“Producer Extraordinaire”??? You are talking about Jesse Jagz!!!

At age 28, Nigerian rapper and producer Jesse Jagz has all the ingredients that should ensure he has a long career in music. In the Nigerian music world, he is known and respected as a pure talent, whose skill you can’t easily write off. Jargo, as he is affectionately called by close associates, is the kind that makes music production look almost like a not-too-cranky venture.

Joining a long list of young and creative Nigerian artistes gradually setting the standard for generations to come, Jagz’s hustle is widely appreciated across the divide of the West African nation’s music scene. A bright talent who has handled his career so well and with an appreciable level of flawlessness, Jagz’s talent, perfectly comes in handy for most artistes who have and continue to work with him.

“A native of Pyeri in Taraba State, Jesse grew up in Jos, Plateau state in a music-filled environment with both parents (clergy) which gave him access to the church choir and a drum set by age 7,” his artiste profile reads. “He recorded his first album with a group named Gospel Insanity. Unfortunately; the album never got released due to fallout of some of the members. Jesse started producing beats professionally and thereafter formed another group ‘Eleven Thirty’ which quickly became a huge success in Jos”.

In Jesse Jagz, you find a good rap act whose punch lines guarantee hits, as well as that producer extraordinaire (as some call him) who knows which drum and chord patterns make the best sounds. It is a combination of these two that has seen him grow to become one of Africa’s sought-after acts, and which has also earned him the title Jack (Jag) of all trades in certain quarters.

Jagz is a member of Chocolate City, one of Africa’s biggest Record Labels, which also houses M.I, Ice Prince, Brymo and recently-signed Kenyan act Victoria Kimani. Largely, Jagz is seen as that resident producer at Chocolate City, contributing to the label’s successes over the past half decade. He’s worked on award-winning albums for M.I, Brymo and Ice Prince, creating beats that have gone on to become worldwide hits. He’s also worked on projects for Banky W, Djinee and 2011 Nigerian Idol winner Yeka among others. In between aiding the smooth career growth of his label mates, Jagz has been doing good music, creating hits after the other. Las Gidi, Pump It Up, Nobody Test Me, Bend down low, Sugar Cane Baby, The Greatest, My Brother, Wetin Dey and Demo are some of his hottest singles released till date.

His latest single Murder Dem, which is off the upcoming mixtape compilation Jagz Nation Vol. 1, is already making waves. A journey that took off mainstream in 2004, with his brother and label mate M.I, Jagz has paid his dues to warrant the stream of accolades that has so far come his way. “In 2004, he hooked up with Jude Abaga a.k.a MI together they started Inner Hub Studios. By 2006, Jesse started a solo career with a debut-hit “Africa” that remained at #1 on the Cool FM Chart for months,” a note on the Chocolate City website reads. “Between 2006 and 2007 Jesse Jagz had 3 songs simultaneously dominating the top ten charts on Cool FM, RayPower FM as well as Rhythm FM, becoming street anthems in and around the north of Nigeria.

Described as Nigeria’s answer to Kanye West “because of his flirtatious experimentation with different genres of music from R&B to roots reggae to Pop all built on a predominantly Hip Hop foundation”, Jagz has more than enough, proved why he is an essential part of the Nigerian music industry.