JEPP

Music Video: Black

I’ve been into music ever since I can remember. My dad taught me the first chords on guitar which got me into singing too. A bit later at the age of 9 together with some friends, we started a band. During a concert, we were discovered by the head of a TV channel in Belgium that offered us a label deal and a TV program.
We ended up playing together and recording singles and albums for 10 years, growing up like brothers and experiencing a lot of different things for the first time together.

When this project ended it was so clear to me that music was the way to go and that I would always be doing this. So I started searching for my own identity in music but also personally.

At that time I was already openly gay with my friends and family, but I didn’t yet dare to express myself 100% in the way I behaved, dressed and portrayed myself as an artist.

Growing up in a world of music and showbiz I experienced a weird contradiction where people support you to be authentic but still give you the feeling that it isn’t much appreciated to be 100% yourself when that image isn’t the image found ‘normal’ by a broad public.

When I decided to develop my own new project ‘JEPP’ I really wanted to take the time to discover myself first, cause I realised that a solo project only makes sense if you are able to be totally honest with yourself. And well… this took some time 😅. I guess partly because I was used to keeping a protection shield during all those years and not openly talking about personal stuff and the fact that I am gay.

So I started opening up my world more by going different places, writing a lot, going to songwriting camps to get different influences and working with a lot of different writers and producers. One of my best friends, songwriter Stefaan Fernande helped me so much during this process. I am so thankful for his support over the past years.

I also discovered more and more my position in society. Meeting my boyfriend, Kevin, therefore changed a lot for me. Sharing a deep connection and sharing a lot of the same values made me feel more confident in general.
I am never the person to say that a relationship is an answer to confidence or happiness, I still don’t believe this. But in my case, it was more about discovering myself and my sexuality even more thanks to being with someone that has experienced a similar path.

Today I feel like the project JEPP is still growing and turning more and more into a reflection of who I am. It feels good to write, sing and talk about all aspects of my life and not have to contain on certain points.
The music video of the most recent single ‘Black’ is an example of this.

I want to make music people can listen to on the train, metro or in the car in a nostalgic mood, but at the same makes you dance when you’re in a clubby mood. I love this pop sound with a little nostalgic darker side to it.

To me, Pop music is so much more than only the newest hits on the radio. I think it represents the daily mood of so many people and it’s all about creating a world that wasn’t there before.

As a kid, I watched so many videos of Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse, Lady Gaga, Prince, Adele and many others. I remember I was obsessed with of course their talent, but also with the world that these artists created around them through music, photo, video and fashion.
What I love about music is that so many forms of art come together and have to work well together.

That’s why I cannot help it to make music and videos that reflect my feelings and daily environment of today and I feel more than ever comfortable and happy to be doing this.