Jovonn
Label: Kult Records
Artists Genre: Dance
JOVONN JOVONN
True lover of House Music have been familiar
with the name Jovonn for some time now.
Back in 1991, the dance scene was rocked by “TURN
and Runway” on Warner Bros. records; which
was only Jovonn’s second release.
Inspired by the work of Strafe, whose infamous “Set
it off” featured keyboards by Jovonn,
helped shape his future career. He
went on to produce such hits as “Love
so special” by Ceybil Jeffries, which he also
sang background vocals; “Step into my life”
by Valarie Johnston,”Flutes”, “Be Free”, and
countless others. “Satisfied”, released by Kult
Records was the beginning of a string of
underground hits on the Kult imprint. The
follow up to the great "Satisfied", entitled
“Better Love”, featured a newly discovered
vocalist, Kristine, was a Sound Factory Bar
stomper as well as the third KULT Jovon
penned anthem by Tanisha entitled " I am a
lover". A native of Brooklyn, New York; Jovonn, who is
32 years old, has been active in the music
scene since the age of 10. supported by his
mother, a keyboard player; and father, a
guitar/bass player, who were aspiring R&B
singers; he was nurtured with a solid musical
foundation. Originally, a hip hop DJ, Jovonn
spun records at block parties, birthday celebrations
and other various social events; which
shaped his musically appreciation. He
brought his first stereo at age 14, and was introduced
to house music by hanging out in
such Brooklyn clubs as Sapphires, Club Saturn, and
Club Serene. In his later years, Manhattan clubs
such as the Loft, the Choice, and
Snobbusters, solidified his commitment to dance music.
Jovonn’s creative mind is always conjuring up
new material all the time. Just as a
dancer practices has moves during everyday tacks;
Jovonn's hands can be seen playing an
imaginary keyboard where ever he goes. Most of the
time, he carries with him a
micro-recorder to lay down ideas that arise
daily. His basic work habits usually starts by putting
down the chords first; then working
on the drum tracks, and finally the bassline.
Ultimately, filling the song with the
necessary additional parts until it’s ready
for the final mixdown. His studio is located in
Brooklyn and consists of a full midi
setup with an 8-track analog recorder which he uses
for vocals only; for that tight, compressed
sound. Jovonn feels that dance music
is very mush like gospel because for a vocalist; you
can feel free to express can be as creative
as you want to be. Unlike most house music
producers, Jovonn has an uncanny knack for
finding an discovering new singers and
songwriters. He usually finds them by hanging out in
the clubs, or the streets; singing a
popular song to themselves. Then after finding
out whether they sing professionally, he sets up a
session in the studio to see what
comes out. Being a musician, songwriter, singer, and a
producer; Jovonn has made some observations
on the New York club scene presently.
Due to lack of support the NY nightclub at large, not
playing the wide variety of house music as
they do aboard; it seems now that only progressive,
even bordering techno sounding music is
being played. Which laves out Deep house,
Garage and vocal house music. This situation is
further fueled by the lack of radio
airplay which only features dance music mixshows
at wee hours in the morning on the weekend .
Jovonn hopes that with supportive
labels and gives them the visibility they deserve;
demand for house will increase at home, and
more venue will present a wider view of dance
music in the future
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