20 Jun Come Meet the Multi-Talented Jessa le Carre [Exclusive Interview]
Jessa le Carre Photographed by Yasya Alexandrova
Jessa le Carre, also known as dJESSa in the music world, has transformed into a trance/house producer after spending years honing her craft as a prolific mashup artist. She has perfectly fine-tuned her original sound to be as similar as possible to her famous hour-long mashup mixes from the past.
To date, her music releases with tracks like “Break My Heart,” “You,” “Come,” and “Nobody Knows” have been an impressive step forward. What really sets her apart from everyone else in the music industry is that not only does she produce her own music but she is also a talented vocalist and performs on her songs. This gives her full creative control with her music and has amassed a loyal fan following. Get to know more about Jessa le Carre below!
Your new track is titled, “Come,” and it’s really special. What went into this original production and what was the concept behind it?
I think the concept of “less is more” is a big goal throughout all of my original productions, but I really emphasize this belief in “Come.” I brought in a very heavy atmosphere to accompany the addictive groove. I attempted to make a perfect summer track that was easy to vibe to anywhere. I’d like for my latest release to sound like an entire experience from beginning to end. Like you’re being taken somewhere else in that moment and can really close your eyes and release your mind into the sound.
Do you think about how “Come” and your future music releases might sound all together when you DJ them out back to back during a live show?
Yes and actually, I made “Come” overtly feminine intentionally to mix with my future release. I like to think ahead of my creations to make sure they are compatible with one another to make my life a little easier when behind the decks later on.
Your previous track, “Nobody Knows” is really beautiful! What was your inspiration for that tune?
This track incorporates three different vocals from three origin tracks. I have a natural instinct for all things mashup so when I created this song it was only the female vocal initially and later the vocal effect that starts the track. The second I heard that blip of the male vocal, I knew that it was a match!
This piece, as I see it, is a conversation between the male and female energy and I’m not just referring to the vocals when I say that. I created the entire track to balance these two aspects in a sort of auditory sensation of opposite energy attraction. It’s a love song from my perspective and arguably a great breakup song.
What is your writing process like, as a composer? What elements do you begin with and how does your creative process generally go?
Usually, I let my inspiration guide me for the most part so the process can vary a lot for each track. I love to bring a small portable field recorder around with me almost everywhere I go in case I come across any cool sounds while I’m out. I really love to go exploring for ideas in nature intentionally with certain songs in mind.
Nature and animals are two things I find very soothing to my soul. Whether I use the recordings later on directly or as the inspiration behind the synth can depend on what sounds best. Sometimes my tracks will feature real instrumentals as well and I create most of these (other than the guitar).
What instruments do you play and do you plan on incorporating them into your songs in the future?
I play the piano, clarinet, snare, hang drum, cymbal, and xylophone. I haven’t tried all of these in my tracks yet but a lot of them I have and it hits my ear slightly differently when I do!
It’s fun for me to create as I go and build on ideas that have a way of finding each other naturally. There’s a sort of luck or magic that I witness in the studio all the time that I can’t really explain but it’s definitely exciting to see when it happens.
Photographed by Yasya Alexandrova
It seems, from listening to your releases, including the ones mentioned above and the tracks, “Break My Heart,” “Eleven Phoenix” and “You,” that you like to create a positive mood with your music. Is this an accurate assessment? At what point does the mood enter your creative process, when composing a new track or song?
I wish for my music to unite, inspire, and uplift my listeners. I strive for my sound to create a mental or energetic healing effect for whoever hears it. Intentionally, I balance contrasting sounds to pull energy from all aspects around it. I think life is a matter of balance. A wise person recently told me that life is all about a balance between love and discipline and I find that outlook very relatable when creating music.
These songs take blood, sweat, and tears to create. It’s countless hours of dedication, but it makes me endlessly happy seeing other people find joy in my art so it is all completely worth it. My dance challenges on my socials have been so meaningful to me so far. There’s been nothing but good vibes from everyone involved and this light is what has been my inspiration in the studio lately.
How have your online dance challenges on Instagram and TikTok gone?
My last dance challenge for “Nobody Knows” was a great success. Dancers from over 24 countries participated and there was so much love going around it felt like an online festival at times.
