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MUSICAL BIOGRAPHYJon Jay (D’Original) - is a creative and results oriented sales and marketing professional that specializes in all aspects of the music industry. As an entrepreneur and a pioneer in Canadian Hip Hop as a fan, artist, manager, label owner and promoter I seek the most talented and driven individuals to work with and develop.I come from parents that both enjoyed music immensely and worked within the industry in both management and concert promotion. Most notable was the Maple Leaf Ballroom that staged U2 for the first time in Canada when Bono was only 17. The Legacy of the Ballroom throughout the 1960's, 70's and 80's cemented a foothold within Toronto for my family. The success of the Ballroom launched a large travel agency and tour company, many of the first official Irish Pubs and restaurants and even chartered the first Ward Air commercial flight at Pearson International airport in Toronto. Need less to say this type of success is a benchmark I strive for in all I endeavor.This creative energy was the spark that fueled my passion for entertainment and music. I was hungry and in love with all genres of music from the age of 3. I performed in my first talent show at age 10 and did a cover of Run Dmc's "Hard Times". In the same show I covered as Nikki Sixx of Motley Crew in Highway to Hell. I was diverse and my eclectic side began to shine. As a high energy young man I fell in love with Break dancing which exploded within the Hip Hop Culture when I was also 10 and I was hooked to this high energy and awesome art form. This brought me in contact with the Legendary BBoy Crew Flip Rock in the west end of Toronto. I performed small talent shows and in street to many old school rhythms and early 80’s dance beats including my favorite by Shannon Let the Music Play. I come along way since the days of Graffiti and Bboying and by age 13 I was an addict for anything Hip Hop. Many were clueless to this new art form but I was one that was ready to display skills I embraced as my own as a DJ and BBoy.The saga continues in my first year of high school where I attended the infamous T.L. Kennedy S.S. in Mississauga located in a densely populated section of the city better known as the Valleys. This tightly woven neighborhood became the stomping grounds for Jon*Jay as a basketball player/enthusiast and Hip Hop DJ and promoter under the name All the Mix. Both ball and rap were my passions and I quickly started developing both at age 14. Childhood friend named Brian Lopez who I later introduced to another good friend Mark Gagnon were both DJ Purists and had exceptional talents for mixing and scratching records. I found out quickly my skills were stronger in business and focused on booking gigs and assisting Mark Gagnon better known as DJ Starting from Scratch. At TL Kennedy I took in my first hip hop show by a local legendary group called 2 Versatile and again I was hooked deeper into the culture of Hip Hop and began composing ruff songs and free styling anywhere I could over early mix tapes created by both Scratch and myself. Notoriety quickly was spreading by word of mouth and self promotion to all areas within the GTA. This is when I began showcasing these mix tapes at basketball tournaments and games I competed in and at local clubs in Toronto. The feedback even in 1988-1990 was overwhelmingly positive and many from this era are still reminiscent of these early glory days. A beautiful thang!!!An overactive child in a ruff childhood led me to go deeper into my passions of music as an escape from increasing family pressures socially and financially and my songwriting was charged with emotional and crowd rocking lyrics I performed at school talent shows and local clubs from Scarborough to Hamilton under the group name Connect Four. This was a unique 2 emcee and 2 dancer hip hop group that was heavily influenced by east coast rap of Rakim, LL Cool J., Big Daddy Kane and Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth. Local influences were all MC’s that were doing great Hip Hop in these early days such as 2 versatile, Maestro, Main Source and Prime and Spark. They’re many more but I’m trying to keep this condensed. As an artist and business man I did all our bookings and management. This is where I quickly gained experience into how the record industry worked as you would normally find me at Two Tone Studios with Alex Greggs, Beat Factory and in Scratch’s basement practicing my craft and getting brought up to date on the hottest records of the day. This lifestyle I couldn’t shake, nor did I want to. At 17, I met Frank Morell who was also a T. L Alumni. Frank went on to win a nationwide rap off with Starting from Scratch at the tables and were granted the illustrious record Deal to then Capital Records now EMI recordings. This is where I again was able to watch closely at how the music industry