A Q&A with Latin Pop Artist J Mado

Artist J Mado was born and raised in Pharr, TX which is known as “The Valley” or as locals call it “El Puro 956”! The norm of upbringing & living many are accustomed to in ” El Puro 956″ is to graduate High School, go to college, and start your career. Then there are special breeds who have the ability to break out of the norm and go after their passions in life. Music has always played a big factor in J Mado’s life growing up; it was his escape from his own reality. J Mado has faced head-on his successes and failures in the competitive custom home building industry. We sat down with J Mado to learn more about his background, inspirations and new music coming our way.

Did growing up in Texas have an influence on your musical style and if so, how?

The Rio Grande Valley can be described as a diverse melting pot of cultures, food, traditions, beliefs, music, and I honestly could not be in a better place to really aspirate the music that is being produced. The area is generally bilingual in English and Spanish with a fair amount of our own language we call “Spanglish,” due to the diverse history of our area being by the Mexican border. (The Valley is also known as The RGV, I think it is best to project it this way) Growin up in The RGV really did contribute much to my own sound in the aspect of allowing my own self being able to blend my sound with both languages inside of my music. Based on our way of speaking down in The RGV. Our culture tends to blend both english and Spanish a lot in the way we speak with one another.

What inspired you to break out of the norm of what’s expected in the town you grew up in and instead, pursue your dream of being a musician?

J-Mado really came into existence with-in a series of life events. Through my inspiration of music, I was able to lead myself out of the darkest times of my life through my craft. It was an escape from my everyday life. I was really searching for that certain unique sound that would catapult me into the right direction of becoming “J-Mado”. It was as if J-Mado was waiting to be born but alone discovered it within my own self. Which really led me into an obsession of perfecting my sound but never escaping my Hispanic roots. I started producing all Spanish reggaetón type style music and it was then, when I came up with “the way you move,” that I learned that I should blend both languages of English and Spanish together. In which I have created this unique concept of both languages having smooth transitions within my sound. This really all came to light also with my producer X-Lati insisting that we had to make an identity for myself. I think with-in our Mexican cultural our beliefs of becoming someone success was embedded in our minds at a young age by our families. I was always told at a young age that in this life it’s up to us to work hard and believe within ourselves that the unattainable was attainable if we worked hard at it. I can genuinely say that I have met many talented individuals in, “The Valley,” but what hurts our talent is being overseen by the major labels. I am not only just here for myself, but I’m here for “My Raza, “as well.

What helps you to block out the noise and get you into your most productive creative space?

We are living in a crazy time right now in this world and it can be overwhelming. Except, I feel that music is truly something that can soothe the soul and more than anything keeps us grounded. It somehow keeps us connected to how things used to be before all this that happened. In my perspective, like I have said music is an escape for me and to be able to bring you into my world is a way of being able to vibe to what I was feeling in that moment of time. With this down time that we have right now it’s been somewhat of a benefit since where in the studio more and where just more focused if anything of being able to create these hits and have them ready when the time is ready.

Who are some artists you’re listening to now and why?

Some of the Major artists that I follow are The Weekend, Maluma, Bad Bunny, Annuel, and Travis Scott. I really enjoy these artist for the fact that I feel like they give me inspiration of being able to create my own sound through them. Which has really allowed my own self to find my own path in this music lane of J-Mado is. I really want to leave my mark on my legacy and have my imprint somehow in the music game. I want to leave my stamp somehow in this world and more than anything show my two little girls that anything is possible in this life. Through my perseverance I’m here to live as a testament to them that what their heart desires that it too can happen through hard work and dedication. J-Mado is so much more than just an artist I want to be living proof to everyone that life is short and it’s what we make of it that defies us as an individual. We all have the capability of being something great in this world and if we don’t realize that then life can simply pass us by within a blink of an eye. Which is why I’m here working hard day and day out trying to leave a legacy behind of greatness so that one day when I look back on my Journey I can say, “Yes I did it.” More than anything, my biggest goal is to give others confidence in order to reach their dreams but to inspire hope within themselves that anything in this life is truly possible.

