Saffron Threads: J Oh Zee

Threads of Saffron shares the rich journeys of Saffron’s alumni and community members. Find out what they’ve been up to since participating in our projects.

Serving drinks in Motion, Bristol to serving Grime on Rinse FM and multiple, notable platforms, festivals and venues including BBC introducing, BBC 1xtra, Garage Nation, Eskimo Dance, Outlook, Fabric and XOYO. This week, we caught up with Jozie aka J Oh Zee who enrolled on the Mix Nights course in 2018.

Interview and words by Caragh Jones

Immersed in the scene and surrounded by DJs at Bristol Motion, Jozie built a desire to know how to DJ herself. This was a surprise to many as Jozie didn’t enjoy being the centre of attention and, “the thought of playing to a room full of people was terrifying.”

Despite this, Jozie joined Mix Nights term 13, describing herself as, “the worst participant by far”. But that didn’t matter – the course enabled Jozie to get comfortable with trying and learning. Supported by the course leads and her peers – who she is still connected with today – Jozie was able to build her confidence, “I quickly learnt that you can’t do this by yourself – connecting, collaborating and sharing is key to succeeding and growing in this industry”.

J Oh Zee playing her first DJ set to the public at our Mix Nights Term 13 Showcase in Bristol

Succeeding in Grime brought its own challenges as a niche scene within the industry – hard to break into, less progressive, the list could go on. After graduating from Mix Nights, Jozie decided to start Shellingz – a monthly night that enabled her to carve out her own space in the scene. A few months later, Shellence got invited to host a room at Eskimodance at the 02 Academy. On the night of the event, Jozie received a call saying, “Charlie Sloth couldn’t make it so could I (Jozie) fill in and open – sorry, what?! I was so nervous but jumped at the opportunity.”

Keen to develop and share her sound with the world, Jozie secured Noods Radio and 1020 residencies. And then the big C O V I D hit, “just as things started to feel like they were gaining momentum.” Determined to not disappear, Jozie hosted radio shows weekly, “I was keen to keep connecting and collaborating, so invited as many guests on as I could.”

A move to London resulted in a new residency with 140 bass station, Mode and the “pinch-me!” bookings at Fabric, Outlook and XOYO followed. Today, Jozie holds down a Rinse residency and is one of our rotating Mix Nights London tutors – a beautiful cyclical journey that enables Jozie to share her real life experience of the course with people at the beginning of their journey, as she continues to grow as an artist.

J Oh Zee playing at Love Saves the Day Festival

And that’s all that Jozie wants to do – keep trying, learning, playing, “If I could do this for the rest of my life it would be amazing, and I have Saffron to thank.”

Saffron for Jozie is “a lifesaver – it’s for everybody else; to make the music industry better. The industry is a sticky place, especially if you don’t know how to navigate it, which unfortunately rings true for many. Saffron is doing all it can to change that and make the industry a more inclusive and exciting place to be.”

Jozie is one of our many threads of Saffron – the amazing people that make up our rich community. We’ll be introducing you to another thread in a few weeks time. Keep your eyes peeled!

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FIND OUT MORE ABOUT J OH ZEE