Making your debut as a new artist isn’t easy, but rapper J-Onyx is making it look effortless with her commanding single “Can’t F With”. Spitting over a hard-hitting beat, the rapper uncovers her natural gift for rhythms and flows, as she serves up a straight-talking single that instantly pulls you in. Letting her music do all the talking, the rapper conceals her identity in the accompanying video, as she puts her stance on sexualisation in the music industry on full display.

“As a female, the easiest way to get people to take notice is how good or bad you look,” the rapper revealed. “It’s super important to my team and I that people take in the level of production and creativity and music rather than the physical aspect of me. There’s always time for glam but right now it’s not that. I need people to take in the music rather than my image. Not everyday breast and bum!”

Tapping into various genres for her sound, the rapper is on a mission to line herself up with the greats in UK rap, aspiring to sit in-between the likes of Nolay and Lady Leshurr. With a potential mixtape and EP in the pipeline and another release in the near future, we caught up with J-Onyx talking female rap in the UK, keeping her identity hidden and how London is always inspiring her.

Check out the interview below…

Hi J-Onyx, how have you been?
I’ve been alright thank you, living life you know, but I’ve been good!

Has the pandemic affected your creativity when it comes to music?
Yes and no. It’s been calm to be honest, if anything it’s given me more space and time to just put my head down and graft, push my writing skills and in turn, I’ve been able to produce some quality music.

When did you first start to explore rapping? Did your London upbringing play a part in your decision to start a career in music?
In 2019 I did a freestyle for banter/ a dare and days later I was approached by my now manager to take it seriously and we’ve just been developing since then, but prior to that I never had it in my mind to be a rapper. London is a huge influence, my whole life has been a journey of madness in this city so yeah 1000%.

You have chosen not to share your identity with the public! Can you speak us through your decision to keep your identity private?
Basically, as a female, the easiest way to get people to take notice is how good or bad you look and it’s super important to my team and I that people take in the level of production and creativity and music rather than the physical aspect of me. There’s always time for glam but right now it’s not that. I need people to take in the music rather than my image. Not everyday breast and bum.

Congratulations on the release of “Can’t F With”! What is the meaning behind the track?
“Can’t F With” is about the fact we’re not trusting people easily whether it be a man, woman, people in general. People who drain your energy or take you for granted, just not trusting easy and I think a lot of people can relate to that.

You normally upload your freestyle to Instagram. How did the process of producing and releasing this track differ from your usual method?
TyMetronome and I have put more time into the songs that we make rather than the freestyles which I just write on the spot and record usually in one take. With this release we took our time to make sure the sonics were complimentary to the lyrics and the vibe. Together with the team, we developed a rollout strategy to hit a wider audience, whilst giving them something they can have on rotation on their playlist whether they’re working out or driving. We did a couple of freestyles on the gram that got a nice response, but “Can’t F With” Is our debut, it is a statement that is saying we are here and definitely not going anywhere.

You have already commanded the attention of the likes of BBC 1Xtra and Kiss FM DJs and Charlie Sloth! How does that type of recognition make you feel?
It’s a madness, my guys at KISS, Charlie and 1Xtra are very humbling and that definitely shows we are on the right track. Good to hear that some generals in the game rate what we are doing and that’s big..

Who would you cite as your rap inspirations?
It’s very hard to name only a few but Chip, Biggie Smalls, Lil Kim, Nolay, Lady Leshurr, I mess with Drake, Potter Paper I rate, this question is too hard, I’ll be here for five years!

Your latest release is your official debut. What can your followers expect from your next?
I have a tonne of tunes recorded and a series of singles set be released over the coming months, as well as an EP or mixtape in the pipeline. The next release is jumpy, it is one of my favourites out of the large batch we have.