M A G A Z I N E JUNE 2018 • ISSUE 9
JENVOIX SPEAKS ON HER TOP HIT "FROM THE GRAVE" AND HOW SHE BEGAN HER MUSICAL CAREER
A FATHER'S LOVE WITH
THE STORY OF FAMILY WITH PHOTOGRAPHER JESSICA BOLLLEN
FATHERHOOD 3 PERSPECTIVES
PHOTOGRAPHER
ON HOW
JAMIE-LEE TANG
FATHERS REALLY FEEL
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
04 Jenvoix 08 From A Father's Perspective 16 Jamie-Lee Tang "A Father's Love" 20 Jessica Bollen "The Story Of Family"
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FOUNDERS NOTE
"Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it."
PROVERBS 22:6 (NIV) Jamie Lee Tang Photography www.jtangproductions.com
MUSIC.
inspirational & very talented musician Jenvoix speaks about her battle with self-doubt, her son, and working with 9:19 Music Group
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CHILDHOOD MEMORIES
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INTERNAL BATTLES
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BEHIND JENVOIX My stage name is Jenvoix, (jen-vwah) which just kind of happened. One of the first songs I worked on with my team had a drop box file sent back titled “Jen Voix” instead of Jen Vox by mistake. We just kind of took it and ran with it after googling to see if “voix” had a meaning. Turns out it meant “voice” in French. Rather fitting considering music is where I find my voice.
From The Grave was quick! It was Initially produced in the kitchen in about an hour while I sat on the kitchen counter and just let what I was feeling at the moment f l o w o u t . T h a t ’s a c t u a l l y h o w m a n y o f t h e s o n g s o n m y album were created. King Graint and I post up in his kitchen and just let our energies collide. What is one childhood memory you have that is directly connected to your passion in music?
Where are you from? I was born and raised in the tiny rural town of Blessing, Texas, however I have spent the last ten y e a r s p r i m a r i l y i n H o u s t o n . N o w I ’m i n S o u t h e r n California with my team constantly working on new projects. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? My career is really fresh as far as singing. While I l o v e d s i n g i n g g r o w i n g u p , I w a s b e y o n d s h y . I d i d n ’t really start singing again until about 9 months ago, so it has been crazy to see how quickly everything has been happening. The first song I was featured on was “Jazzmine” with Riff Raff which was released in January. When did you start creating music? What pushed you to go public with your music? Music began for me the moment my dad handed me my f i r s t g u i t a r a t 8 y e a r s o l d . I f e l l i n l o v e . I ’v e n e v e r been great at talking about emotions and this offered m e a n i m m e d i a t e r e l e a s e t h r o u g h s o u n d . I ’v e a l w a y s been obsessed with how specific sounds and frequencies can provoke an emotional response. I was actually only just learning to produce and do sound design when King Graint and our engineer, Shachar Boussani, heard me sing. After months of pushing me out of my shy shell, they got me to start singing and to go public with my music. How did your song,"From The Grave" come about? What was the inspiration? How long did it take to make? Who else was on the project with you in terms of producing it, etc?
My dad. As long as I can remember he was in country bands playing bass and guitar. He would have band practice in our garage every weekend growing up so I was surrounded by it my entire life. I was also the biggest band nerd in High school. I was always either at marching, stage band, or jazz band practice. Again, I was really shy with my voice, so it was rare that I ever sang out loud, but a friend of mine did convince me one year to sing together at a talent show at Church camp. That was my first experience on stage and it was terrifying and exhilarating all in the same breath. What motivates you to keep striving in your music career? Without question, my son is who motivates me to keep pushing forward when everything begins to get so overwhelming. This is hands down one of the most gut wrenchingly competitive industries around. He needs to see that nothing worthwhile comes easy and without sacrifice. Above everything else, I need him to grow up seeing that when you know in your soul something is right, you chase it, no matter how illogical or irrational it all seems to anyone else and who is talking shit about it behind your back. Have you run into any battles so far with your music? How have you overcome them? My biggest challenge has been self doubt, which I feel is a common challenge with any artist. Everyone wants t o b e a n a r t i s t , b u t t h e r e ’s a l o t o f i n n e r t u r m o i l t h a t we have to digest everyday without swallowing us whole. However, I truly believe this turmoil is what makes the emotion so relatable in what we create. Without my team, I would have buckled underneath it all.
