We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jalesa Jessie a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jalesa, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I knew I wanted to purse a professional career in music when I was about 19.

I was a drummer in different bands while living in Corsicana. The last one I was in, Sound Roulette, showed alot of promise, but we ended up breaking up after some personal issues within the group.
That was the last band I played drums in before eventually moving to Austin to take a more serious approach towards a solo career. From there, I dabbled in more bands between San Marcos and Austin before eventually taking my turn as a front woman. I haven’t looked back since.

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

Hello! My name is Jalesa Jessie and I am a musician from Austin, Texas. I go by the stage moniker, Chief Cleopatra and I write and compose my own songs.

My genre is Soul Rock and I have a wonderful band who helps me perform my songs live. Along with the band, I work and collaborate with my guitarist Leonard Martinez who I’ve known for 11 years now. We do a lot of acoustic shows together as well as studio work.

I got in the music business around 2019. I would email the crap out of venues, begging to play a shows. My first show was at the Carousel Lounge!
From there, it went from playing at Sahara Lounge to headlining Antones within a span of 5 years.

I was also singed to Park The Van Records back in 2021.

My most proudest moments have been receiving a music proclamation from the city, with May 2nd forever being Chief Cleopatra Day. I also played my first ever Austin City Limits Music Festival this past October.

I have been a 5 time SXSW official artist and have opened for numerous big acts such as The Wailers, Girl Talk, Adrian Quesada, Danielle Ponder, Durand Jones and many more.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

One of the most rewarding aspects of being an artist is being able to play live and see the crowd engaged in your performance. They’re enjoying it and dancing to the music and that’s such a cool feeling. The band and I really reciprocate that energy the audience gives us. Whether it’s 5 or 5,000 people…it’s such a euphoric moment to be apart of. Expressing your soul and art to an audience that vibes with you is priceless.
Another great reward is being able to create with other artists in the city that you respect and admire.
I’m excited to get back in the studio next year with some of my favorite people to make music with.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

The best thing society can do is come out to a live show and support your favorite local band/artist and bring some friends with you too!

Most of us are working a full time job as well playing shows in the city. There’s a lot of sacrifice in doing that at times, because we love the music and love playing and releasing music for people to hear. Coming to the shows help us, especially if venues are only doing door splits. The more people who show up, the more money bands get to take home. Though I think most venues should give a guarantee anyways…maybe that will change with the 2024 grants that we’re given out by the great City of Austin. Who knows?

You can also support artists by buying their merchandise, as this can help pay for studio time and etc.
The last thing I can think of for support is just sharing the music along with following the artist’s social media, liking their posts and stories. All these things help tremendously.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://new.express.adobe.com/webpage/RFAdZalVKCym7
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chiefcleopatra/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/chiefcleo/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/chiefcleopatra?lang=en
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@chiefcleopatra2251
• Soundcloud: https://m.soundcloud.com/jalesajessie

Image Credits

1 & 2 Christina Demertzi
3 Roger Ho
4 Afro Tech
5 Salihah Saadiq