Robbie Washington, professionally known as R. Jhaé, is a versatile musician and music producer producing Electronic and R&B music. R. Jhaé, who was born on September 16, 1996, was raised in a creative household. There was music everywhere in the home. As R. Jhaé matured, she found she had an undeniable affinity for music and began to immerse herself in the art of music creation, absorbing as much information as possible. Influenced by artists including Timbaland, Illenium, Alicia Keys, and many more, R. Jhaé began to craft a sound that is best characterized as a sonic wave of positive vibrations that flows through your ears. From introspective melodies and groovy percussion parts that create a raw, yet clean sound. Her productions range from Trapsoul, Pop, R&B, & Lofi, and feature R&B-style drum sequencing and melodic inspiration from 90’s R&B and Soul to Future Bass.
Her most recent remix is “sweater weather.” The song was originally performed by “The Neighborhood,” but she gave it her own spin and turned it on its head. As you listen to the remix, you feel as if you are strolling down the coast while watching the waves crash into the shore. Check out the song and the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?
R. JHAÉ: I was born in Dallas, Texas but Houston will always be the place I call home since I’ve lived here since I was nine. My love for music started when I was a child. Music was always playing around the house. As I grew older, I started banging on anything I could get my hands on and from then on; my love for music became deeper and deeper.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
R. JHAÉ: I took percussion lessons as a child but I’m not classically trained. As I got older I wanted to branch out and do my own thing because when I was younger I was always considered the underdog because of my disability. (I’m blind in one eye and have cerebral palsy causing me to be paralyzed on the left side of my body.) I got tired of my music teachers babying me because they thought I was incapable of doing everything the other kids could do. So I branched out and taught myself how to play drums with one hand.
Once I got out of high school, I went to college to get my associates in Audio Recording & Technology and Music Business and that’s when my love for music production emerged. I wanted to absorb any information I could about music production and the music business especially since I wanted to stay independent and not have to rely on a label. I started watching every tutorial I could find about sound design, ear training, mixing, mastering basically anything I could get my hands on.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘R. JHAÉ’?
R. JHAÉ: I have so many artist that have influenced my sound. I grew up listen to people like Alicia Keys, Celine Dion, Ciara, Beyoncé and many others like Aretha Franklin, Babyface, Anita Baker & Amy Whinehouse.
The main person who influenced my sound to this day was Alicia Keys. I remember when I was a kid and she came out with Songs of a Minor and the Diary of Alicia Keys. I would always have those Cd’s on repeat, studying every element of her songs. I also had the privilege of seeing her live at the Houston Live Stock Show & Rodeo. That was the first time I had ever been to a concert and that was the moment that I knew; I wanted to do something that had to do with music. Whether it be performing on stage or producing and writing for other people.
Right now, my biggest thee influences would have to be Alicia Keys, Billie Eilish & L. Dre. I’ve been trying to step out of my comfort zone by putting my own spin onto lofi music. Making it a little more ambient like your walking on the beach listening to the waves rolling in on the shore.
As for my name, the R stands for my first name; Robbie. I was named after my grandmother. Her middle name was Robbie and she hated it until my mother named me Robbie. So I wanted to somehow find a way to honor her by finding a way to keep my first name in my “stage name”. As for Jhaé, I started introducing myself as RJ as I got older because I hated my middle name. It was too “feminine” for me and between coming out as a lesbian and coming out as non-binary, I started to lean into my masculinity more and the more I leaned into it the more comfortable I became with myself. Once I became comfortable with the name RJ, I had to figure out different ways to spell because RJ by itself was too boring for me so out of curiosity I looked at how Jhené Aiko spelled her name and I played around with the spelling until I came up with Jhaé. I loved that I was able incorporate sort of a French spin to it as well.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
R. JHAÉ: I like to make my listeners feel as if they’re walking on the beach listening to the waves rolling in on the shore. So I try to go for a more ethereal ambient vibe but still have that chill lofi sound.
5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as POP?
R. JHAÉ:
I don’t consider the music I make as pop music. When I first got into music production, I would take songs that I liked and try to recreate them, Most of the songs I was listening to at the time were produced by Timbaland and the main thing he is known for is his drums. They’re so distinctive. You can listen to a song and know he produced it by just listening to the drums. Over time I started to develop my own sound by making R&B and Lofi music. Eventually, I became comfortable with making Lofi music so I started to put my own twist to by creating a ambient/ethereal sound but still have that element of Lofi in there.