@jenvoix
BEHIND JENVOIX If you could do a collab with any artist, who would it be and why? Tash Sultana. The emotion and energy in the music she writes is so organic and raw. Just being around that kind of energy while writing music would be profound.
How would your describe your style of music? Who does it cater to? Describing my music has been something my team and I have had to sit down and figure out time and time a g a i n . I d o n ’t j u s t m a k e o n e s t y l e o f m u s i c . I f I v i b e with a beat or sound, I take off with it regardless of whether or not it fits into a particular style or genre. I just want to make music that makes people feel s o m e t h i n g a n d l e t t h e m k n o w t h e y a r e n ’t a l o n e . The life of a musical artist is not an easy one. How do you balance your personal life and musical career without being stressed? W e l l l l l l l . . . h a h a . . . I d o n ’t h a v e a p e r s o n a l l i f e . A t a l l . I d o n ’t g o o u t a n d I d o n ’t e v e n b o t h e r d a t i n g . I h a v e b e e n single for over two years just focusing on loving, finding, and respecting myself and trying to survive t h e c r e a t i v e p r o c e s s . T h e r e i s n ’t a s i n g l e d a y t h a t g o e s b y t h a t I ’m n o t s t r e s s e d b u t t h a t ’s m a i n l y d u e t o t h e f a c t t h a t I ’m a p e r f e c t i o n i s t a n d m y o w n w o r s t c r i t i c . I p u t a l o t o f t h a t s t r e s s o n m y s e l f . I ’v e h a d t o l e a r n t o step back from any project and try to view it as someone other than myself. What has been an ultimate & unforgettable memory so far during your musical career? Well, again, all of this is still so new. I would have never imagined my first song ever to be released would be with Riff Raff who is a Houston staple. All of this journey so far has been incredible but I would have to say that I will never forget finally being able to release my own album. We have spent months perfecting every song and it was an amazing feeling to finally be able to share it with everyone. How/when did you get signed on with 9:19 Music Group? How has the journey been so far with them?
didn't start actually working together until a little over a year later and he made me stop producing when he found out I could sing. I was signed to his label on S e p t e m b e r 1 9 , 2 0 1 7 a s a v o c a l i s t a n d h a v e n ’t l o o k e d b a c k s i n c e . A s f a r a s m y j o u r n e y w i t h m y t e a m , i t ’s been nothing short of incredible. The label is more than just music, 9:19 is a family in every aspect. I can c a l l a n y o f t h e s e b o y s u p a t a n y h o u r w h e t h e r i t ’s j u s t to talk about an idea or bitch about nothing in particular. We have so much more in the works! We have so much p l a n n e d f o r t h e s u m m e r i t ’s i n s a n e . I ’m r e a l l y s t o k e d t o release a project with Conway from Griselda Records w h o w a s j u s t s i g n e d t o E m i n e m ’s l a b e l S h a d y R e c o r d s . I t ’s g o i n g t o b e o n a c o l l e c t i o n o f s o n g s o n “ T h e Hoodlums Ball” produced by King Graint and Jonathan Hays.
@jenvoix
King Graint found me on Instagram in December of 2015 while I was only just learning to produce. We
Jenvoix singing as a child.
Jenvoix and 9:19 Music Group
"From the Grave" Music Video
From A Father's Perspective
Stories from Dad
ABOVE Zen, His Wife & Daughter
About Zen Terrelonge... "As a child I always enjoyed writing stories and, while w r i t i n g w o r k s o f f i c t i o n h a v e n ’t b e e n d o n e f o r s o m e years, writing is still a passion of mine, which is probably why I pursued a career in journalism. Since becoming a father, even as a dad-to-be, I realized the i m p o r t a n c e o f f a m i l y . T h a t ’s w h y I s t a r t e d w r i t i n g about the journey into parenthood through DADult Life – to document the memories as they happened and also to connect with like-minded people going through the same experiences. Fitness is another huge passion of mine – finding out about the pregnancy meant that my priorities changed and my training regime fell over. But now my daughter is a little bit older and sleeping m o r e c o n s i s t e n t l y , I ’m a b l e t o g e t t h o s e e a r l y m o r n i n g sessions ticked off throughout the week and get my f i t n e s s f i x . A n d w h e n I ’m n o t p a r e n t i n g o r g y m m i n g , I ’m probably eating, catching a film at the cinema or b i n g e i n g T V s h o w s t h a t m y g i r l f r i e n d h a t e s w h i l e s h e ’s out."