worked as my friends were in the thick of the Canadian Urban Music Scene. This contact helped my underground group of Connect Four construct new relationships with industry big wigs at the time to book our group for shows with Pete Rock and House of Pain.As a student of Hip Hop from its glory days embracing and excelling at all aspects of the culture the 1990’s were a time of reconstruction and a launch of Skill Shack Studios by Frank Morell. I was quickly gathering artists to be produced by a new producer/ rapper by the name of Tekniq (formally known as Frank Morell). Keeping it Real philosophy kept our sound strictly underground and rooted in true lyricism and sparse beats better known by KRS as the boom bap style of Hip Hop. Always frequenting local jams and clubs to keep an ear to the street we developed a network that would lead up to the launch of our independent Record Label of Paradox Records. As part owner and creative director/artist/manager/agent/promoter – slash slash slash…. (Anyone who knows how to start up on a shoestring budget knows how to multitask and wear many hats). Although the budget wasn’t that tight as we had a 35mm video( at the time only major artists had this quality of film in their video’s) in medium rotation on Much Music directed by Jeremy Benning of Black Walk Productions Film Studios and a nationwide tour that brought us to Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa, Montreal, Pittsburg PA. and Dominican Republic. Frequent College radio play gained us instant underground respect by DJ. “X” and DJ. Mastermind.( more legendary figure heads of Hip Hop In Canada ) This groundwork established a foothold for our 6 track EP titled “We Getz Live” which showcased the lyrical and production skills of Tekniq. A notable performance was the Official Tekniq record release at the Original and Famous Bamboo Night Club on Queen Street in the TDOT where we ripped the stage for the camera and were featured on a Much Music Special that included the Queens bridge native Pharaoh Monch. We sold over 12000 units in Canada through the now defunct distribution company of St. Clair Distribution, Local Record Pools, HMV, Sam’s, Play de Record and Starsound. Not to mention the dedicated friends that hustled the EP hand to hand that made up the Paradox street team. Out the trunk was our embraced philosophy!Without the desire to change our format and some creative differences with the owners, Paradox Records came to an end in 2001 and spawned two streams. One was a Producer in Tekniq and one was my path (Jon* Jay) as a manager for future artists produced most notable was the former Juno award winner Carlito of Cloud 9 records. Managing the project of Carlito in the inception was a success as 3 tracks from the project simultaneously played on Flow 93.5. This was the first independent rap artist to do this on Toronto’s first urban commercial radio station. With the hit “Asi Como Mi”, “Just like Me” featuring Maestro and “Play On” featuring R&B crooner Carlos Morgan – the Carlito project quickly gained momentum in the Canadian Urban Music Landscape. After various shows and independent label struggles the Carlito project ended in 2003.Music went to the backburner but not the fire inside. I was tired of the industry politics and lack of originality and concept I stepped aside for 3 years. Still recording the odd track for myself and frequenting Toronto hotspots I was back to lab so to speak in hopes of recreating a company that could encompass all I had learned and loved to date in music. Keeping in touch with local producers and artists I was researching how I could be effective once again and create a company with longevity and success.To chalk all the positive feedback and accolades of past works including successes and failures up to experience, Success in 2007 is imminent and will bring to light a new concept and company – again independently owed and managed rightfully named (PARADOXX GLOBAL ENTERTAINMENT). This company will encompass aspects of an A& R department, production house, an events company, and marketing and promotion company. With the ever changing music industry in this digital music era where Majors are watching the decline in CD purchases by over 50% in the past 5 years – I see the opportunity for ‘real and artistic flare’ to continue to make a resurgence in today’s popular music.I am currently looking to connect with talented artists and from all genres including producers, singers, rappers, DJ’s, musicians and songwriters for shows, collaborations, and all aspects of Artist Development and Promotion. I am also interested in connecting with individuals in related industries of film and fashion including: actors, actresses, models, graphic designers, distributors, club and concert promoters, talent agencies, production companies and other artist management teams.
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