Great duos consist of an amalgamation of sounds. The ingredients for success vary amongst duos, but J*Davey has taken those ingredients, along with the duet concept, up a notch. Voices blend like a two person choir praising the sounds of the musical gods. Instruments unite in an audible force so strong that multiple head nods are almost involuntary—and it doesn’t stop there. Briana "Jack Davey" Cartwright and Brook D’Leau decided to mix Funk and Electronica with Soul. For good measure they added a little Punk and Hip Hop to their universal mix and created a sound that even a Prince couldn’t ignore.

Coming together in Los Angles, J*Davey formed to create something “that has a little bit more substance to it” while taking the time to build, grassroots style of course, a fan base that has their new double disc The Beauty in Distortion/The Land of the Lost highly anticipated. Having had the chance to work with Prince, The Legendary Roots Crew, and be featured on the late great producer J Dilla’s "Red Light" track might have some resting on their laurels. Not J*Davey. They keep pushing boundaries and gaining fans like Barack.

While touring and working on a Warner Brothers release due at the end of the year, J*Davey talks with HipHopDX about what its like to have Prince as a mentor, what lost music files can create, and how you should always expect the unexpected when it comes to their sound.

HipHopDX: How long you been around? When did you two get together?
Jack Davey: Eight years. We’ve been making music for a while, but J*Davey has been together about five years. I met Brook at my high school prom. One of my friends brought him to the prom and we became friends. A year later, we discovered that we were independently working on music and just decided to work together.

DX: How did you know that your sounds would blend?
Brook: We didn’t really know. She found out that I was doing music, heard a couple of my tracks and was into it. I was working at my dad's studio at the time. We came in and starting working on one song; it was effortless so I guess that’s how we knew. It wasn’t really anything that required a bunch of thought.

DX: Do either of you come from a musical background?
Jack: Not really. I grew up in a house where there was always music blaring at the highest decibel you could find all the time. My mother could sing too, and I was surrounded by that. Brook’s father was a musician, and put out a record back in the '70s; both of our families were both musically inclined but didn’t pursue music hardcore.

DX: I was looking at a list of some of your favorite albums and you both have eclectic taste. How did the combination of both your influences inspire the J*Davey sound?
Brook: It kind of happened automatically. We tend to display all the things we are influenced by. I don’t think we make a conscious effort to make sure that we sound like our influences. It’s like a gumbo of everything. Our music comes out as its own hybrid - especially since it’s coming from two people who were also influenced by different types of music. Our music is a big pot of soup.

DX: How many times have people heard you and then seen you and didn’t expect to hear your sound? Has your color ever thrown people off?
Jack: I feel like that happens all the time.
Brook: I think it’s a good thing because we always get a chance to surprise people somehow. I know I hate going to shows and people play songs exactly like the record. You should give people a treat when they come and see you live.
Jack: I think people may look at us and expect us to make a certain kind of music. We are more than meets the eye.

DX: How has knowing and opening up for Prince changed your path to success?
Jack: Growing up, listening to one of your musical idols, having a rapport with him and being able to have performed with him was and is an amazing experience. When people ask, “How do you know when you’ve made it?” I can say I’ve pretty much made it even if I never sell a record.
Brook: He’s a great mentor for us and it’s not necessarily about us doing a whole bunch of music with him either. I feel that he sees that we have the potential. He doesn’t really have to step in and guide but just mentors us. I was thinking the other day it might be nerve-wracking to create in the studio with him. You’d be sitting with a dude who has created so many hits. I can appreciate the fact that he’s been able to allow us to do what we do while also being a big supporter and advocate for J*Davey.

DX: When Prince came out people couldn’t necessarily define his sound either. Does he offer the unique perspective from having lived through a time being of not being easily categorized?
Brook: Definitely, especially from a label standpoint too. We don’t really get concerned with people liking our music. He gives us a lot of perspective about dealing with the industry. He went through the trenches trying to establish who he was through his personality on record. When there is something new people tend to shy a way from it a little. At the same time, he also understands how to shape it and mold it into a way where it’s palatable to people. Continued on page 2 »