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I was born in Hackney, East London and then moved to Essex when I was about nine. Remember the opening theme to Fresh Prince? It was kind of like that. While the Hackney area now has been really developed, it had a lot of problems when I was younger, so “my mum got scared” and we moved across the border to a different county. Zen Terrelonge is the Founder of the company DADultlife (dadultlife.com), a site that relates to men on the level of being a father.but enjoying EVERY moment of it.
@dadultlife
What has been the craziest yet funniest moment with your child? Just one?! Perhaps the most outrageous moment was when my daughter unleashed what I refer to as a poozooka. She was three weeks’ old at the time. It was a regular morning and I was changing her nappy but the minute I undid it, her backside erupted with a fountain of poo, which soared from the changing mat across our bed. I was so shocked my only reaction was to yell an “OH MY GOD!!!!” as it happened. This was t h e d a y b e f o r e F a t h e r ’s D a y , s o h o p e f u l l y h e r g i f t giving improves this year. Probably the most insane moment was when I took my daughter to soft play – or soft cray, as I called it a f t e r t h i s m o m e n t – a t m y g y m . A n o t h e r d a d , w h o I ’d never before laid eyes on, was also there with his daughter, who was around seven, so pretty selfsufficient. He asked me how long I was going to be around for, so I said around 15 minutes, which led him to ask if I could watch his daughter while he had a q u i c k s h o w e r s i n c e h e ’d j u s t w o r k e d o u t . I t h o u g h t t h i s was strange as anything, but agreed to do him the favour since his little girl was pretty able to entertain herself at that age. An hour later this guy was still nowhere to be seen! I went looking for him and was r e a d y t o g o t o r e c e p t i o n w h e n I c o u l d n ’t t r a c k h i m down, at which time he finally showed up. “Sorry about that” is all he had to say on the matter. What have you learned from being a father that you didn't know beforehand? I think society generally makes the idea of parenting s e e m a s t h o u g h t h a t ’s i t – y o u r l i f e s t o p s . I t ’s c e r t a i n l y the case in films, TV and often news. Sure, being a father has changed my life, but for the better. For a s t a r t , h a v i n g a c h i l d d o e s n ’t m e a n I c a n ’t g o o u t – i n f a c t , I ’v e d i s c o v e r e d a w o r l d o f b a b y - f r i e n d l y e v e n t s t h a t a r e j u s t a s m u c h f u n f o r p a r e n t s , I ’v e b e e n t o festivals, theme parks and the cinema with my daughter, and each time we have a moment like that i t ’s a l w a y s s p e c i a l . L i k e w i s e , s i m p l e m o m e n t s l i k e having her fall asleep on me or hearing her laugh are j u s t c r a z y s p e c i a l . I d i d n ’t k n o w j u s t h o w f i e r c e l y I could love and feel so protective of someone so e f f o r t l e s s l y f r o m t h e m o m e n t I s a w t h e m . I a l s o d i d n ’t r e a l i s e t h a t t h e r e ’s s u c h a s o l i d c o m m u n i t y o f d a d s o u t there online that are only happy to connect. Few of my friends were parents at the time my girlfriend became p r e g n a n t , s o I d i d n ’t k n o w a n y d a d s c l o s e b y – t u r n i n g to online communities, Instagram especially, was a huge help.
