Lucero Glow/Merle Cooper
The promising future for Jaz Karis’ is finally here. The London singer released her debut album Safe Flight today and it surpasses all expectations laid before her prior to its release. The 13-track release documents the journey and creative processes that led to Safe Flight and how, in making the album, Karis in a way left home to begin a new independent chapter in her life.
“This past year or so, I have traveled back and forth between London & Los Angeles so much that I hadn’t realized how much my life was changing before my eyes,” Karis said in a press release for the album. “The title Safe Flight felt fitting due to the amount of times I had heard it this past year, it also felt like I was embarking on a new journey, which is exactly what this album has been for me.” Karis’ feeling of starting a new chapter comes from the fact that just one song on the album was made in her hometown of London, with the rest mostly taking shape in Los Angeles, as well as New York City, Atlanta, Texas.
In the end, Safe Flight is a soaring and impressive debut from Karis that also doubles as a tasteful melting pot of R&B flavors. Karis delivers excellent traditional R&B ballads like “Love Me” and “Prayer” while impressing just as much with duets through the Mahalia-assisted “Nice Girls” and “Met You At A Bar” with Tone Stith. Karis brings us to the tropics and dazzles on “Tequila” with Reekado Banks, “Sims Castaway” with Juls, and “Chill On Me” with June Freedom. The diverse project reaffirms both Karis’ talents and her stardom.
Together with the release of Safe Flight, Uproxx caught up with Karis to spotlight her for this week’s Uproxx Music 20 column. Scroll down to learn more about the London singer’s inspiration, influences, and aspirations.
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What is your earliest memory of music?
My earliest memory of music is a pink toy I used to carry everywhere with me, and it played different loops on it. I used to make songs to the loops and I still remember my first limerick to this day.
Who or what inspired you to take music seriously?
I think I’d have to say at the time it was Alicia Keys. I played piano and her song was the first song I ever recorded in the studio, I saw myself in her.
Do you know how to play an instrument? If so, which one? If not, which instrument do you want to learn how to play?
Yes, I play the piano.
What was your first job?
My first ever job was a receptionist at a music studio and they gave me free studio time in exchange.
What is your most prized possession?
My cat.
What is your biggest fear?
Failure.
Who is on your R&B Mt. Rushmore?
Usher, SWV, Beyoncé, and Chris Brown.
You get 24 hours to yourself to do anything you want, with unlimited resources: What are you doing? And spare no details!
Turning off my phone, flying first class with my friends and family to the Caribbean, and sipping a rum punch on the beach listening to Safe Flight.
What are your three most used emojis?
, , and .
What’s a feature you need to secure before you die?
Drake.
If you could appear in a future season of a current TV show, which one would it be and why?
Black Mirror because I love it so much! It tells such a cool story, and they always end up coming true, so I feel like I’d get an inside on what’s coming.
Which celebrity do you admire or respect for their personality, and why?
J. Cole because he kept his crooked smile.
Share your opinion on something no one could ever change your mind about.
The cereal goes first, and then the milk.
What is the best song you’ve ever heard in your life, and what do you love about it?
“No Regrets” by Ella Fitzgerald. I love the vulnerability of this song, and it’s honestly just beautiful. It is so sad but sounds so sweet.
What’s your favorite city in the world to perform, and what’s a city you’re excited to perform in for the first time?
London because it’s home, and I can’t wait to perform in New York City.
You are throwing a music festival. Give us the dream lineup of 5 artists that will perform with you and the location where it would be held.
It would be held in Barcelona and the lineup would be Drake, PND, Jazmine Sullivan, Frank Ocean, and Beyoncé.
What would you be doing now if it weren’t for music?
I would either be a teacher, compete in the heptathlon, or work on a farm
If you could see five years into the future or go five years into the past, which one would you pick and why?
I would go to the future because you never said I could change the past, and it’d most probably save me a lot of time now.
What’s one piece of advice you’d go back in time to give to your 18-year-old self?
Care less.
It’s 2050. The world hasn’t ended, and people are still listening to your music. How would you like it to be remembered?
As a classic, timeless truth. I would hope it inspires the next generation of music.
Safe Flight is out now via Carmen Inc. Limited/MNKR Records LP. Find out more information here.
