Meet Jideobi Ezemonye | Creative
We had the good fortune of connecting with Jideobi Ezemonye and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Jideobi, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I pursued my creative career because I’ve always wanted to be a world builder. I’ve been making things for as long as I can remember, to be honest. It started off as making little videos using my iPad Mini and some toys that I had. I remember even making clothes for those characters to make them look different from just some regular plush toy. Almost as if they were like the main character of their own show or something. I also used to draw a lot and make a bunch of comic books around that time. I was genuinely always working on some type of creative project as a kid.
It wasn’t until around my senior year of high school that I even thought about making music, which is my “main career”. I remember listening to IGOR by Tyler, The Creator and being so fascinated by the sounds I was listening to. It was a perfect concept of what I loved in art: the clash between something beautiful and something that contrasts it. From that moment, I was interested in making music, but the idea of a career wasn’t fully there yet. My second year of college, a couple years later, was when I fully realized my love for creating, and my pursuit to make a living from it.
Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I just released this mixtape named TAILORMANN* on all music platforms. It’s 16 minutes of love, loss, and the ever-changing self-image. It’s raw, unapologetic, and concise. I talk about so much on that project, man. If you go on my social media and YouTube, there’s video content expanding the world of the album.
What sets me apart from others is that I want to make a world out of everything I make. I’m not trying to make just an album, a song, or a mixtape. I make visuals that go hand-in-hand with whatever I make. I want people to be fully embraced by the world that I make, almost as if they’re living in it. I view music from a more zoomed out perspective. To me, it’s not just about the sounds, but everything surrounding it as well. I intentionally build a world from the ground up for someone to explore. With that perspective, I think that sets me apart from others, even the bigs in the industry.
I’m so proud with the turnout of this project. Of course, it has its imperfections, but I think that’s what makes it perfect ironically. I have a really bad perfectionist mindset, so I know if I tried anymore to make this project any stronger than what it is, I would’ve definitely over-cooked it, and THAT would’ve been bad. I’m so happy with the reception it got too! It’s been super overwhelming, to be honest, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I’m still getting used to all of this, even though it’s at a relatively small amount. I was ecstatic to even see that I got 60 monthly listeners! Even getting this interview, was so shocking for me. It’s all so exciting, and I’m super thankful for it all.
I’m super proud of myself for getting this far because it was ANYTHING, but easy. The whole project was done while I was in college. I was studying IT, so I had to learn how to balance my time between two time-extensive activities. There were moments where right after spending hours doing coding homework, I opened up Logic (my preferred music software) and worked on some music. There were times where I would sacrifice class to finish a verse for a song, or would leave hangouts early to produce demos that would soon end up on the project. Literally on the night after my graduation, I finished mixing all the songs! I was super devoted to this project, man.
I learned so much not only about music, but myself. One of the biggest things I learned, was when to know when a project was FINISHED. The final version that everyone sees now was probably the second or third version of the mixtape. As stated earlier, I’m a perfectionist, so I was so dead set on trying to make the next Late Registration by Kanye or the next Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, albums that were in heavy rotation while making TAILORMANN* and albums that I genuinely see as perfect. This perfectionist mindset came to a point where I was even questioning my own skill as a creative. It wasn’t until my friend Ezra, who is also featured on track 3 of the mixtape, told me that it’s extremely hard to make a “perfect” album, ESPECIALLY on your first try. Additionally, he asked me, if the first album you made was perfect, then where do you go from there? Instead of chasing this false idea of a “perfect album”, I should ask myself “what am I trying to achieve with this project”. Once you fulfill whatever answer you get, your album is finished. That was the catalyst for me finishing the mixtape.
I want the world to know that I’m going to be regarded as one of the greats when it’s all said and done. I normally am a very humble person, but I have this burning passion to show people that I am a name that you won’t want to forget. It’s only up from here.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
To eat, I’d probably take them to Waffle House for breakfast, mainly because I’ve been going there a lot lately, then take them to BlossomTree for lunch. BlossomTree is this restaurant on my school’s campus that sells Korean food. It’s actually some of the best food I’ve had EVER. I don’t care what ANYONE says! Then for dinner, I’d hit up J.R. Crickets, SPECIFICALLY the original one. For places to visit, I’d go to Little Five Points. I think Little Five Points represents so much of the old Atlanta before it got gentrified. Plus, I love thrifting and buying physical media like CDs. I love that place so much. It’s the heart and soul of all Atlanta creatives.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Shoutout to my friend/fellow artist Ezra (artist name: Abenezra)! Without him, I don’t think my mixtape, TAILORMANN*, would’ve sounded anywhere close to what it is now. He taught me so much musically, and constantly picks my brain to challenge myself to become a better creative. I think everyone needs a person like that in their life.
Shoutout to my hometown friends Fred and Isaac. They helped me a lot with the visuals of the rollout. I struggle a lot with collaborating with other creatives, but they really made every shoot day, editing session, and conversation regarding the album seem so easy. Love those guys, for real. I really want to continue making more things with them and grow with them as creatives. It’ll be so crazy when we all get farther in our careers and we’re still working together. We’re gonna make a super team one day like the early 2010 Miami Heat, so watch out.
Shoutout music. It really saved my life.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jideobiezemonye/
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jideobiezemonye
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JIDEOBIEZEMONYE
Image Credits
Isaac Chery (idyllicshooter on Instagram)
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