Allow Jay Prince to Reintroduce Himself
In the wake of his incandescent, long-awaited debut album, Jay Prince sits down with The Culture Crypt to talk musicality, reinvention and creative connection.
Jay Prince in 2025. Image property of Filmawi.
As he settles into the booth of a Soho restaurant on a grey spring day in London, Jay Prince emanates an aura so humble and unassuming that passers-by may underestimate him. It's fair to say that he is a remarkably rare talent. Bursting onto the scene with his inaugural EP, BeFor Our Time, in 2015, Jay Prince spent the following years firmly etching his name into the foundation of UK music.
Pulling inspiration from a diverse array of sources, he curated a genre-bending discography that would amass tens of millions of streams and international praise, leaving anthems like "Polaroids", "In The Morning", and fan-favourite "Father, Father" in his wake. With major collaborations, global performances and several critically acclaimed projects under his belt, this multi-talented hit-maker has created a colourful legacy.
Now, more than ten years into his career, we must allow Jay Prince to reintroduce himself. His recently released official debut album, SHINE, was worth the wait. Somewhat unorthodox in its expansive soundscape, the project is rich, dynamic, unpredictable, and ambitious, crafted by the hands of a bona fide creative—a lover of art.
But the beauty of Jay Prince's work is that it has always been about so much more than him: "I think we all have that light in us – it's a symbol of expression, it's about just shining your light out to the world." Navigating SHINE's roll-out six years after releasing his last body of work was an enlightening process for Prince.
"So much has changed. To be honest, I feel like I'm learning again. But it also feels like a good reset, you know what I mean? You get a chance to reintroduce yourself… it's like we ignited a repurposing of my career. Rather than defining me, I think this season has opened up more opportunities to explore."
In this way, SHINE is a vehicle for continued self-discovery, a body of work that continues to metamorphose well beyond its closing track. "You constantly discover new things when you're making music - it doesn't stop at the album because everything you make is constant. It's like when you listen to songs that were made fifty years ago but they still resonate with you in different ways. This album resonates with me in different ways as well."
SHINE was largely created during the pandemic, which allowed Jay to give the album the wholehearted attention it deserved. "It took a lot of time to put together. Not just the music but the visuals, the ideas—the creativity behind it was a whole beast of its own." Rich in sonic world-building, the album is at times orchestral and grand and at other times unrestrained and raw.
Swinging between genres, including hip hop, funk, indie, gospel and soul, the eclectic concoction of sounds is adorned with features by artists from Estelle to Sam Wise to Yussef Dayes. Accompanied by self-directed visuals, this multisensory offering is a testament to the combined power of Prince's creative eyes and ears.
Despite being his own biggest critic, Jay is able to embrace the deep significance of this project in his artistic trajectory. "I always knew from day one that I wanted my first album to be musical, Robert Glasper vibes, jazzy… I wanted to set the bar high for myself—that involved working with some amazing musicians and collaborating with artists who are better than me at everything.
Also, I subtly touch on a few personal things in this project, whether it's faith, past relationships, living in LA, fears, where I'm from… it's like a splash of so many different emotions. I was just being more vulnerable, which is very hard to do. I didn't realise that until after the project was done—I know what it means to be vulnerable now."
“One of the main things I wanted to display was an optic of manhood. I wore the suit [as a symbol]. I was thinking, ‘how can I show this visually, what does a man go through? What do I go through specifically as a man?’ But the album isn’t just about me, it tackles masculine struggles in general as well.”
At a time when the need for positive male role models is perhaps more vital than ever, Prince is able to reflect upon the boys and men who made him who he is today. Born and raised in East London, he looked up to his father and brother, alongside friends and peers at the youth clubs that played a pivotal role in his coming-of-age.
"I had a good childhood. I might not have been able to get everything I wanted, but I had everything I needed. There was always food on the table. But honestly, it was kind of dangerous growing up in Newham… I was looking over my shoulder quite a fair bit."
Reflecting on that environment, he added: "From a very young age, I knew I had to stay out of trouble. There was a lot of stuff you could distract yourself with, but equally, you could get distracted by the wrong things. It was 50/50—you could be one situation away from ruining your life… I'm a '93 baby, and in that generation, we were outside a lot, so it was easy to get into the wrong stuff, right? But I had football and music, so that kept me focused; they took my attention most of the time."
A local youth club that young Jay attended weekly was where his creativity truly thrived—he performed at their talent shows and also played the bass and the keys in church. "I think playing instruments opened up my palate. I was always trying to cover things and learn songs."
Another source of early inspiration was the music that Prince was surrounded by. "Everyone in my family is into different kinds of music… I come from an African household, so growing up, there was a lot of music." With parents originally hailing from Angola and Congo, Jay was embedded within the fabric of his heritage despite being physically distant from those roots.
Prince heard and felt the presence of his homelands within his East London household. However, it was only in 2018 that he first touched the continent of Africa, visiting his mother's home, Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo—a trip that would be transformative in more ways than one.
Jay passionately speaks about the unexpected and surreal experience of visiting a place for the first time, yet feeling a sense of familiarity, of finally being surrounded by people who look like you, speak your language, and feel at home. This experience is difficult to describe but universally understood by any second-generation diasporan returning to their motherland for the first time. Prince made the intentional decision to document this trip, taking countless shots on his Yashica Point & Shoot film camera to capture the essence of his hometown.
A handpicked selection was exclusively shared with online exhibition platform, Nowness, but the main intention behind the photographs was more personal: "The whole point was to make a family book, like a generational thing so that when my time is up, that book's still gonna be here and then whoever is left behind can see our story."
As Jay Prince continues to navigate this chapter of his artistic story, he continues to pour into his deepest creative intention: to connect people with his art. He built his record label and creative platform, Lounge In Sounds, to "bring people together through music"; he lectures at universities to "work with up-and-coming creatives and have a direct line of communication with raw artists"; he engages with grassroots organisations in his local area (such as Outrunners, a youth charity and running club in East London) to give back to the community that raised him.
He sees himself in those young people, saying, "They're just as hungry as I was. Kids are amazing, honestly." Jay Prince isn't successful just because of his talent; he has reached this stage in his career because he truly cares. He values the ability to connect through music just as much as he loves creating it. "That's how I've built what I'm doing—through collaboration and enjoyment. It wouldn't have gotten to this point if it weren't fun."
The power of Jay Prince's craft is in his humility; despite all that he has achieved, he is persistently focused on how he can be better. But the music is far bigger than him. He's pensive as he sits back in the plush velvet booth of the Soho restaurant at which we shared a few hours that spring afternoon.
When asked about the impact he wants his music to have, he emphasises that it's not about him personally. "I'd be happy if it were less about me," he says. Instead, his goal is to create something meaningful for his listeners: "I want to make it about the people, rather than what people think about me. I hope my music can help them see something in themselves."
Thus Jay Prince's art is special in more ways than one: an invitation to look inwards, a shining inspiration to the creative mind, and a gift, cradled in both hands and passed from him to us, reminding us of our interconnectedness.
The Shine Tour (UK and Europe) has been announced for November 2025. Tickets are on sale now.Stream SHINE below: