JUJ - Pieces
JUJ RECOUNTS INSOMNIA & ANXIETY ON DAZZLING ‘PIECES’
Moments ago JUJ released her new music video for “Pieces,” a musical canticle relating her confrontation with insomnia and anxiety. “Pieces” follows on the heels of her previous single, “Mood,” featuring Vic Mensa.
JUJ
Explaining the song, JUJ says, "'Pieces' is about my personal struggle with insomnia, which has been and still is a huge struggle for me. I wrote the hook of the song at 4 am in my bed while I was at the heat of my insomnia, then I went to the studio the next morning to write this track."
Now based in Los Angeles by way of Philadelphia, JUJ dropped out of high school and moved across the country to sunny SoCal to pursue music. Even though she had no family members or friends in L.A., JUJ set about making a name for herself in L.A.’s extensive music scene. Then things changed. She came down with Lyme disease, which compelled her to return to Philly and put her music on the back burner.
Once she was healthy, JUJ took off again for Los Angeles, where she began work on her debut EP, JUJ, it’s U, a collection of alt-pop song flavored with cool textures of R&B. Still, making it in the world of music requires an array of gifts, including determination and inner fortitude, two qualities JUJ inherited from her mother, a dancer who left Brazil for the U.S. when she was 18-years-old.
Full of lush tones riding smooth timbres, it’s a delicious vocal instrument, conveying aching hurt, as well as glimmers of hopefulness.
In an interview with Murjani Rawls at Substream Magazine, JUJ illuminated the difficulties: “Moving at age 17 by myself, there were a ton of people who told me I couldn’t do it and I never let that shake me. With my sickness that occurred shortly after moving, I thought maybe it was a sign and I got all in my head thinking. What if they were right after all? Those thoughts were real.”
Despite the problems and obstacles, JUJ’s strength of character and resolve proved the naysayers wrong.
“Pieces” opens on a soft melancholic piano flowing into an infectious alt-pop melody suffused with creamy R&B filaments, infusing the tune with tantalizing wisps of color and nuanced recollection. A mid-temp pulsing rhythm gives the harmonics an undulating surface, as radiant vocal harmonies accentuate JUJ’s evocative, dulcet tones. Full of lush tones riding smooth timbres, it’s a delicious vocal instrument, conveying aching hurt, as well as glimmers of hopefulness.
“Down on my knees / Just me and my mind / I got these people so I don't feel so alone / I've got no piece of my own.”
On “Pieces,” JUJ struts her scrumptious vocal talent, delivering a song with emotional commitment and exquisite flow.
