles and the Rap Olympics and everything to get him on. Matter of fact, I saw some throwback footage of him at the event with the Lyricist Lounge at the Fotografsika place in Manhattan. So he's one of the big stars that came out of Lyricist Lounge.

So, I went and I was celebrating the 30-year anniversary when they paid homage to Danny Castro and his partner. They basically started, they were young, like 17, 16, and they were promoters and they were going in these places like Latin Quarters and stuff like that. It was crazy what they were doing because they were doing what Kool Herc were doing. But they were young doing that with all these young artists from Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Marshall Mathers. They did shows with Big E, they did shows with, I mean, Fat Joe, all these hip hop legends. 

BK: The Hip Hop Museum is getting built in the Bronx too.

JN: Yeah, yeah the Universal Hip Hop Museum is opening, and it's flourishing, and everything's good. Everything you spend at these events, every dollar that people spend is going towards building that up. So what I'm doing is just playing my part by going to a lot of these events for people that maybe don't know about hip hop or maybe just want to know the background or their understanding of where it came from. A whole exhibit going on where you have portraits from famous hip hop photographers, hip hop moments, all this great stuff in the museum, exhibits, all types of different events. Each and every one of these are historical tributes with certain people that are still alive. I mean, hip-hop is only 50 years old and has had such impact on the world. 

These guys are older than me from their fifties, forties. And they kind of set up a lot of stuff for the culture, what we call for the culture. And a lot of people have gone on to the industry of music, which is rap, and hip hop, which is totally different. Hip-hop is a culture. Rap is like a part of it, and it's obviously a big part of the culture. When you think about somebody like an Eminem or a Snoop Dog, these guys have ascended to be their top representatives. But there are so many people on a grassroots level that I'd walk on the street and know that I know a lot of people wouldn't that I'd go up to and be like, “Hey, how are you doing? I know you did this, you did that.” Because I've kind of also been a historian as well, and I have a little bit of art appreciation. We even got to teach that in high school, right, and in college. Because a lot of people, not everybody has this art appreciation. For me, I'm thinking of Kool Herc, and I'm putting them on the same level.

Snoop Dogg does that as well. But there are a lot of people that have cultivated different participation. I've just been studying so much stuff. It's pretty built. There are so many aspects. There's the graffiti, the DJ, the MC and the B-boy, and then there's knowledge. Those are the five elements of hip hop, to put it in perspective. And I really have been learning like everybody else, but I'm a little more into it probably because so many people I just knew or went to seminars and stuff like that.

BK: Here's a question for you. We're at 50 years of hip-hop. You started out in the ‘90s when you were signed as a teenager. As an artist yourself, do you draw more from the first 25 years or the last 25?

JN: Wow, man, that's a great question. You know, this is kind of cliche, but I would really say both. But if I had to pick one, it would probably be the last 25. Only because… you think I pull from the essence more, right?

BK: Yeah.

JN: People would think that, but I'm also about building. I like to call mine “essence updated.” Right? So in December ‘21, somebody did a write-up on us, and they described us as very reflective of our forefathers but very rooted in today. This is what they're analyzing of Violet Skies. And I was like, okay, that's pretty dope. I mean, I think a lot of people consider that we do old school because I guess you have so many different subjects, like trap, mumble, rap, all this stuff. But to me, it's all the same thing. I mean, you look at Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. I mean, you can't get on Young Thug, because Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, they were doing the same thing. It was about the melody, you know what I'm saying? Or Twista, there's a lot of artists that were, quote-unquote, came with a new delivery and a new style. You know what I mean? If you look at something that's now, no idea is original, right? There's nothing new under the sun. It's been done before. It's been done before, but they just redo it, so I would say… Would you think I would answer the first 25?

BK: I was gonna guess the first 25 if you had to pick one. Because of the true essence stuff and, some other things, working with Rakim’s son Tahmell and featuring him.

JN: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I can't throw that out either because I guess because I'm still involved in it and I'm still fairly young, but I do hear that because a lot of people are like, “You must really pull from the old school.” And you could say that, too, but the reason I say the last 25 is because, I mean, we’re in 2023. So you got to figure, like, when I did “The Ultimate,” you know, I was 13, so 25 years ago would be like ‘99, ‘98. And I was young, but I was active. I was so out there. So I did catch the wave of a lot of that 2000 early stuff and beyond. But I think I do pull a lot more from the Essence. So I think that's good because we're in 2023, last 25 years would be ‘99, ‘98. And there's a lot of artists, Dead Prez, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, so many, there's more than that, that came out at that time period or the other ones, or even the big ones like a J. Cole or Snoop or Nas. Better yet, Nas. ‘99 Nas came out with I Am… These are the building blocks, too, of more or less who I am because of my age.

