JJ Rosa, a London-based artist that has recently signed a global distribution deal with Sony/The Orchard/IMA, showcases her self-produced track "Rockstar," with its unique sound and punchy grooves drenched in attitude, raw emotion, and drive.
JJ Rosa has many notable moments, from performing as an opening act for Stevie Wonder at BST in Hyde Park, supporting Dionne Warwick in Carnegie Hall in NY, rocking the US Ambassadors Party in Regents Park, and has wowing crowds at Isle of Wight and Glastonbury (where she was featured as both ONE TO WATCH and TOP 10 ACTS OF THE WEEKEND).
As she introduces us to her latest creation, "Rockstar," we are greeted with an uptempo and captivating instrumental that allows us to submerge ourselves within the lush soundscape. The vocals are vulnerable and earnest as JJ Rosa talks about a time in her life when she experienced someone that didn't appreciate her worth, casting her own self-doubt. Well, boy were they wrong. JJ Rosa stands tall with her message of valor, in lyrics like "Look at me now, rising up now."
JJ Rosa's feature choice, LEXY P adds a swagger and serenity to the track, using hypnotizing rap flows, he defines his perfect match; independent and always willing to go the extra mile. LEXY P verse transitions perfectly into "Rockstar's" powerful chorus sung effortlessly by JJ Rosa, and by this point, we are up on our feet with both hands in the air.
JJ Rosa's "Rockstar" showcases her expertise as a guitarist, with intricate Hendrix-esque bursts of guitar resonating throughout the track, we can't wait to what JJ Rosa comes out with next. Stream "Rockstar" today on all streaming platforms.
Welcome to BuzzMusic JJ Rosa! We cannot get enough of your new single, "Rockstar." Give us a breakdown of your process behind creating this record and what sparked the idea?
Hey! Thank you very much. I'm so so pleased you like the tune! This was actually a song I co-wrote with two wonderful writer friends Chris Markey and (ex-Sweet Female Attitude, known for hit 'I Bring You Flowers') Cat Cassidy (previously known as Catherine Cassidy). Put two Mancunians and an Irish man in a room together, and it's an explosion! "Rockstar" is a personal representation of my past experiences, difficulties, and prejudices getting signed as a young female artist in the music industry (I was 19 when I first signed a record deal over in the US). I wanted to write something empowering for the listeners and for myself. Creating this song (every musical element, not just writing the lyrics) has felt like therapy.
Self-producing a record is super impressive. How long did the journey take to produce a record like this from scratch, and were there some challenges you've faced while creating it?
When myself, Chris and Cat wrote’ originally wrote the song, I managed to get all the musical components down in literally one day. We wrote the lyrics and initial top-line melodies incredibly fast as well. I then lived with the song/production for a few months to give my ears a break (sometimes you can become a bit cloth-eared after working on a song intensely). Then prior to deciding it would be the first single, I thought I'd do a re-visit on some of the melodies, but I was still very happy with the production, so apart from a bit of a tidy up and refining, I kept the production as it is now. It was pretty last minute that I then decided to extend the middle section in order to feature incredible rapper Lexy P. Originally. The idea was for him to appear on the song live when supporting The Streets last summer at the South facing festival, but I loved his rap addition so much that I absolutely knew I needed Lexy as an official feature. He's absolutely smashed it and really helped to bring my influences of rock/pop meets hip-hop together.
Over the years, performing and moving around, what was your favorite experience throughout your entire music career and why?
I've performed SO many shows over the years. I've lived for playing live. However, the ones I have as the top favs in my memory bank are probably opening for Stevie Wonder a few years back alongside other supports such as Rag n Bone Man, James Bay, Jack Garratt, and Paloma Faith + loads more. I also performed at The Apollo/Carnegie Hall over in NYC with a legend of an artist called Lloyd Price (known famously in the states as the first black guy to go to number 1 ever, way back in the 50s!), he's sadly passed away now, but I was fortunate enough to perform with him, supporting Dionne Warwick, Mary Wells, and Lulu as a tribute to The Beatles - mad! Supporting The Streets last summer was still one of my favs on-stage experiences, too, but I think that was because we'd all been locked up indoors for two years over Covid so getting on a stage again felt bloody amazing!
What's the message you'd like to deliver through "Rockstar?"
'I'm a Rockstar, yeah, so look at me now is a metaphor representing anyone (female or male) that's ever felt discriminated, used, cast aside, or treated like shit in any industry across the board or simply in life! Rockstar = Great/Strong/a Hero or heroine… There's a message at the end of the music video that sums up what I mean. It says, 'Dedicated to all those who were ever screwed over by their record label, boss, corporation, friend, lover, and the like.'
What's next for you?
I'm looking forward to confirming the date for supporting The Rolling Stones at Hyde Park festival this summer (date TBC) - I feel like this could be one of the last times they perform together (although these guys don't seem to stop, haha!!), so to be able to have graced the same stage on the same day as The Stones is truly incredible and definitely another one to add to the top favs in the ol' memory bank! I am also set to release multiple more tunes, perhaps as an EP or individual singles. I have so many songs I'm excited about and just want them out there now being listened to!