What advice would you give to new fathers? B e a s h a n d s - o n a s h u m a n l y p o s s i b l e . I t ’s e a s y t o f e e l pushed out as a dad – so much of the focus is on the mother during pregnancy, so dads can understandably f e e l l i k e t h e y n e e d t o t a k e a b a c k s e a t . D o n ’t d o i t . B e present, take note of what your partner is going t h r o u g h , s h a r e w h a t y o u ’r e f e e l i n g , b e p r o u d t h a t y o u ’r e s o m e o n e ’s d a d d y a n d s h o u t i t f r o m t h e r o o f t o p s . Not everyone will understand your new journey, but t h e y d o n ’t n e e d t o . T h e i m p o r t a n t t h i n g i s t h a t y o u ’r e enjoying the new experiences and making as many memories for you and your family as you can. They d i s a p p e a r i n a n i n s t a n t a s I ’m f i n d i n g o u t m y s e l f – m y daughter has somehow just turned one already! Make s u r e y o u r p h o n e h a s p l e n t y o f s t o r a g e s p a c e – y o u ’l l n e e d i t f o r a l l t h e p h o t o s y o u ’l l t a k e . O h , a n d d o n ’t l o o k a f t e r a s t r a n g e r ’s c h i l d a t s o f t c r a y . How do you see Fatherhood Zen? I think becoming a father is the greatest adventure a man can embark on. To help create a life, an actual person, having someone that calls you daddy who looks t o y o u f o r c a r e a n d g u i d a n c e ? T h a t ’s a n i n c r e d i b l y s p e c i a l f e e l i n g . I ’v e a l s o c o m e t o r e a l i s e t h a t fatherhood is a community so many dads out there have probably felt what you have, so reach out and talk with them. Chances are you can make some great f r i e n d s h i p s a l o n g t h e w a y . P l a y d a t e s a r e n ’t j u s t f o r t h e mums – dad dates are on the rise too.
"To help create a life, an actual person, having someone that calls you daddy who looks to you for care and guidance? That’s an incredibly special feeling."
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UNCONDITIONAL
LOVE
WORDS BY ALEXANDER STRANDSET "Sleep is overrated, patience is gold and time for my self is rare, but now I really know what unconditional love is."
A little about me... I am 28 years old and live together with my love Malin in Norway. Together we have two
boys who are 3 years old and 1 month old. I am a social man who loves to spend time with friends and family. My passions are fitness and health, football and outdoor fun. I work as a carpenter and a certified personal trainer. A lot of crazy and funny moments when you are a dad. I can name one I think is pretty funny when Gabriel was 2 years old. I was playing a football game and Gabriel was watching. The opposite team was on a counter attack and could easily score, when my boy suddenly ran out to stop the ball and ruined the attack. Was not that funny for them though. The craziest one must be when I took Gabriel to the hair saloon so he could get a haircut just recently. I promised him the world if he behaved and everything went well (I must add that he is the most stubborn person I know). So when we came to the saloon he refused to get in the chair. I tried everything and every bribe I could, but he would just not get in the chair. He screamed like somebody was seriously hurting him, and people started
@malintrane @strandset
to gather around the saloon to see what was going on. We had three people try to hold him in the chair, but the barber only got to cut half of his hair before he gave up. So they charged me $30, and sent me home with a boy who only had half of his hair left. Malin was not happy when we got home, because we were going to a photographer to take sibling photos later that day. Ended up with me and her holding him down in the bathtub to take off rest of his hair with a machine, while he screamed and refused with all he had. I have learned a lot these past 3 years of being a dad. Sleep is overrated, patience is gold and time for my self is rare, but now I really know what unconditional love is. When you are a brand new dad you will feel helpless sometimes. The baby is so attached to the mother, and there is not so much you can do about that. I would advise you to just be there for them, and support and love them the best you can (and let the mother get as much sleep as she can). When you have kids you need to be very patient. You have to try not to lose your temper even when you are really tired and just want to scream. They will test you, and you will «fail» a lot, but that’s okay; that’s how we learn. How do I see fatherhood... I see fatherhood as a blessing. Not everybody is so lucky to get two healthy and beautiful boys. It’s fascinating how you change for the better for your kids.
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MIA FIGLIA words by nicola
@niko_bok
My name is NIcola, I am from Naples Italy and I am a finance guard (Financial Police). The thing that I love to do with my daughter is to hold her standing on one hand is our greatest moment of simplicity. I learned that all material things are nothing compared to what a child can transmit to you.They love you for who you are! Some advice in fatherhood would be to enjoy every single moment, even changing the diaper because they are moments that will never
come back! Give them all the free-time you have, always explain to them what you are doing (they really understand everything).Give away all your love to your child. Fatherhood. I see it as an act of great responsibility!Forget the TV series the movies the nightclubs, waking up late in the mornings in a quiet house. If you are not going to leave these things, then you are not ready to be a dad just yet.Â
A by
FATHER'S LOVE jamie-lee tang photography
www.jtangproductions.com @jtangproductions
the by
story family
of
jessica bollen photography
www.jbollenphotography.com @j.bollenphotography
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