But the older artists I had to go back on. I did fall in love with some of their stuff more. So I guess it is kind of both. But it's an interesting question. That's interesting that you see that, too, because I think a lot of people would say that.

BK: Are there any contemporary artists where you listen and you're like, oh, I gotta capture some of that in my own stuff? Any favorites?

JN: I think I do. Or maybe there are artists that are like me, and I'm not sure I necessarily want to bite them, but I feel like they inspire me. And that's J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Big Sean.

BK: How about kind of underground, too?

JN: In the underground? I don't know, it's funny because I don't know what underground is anymore, because the way the ‘gram and everything is, it almost makes it an equal playing field somewhat. Because to me, underground used to be like “I came up on a mixtape.” I get it, you're not mainstream. But now, if you're putting out so much work... Music is very underground to me, it just means independent, you know what I mean? And not getting that much play for radio, but what is radio today? So it's so interesting. But to answer, yeah, I would say, like RJ Payne, Ché Noir. But some people wouldn't consider her underground, you know what I mean? J. Cole, you're right, because J. Cole and Big Sean, they're more commercial than Ché is.

But the thing is, all these artists that I just mentioned have all kept an integrity to themselves. They're not going to be the one-hit wonders. They're people that actually have a passion for the culture and the music. So I would say now, some that are like real underground. My man DeeJay Samps on WXDU. He has a radio station show called Street Flava Mixshow, and he plays a lot of artists that I really like on the independent scene. And I look at all of them to get actual names of every single one. But then there's a lot of people that are just progressively kind of doing both sides, pulling a legend. There are a lot of different people that are progressing and keeping the integrity to where it's on point, you know what I mean? And on the cusp.

A lot of the new artists on the New Jersey scene, a lot of artists on the Connecticut scene, there are ones like these all over the place now. I’m open to everything. I'm discovering a lot of them, and I'm trying to be like, I'll put this on, like, Curt Cohiba, who's on my album, he's on “Picture Frames,” late twenties guy, you know what I'm saying? He's from Chicago. He I guess would be considered underground, but the dude has a voice from heaven, you know what I'm saying? And dope, dope as hell. So there are so many on that level because I work with a lot of those. There might be somebody nobody ever heard of. And I'll be like, Yo, here it is. I love introducing here comes somebody new. And then I also work with somebody like Masta Ace, who's a thirty-year veteran who's on Violet Skies as well, you know what I'm saying? Forty-year veteran from the Juice Crew and is like a godfather in hip hop. So it's so interesting to me to kind of pinpoint it and break it down. 

I still think of J. Cole. Even though J. Cole had an enormous amount of success, I actually think now he's more underground with the style, the way he rocks, than he was before. You don't see him doing the workout songs anymore. He's doing songs when he does records now where he's spitting bars, and he's kind of doing what he wanted to do because he already did that. He was able to do that, and now his integrity is carrying him off. And he's from North Carolina, where I went to school, so double whammy.

BK: Yeah, it’s like you’ve had success, now you can be more independent in a creative sense.

JN: Exactly. That's why I think the game is changing, because I think in the 2000s, you're right about the last 25 years in the business, since the business had a clutch on things because you had to have them budgets. But now if you blow up a little something, you could just go back to doing what you love. Which is something that you're into, like you're really into the Jersey scene, whether it's rock or hip hop. You're into the independent and you like writing about that. And that's the mood because you have all these emerging artists, which is great, and some people will say that's the best times. But I think in today's world you can stay stuck in that mode creatively a little more. Because if you get one or two hits and they blow up and they're on soundtracks and they’re on commercials and this and that, and if you have a little bit of a fan base. I think what J. Cole did, you cater to his fan base. If you have a fan base of people, then you're going to carry them on their back anywhere they go. You know what I'm saying? Anywhere they go.

BK: So let’s talk about the album now, Violet Skies. Track four is “Dedication,” and that music video has already won awards at festivals. But you mixed it up. You added another collaborator. What went into mixing it up for the album, why did you do it? 

