Jubilee grew up in Miami during a time when the 808 dominated commercial radio. The rumble of its iconic sub helped shape her sonic DNA, even if she didn’t quite realize what the sound was. “In Miami’s musical history there are songs about the 808 and there are songs about bass,” she explains. “At an early age, I was exposed but didn’t know what it was. I was a cheerleader—you know what I mean? It was constantly a soundtrack to my life. I grew up in the ’80s and ’90s, so I was listening to 808s before I even knew it.”
Connection to the Underground
She’s part of a generation of Florida teens that cemented their love for underground music at local hip-hop clubs. These spots doubled as after-hours rave venues. Her connection grew more visceral as she sought a sense of community. “It was crazy going to these events, with all this new music that I’d never heard before. Everybody was nice to each other. I was like, ‘Who are all these weird people that are actually friendly, and what is this music?’”
The sound that defined so much of her youth played a crucial role in her transition to global tastemaker. Yet, even with such a closely-held relationship to the 808, her work remained largely in the box. That is, until she hooked up with the Mixpak crew to release her debut album, After Hours.
Hardware and Software in Harmony
“I never was a hardware person,” admits Jubilee. “Then my first album had a lot of 808 sounds. At Mixpak, we thought, ‘Well, we have an 808 here. Why don’t you just use that?'”
She’s also spent quite a bit of time with her TR-8S during lockdown. Enough to add create some sub shattering beats using the latest update. (All are named aptly named for Florida area codes).
Jubilee also devotes time to activism. Whether via social media or protesting in NYC, she is vocal. During this year’s election, she lent her DJ skills to the Joy to The Polls project. “I live in Bed-Stuy by Von King Park where people do DJ sets anyway. It wasn’t that crazy. And everybody was in a very good mood.”
"I grew up in the '80s and '90s. So, I was listening to 808s before I even knew it."
Keeping Spirits High
The experience quickly turned into a way to connect with her community. “When I rolled up to DJ, there was a drum trio of kids performing,” Jubilee shares. “I waited until they were done with their performance. When they were on their way home, I told them ‘If you want to drum while I DJ, you should.’ They wound up doing it. It was really cute.”
During such an important moment in history, it felt important to keep people’s spirits high. “It was dark by the time I went on, so I was getting people that rushed in at the last minute.”
On the musical side, she recently dropped Are We There Yet. It’s an ode to many hours spent driving between parties in Florida. A video game created by her long-time friend, Ghostdad accompanies the release.
The collaboration was an a-ha moment for her. “Everybody I’m working with right now I’ve known forever,” says Jubilee. “These are people I knew from the internet in 2003 who eventually became my friends. It’s an ideal situation, and I never want to work with anybody outside of my friend circle ever again. I love paying my friends. Especially right now with all this stuff going on.”
"Everybody I'm working with right now I've known forever. It’s an ideal situation."
Lessons from 2020
Still, her biggest take away from 2020 is that she doesn’t have to always be grinding.
“Doing nothing is okay,” Jubilee says. “I’ve been watching a lot of TV, working out, and putting my record label together. I don’t want to say I’m taking advantage of the break, because what’s going on is horrible. But I know I’m never going to have this downtime again.”
She also feels less need to produce content nonstop. “I’m taking this one time in my life to not feel pressured and make art when I feel like it. And it will probably be way better.
