Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Krisiz Jay. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Krisiz , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?

That’s a great question, so the first dollar I ever made off of my craft was in the year 2020 right before the pandemic hit us. It was February and my team and I put together a wonderful showcase that night. The place was teeming I mean it was jam packed wall to wall with people. I was selling my shirts and hoodies inside and everyone was ecstatic about the event and it was all around good fun good everyone. Closer to my time to perform people started to question me about my shirts and hoodies. So as I started to elaborate about the design and so forth about 5-7 people offered to pay for everything I had. Sold all the inventory and made a cool $300 not to mention the venue let us keep the door sales so I made another $300. All in all it showed me a different way to do this. And I’ve been working hard at it ever since.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’d be happy to tell readers more about me. My name is Krisiz (crisis) Jay I am a hiphop artist from the city of Memphis,TN. The way I got started in the industry/business was when I was younger around five or so and me and my best friend started making songs together mind you we’re children and the songs we made was filled with less than reputable words. But that started me on the way. Soon after I started running with my other friends and freestyles was our thing in the neighborhood on the bus and in school so I practiced my skills there. In addition to that my uncle used to make beat CDs and have my practice for awhile. The discipline I gained from doing those things on a constant was to always be ready. Always be prepared. So it’s funny when someone says nowadays hey you a rapper? Freestyle and I do it that draws them in like oh he really can do this I might want to listen. The thing my art does for someone aside from just being a trunk rattler is it gives them another perspective on how things are. Most people see what they want to but when you hear it from someone else it gives you insight to them and what they see through their eyes. The thing that separates me from others is my art is factual. I don’t talk about things I haven’t done or been through myself. I wanted it to be as authentic as possible. There are several things I’m proud of that I’ve accomplished over the last three years. The most recent one is I had an amazing opportunity to perform at the Southern Heritage Classic of 2022. For my Memphis folks that’s a big deal. That just goes to show where my potential is and how far I’ve come and how far I can and will go.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

That’s a great question. The most rewarding aspect of being a creative to me is when my art actually touches someone. And I mean truly touched them. It’s not just a head nod or anything like that it’s true understanding and depth. It makes them feel like they’re not alone in this world or going through a certain situation alone. They know someone shared that pain joy or pleasure.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Resilience. Perfect word for the situation I went through. Same story as me selling my merchandise and enjoying the night but different day. The story goes we had a 3 weekend show at the same place and everything was fine. Until the first night the owner not only showed up late he also decided hey we will shut your set down 30 minutes early and that’s that. But I had to be in a serene mindset and persevere through that cause my people were promised a longer set and I couldn’t give it to them and it really did something to my heart. But after talking to my team found out it was ok.

Contact Info:

• Website: Krisizmusic.com
• Instagram: Mrapplypressure901
• Facebook: Krisiz jay
• Twitter: Krisiz Jay
• Youtube: YouTube.com/c/krisizjay

Image Credits
MaggieBlitz, Jon Bastion, and SilverbackProductions