Today we’d like to introduce you to Jasmine Williams.
Hi Jasmine, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
There is actually a pretty interesting story behind my start to singing. I was about five years old at a play practice at church for children’s month. Everyone in the choir was practicing the song “Lord I’m available to you” and I was in the corner humming along with them to myself. After a while, I learned the words and began singing with the choir in my little corner. Well long story short, I didn’t realize that the choir stopped singing and I continued singing and the choir director heard me and asked me to sing the second part in the duet. I was nervous but nevertheless, I sang it and didn’t do too bad! From that point on, I began to sing in church more frequently and gradually developed a love for music and singing. From the age of six, I began to sing at weddings and events but my favorite was always weddings. My favorite part was watching the bride walk down the aisle (it still is). Inspired by the lovely weddings I attended and performed at, I wrote my first song at the age of six. As I got older, I continued to write music and sing just for the fun of it. While in High School, I learned how to sing classically under the direction of Mr. Shanpatrick Davis, our choir director. It was at this point that I grew tremendously as a person, a vocalist, a musician and as a leader. During high school, my passion for music grew tremendously and upon graduation, I decided to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Music as a voice principal. This was my introduction to the world of Opera, and what a mighty introduction it was.
This honestly was the turn in my life when I began to consider the idea of singing professionally, but I wasn’t fully convinced. I always viewed music as my escape and my safe haven, but my journey to becoming a classically trained singer made me consider singing professionally as a career. Most individuals think of a music degree and say, “that’s easy, all you have to do is sing”! However, the truth is that singing is a small portion of the degree. A music degree consists of many key elements, such as music theory, piano proficiencies, essays, music history, etc. In undergrad, I became a musician; one who seeks to truly understand music. One who dissects every intricate clue hidden to find the meaning of each musical phrase, each quarter note, each piece of history within each motif. At the time, I did not realize it but most of my achievements today vocally are due to my training in undergrad. After graduating, I took a break from music and began working. After about a year of working, I returned to my first love and auditioned for the South Florida’s Symphony Opera: Porgy and Bess and fell in love with music once more. From this experience, I made the decision to pursue a career in vocal performance. With the help of my mother, I created a name for myself (The Jas Sound), which isn’t just a “stage name” but my goal. To create my own sound on the earth in all that I do. We worked tirelessly on building my brand, creating content to post on Instagram and Youtube, and I would find vendors on Instagram and send around 300 cover-letters with my Youtube links of my song covers each week.
One day it finally paid off, I received a direct message on Instagram from the event planner that I emailed informing me to check my email. I couldn’t contain myself, I was overjoyed that I received a reply that was promising. Not only was the response promising, it was everything that I prayed for. One moment I was praying for someone to take a chance on me and the next moment, I was told to reserve dates and that I would be flown to Houston, Texas to perform at an event hosted by BellaNaija Weddings. Which is a big deal because BellaNaija Weddings is the largest African Wedding Central, with five million followers. I cried because I could not believe that I had this opportunity and that the renowned Chioma Johnson of Dure Events would believe in me so much as to give me this platform to do what I love. And to add the cherry on top, I performed my first single at the event as well! After flying back home on a complete high of my experience in Houston, I received another direct message from another wedding planner, Mimi Ebichi of Mimi Ebichi Events stating that the Southwest Association of Nigerian Physicians (SANP) wanted to book me to perform at their gala. At this point, I knew that all my hard work paid off and that this was just the beginning. All in all, my musical journey is still being written, but this is just a bit of my story.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The road has definitely not been smooth but I truly see that as a good thing because it builds character. Towards the end of 2019, I felt like my life was finally taking a turn for the better. I had multiple bookings and I truly felt as though everything was finally working in my favor. Truth be told, it was, and then COVID happened. I had so many bookings lined up and then they all were canceled in the blink of an eye. In my mind, I thought that 2020 was going to be a continuation of the flow from 2019, but instead it felt like a standstill or a complete stop. I no longer had any singing gigs, and I developed a serious sinus infection which made me ill for about three months. Once I felt better, I decided to step outside my comfort and audition for “The Voice”. I only told a few people that I auditioned once I got past the first round because I was so nervous and I didn’t want anyone to know just in case I failed. Deep down inside, I figured that this would be my ticket to greatness if they chose me or deemed me good enough. Now looking back on it, that was a lot of pressure. Nevertheless, I moved on to the second round, then the third round and at this point, I began to believe that I really had a chance. Then there was silence, and that is how I came to realize that I wasn’t chosen to go further in the audition process. I tried to remain positive but to the core of me, I was disappointed and began to question myself.
Am I really good enough? Can I really sing? Why did I even try? If we are honest, we have all come to a crossroads where we ask ourselves these questions and this was a huge rock in my road. It took me a while to even want to sing again because I began to doubt myself. Having a “cloud nine” moment followed by a “valley season” is always hard and I had to realize that. But once the sting went away, I decided to learn from it and commit myself to practicing more daily and working my way to greatness, one step at a time. I also had to ask myself, “what do I want and what is my destiny?”. Yes, it would have been nice to go all the way through the audition process and be on the show and excel, but I asked myself, “what if what I want isn’t my purpose?”. What if my purpose is to sing at weddings, events and simply encourage people, inspire those around me and live a life that encourages others to do the same? Is that good enough? This hard road helped me answer that question, and the answer became yes. Yes, I am more than happy to inspire others to be creative and to pour into those around them. I realized that seeking fame isn’t the goal, being an agent of change, motivation and encouragement is. And honestly, I am grateful because that experience made me take my craft more seriously and gave me a stronger sense of purpose.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a Vocal Artist, and my music is a blend of all the genres that I love, which combines to make a unique sound, The Jas Sound. I go by The Jas Sound because my name is Jasmine and I have my own sound which isn’t a set genre. I grew up in church and Gospel is my first love, but as I grew older, I fell in love with other genres such as Jazz, Neo-Soul, R&B, and Classical/Opera. I perform at events such as weddings, ceremonies, etc. and I believe in capturing the moment for my customers and providing each individual with an experience of a lifetime. I am most proud of my growth in the last three years. When I look back at old videos, song covers and performances, I can see the growth in my vocal ability, my content quality, and the overall impact that I am able to have due to the gift of music. What sets me apart from others is the fact that I am simply me. Each person in this world is born set apart, creatively unique. Where we stray from that is when we compare ourselves to others.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
I am happy when I am able to provide joy to someone else. Singing truly makes me happy. The look on a bride’s face when she is walking down the aisle to her groom and she glances at me while I’m singing and smiles make me joyous inside. Even in the most unfortunate events such as a funeral, when I am able to ease a bit of the pain for a moment and bring peace, comfort and encouragement to those in mourning makes me happy. The gift of music is so plenteous and purposeful. It truly brings me joy to be blessed with the ability to be able to share the joy that music brings me with others and impact lives one note at a time.
Contact Info:
- Email: TheJasSound@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_jas_sound/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheJasSound/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheJasSound
Image Credits
S.O.A. Digital Imaging KG Pixels Fabio Lopez Photography
