image.in: Who is Jason Davis?
Jason Davis: Jason Davis Is An Expressionist First And Foremost...Everything I Create, Weather Through Audio Or Visual Mediums, IS Meant To Express A Message, Point, Or Feeling...I'm Also An Idea Man...I'm Constantly Thinking Of New Forms Of Expression.






image.in: What are things you create through visual mediums?
Jason Davis: I Dabble In Graphic Design From Time To Time....Nothing Serious, But I Do Enjoy It....The Same Goes For Photography And Film...I Filmed And Edited A Series Of Videos Earlier This Year Called "The Life In A Day Of."


image.in: If there's an alternate universe out there somewhere, what do you think you're doing in it?
Jason Davis: If There Is An Alternate Universe, I'm Somewhere In It Having An Action Adventure Moment LOL...I Don't Know Why, But I Always See Myself As A Funny But Unlucky Superhero In Another Life.....Kinda Like Spider Man.


image.in: Let's say people are reincarnated after they die. If you were to die right now, what do you think you'd be reincarnated as, and why?
Jason Davis: If I Were To Die And Come Back I Think I'd Be A Composer.......Or A Symphony Conductor...I've Always Had A Deep Love For Music So I Always See Myself Being Heavily Involved In The Creation Of It.


image.in: I discovered your music through someone that we both happen to know, which is someone I met through allhiphop.com a few years back (titojohnson). How do feel the internet & relationships effect music?
Jason Davis: I Think This Is The Greatest Time To Be And Indie Artist Because Of The Internet...Social Networks Have Put The Power And Control Of Art Back Into The Artists Hands....There Is No Real Need For A Label Other Than Distribution...As Far As Relationships Go, I Welcome Every Person I Meet Through My Music Into My Network Of Associates...I Feel That The Bigger And More Well Connected Your Circle Of Associates Is, The Farther Your Reach Can Spread.


image.in: Do you feel most music artists use social networks effectively?
Jason Davis: Not Really LOL.....I Feel There Is A Lot Of Benefit In Using Social Networks More Than Just A Way To Spam An Audience...If You As An Artist Really Talk To People Who Could Potentially Be Fans, Then You Can Create A Base....But Its Not Cool If All You Do Is Spam.


image.in: What is your music about?
Jason Davis: My Music Is About Life.....Plain And Simple..From Relationships To Hating Your Job To Faith And Religion..The More I Grow And Experience, The More I Speak On....Every Song I Make Should Be Relatable(s/p?) To Someone Somewhere.


image.in: What do you feel makes you different from other music artists?
Jason Davis: The Biggest Difference I Think Is That I Don't Approach My Music From The Aspect Of Wanting To Be A "Star"..I Just Want To Make Dope/Honest Music That People Will Appreciate..That's Why I Don't Have A "Rap Name"...Everything Thing I'm Involved With, I Use My Logo "[^_-]" Or The Company Name "SIVAD INK"..I Don't Care What People Call Me As Long As They're Listening.


image.in: Where do you see yourself tomorrow? Next week? Next month? Next year?
Jason Davis: Getting Better.....I See Myself Making Better Music...Not Just Rap....I See My Brand Expanding.....I See Me And My Crew Traveling....Performing Outside Of Our Region.....AND GETTING PAID!!! LOL


image.in: What has been the biggest help for your music career so far? What has been the biggest obstacle?
Jason Davis: My Biggest Help Has Been My Biggest Obstacle....Which Is The Struggle Of Everyday Life In America....All The Negativity In My Home/Community/City/Country Is What Fuels My Creativity Because It Gives Me The Desire For Something Better.


image.in: How do you plan to overcome that obstacle?
Jason Davis: Its A Double Edged Sword Really....If Everything In My Life Was All Peachy I Wouldn't Have Shit To Talk About....Nobody Wants To Hear A Rapper Talk About How Good His Life Is And How Happy He Is All The Time Because That Isn't What Hip Hop Is About...Hip Hop TO ME, Is About Connecting With People Through Struggle And Providing A Voice To Say the Things That They Can't....So I Don't Think I Can Ever Overcome The Obstacle Of "The Struggle"....I Can Only Learn To Cope With It.


image.in: With the double-edged sword you mentioned, do you feel you'll ever make any happy-go-lucky songs at all?
Jason Davis: Definitely....I Have A Song That'll Be On The "Welcome To The Robot Army" Project Titled "They Used To".....Its A Very Lighthearted Track And Not As Serious As Some Of My Other Songs Like "Rider"....My Next Video For The Song "Bullshit" Will Be Pretty Happy Go Lucky As Well....I Want To Make My Music As Multi-Faceted As I Am.


image.in: What do you feel will be your crowning achievement in music?
Jason Davis: A Grammy Would Be Dope LOL.....One Day........But I Think The Biggest Thing That Could Happen Would Be Someone I Don't Know Coming Up To Me And Telling Me That My Music Had An Impact On Their Life....Like I Feel Like I Was Sort Of Raised By Rappers Like Tupac, B.I.G., Jay-Z, Because I Listened To Them So Much When I Was Coming Up...So In 10 Years If A Kid Comes Up And Says My Music Helped Him/Her Through A Rough Patch Or Inspired Them Is A Positive Way, Then I'll Be Satisfied.


image.in: With the recent release of your song/music vid, RIDER, you've gotten a warm reception from some people out there. What can people expect to hear from you in the future?
Jason Davis: They Can Expect More HONEST Music Like Rider...Storytelling.....Dope Beats From Either Me, John Thomas Or The Incomparable Tito ( In House Producers ) Or Other Producers I Work With Heavily Like One Fifty One....And I'll Be Excited To Present The More Experimental Side Of My Music.....Like I'm Really Into Punk And Techno So People Can Expect A Few Tracks With Those Influences.


image.in: Which artists/groups would you say are your biggest punk/techno influences?
Jason Davis: Man Its A Whole List.....I'd Say My Top Techno Influences Would Be Sebastian Tellier, UNKLE, DATA, JUSTICE, And Of Course Daft Punk......Punk Influences Would Be The Clash, Joy Division, The Sex Pistols, Rage Against The Machine, Bad Brains And Black Flag Society.


image.in: When can people expect to hear more material from you?
Jason Davis: I'm Actually Recording Right Now For My Next Project Which Will Be Called "Welcome To The Robot Army"....It'll Be Done And Released Sometime This November...Its Pretty Much An Introduction To The Sivad Ink Sound And You'll Be Able To Tell My Influences In The Production...I'm Pretty Confident I'll Have Something For Everyone On That EP.


image.in: Who produced RIDER?
Jason Davis: RIDER Was Produced By Jadah "Half Man Half Amazing" Arrington....He's Prolly The Next Big Up And Coming Producer Out Of North Carolina...We Met In Chicago When He Was Stationed At A Nearby Naval Base...This Was Before I Knew I Wanted To Rap...All I Was Supposed To Do Was Market His Beats To Local Acts, I Was Like His Manager....But No One Was Buying OR Even Using His Beats, Which I Thought Were Amazing....So One Night I Said Fuck It And Started Writing To All These Beats No One Was Using And Rider Was One Of Them.


image.in: Is the song RIDER about you?
Jason Davis: Rider Is About Me, Yes.....The First Few Lines Are "He's Just A Rider/Sitting Up At Night Tryna Find A/Way To Get Up Out That Black Bottom"....When I Wrote That I Was In A Pretty Depressed Mindstate Because A Lot Of My Business Ventures Weren't Working Out And I Was Just Thinking "How The Hell Can I Make Things Better For Myself"....But I Feel Like That Is An Extremely Relatable Feeling...That's Why People Have Showed So Much Love Towards The Song.


image.in: The RIDER music video is bloody depiction of violence in Chicago. Have you come across violent situations before?
Jason Davis: Plenty.....A Woman Was Killed In Retaliation Gunfire The Other Night 3 Blocks From My Apartment.....I Remember Coming Home One Morning And Cops Were Swarming Around My Building Because  A Guy Had Gotten Shot Right Across The Street Where I Park My Car....Chicago, The Southside At Least, Is A Violent Place....Its Not Full Of Random Violence Though.....But Shit Goes Down Out Here.


image.in: What is the symbolism of the kid wearing the mask in the RIDER music video?
Jason Davis: To Me The Kid In The Mask Means A Couple Different Things......Mostly I Feel It Represents My Spirit....You Notice That Through All The Hardships My Spirit Keeps Me Going, Won't Let Me Die.


image.in: Do you think that with time violence in Chicago has decreased, or increased?
Jason Davis: Its Hard To Tell Out Here...Because The Only Time We Get A Body Count On The News Is Every 3 To 6 Months Or When Younger People Like High School Students Have Been Killed....I Think The Violence Here Is Constantly At A High Rate...But Its Like In Chicago Things Are Out Of Sight Out Of Mind...If No One Is Constantly Talking About The Violence, No One Really Cares....We Just Live With It.


image.in: What are your feelings on violence in general?
Jason Davis: I'm A Peaceful Person In Essence And I Believe There Are Millions Of Other Ways To Solve Problems And That Violence Should Be Used As An Absolute Last Resort...I Feel The Only Time Violence Is Necessary Is When You Have To Protect Yourself Or Someone Else From A Violent Person.


FIN 


Listen to more from JD [^_-] at:
http://thedope-a-tronics.bandcamp.com/
Follow JD [^_-] on Twitter: @JD_Sivadink