We were lucky to catch up with Jac Dazzo recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jac, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your creative career sooner or later?

If I could go back in time, I do wish I would have started my music career sooner. However, I am a firm believer that everything is in divine timing. I started modeling and acting professionally at age 21, but I didn’t start taking my music seriously until I was 31. I’ve been singing since I was a little kid and started writing songs when I was 9 in my bedroom and at recess during school. I recently found a notebook of old songs when I was home last and it reminded me that I have always loved creating songs and performing since I could remember. My 7th grade English teacher saw something special in me and had me audition for the high school musical while I was still in middle school. I actually got to start performing with the high schoolers at Danbury High in Connecticut when I was in 8th grade because the director really liked me and didn’t want to wait until I was in high school to join them. I started voice lessons, sang in school choir, performed in school talent shows, and starred in my high school musicals, but for some reason I never thought it was possible to pursue singing and songwriting as a career. I had limiting beliefs on what was possible for me because I struggled with my sexuality. Even after coming out as gay at age 20, I felt that there was no way I could be a pop star. Now there are many open and out singers, something that we didn’t see quite as much of 15 years ago. I started singing covers on my ukulele and posting them on youtube when I was 20 but didn’t keep up with it. While living in New York City in my 20’s, I wrote a few songs on guitar and ukulele and would post them on my social media, but still viewed it as more of a hobby that I would do while I was pursuing modeling and acting. Eventually, I fell out of love with modeling and ended up in Los Angeles. I started working at a restaurant called TomTom in 2018 and made a few brief appearances on a show called Vanderpump Rules over the years. During this time I also began making viral sketches on TikTok where I would take song lyrics and intertwine them into my sketches. Those videos took off and I was able to gain over 220,000 followers in a year. This led to me working full time in social media. I began managing Nicole Scherzinger and helping her with all of her videos and content. This was a dream job, but I got burnt out and began to realize what fulfilled me more was writing music. I took a break from TikTok and organically began to meet other songwriters out here. After a bad breakup, the only way I was able process my emotions was through writing songs. These new songwriter friends encouraged me to pursue it full time and now that is exactly what I’m doing. I think starting later was actually beneficial to my songwriting because I had to live my life first before I could openly share about it. I am now able to write about my life perspective that I believe is a lot more relatable to listeners. I not only write about love, but I write about my mental health struggles, the trauma I experienced as a kid, and the strength it has taken to keep pushing forward in my life. I would not have been brave enough to write about the topics I am writing about now (spirituality, suicide, sexual abuse, bullying, sexuality, family dynamics). If I started sooner, I don’t think my music would be as heart centered. It might have been more about partying and heartbreak. The music I write now is uplifting and honest, and I know it will inspire people more than if I was writing about my life in my 20’s. I experienced a spiritual awakening in 2020 that shifted my my whole perspective of the universe. The whole mission of Jac Dazzo is to encourage people to honor their inner child and heal themselves from their past traumas. It’s about recognizing that we create our own reality. Jac Dazzo is about being authentically you and not caring what others think. In my 20’s I cared about what others thought about me. If my brief time on Vanderpump Rules, and the online bullying that came along with it, hadn’t happened, I may not have created Jac Dazzo. I originally created my stage name, which is in honor of my Papa, to escape a few viral moments on reality TV, but it has now become so much more than just releasing my music under an alter-ego. Jac Dazzo has helped Brett Kenyon (my real name) heal himself and be more brave in sharing my art with the world. Jac Dazzo has helped me to embrace all aspects of my life unapologetically. Had I started pursuing my music career earlier, none of that may have transpired. These experiences have now shaped me into the artist I am today, so there is no point in wondering about “what ifs?” I hope my late bloom in my career is a reminder to people that it’s never too late to pursue your dreams.