Jacquill - "Decoded"

What's your name, artist name and where are you from?

My name is Jacquill Moss. My stage name is Jacquill and I am from Long Beach, CA. Instagram is @GothamNights

What makes you different as a person and as an artist?

I feel what makes me different as a person is similar to what makes everyone else unique. We are all experiencing our own journey. A journey that's both Internal and external. Our experiences shape our perspective and how we view the world, daily. So for me, I'm always going to choose to be myself. It's my superpower. As an artist, what makes me unique is my background in art. My grandfather is a well respected and legendary guitarist. I wrote my first rap in 2nd grade, the same year I joined my school choir, which actually wasn't a choice. It was mandatory at my school but it was fun. By 3rd grade, I started acting in our school plays and had some type of film or drama class all the way through high school graduation. I started my first record label while still in high school and we would perform at rallies and do house shows. Everyone who knows me , tells me that I need to get more into producing and crafting my own sound even further because sometimes it’s hard to explain a sound that only you could hear. Sometimes my ideas are too different or I want to work at a faster pace than most of my friends were used to. I had a clear vision and they tell me that becoming a producer would only help me grow further. So I’m saving up for my equipment now.

What do you want to accomplish in life?

To be honest with you, right now my focus has been on buying real estate and going back to school in the future. No lie, I can’t tell you how many homes I spend all day touring on YouTube. They have some sick mansions in Las Vegas for as low as $600k and with my Raiders being out there, wouldn’t mind owning a home in that area and enjoying football games on the weekend. If they ever offer me a media or videographer position, I’ll do it for free haha. I have a lot of personal goals and a list of things I need to work on in order to become a better person, character growth. I’ve dedicated myself to long term happiness and that’s probably one of my biggest to accomplish in life. Foster kids and Homeless Youth are two of my biggest passions. My twin brother and I were both homeless teenagers. A lot of my best friends growing up were foster kids. My father even worked at a foster care facility in his early years. Imagine creating a system where I could buy low income apartment buildings that aren’t being utilized and completely renovate them. I would add dorm styled bedrooms, study rooms, gyms, professionally supervised and provide all the tools they’ll need. I’ll offer at risk youth to live in this apartments rent free, signed off by the government. In exchange I want them to major or study in fields that have little to zero minorities and help bridge the gaps. Whether that’s Law, Marine Biology, Physics, Computer Science, etc. They could completely choose their own paths as well and we’ll be there to completely guide them and set them up for long term success without having to make the same mistakes I made in my younger years. I definitely see myself getting married and having a huge family. I laugh because I already have 4 names picked out for children and that motivates me to continue growing as a person. Career wise, I would like my production company to get off the ground and I would love to produce original content on a large scale. Whether that’s creating my own superhero movie universe, amazing independent films, launching my own record label to usher in a new sound and wave of unique artists etc. Once I get my opportunity, there’s no looking back.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Touring and working with my favorite artists. I told myself after my debut album, I was going to switch gears and focus hard on these two scripts I’ve been developing. Praying that both are produced and accepted into festivals like Sundance, Cannes and Tribeca. That would be super dope. In 5 years I want to see my credit score at 800 or close to it. I see myself being the most healthiest version of myself. Physically, mentally, spiritually and financially. Music wise, when I walk down Melrose, walk into Long Beach Proper, Wish Atlanta or when cars are driving down the street, I want to hear my music being played. Within 5 years, I no longer want to work my 9-5’s and live paycheck to paycheck. I want to put all of my complete focus into what I’m building and looking to accomplish, no distractions and fully supported by my craft. That’s the ultimate goal.

What do you bring to the music world?

I bring authenticity, passion and my own perspective. I could be wrong but what I was taught at a young age was HipHop was birthed through the Nation of Gods and Earth. They believed men were gods and the women are earth. Our job is to protect our earth at all costs and quite frankly, we haven’t been doing a good job of protecting our women. If you look at the forefront of the entire movement going on with social justice, you see women are going the hardest, putting their lives on the line for the cause and have always been the trailblazers for what’s right. I need to do more. I need to learn more and become a better ally. My platform will allow me to do that. Another thing I was taught was a cypher wasn’t a crew standing in a circle just “trading bars” with each other. A cypher meant “circle of knowledge “ in early HipHop. Let’s spread knowledge through these bars and really help our people out. Whether it’s Master P, Snoop, Ye’, Cudi, Pharrell, Dipset, Tyler The Creator , Jay-Z or Gambino, they showed me that it’s possible to be anything you want to be at any given time. Whether that’s designing fashion, getting into politics, writing scripts, directing movies and shows etc. They showed me that you don’t have to stick to one lane. I want my music to offer me opportunities outside of music. I want my platform to bring me film opportunities and introduce me to open minded people that could help me bring these ideas to life. HipHop runs culture. It offers an escape from the realities we face on a daily. HipHop leads the youth and it paints the world that we live in. What Pharrell and Kid Cudi are to me, I want to be for the next generations. I want to lead and create more leaders, more free thinkers who are able to express themselves freely. A quote I read in an article recently said “Lyrical content is a vehicle for building self reflection, learning and growth.” I felt that completely because that’s what the culture did for me.

What legacy do you want to leave behind?

That’s a tough one . The legacy I want to leave behind is mainly dedicated towards my family. I want to break the generational curses that held us back for too long. I want to set up a foundation for my generation of siblings and cousins, who are all talented and gifted, and establish generational wealth for the next ones to follow. Set the standard for excellence for my bloodline and go hard for it. Career wise , I want my legacy to be something that continues to inspire, years after I’ve left earth. I want my ideas to be born and then live on their own. Similar to George Lucas, to be able to create an idea like Star Wars and watch that entire universe grow to something much bigger than George Lucas himself. Where other creators are adding to his legacy and bringing more ideas to the table in order to continue expanding that world. That’s legendary. Another idol that comes to mind is Stan Lee. Who I would of voted for to become president. Stan took real world problems and made some of the most amazing characters that faced what we’ve faced as a society. Helped us get through it and helped us escape. The universe repaid him by allowing his characters to continue growing and expanding far beyond his imagination. Like to be able to create a character in an era where super hero movies, CGI and colored televisions didn’t even exist and to push these stories for decades and have appearances in these films decades later. It’s time travel and it’s incredible. It all started with an idea, a character and a story. The rest is history. That’s what I want to accomplish in my legacy.