HCM. How did you come by your stage name?
DeJai. I’ve always gone by DJ which is a shortened way to say my real name .I changed the spelling to DeJai so people wouldn’t think I was a disc jockey.
HCM. When did you discover your love for music and what made you realize you wanted to pursuit a career in music?
DeJai. I discovered my love for music when I first heard Sam Cooke Sing. I knew I loved singing then, but I grew a love for hip hop listening to my dads music that he would make. Between my grandma and my dad I would say it really blossomed by 8 I would write books of music. I knew it was something I wanted to do for a living when I heard J Cole’s show me somethin’ for the first time.
HCM. On your current/upcoming album… How did you come up with the concept for this project?
DeJai. My most recent EP “Home Town Hero” is just a reflection of my world view of the current state of hip hop and our world as a whole. The album cover is a depiction of Superman when he is transitioning from Clark Kent to Superman and he is revealing the S on his chest. In my case I’m revealing my label logo to say I’m suiting up to save hip hop, I’m suiting up to boost Arkansas.
HCM. What are some of your greatest challenges as an artist, and what is your greatest attribute when it comes to your work ethic?
DeJai. I get so in my head sometimes when making music just because I’m some what of a perfectionist I want the message to be clear, I want to connect with my listeners like I’m speaking directly to them. So I may slow down and become stuck because I over think it instead of letting it flow naturally and that’s not what any artist wants because it seems forced once I take a moment and allow my mental to unlock then I’m cranking out music non stop I’m hard on myself about getting music done so I’ll always have something to release though.
HCM. What are your plans for the near future?
DeJai. I’m working on a project that I will call Dejai’s inferno, think of Dante’s inferno and the 9 circles of hell he went through. It will feature 9 tracks I’m also working on releasing some singles with some visuals.
For more details and booking information, contact Dejai via email at
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