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My real name is Brett Kenyon, but I now go by my stage name Jac Dazzo. I grew up in Danbury, Connecticut with an older brother named Brandon and younger sister named Britt. As you can imagine, being called Brandon, Brett, and Britt was cute to some but I always longed for an identity of my own. Growing up queer, I always knew I was different from the others in my family, but couldn’t express it until later in my life. When I started writing my music, I knew I wanted to create my art under a stage name. A few Christmases back, my Grandma gave me a box of my Papa Jack Randazzo’s old demos and songs. I knew he had dreams of being a songwriter, but he never got to pursue them. My Papa and I were very close and I thought it would be nice to honor him in my career. After a few discussion with my friend Katie, we decided on Jac Dazzo. After modeling and acting part time in my 20’s, I pursued a career in social media during the pandemic. This led to me being confident enough to become an artist. Also during the pandemic, I began to realize I had some sort of psychic abilities. I started predicting life events for friends and doing readings part time. A lot of times while meditating, songs will pop in my head and flow out of me. That is one way I like to write my music. I knew I had to honor these gifts and I reached out to an old college friend who has at an home music studio. We began recording demos that I had written. My first song I released was called “Be More Brave” and it’s an anthem for anyone wanting to make a change in their life. It starts with you. No one else is to blame because we are responsible for the life we create. I’d love potential followers and fans to know that I am not just a songwriter who sings about their breakups. I write music that I hope will help others live their best lives. I recently lost my brother in law to his battle with depression. A lot of music I am currently producing is to encourage people to not be afraid to reach out for help in regards to their mental health. I want them to know they aren’t alone. I struggle too. I am an advocate for mental health and would love to focus on helping others through my art. I also hope that people are reminded through my art and work, that their loved ones are still with us, even after they pass on. I am a huge believer in signs and synchronicities from the universe and as fans get to know me, they will see how prevalent that is in my art.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I started posting videos on TikTok in 2020. Because I didn’t have any friends following me on there at the time, I didn’t have much fear around being seen and started posting anything that came to my mind. I always felt more judged on Facebook and Instagram because it was friends from high school and college, but TikTok felt like a safe space at the time. I had a couple random viral videos and then I would go on my TikTok livestream and started building a community of friends on there. Then one day I was listening to music and thought how funny it would be to have a conversation with a singer where they can only respond in their own song lyrics. These sketches quickly built me an audience and became my niche. After a few years, I got burnt out and stopped posting them and now am trying to rebrand my social media to my music, mental health and spirituality. Sadly it feels like I am starting over again because you have to retrain the algorithm and your audience to your new content. My best advice to someone wanting to build an audience would be to act upon your ideas as soon as you have them. My most viral videos were ideas I filmed as soon as I thought of them. I am a big believer that the universe plants ideas in our heads and the people who act upon them the quickest are the most successful. Don’t be scared to be cringe. Embrace your cringe. Social media is cringe, especially when you’re first starting out. Just post the content and don’t care about the amount of likes or views. So many times I was focusing on how my videos performed and that brought me to a stand still. Trust that even if only a few people see your videos, you’re making a difference in the world. It is important to be consistent and post everyday when youre first starting out. Post multiple videos a day. If you don’t give up, you’ll eventually find your niche and your success. You are only one post away from changing your life. Sometimes I forget that.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Although I mentioned this before, my goal and mission that is driving my creative journey is to really inspire people to be more authentic. We live in a society that glamorizes being perfect. This impossible desire to be perfect is what is making so many unhappy. So many of us don’t feel good enough because of the impossible standards society pushes upon us. I hope that the Jac Dazzo brand and the music that I make reminds people that they are enough. I hope my music encourages people to be brave and go after their dreams, no matter their age, weight, race, sexuality, etc. We are all facing a silent battle and it’s important to be kinder to each other. I hope my music can help save a life or two. I was a very unhappy person in my past. I projected those feelings onto others. I let my trauma subconsciously define who I was. Through my healing journey, I have realized so much about myself. I hope that my music and career can help others start to heal too. I hope my music is a reminder that it is never too late to reinvent yourself and start over. We all deserve a second chance. We all deserve to learn and grow. That is why I believe we are here on earth.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: jacdazzo
• Twitter: jacdazzo
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jacdazzo
• Other: You can stream my music on all music streaming platforms under Jac Dazzo! Would love for listeners to check me out on Spotify or Apple Music!

Image Credits

Tina Michelle Photo for the professional ones in blue hat and tan hat