Jason Nkanga is one of one. He genuinely believes it, and his conviction is palpable whenever he speaks. It is that unwavering conviction that informs his new project, ‘One of One’, a smashing hip-hop project that showcases what Jason is about.
Defying diaspora boundaries, he’s proudly representing Abuja, Nigeria’s vibrant capital, and spotlights the city’s finest talent on his project. He unites with PsychoYP, Reeplay, Eeskay, and Tomi Obanure, showcasing the best of Abuja’s burgeoning music scene.
In our conversation, he told me about himself, his love for Abuja, his creative process, and most importantly, his passion for music and hip-hop.
Finding music
Jason Nkanga (born Jason Inidara Nkanga on May 10, 1998) is a British-Nigerian rapper born in Lewisham, England. He’s an introvert with an effortless cool, preferring to let his music speak louder than words. Jason grew up around music. His brothers were deep into music, and that ultimately rubbed off on him. His brother played a huge role in igniting his passion for music. He tells me, ‘I was mainly brought up around my brothers, and two of them were into music, both of them. But one was, you know, a musician like me. So I think being around him shaped how I viewed music. It’s just listening to him, being in the studio. Seeing him work on music was inspiring. It inspired me to chase my dream.’
Regardless, he still doesn’t acknowledge his big brother as his biggest influence. While he does give him credit for being one of his primary influences, Jason tells me he is influenced by almost anything. ‘There are certain things that influence you daily; you can be influenced by listening to a particular sound or something you probably see on the TV,’ he says.
Chosen by Hip-Hop
One question that never fails to intrigue me is: What draws rappers to hip-hop? I love exploring the motivations behind their artistic choices. I pose the question to Jason, and he responds with a deft conviction that some might foolishly mistake for delusion. ‘I feel like Hip-Hop picked me,’ he says. While he had always enjoyed listening to music, he particularly enjoyed breaking down the lyrics to certain songs. Before he realized it, he was rapping, ‘If I’m working or walking on the road, I’m rapping. If I’m in the shower, I’m rapping. If I’m just here in the room, I’m rapping. So if I’m always doing that, I might as well just, you know, work on music and put something out.’
He describes himself as a lyrical rapper. He tells me that in the UK, where he resides, his music is commonly referred to as ‘the American type of music.’ A way of alluding to the sharpness of his pen and the depth of his lyrical ability. He namedrops Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole and Nasty C in a bid to drive home his point. While he is not eager to lock himself in a box, he recognizes that hip-hop is his sound, and he is willing to stay true to the art.
He walks me through his creative process and tells me the music he creates is based on his feelings at every point in time. ‘If I’m in the mood to make a song, I put on a beat. I always start first with listening to a beat. I know some artists write before listening to the beats, but I always start by listening to the beat, and then I know, okay, cool. Am I making a happy song? Am I making a sad song? Am I making a love song? Then once I start that, I just start writing, and I just allow my brain. I don’t overthink it. Whatever comes to my mind at that moment. I just write, and if there’s a chance to proofread, I do that afterwards, but I don’t allow it to stop my creative juices. I record immediately; I don’t like to wait a day or any other hour because I have to get the rhythm, so I have to record. After I record, I mix it and, you know, send it straight off to get mastered.’
When I ask if handling every aspect of his music—from writing to mixing—stifles his creativity, he responds in the negative and adds a twist. ‘It improves it, actually.’ he tells me. While he does acknowledge that it’s a lot of work, the positive far outweighs the almost non-existent negatives. ‘It makes you want to work faster; it improves your creative juice because you know how to do these things, so you might as well just hop onto it.’ he tells me.
Representing Abuja and shining a light on the city
Jason Nkanga has a special relationship with Nigeria’s capital city, Abuja. He tells me, ‘Abuja is my home. Abuja is the first city I have ever known. Despite being born in Lewisham, England, Abuja is the city he grew up in, the city that made him and the city he represents. ‘I love Abuja. I love everybody in it, the whole creative scene, and they have shown me love.’ It is this love for Abuja that inspires his desire to showcase and spotlight the city in any way he can. He does this by showcasing the best talents Abuja has to offer on his new project featuring Eeskay, Tomi Obanure, Reeplay, and the King of Abuja, PsychoYP.
He released ‘T House Basement’ in 2023, featuring PsychoYP. He tells me they’ve been friends even before he started rapping, and they even worked on one of his very first records, which was never officially released. ‘T house basement’ happened when YP randomly asked him to pull up. ‘ I pulled up, and I didn’t think that we were going to make music that day. So we’re chilling. And he was like, Let’s do something; let’s create something. I was like, Cool, yeah, I’m down. He plays the first beats, and I’m like, play the next one, because I’m trying to understand how the beats are because I think we can both flow on whatever we bring to each other. So he brought the second beat, and from there, we just started writing like that. We wasted no time. We started writing and we recorded the same day, and that’s what T House basement was made.’
I ask him what it’s like working with PsychoYP, and he tells me, ‘He’s a hard-working artist—the most hardworking artist I’ve ever seen. He pushes you to go past your limits. So you have to be ready when you’re working with him. You have to be on your full game to work with him and create magic.’
We discussed his brand new project, ‘One of One.’ and he told me the project is unique. ‘This is one of one; you can’t find it any other place than this’.
He wants this project to shine a light on everybody who was involved in the project and take them to greater heights. Jason is very keen on elevating everyone around him. Like Davido, he believes ‘we rise by lifting others’ and he is willing to lift as many people as he can. When I ask him if he isn’t worried about carrying dead weight, he tells me he knows he cannot carry everybody. He is only looking to carry those who can offer top quality. ‘If you want me to carry you, you have to give me quality. You have to give me quality, something that everybody will be proud of. The important thing in music is always delivering quality, no matter what.’
I sought his perspective on what it means to be an artist in the social media era and how he navigates the need to constantly put himself out there despite being an introverted person. ‘It’s tough because I’m an introverted person, so doing all of that just feels out of who I am.’ Regardless, he recognizes that it’s a necessary part of the industry, and he’s willing to play the game regardless of the challenges. ‘We’re already in that era, and we can’t change it, so we just have to go with the time and be content creators. It’s tough for people, but you just have to do what you have to do.’
Throughout our conversation, Jason speaks passionately about everything. He delivers in-depth responses to my questions, and his passion and love for hip-hop and the culture saturates the ambiance. The vibe is unmistakable. When I asked what he is most grateful for, his response was, ‘My ability to rap. I’m grateful for my ability to rap because, without this rap, I wouldn’t know the person speaking to me. I wouldn’t know so many people. I believe that this ability has brought me to amazing people. So the ability to rap is what I’m grateful for. Like, without rap, I don’t think, I don’t think I’ll do anything like it; it has given me joy. Music has given me so much joy.’
Listen to Jason Nkanga’s new project ‘One of One’
