Hailing from Canada’s capital, JERMAL is an R&B/Soul artist seizing moments in his musical creations. JERMAL was raised in the city of Toronto, where at the young age of 9 he would be singing and writing songs. As he grew up in a Christian household, inspirations came from artists across a range of genres like Sam Cooke, The Commodores, Tank, Tyrese, Beres Hammond, Fred Hammond, Jagged Edge, Blackstreet, D'Angelo, Miguel, and other music greats.
Formerly Known as J.L, JERMAL has the ability to capture the soul and bring the deeper meaning within music to light. With his love for music and every minute it offers, JERMAL simply wants to show the world what he has to contribute to it.
In the poignant release of his most recent single, “Stay,” JERMAL serves up an emotional medley of harmonies doused in delicate vulnerability. As we are swept away into the realm of Contemporary meets wistful R&B tones, the soothing cadences radiated by JERMAL radiate a passion-fueled performance that lay in the depths of authenticity.
You are immediately stimulated by the composition as a whole masterpiece with a meaningful story to take in if the audience is willing to listen carefully. Touching on themes of working out problems in honor of staying with his significant other, JERMAL has a knack for painting vivid imagery to match the animated melodies in place.
The soulful timbres that reign from JERMAL’s vocals create a superlative atmosphere as they collide with the slow tempo pulsation of the instrumentation trucking on. With each listen, we become fixated on the finer details that make this body of work stand out from the crowd.
“Stay,” shines a light on JERMAL’s wide vocal range and artistic talents in a light that few can match up to. The truthfulness he portrays is a key factor in tying together his talents and persona as he lavishly washes his resonance over you. JERMAL is an R&B king, who powerfully wears his crown.
Hello JERMAL and welcome to BuzzMusic. With the release of your latest single, “Stay,” you allow yourself to open up a great amount. Is this song based on real-life experiences?
It’s a combination of my own experience as well those of people I know. The song is a reflection of a pivotal moment in a relationship where both individuals are forced to look at the “ugly” in the relationship and make that decision to move forward together or move forward individually. It also shows how two people can be placed with the same issue or problem in front of them and still see things differently.
Could you please take us into what your creative process looked like when creating, “Stay?"
My creative process is quite simple. If the music speaks to me, I sing the melody with one or two lines and fill the words in afterward. The song at first was just a freestyle my boy and I were playing around with but when I kept listening to the voice note we had recorded, I had to write and record the song that same night. I find music is one of those things that when it speaks to you, you listen, that’s how you get the most genuine creation. Authentic and soulful music is what I always try to aim for.
What is a common misconception that you think people may have of you as an artist that you would like to set straight?
Lol, if I’m being honest, I don’t know of one really. If I had to take a guess, maybe it would be that I only do heartbreak and ballad type songs which isn’t true but also understandable due to the music I’ve released up to this point. I have more music releasing this year and listeners will definitely have the chance to listen and decide for themselves but I am confident that won’t be the general consensus.
How have you found yourself grow in your craft from your first release to this one?
With each song, I feel there’s growth to be experienced in some way whether it’s lyrically, expressively, vocally, etc. I would say the growth I’ve experienced throughout the process this far would definitely be understanding and solidifying my sound more. While experimenting with different textures of music, I feel I’ve better locked into my sound and how to apply it to different types of music while still making it sound like a JERMAL record or verse. I feel it’s super important that an artist maintains that brand or familiarity in their sound. At the end of the day, anyone can put words together and make what they believe to be a song but what makes the experience memorable is the deliverance sonically and how it made you feel.
What message do you hope for people to take away from you and your music?
I want people to take away that I love music and that I’m a student of the game. I want people to take away a sense of nostalgia in the sense of my music being reminiscent of 90’s R&B but still sounding current. I want people to vibe with the music because it truly speaks to them and puts them in their feelings whether it be happy, sad, sexy, angry, or whatever else. Music is a universal language that has affected everyone in some way, shape, or form and I want people to recognize me as one of the contributors to its vast library/history and to simply see me as one of the dope ones they took the time to listen to. Toronto has sounds, we have vibes, great energy and I just want people to keep tapping into that.