What has been your biggest challenge in 2020 and how have you managed to stay creative during this time?

I can honestly agree that it has been a hectic year for any artist due to the whole epidemic. All we can do is come together during these hard times and truly focus on being safe. With that being said where still working hard where still making hits and still focused on the path ahead. The journey doesn’t stop here even though it may feel like it’s come to a halt. We’ve got projected for about 5 Songs to be done by the end of the year we were working on and really trying to keep our fans up to date with the newest sounds that J-Mado is throwing out. I think consistency is the truly the highlighted word of everyday for us and by saying J-Mado is definitely an artist to look out for in 2020.

Tell us about your mentor X -Lati; are you two actively working on music right now and how did he encourage you to further pursue your music career?

Really having him in my arsenal really makes me stronger. He has been in the music game for over 20 plus years as an artist and producer. He really understands what we must do to even be heard or taken seriously as a true artist. He has been one to motivate me and coach me in order to reach my level of potential. He can be hard on me, but I know its only to push me in order to become a better artist. One thing he always tells me is my work ethic is incredible and that is what truly pushes him to work with me even more. Without him I just do not see myself even getting to the plateau of where we are now. I give him all the thanks and credit to who J Mado is today.

Tell us a little bit about your new single “Nenas”. What inspired the single and when is it dropping?

Being able to feature Vedo on this particular track is definitely the highlight of my career. Doing this song with him for me is a huge confirmation of my talent and more than anything a blessing in disguise. I truly feel blessed to have an amazing team and for my manager to be being able to create this opportunity for me alongside with Vedo. Especially as he has a top one hundred song on the billboard right now. I am super excited for the opportunity and more than anything just to be featured on this track and music video is surreal. I remember getting the call from my manager and him telling me it was kind of hard to believe. One thing Fly As Day always told me is that in this music industry it’s all in its own timing and I had to trust the process. For this to happen I am truly hoping that good things can come from it and J-Mado can start to create a voice and a fanbase for my music. One thing I hold on to is hope and I trust that everything is in God’s time. The biggest focus on this song for me was to make sure it was banger and to really blend my sound with his way of singing. I really love how we blended our vocals to really come up with a dope ass song and blend our cultural sounds together. Video should be dropping the first week of November so be on the lookout.

Based on your experience, what advice would you give artists who are just starting out?

This want of being an artist or the desire of becoming the next big artist isn’t just something that happens overnight. Even though I sometimes wish it did but if that was the case then everybody would be doing it. Takes an individual to really be broken down and reborn again like a phoenix. Because it’s a struggle believe me on that. I had to teach myself to never give up and if this is what I wanted then there was time, money, and effort needed to be put in. It’s not like we can wave a magic wand you just got to grind it out and keep believing. There are so many obstacles you have to overcome, and you have to keep pushing no matter the circumstances. I’ve had people tell me like come on get real you’re not going to make it stop wasting your time. With those words were simply fuel to my fire of not proving to them but to my own self that I’m worth something more. Believe me when I tell you I know what it feels like to be looked down by your family, friends, and the public. I always say over and over block the noise and remember we live once if you want it bad enough than God will truly bless you with what your heart desires. I agree in the music game as consistent as it is with every artist not only competes with other artists but with themselves it’s always on our minds to want to throw something new, fresh, raw, and up to date with today’s world. It’s the challenge of being able to always have that next best song right after the other and I think by challenging my own self it’s something me and X-Lati always look at. We are constantly challenging ourselves in in order to produce and create the next best song from what did before. With that being said, it just truly shows the passion and heart that we have in our music. Without that emotion and drive towards our music I don’t feel like we would be where we are now. In all our songs I feel you I can vibe and relate to the music that we’re putting out, to me that’s important. Especially with all the competition, every artist out there is making songs to hit not to fail. That’s the mentality you must have always that were out here to perform and make a name for ourselves and create that follows. At the end of day, it’s the fans that make you or break you.

To learn more about J Mado’s music, visit his YouTube channel here.

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