Jumaine Anderson Walcott is a young US-based Guyanese singer who is aiming to take the musical world by storm.
Singing under the name Jay Anderson, he recently released two new hits “Do It The Way I Wanna” and “My Life”.
“I think a lot about what my purpose in this life is and what I will do with the time I have here,” he told The Scene in an interview.
“I want to become a musician because I intend on using it as a tool to have an impact on as many lives as I can, especially on the people from where I am from. I want to be an example to them that no matter where you’re from or who you are; any dream is possible, no matter how big that dream is. I want immortality, in the sense that when I do depart from this life, my music will forever live on and I will live through that and through the people that took the road that I travelled on.”
Born on the Essequibo Coast on November 13, 1991, he moved to New York at a very young age but said the years lived in Guyana contribute greatly to his musical influence. He considers himself growing up in both New York and Guyana and being that he is only 21, he knows he still has some more growing up to do. “I predict a few other places and cultures will add to where I grew up when I am finished growing up,” he said.
His family is very supportive of his path in music and Jay considers his family as part of the foundation in the career that he is building. His cousin Leon ‘LT’ Thomas is his producer. He mentioned that his cousin understands his sound and they have a parallel vision.
When asked when he became interested in music he said, “Some-times I feel as though music became interested in me.” He related that music had always been a part of him ever since he was about seven years old. He performed at every concert at his primary school (Queenstown Pri-mary) and he even wrote a poem when he was age 13 and turned it into a song.
“And from there it became an ongoing pro-gress in my strong writing skills and before I knew it, it took me into these luxurious studios in New York City,” he said.
What encourages him to pursue his musical career is the passion of wanting to make sure he leaves a legacy that will inspire children to dream big and pursue their dreams. He said knowing his influence now, he will inspire others to take on their own paths and ignore how rough the road might be. “It leaves a comforting feel to me and this is what motivates me the most, power of inspiration,” he said.
In the music world, he draws inspiration from greats like Bob Marley, Beres Hammond and Jah Cure.
Although he is associated with hip hop, Jay said he does not have one preferable genre of music. He generally enjoys all types and he would never put a limit on his creativity. His songs are about his take on different angles of life. “With my music,” he said, “I intend on making my listeners smile, cry and be entertained. My concepts are very broad and my listeners will experience the diversity in my sound.”
When asked where he sees himself as an artist in five years, he said that he cannot really say because where he wants to be in the next five years he might very well be in the next two. He went on to say that he always gives himself a shorter time bracket than five years to do huge things.
He feels he has already accomplished something with his music as it has brought him some amount of attention from important people over the years.
Jay is currently studying law at New York’s Mercy College. Along with being a musician he intends on completing his studies and to have his law degree in due time.
He is currently recording more songs and will be releasing them when he feels “the time is right”.
Over the years, he has performed in Guyana and the United States but live performances have been limited due to school schedules, but he promises that once he has that degree under his belt, he will be doing more of that more often and on bigger stages.
