On the Rise: J. Nolan

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

J. Nolan has been putting in work for quite some time trying to build his career. He has been around most of the country. At various times in his life, J. Nolan has lived in Connecticut, California, and he currently resides in Georgia.

For twelve years, J. Nolan has been putting rhymes together. But, for the past five years, rap has become more of a passion than a hobby. In these short five years, J. Nolan has risen to become a very popular underground voice in the South.

Right now, J. Nolan feels he has the right team around him to make 2011 into a very profitable year for him. Recently, the rapper caught up with Hip Hop Vibe via Facebook for an exclusive interview.

Q. How long have you been rapping?
A. I've been rapping for about 12 years now, seriously for about 5.


Q. What was your first time in the studio like?

A. My first time in the studio was pretty cool. It was set up in a friend's house so I was able to get comfortable and develop at a natural rate.

Q. Have you received criticism because of the way you sound?

A. Not really criticism, but a lot of people have compared me to Lupe Fiasco as soon as they heard me. He's one of my favorite artists, but I think some people might have written me off as a fake version of him or something. Especially when I first started making my music available online.


Q. What seperates you from other artists in the game?

A. I think what separates me is the fact that I'm not after what most of these other current artists want. I'm doing what I genuinely love to do and I think that shows in my music. The struggles that I speak of in my songs haven't been documented in Hip-Hop in a major way since the 90's. You'd think that everyone is really making millions and living it up everyday of their lives.


Q. How do you plan to stay in the game longer than most artists?
A. I plan to stay true to myself in the long run. Of course I'm going to grow artistically and personally, but I want to always represent where I came from and tell the stories that people need to hear.


Q. Are you currently working on any new material?

A. Yeah, I'm working on 2 new projects. The Loose Files and Chaos Theory. The Loose Files is a collection of tracks that I've been working on for awhile and Chaos Theory is going to be more of a focused concept.


Q. Have you been or currently signed to a label?

A. I've never been signed, still currently unsigned.

Q. Who is your biggest influence in rap?

A. I'd have to say NaS. From the amount of messages I've gotten from his music and the various rhyme schemes I learned from him, he's got to be my biggest influence.


Q. Who is your biggest influence outside of rap?

A. Outside of rap, I can't really name any particular artists, but I'd say jazz music as a whole. It's really influenced my way of approaching records and I have a lot of jazz infused beats due to my strong interest.


Q. What led to you becoming a rapper?

A. It was a natural progression for me. My first rap ever was in 4th grade and up until 9th grade I was messing around with freestyling and other things that dealt with Hip-Hop. Once I started taking it seriously in high school I knew that I had found part of my calling here on Earth.


Q. Have you ever considered quitting the game?

A. Not once. I've questioned why I haven't been noticed by a larger audience, but never considered leaving.


Q. What keeps you going?

A. Creating music itself keeps me going. It's my strongest talent and my passion. Even when I can't stand a majority of what's coming out in the industry, I can still turn my thoughts into something real.


Q. Who was your favorite rapper growing up?
A. I had a few different favorites. First was Snoop Dogg, then 2pac, then Jay-Z. As I got older I got more into Nas, and the last rappers I could consider as favorite are Lupe Fiasco and eLZhi.


Q. Where can people hear more music from you?

A. All of my material from the past couple of years is readily available at http://jnolaniscool.bandcamp.com/ for free.


Q. Have you been featured on other websites?
A. I've been featured on numerous websites since late 2008 with my older projects up to my most recent work. It's a blessing to even be remotely noticed for my craft.