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Jers poses with legendary DJ Funkmaster Flex of New York City's Hot 97 radio station.
Derrick “Jers” Butler of New Jersey is what they call a jack of all trades. The uber-talented artist is rubbing elbows with everyone from Funkmaster Flex to Musiq Soulchild and Omari Hardwick. Sometimes he wants to rap and other times you’ll catch him singing about the worst of heartbreaks. And that’s just before he bosses back up to take down your favorite battle rapper in a war of words. If that’s not already impressive, he acts and rips runways. I told you he was uber-talented!
Jers recently opened up for
Musiq Soulchild during a concert in Philadelphia.
He has admired Musiq’s artistry and song-writing for many years. Musiq watched Jers’ performance and was taken aback by the audience’s interaction with the independent artist. It earned Jers a head-nod from his idol.
“He said to me, ‘Man, this is my event but it looks like it was yours,’” recalled Jers.
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The single placed 2nd in the "On the Come Up" competition hosted by Miami's 103.5 The Beat on iHeart radio
‘Man, this is my event but it looks like it was yours-" Jers recalls his conversation with Musiq Soulchild.
Jers has spent a lot of time in the studio creating tracks like “Come Outside” and “Everything Lit.” His experiences in love and life inspire the music he writes. On songs like “Bad Decision” and “Selfish” he sheds his suave persona and takes time to reflect on how things aren’t always picture perfect.
Through a tumultuous upbringing filled with his mother’s poetry and his father’s drug dealing, he learned how to adapt.
“I was brought into a lifestyle before I could even choose it for myself,” Jers said. “There were three attempts on my life by the time I was 7-years-old and four by the time I was 11.”
Jers and his younger brother bounced from place to place with their mother as she battled a drug addiction. When he was only 8-years-old he was taken out of his mother’s custody and placed in the home of his great uncle and aunt. It was overnight that he was taken from his impoverished community and placed in a well-to-do middle class neighborhood. It made him want more out of life.
Jers says Musiq Soulchild influenced his song-writing. @THEEMAMARAZZI EPKS I 3
“I went from a place where you couldn’t sleep on your porch, to a neighborhood where neighbors were jogging,” says Jers. “You could even leave your door open.”
It was the first time he witnessed love and a story-book family. But by age 18, his uncle and he couldn’t see eyeto-eye. Jers’ uncle located his father and sent Jers to stay with him in Philadelphia.
“At the time I didn’t have a social security card or even a birth certificate,” explains Jers. “My dad’s side of the family sold drugs. Because I couldn’t get a job, that was a way for me to make money.”
Soon, Jers was facing 20 years in prison for an incident that occured when he was trying to protect his brother.
“I was 21 facing 20 and I had just had a daughter,” said Jers. “I did the math and was thinking, if I went away for 20 years my daughter would be 21 by the time I got out.”
Jers fought to have his sentence reduced but soon returned to street life. That was until a friend swayed him to reconsider things. The friend, who had ties to the modeling industry, told Jers that he should try modeling.
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“He told me, ‘Jers, you clean up nice. You could do it,’” recalls Jers. “He said, ‘You could get paid $1500 for a modeling gig in one day and not have to look over your shoulder or take a chance going to jail.”
Although it defied his street image, he took a chance. It helped him see even greater opportunities for himself within the entertainment industry.
Now, he uses his many talents as an outlet. Jers wrote his newest records from a place of self-awareness. He waited 3 years before releasing a single titled “Selfish.”
On “Selfish” he says: “I used to pray to the Lord and ask the Lord for forgiveness/Lord please forgive me just for lusting all these women/I try to feel the love but my heart just been injured/Every woman that I loved they always left with other n*ggas/Trust me I’ve been lied to/Had no one to cry to/Just my pen and my pad/A couple beats that I can vibe to.”
It was inspired by his own heartbreak.
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Jers plays a bully in a soon-to-be-released film called "Fels High." The film, directed by Kevin J. Nelson, stars Omari Hardwick (POWER), Elise Neal and Marc John Jefferies.
“As the words come to me I’m always like, ‘I got to let it out,’” said Jers.
Though he has focused on creating quality singles, he plans to release a full album project soon. Feedback from his listeners motivates him.
“My formula in general is to make great music and let the people decide what they like,” says Jers.
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