JN: Masta Ace, the guy I added humbly, he's it. He’s certified dedication. That goes back to my hip-hop history. And that's why that's almost like a 50 years of hip hop type of single, type of thing. Because Masta Ace started with the legendary Juice Crew. I think his first opportunity about like ‘89 or something. He's similar to Nas. Everybody's going to know someone like Nas, but here’s someone's good. I mean, Masta Ace, many people will consider him underground. He's had a thirty-year-plus career. He had his time when he was on the radio in the ‘90s. But then he consistently went in this whole vibe where he put out all of these dope independent records that enabled him to tour, where he's got albums with [producer] Marco Polo. He's got all these great albums, and his consistency, he just embodied dedication. I've met him a couple of times on the scene, just doing certain shows. I'm all about authenticity and if you know hip hop, and people that know know, and in my craft, in my field, he is phenomenal in that sense. 

I got up with him and asked him, can we maybe get a feature going? I'm sure he gets that a million more times. And I wasn't sure if he's going to like a record or whatever, but “Dedication” is him. So I added him because I feel like he embodied that. And luckily he liked the song and he did the verse. I couldn't believe it. I sent it to him, I took a shot at it. I didn't know. But you miss 100% of the shots you don't take, right? So we did that. He liked the record, we talked a little bit, and did everything on what he wanted to go over. And of course, he's a business, major veteran. So, you know, nothing is nothing. You know, we did a little something. I worked that out. So he got what he needed and he got on the record and killed. Like I said, he's the epitome of “Dedication.” He's like an underground legend. He's an independent legend, period. All around. Thanks.

You also have Tahmell on “Dedication,” Rakim’s son. Rakim is arguably, some people will say, the best, he's always mentioned like in the top three or two or one, if not one all the time, that's Rakim. He basically inspired Nas, and so many people. So you have Rakim. Rakim’s son Tahmell, I came up with. We grew up together. A lot of people don't know that, so there's a hip-hop fact for you right there. So you have Tahmell on that, then you have REKS, who’s been put on by Statik Selektah. He's got production by DJ Premier. He’s another one people may consider underground, but all these guys are on the cusp. They've got mainstream success in the sense of hip-hop. They're well respected and they pretty much have accomplished. So when you have Masta Ace, go back to production and change “Dedication,” he's like the cherry on top of everything because he has more years than all of us.

BK: So from “Dedication,” which is about being dedicated to your craft, as an artist or whatever a person's craft is, you go from “Dedication” and then “Huge,” which the line in there is that “Violet is the color of creativity.” So I feel like those are the two themes of this album, dedication to the craft and then staying creative as well. And then “Picture Frames.” I really like another line in there, “Hell of a year didn't think I'd survive, lost my job, never lost my drive.” So that one stood out to me. Were you going through any personal troubles for that, while staying dedicated, creative?

JN: I was out for a little while. I had like five months of unemployment, but I had to collect for a little while, believe it or not. But I rebounded, you know what I'm saying? It ended up being a lot of good stuff, you know what I mean? It enabled me to just be out there and really do everything full time. On this album, I'm talking about a lot of the things that have been going on and in my own way and no matter what, I'm going to be creative through it.

BK: Seven of the nine songs on the album feature collaborators. And I'm wondering, is that one of the joys of putting an album together, or one of the challenges to find the right mix of all that? And sometimes you don't take the first verse in the song, you give the first verse to someone else. So I'm kind of wondering about your process on all that?

JN: Yeah, that's a great question. It's funny because well, the thing is, I always try to do things I haven't done before. That's what everybody kind of does. If you look at my album, Sleepwalking, and even before that, the Bedtime EP, I was very independent, meaning that it was primarily me and a lot of the producers. Different things with hooks, and I collaborated mostly with singers or different things on occasion, but I didn't overdo it. But music and an album and a project is a puzzle. And ESP, which came out in 2016, there were a lot more all around great things. And then one thing about me is I do work well with people. So that's a good question. I think how it works is with this album, you're right, violet, the color of creativity is one of the big themes, and dedication is a big thing, especially as we approach 50 years of hip hop. So it's like, in my craft now, how do I make this great for everybody? And what am I aiming for? We can learn from everybody and everybody can learn from each other. And this is what hip-hop does, man. Hip-hop is a great thing, it's a beautiful thing.

BK: Last two. There's a Record Store Day coming up in April, and my two-part question to you is one, do you have a record player? 

JN: Yeah, I have one. I have one Technics turntable. I have two, actually.

BK: In your record collection, if you had to whittle it down to one record, what would it be?

JN: Abbey Road.

BK: Wow. Why?

