By Benjamin Millerman
A new wave of internet-grown musicians is coming, and JDAB is at the forefront of the craze. JDAB started making music in 2019, crafting beats on FL Studio and learning from online creators. Although he originally aspired to become a producer, he quickly had to change paths: ” Nobody was hopping on my beats, so I sang on my own beats.” This switch-up was the start of something special. Starting as an “underground rapper” JDAB began grinding out that approach, creating around 50 songs before switching to an indie/r&b style with the song “Done”. This sound was much more fitting for JDAB and became his new brand, which he has continued to create, grow, and succeed in.
The way he describes his own musical style is different to many. He describes it as denim, due to its ability to go with everything. He can give you a sad song, a love song, or even a song to dance to. JDAB is able to pull you into any mood and make you experience any emotion with his sound, just like denim goes with everything. To achieve his style he creates a beat he likes and writes the whole song before he even starts recording. After that, the recording is done in one take for a rough draft the next day is the proper recording process. JDAB has recently begun to add autotune, compressors, and a noise gate to elevate his music to a greater level. The inspiration for this denim style comes from everywhere, but most notably TikTok. Any sounds that come across his page that sound good to him become the inspiration for his next track. Hearing different styles helps him not get complacent and forces him to continuously switch his sounds to provide his listeners with something new and fresh every time. However, while JDAB’s sound has continued to evolve, getting his sound heard is a whole different challenge.
It has been around two years since “Done” was released and JDAB has continued to produce and improve song after song, evident with his latest three tracks released on Valentine’s Day. The struggle, he found, is in the promotion. With such a complex and intricate algorithm, it is hard to make a song blow up digitally, making it easy for artists to get down on themselves and feel like a failure. It begs this question: is creating music in this tech-savvy world even worth it? It becomes evident when looking past the numbers that the music has resonated with audiences boasting a monthly listener count of around 10k, which only continues to grow. The idea of continuing to just post is part of JDAB’s ideology: “Stay consistent until the numbers are. Drop as much music as you can”. JDAB stays true to this philosophy, continuing to post his work, advancing past what he has done before, and starting to combine his current style with others to make something brand new.
A factor of his success that many have slowly come to acknowledge is the impact of streamers and other online content creators. JDAB is a member of the popular streamer Jasontheweens community, as he is included within the inner circle to participate and interact with his audience of thousands of live viewers. This promotion from Jason has helped him showcase his music not only to thousands of people but also to top musicians like d4vd who were very impressed by JDABs work, further showcasing his musical talent. Being a member of the community goes beyond just Jason as he has also fostered connections with fellow growing streamers like YBG, Yugi, Arky, and others within that circle. JDAB’s digital presence, combined with his connections to other creators, helps him build a closer relationship with his audience, something many artists struggle to achieve.
JDAB points to this change in culture as something that already does and will continue to play a big part in the music industry. Streamers like Plaqueboymax have propelled artists’ careers and even revived careers like Lazer Dim 700, Nino Paid, and NIKOWOODYEAR by just showcasing their talents to their audiences in countless forms. JDAB has the support of countless creators with large outreach, and will only continue to grow as he puts out more enjoyable music that his fans will connect with.
Don’t start a sentence with and JDAB knows he has fans who can’t wait for more music. He plans to drop two songs a month throughout 2025 to keep his fans satisfied while also continuing to enjoy the process of creating music. He’s taking the journey day by day but when asked about what the future holds, he mentions that he plans to write for others and make music that is part of film scores. Now, every step he takes toward his smaller goals is just another step toward the end goal.
JDAB is a name you need to remember cause he’s only going to continue to grow. So hear it from the man himself: “If you need to get over your ex, play some chill music for your significant other, or if you just need some chill music to listen to, listen to JDAB”.