For many, handling a single major at UCLA can be a full-time job. But then there are those like Jarell Perry, who is able to balance not only two majors but also a high-demand internship, the production of UCLA’s Jazz Reggae Festival, a sprouting music career and all the work included therein.
“I don’t really get much sleep anymore,” Perry said.
As part of the last of the many hats Perry juggles, he will perform at the Key Club tomorrow night.
Perry, a fourth-year political science and communication studies student, has been singing since his adolescence, and what was once a hobby has grown into a potential career path ““ though it’s not one that will interfere with his academics.
“I’ve decided to pursue music really hard, and I’ve given myself “˜til I graduate to make it something sustainable,” Perry said. “I don’t see this as anything huge, I’m just making it huge because I want it to be huge.”
Should his goals in music not pan out, though, Perry has a backup option, which provides plenty of cushion. “Business. I guess you could call it a plan A and a half,” Perry said. “I’ve always wanted to be in control of something big. Being in control of a business gives me that. So does music.”
Perry got his start in music early on, being raised in the relatively small and conservative town of Orange, Calif. Music came to him in a very casual way, as his father, to this day, sings as part of a gospel group. “It was kind of a passion I grew into,” Perry said. “I’m not formally trained on any instrument. It’s very organic.”
Perry began singing for his church choir at the age of 12, and went on to record with the choir by age 16. “I also sang in high school, but not with the choir ““ I didn’t want to dress in a tuxedo,” he said.
Later, he went on to compete in and ultimately win MTV’s short-lived music competition, “MTV’s Little Talent Show,” and used the prize money to further develop his gift.
“I went out and bought a new laptop and just started experimenting with the music software,” Perry said.
Perry established his Web presence on Myspace and Youtube, posting various original pieces as well as covers of popular works. He also began taking requests from fans and performing them on his Youtube channel, and his four-track EP as a part of JP and the Ambassadors is currently available on iTunes.
“I did covers online as a way of promoting myself,” he said. “I decided to be proactive.”
Here at UCLA, Perry received exposure from his two consecutive award-winning performances at Spring Sing, one with JP and the Ambassadors and the other with 3:26. And most recently, Perry has been billed to play as a solo performer at Plush, a lounge in Hollywood’s iconic Key Club. He got the show through a group called Sean Healy Presents, which connects artists with venues. “This is the first show where I’ll be billed by myself,” Perry said. “(It’s) definitely the most substantial, the first thing of its kind for me. It’s going to be a great crowd, I see this show as the jump-off.”
His influences, aside from his father, of course, fit comfortably into the genre of rhythm and blues, from John Legend back to Stevie Wonder. Of course, the music isn’t the only aspect of the industry that Perry has encountered. He now deals with the business aspect of his own career as well as the Latin division of Sony BMG in Santa Monica, an internship that has given him a perspective from the inside of the music world.
“Now I just write music, make music or do something to promote it,” Perry said. “I do it because I love it. I keep working, and it gets to be 3 a.m. before you know it. This is all just the beginning of something.” But among all of the hubbub surrounding his education and budding career, Perry intends to keep himself grounded and focused on the future while keeping his options wide open.
“I’m just continuing to write and write and write,” he said. “Everything depends on where my music takes me. We’ll see what happens.”