JN: That's funny, right? It's kind of weird. So people would think maybe like, Sugar Hill Gang or something. I got all of those, too. But I learned about the Beatles young. I watched “Yellow Submarine” when I was like five or six. My dad was a big Beatles fan, too. Stevie Wonder is my favorite artist, you know what I mean? But you said a vinyl record. Yeah, to me, let me tell you, my standards for a vinyl, it's not only about… For instance, Violet Skies, I think might surpass it because it's my own. But the way I did Violet Skies, I think about the covid, the storyline, and the album as a whole. Like, when you make an album and when you look at that Abbey Road cover and then you match the music up, it's like the Beatles were making a soundtrack to where they were from, and then nobody knew. And it's just overall, the actual record made you want to buy it, too, you know what I mean? So I think when you can combine those things, the visual, the music, the music being great, and have a story behind it, and you got it on one vinyl. You're not creating no album, you're creating an experience.

Violet Skies, for me, I mean, you look at it, look at the cover, like there's a whole story with it, you know what I'm saying? Abbey Road did that, man. The Beatles, they did that on that album, you know what I mean? But I'm just saying, like, down to a science, man. That was dope. I thought that was built.

BK: That’s a great answer. I’m a huge Beatle dork. You got a favorite Beatle?

JN: Yeah. Lennon is the man. Especially after splitting off from Paul, because when he started writing “Imagine” and all that shit, he really was an artist. And he was revolutionary, too. He was more genuine when he left it, because the Beatles were like, poppy. When you're in a group, you got to work like a tribe with somebody. You got to work with somebody, and you have to be able to compromise certain things. And I think there were times like, you know, they both were the primary songwriters, Paul McCartney, of course, and John. So I could tell what songs John led the way with, and I could tell the songs Paul led the way with. I like them both, but I'm just saying I'm more of John Lennon as well. I like his depth of writing. I'm saying Paul does it, but what made it great was the combination. Paul could write you a radio hit now, quick. Yeah, but Lennon could do both. 

Listen, you want to talk about music, and this is where I'm different. You know, I'm hip hop, but I'm very musical. I watched the movie “Yellow Submarine.” I mean, what kid does? I mean, “Yellow Submarine” from like, seven years old to ten, eleven. I watched it all the time. And like, who listens to the Beatles [in hip hop?] I'm a fairly young guy still, but you got to know your history. Yeah, trust me, I'm on my Kanye in a sense of I'm way more than just the music. The music is great. We all know that's the main thing. But I'm all about the whole all-around joint, and I think I'm a creative all around, and that's why I try to work with other people, and I go broke trying to make great art, period. Somebody said it to me. Somebody out there was like, “Yo, salute to you, man. I'm glad to be a part of this.” Violet Skies. You see that cover? That cover, it's popping to me. And it's popping just where the Beatles are just walking on Abbey Road. How it's, it's just art, man. 

BK: Are you going to put Violet Skies out on vinyl, you mentioned?

JN: Definitely. I'm waiting now because I'm picking the right company that I want to fuck with. I'm going to be honest. You know what I mean? Because that cover has got to look. I already see like a little mockup to how it would look on an album, it looks awesome. I can't wait to get it. I'll get it out to Jersey so we can have it as Spina, man. Yeah, I'm definitely going to do it, you know what I mean? I'm going to do it. Vinyl is still moving. Vinyl is crazy right now. When I go to Canada, I go to Paul's Boutique and 180g. These are vinyl stores. People are still spending money on vinyl, man. You know what I mean? I'm all for it. This time around, I'm gonna make sure. Violet Skies was made to be a vinyl, in my eyes, the way the cover is. But that's why I want the graphics to be dead right, because them joints gotta pop. I can't come half-ass, you know? So yeah, that's it, man.

BK: Thanks, Jahan. Any last message for the listeners, readers?

JN: When I say Violet Skies, I'm doing this for the creatives. I mean you, me, as many people. Many people are dedicated. Dedication goes beyond, it's a very broad subject matter. It's not as surface as people would think. It's like people think you call it Violet Skies because you like the color violet. It's like, no, violet is the color of creativity. And you think about the skies. It's coming from whatever you believe in, you know, God, or an entity or whatever, you are pulling some source of energy from the sky. So it really does have to do with creativity and how it services, where you get it from, inspiration, all that. And I wanted the art to match. I love the artwork. And it's graffiti, too, so it's still hip-hop, man. But the colors particularly, I think anybody would like it. And it's definitely for the creatives, you know what I'm saying? So I get excited just thinking about it. You know, if you see that cover and you don't want to listen to the album, you got a problem.

Violet Skies was released on Bandcamp and all streaming services on March 7.

Keep up with Nostra by following him on Instagram.