Spotlight On Jupiter Gray

Spotlight On Jupiter Gray

Get to know this dynamic Columbus-based rapper, singer and musician! Jupiter Gray identifies as a trans woman, and is a major influence on the upcoming LGBTQ+ music scene.

By Kaylee Duff

Photo by Emily Hirzel.

Name: Jupiter Gray

Age: 21

Genre: Hip-hop, a little pop. I just like to experiment with genres. I love all music; I listen to everything.

Kaylee: Why is creating music meaningful to you?

Jupiter: Creating music is meaningful to me because growing up, I was never into sports and stuff. My family is very competitive and athletic. I never found that entertaining. I ended up getting into singing and rapping by doing orchestra when I was in middle school. One day my orchestra teacher walked in on me singing a song by OneRepublic. I was playing the piano, and she said, “Oh, you can sing.” So she put me in choir, and I just went with it. I started off playing instruments. I played the cello, clarinet, drums at some point. I don’t know. I just found music exciting.

Kaylee: Who and what inspires your music?

Jupiter: I love Angel Haze. She’s a big inspiration for me. I like how raw she is, and she’s also gender non-conforming. (But she doesn’t go by they/them either, anymore.) I also love Smashing Pumpkins. I listen to a lot of alternative rock music. I love them. Nirvana. I listen to a lot of Azealia Banks. Just everything.

Kaylee: How did you start? What was your beginning?

Jupiter: I guess my official rap beginning started in 2015. My mom was friends with a radio worker. The group Mindless Behavior was looking for someone to open for them. My mom got me that connection. That was my first show. It was sold out and super scary, because I had never been on stage before, outside of little school musicals. I would say that was probably my start, and just kept going. I actually walked up to their manager after the show and was like, “You should sign me.” I had never done a show before, but I was just so confident.

Photo by Emily Hirzel.

Kaylee: Do you have a favorite performance memory?

Jupiter: Probably when I did Columbus Pride in 2016. There was a guy standing in front of the stage trying to get on the stage and dance and rap. The guy was like, “I’m not your grandpa,” and just trying to get on the stage while I was rapping and stuff. I didn’t even notice him until after I was shown a video, and the whole performance was trying to dance in front and get attention. That was pretty funny. I’m happy I didn’t see it. It would have distracted me so much.

Kaylee: If you had to choose one meal to eat for the rest of your life, what would you choose?

Jupiter: I don’t know. That’s really hard. I would probably say fajitas.

You can find Jupiter Gray’s music on Spotify, Tidal, Google Play, Apple Music, Deezer, Soundcloud or anywhere else you can stream music.