6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative, and entertainment?
R. JHAÉ:
Music is a universal language and can be perceived in so many different ways. As a producer who likes to defy society in some way, shape or form I like to use my art to express my opinion and influence this generation in some shape or form. I remember when George Floyd was killed and the Black Lives Matter moment was at its peak. I was so angry because I couldn’t understand how a person could be so heartless to choke a person to death and have no remorse for it. So I ended up writing this poem which eventually became a spoken word piece. I was just trying to express my anger and frustration of living in America as a young black woman but I ended up having so many people thank me because they were able to relate to what I was saying on such a personal level.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
R. JHAÉ:
honestly no, there is always going to be sine of perfection in me, thanks to the Virgo in me. (Being a Virgo can be so annoying sometimes.) Nothing seems to be perfect to me even if someone says it is but the feeling you get when someone says they love your music beats that by a mile.
I used to have expectations in the past where I felt like if I didn’t reach a certain goal, I failed. I became blinded by numbers, algorithms and age. I begin to realize the true reason of going into music. I didn’t get into music because of money. I got into music because I’m passionate about it. I love the craft and the process of making music. Now I see it as any type of growth is good whether you gain a follower and some shares your Spotify link. It’s all good.
8. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?
R. JHAÉ:
I don’t like going to professional studios unless I have to. They’re too closed off for me. I have a studio at my house and I have it designed to where it gives off a homey vibe where you can walk in and feel like you’re right at home. I love opening the windows and letting the natural light come through. There’s this interview that Billie Eilish and FINNEAS did where they explained the process of making ‘WHEN WE FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?” And how they tried to go into a professional studio to record but they felt more comfortable in the studio of their own home. I never related to a statement more in my life.
9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
R. JHAÉ: It was my senior year of high school. What was supposed to be the best year of high school ended up being the worst year of high school for me. I was 18 when my grandmother died, to make it worse she went into the hospital on my birthday. (September 16) I convinced myself that this was another situation where she was sick and she was going to bounce back. I was in denial and didn’t want to accept that she was dying. I knew she was dying but I wanna didn’t say anything.
Ever since I was a kid, I would have these dreams where I would see a person dying and between two weeks to a year that person would pass away. To this day those dreams scare the hell of out of me. I always end up waking up with a bed of sweat on my forehead and dried tears on my face like I’d been crying in my sleep.
I was in such a deep state of depression until I almost didn’t’t graduate high school. I lost a lot of friends that year because I shut so many people out and refused to talk to anyone. I was just bottling up everything I was feeling at the time because I didm’t know how to handle my emotions. I lost the will to live and even attempted suicide, but if I wouldn’t have went through that pain and heartbreak; I wouldn’t be who I am today. That experience gave me the strength and motivation to try to continue her legacy by creating my own and making her proud.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
R. JHAÉ: a friend of mine and I were going to see The 1975 in concert at what was back then the Revention Center, but now is the 713 Music Hall next door was the Hard Rock Café so we decided to get some food before the concert since we were early so we were playing around singing different tunes since my friend had brought his ukulele with him and we were telling our waitress how we make music and things of that nature. Long story short she said she wanted my autograph to say she knew me before I was famous and she was one of the first people to get an autograph from me.
11. With social media having a heavy impact on our lives and the music business in general, how do you handle criticism, haters, and/or naysayers in general? Is it something you pay attention to, or simply ignore?
R. JHAÉ: I take criticism as an opportunity to grow because we’re constantly learning, changing and evolving. Of course you’re going to have people express their opinions whether it be negative or positive. There are also days where the negative feedback does get to me but I’m human just like everyone else. I feel as long as I remember the reason why I got into music in the first place, it doesn’t matter what other people think. I am who I am. Period.
12. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?
R. JHAÉ: As I said previously, music is subjective and a universal language. Even though the song may have a meaning to me and I relate to it in a certain way, it could mean something completely different to someone else. I let my listeners interpret the music in any way they want. If they want to know the meaning I’ll happily share the meaning behind the song.
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