Do you have a dance challenge planned up for “Come” or any other tracks you intend to release this summer?
Yes, there will be another competition hopefully every month this summer. Currently, I am scheduling my releases to come out at the perfect time for the month or season at hand. I haven’t even announced the next challenge, yet, but I am already receiving submissions for it throughout the day today. I made my latest release, “Come,” to welcome in summer and help bring some positive, low-stress energy into the world for a much-needed break.
What do you want to convey with your dance challenges?
I want my dance challenges to be a safe space for everyone to have fun and support one another. The dancers have been truly incredible so far in lifting everyone up and I have been thanked by all of them for a rewarding experience. I find them truly inspiring and watching all of these talented dancers move and flow to my music is actually helping me in the studio in many ways.
What is the most rewarding part for you watching everyone take on your song’s dance challenges?
I find no greater compliment than to have a dancer completely lose themselves to one of my creations! No one understands music’s effect on the body better than a dancer. Seeing people come together and lift each other up because of my music is basically the greatest feeling on earth.
What’s your overarching philosophy to making music?
Music is a universal language and I think it’s important we all remember this constantly when trying to raise the vibrations of this planet. No stone can go unturned when it comes to expanding energy. We are all in this life together and anything done to one is also done to us all.
Photographed by Yasya Alexandrova
How do you want your music to impact people specifically?
I seek for my own music to be an escape from our sometimes hectic lives in this reality and for it to remind us of the greater picture. We are all in this crazy life together. We as a human species have much more in common than we do not.
It’s important to me that anyone can enjoy my music regardless of their age, background, or location on the planet. I keep my music as minimal as possible. I am constantly deleting elements as I work in an attempt to keep my work as peaceful as possible to the psyche.
Do you meditate and if so, is that the state of mind you want your fans to be able to achieve while listening to your music?
Yes, I’m a big fan of meditation. There would be no greater goal than to achieve a similar state with my listeners.
As a live DJ going by the alias “dJESSa,” could you name some of the highlighted “best shows” you’ve ever played? Why were these performances so memorable to you?
I find it nostalgic already to think about the past because the future of the scene seems so uncertain right now. Currently, my fondest memories of past shows are when I was performing locally in my scene here in [Washington] D.C. D.C. used to have a much cooler scene than it does now in an underground sort of way.
I remember when Nation was the hottest nightclub in D.C. and this was also the first major club I was lucky to be a part of. Special event nights like foam parties were a regular thing and this sort of scenario seems nearly impossible now.
Warehouse parties will always have a deep place in my heart. If I ever had the extra time I would love to open a club concept like this again in the district one day. “RAW DC” is another cool event I helped launch here. It involved having artists of all sorts (dancers, fashion designers, models, painters, and graffiti artists) all under one roof.
I felt really inspired being able to DJ for so many different artists at once and I’ve also always had a huge appreciation for all the aforementioned artistic people! I collect artwork of all sorts as a personal hobby and it’s important for me to have a very artful setting in my home and studio environment.
What are your plans for DJ’ing out live in the next several months as the country gets vaccinated and venues continue revving-up again?
I’ve been speaking with some D.C. clubs lately about possible residencies this year now that things are opening back up. We are lucky there is so much that has survived here in my city because I know many event owners and venues lost so much.
I feel DJs have a somewhat easier task at hand with social distancing since we are usually kept away from the crowd while performing. In this sense, I don’t have any personal concerns moving forward. I do beleive we need to think of ourselves as a collective and what is good for everyone involved. Without fans, there is no scene.
From an optimistic, positive-speaking perspective, what’s one thing you do, feel or think differently now (post-pandemic), that you didn’t before (pre-pandemic), and that you’re grateful or happy about? Will you continue this way of doing/feeling/thinking, long into the future? Why/why not?
In some ways this time has been a blessing for me because it has allowed me to develop my voice as a producer. I feel grateful to have had the time possible to make my creations as fulfilling as possible. Usually, I travel a lot and this personal time has forced me to develop a lot of goals and projects I’ve been putting off for some time.
I feel more focused than ever with what I feel is my life mission. I dedicate my life to my music, almost as if I’m in a marriage with it. It is among my highest priorities and I don’t foresee anything changing that.
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