Q&A: jessa Reminds Us To Be “TUFF”

Q&AMusic

Oct 13

☆ Frankie Tameron ☆

EXPLORING A NOT SO PICTURE-PERFECT REALITY — jessa, a 20-something rising R&B singer from the Bronx, has released new single “TUFF.” The song asks us to examine our inner child to process things of the present. With lyrics like “Hilary Duff really fucked me up / teaching me I would be young and in love / boys like you don’t learn as fast / as girls like me who built to last,” the track is a sweet nostalgic look at growing through the uncertainty of our twenties.

The singer began performing at the age of four, on the stage that her grandfather built for her in the basement of her childhood home. She entered choir in high school and soon started recording. After a few years of finding her sound, jessa says that she has finally come into a place where she’s comfortable in the space she’s in. But jessa knows that her sound is always changing — the singer-songwriter brings experimentation and different genres into her studio session in order to help foster her growth as an artist. In a time when it seems hard to come by authenticity and vulnerability, jessa has no problem transmuting her life experiences into her version of art.

“TUFF,” released on Sept. 29, is accompanied by a music video out now. The video was shot, edited, and directed by Raffaella. The three-minute montage features jessa dawning a Lizzie McGuire costume in the middle of winter in Minnesota. She remarks that the video felt like a full-circle moment in her friendship with her best friend — as the two danced around Mall of America and school buses, they became aware of the growth they’ve had.

Read below to find out more about jessa’s inspirations, what she’s hoping to bring into autumn, and what’s next for the rising artist.

LUNA: Do you feel like the Bronx is embedded into your music?

JESSA: I don't think it is necessarily, just because it wasn't my music taste. I feel like I was more influenced by my dad. His music tastes and listening to records he'd play in the car really gave me a love for R&B.

LUNA: What did your dad play in the car? What was your favorite?
JESSA: One of my favorites was Ruff Endz. It is an R&B duo — they have this song “Someone to Love You.”

LUNA: What is your writing process like?

JESSA: It changes, but usually, if I'm going to go into the studio with someone, I'll give references and the producer will start working on something. We’ll kind of see what sticks in terms of where we both feel inspired and go in a certain kind of genre direction. They'll start working and I’ll write lyrics on my Notes app. Sometimes the melody will come first. Sometimes the lyrics will come first or I can tap into ideas that I've put in my Notes app previously and flesh that out. Then we record and keep, and we record backs and do more vocal production and build everything out. The music usually changes — it's not a one-and-done session situation.

LUNA: What inspired “TUFF”?

JESSA: “TUFF” was inspired by my childhood, and how our childhood and the things that we watched growing up influence[s] our expectations for our romantic lives as adults … realizing that … it's still affecting you. You still romanticize expecting specific things or happy endings in certain situations or expecting people to act certain ways.

LUNA: How was filming the music video for “TUFF”?

JESSA: It was so low pressure. There was definitely an idea and plan and a treatment for the video, but it was easy to execute and just something we could enjoy together. It felt nostalgic; it felt like we were making it as our young selves and bringing that fantasy of what we wanted to be doing when we were little and bringing that to fruition together. It was fun, and it was very cold. It was in Minnesota and there was snow on the ground; I was in a little Lizzie McGuire movie costume I put together, and so it was not very weather protected.

LUNA: The seasons are changing — what are you looking forward to cultivating this autumn?

JESSA: Seasons are changing and I'm so grateful for that. I have a bunch of music that I've been working on. I do want to start releasing more consistently. So I'm looking forward to doing that. I'm looking forward to just kind of hopefully writing more often, too, and writing more outside of the studio … like, at home. I want to challenge myself to actually learn the piano in a more real way and utilize it more. It's such a gift I'm able to have this — not everyone is able to have … easy access [to] instruments and the ability to teach it to yourself.

LUNA: What’s coming next for you?

JESSA: I’ll hopefully have another single out by the end of the year.

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We couldn’t be more stoked to have Suriel Hess as our new headliner for our upcoming LA show 🤩 🫶 Not gonna lie, us & Notorious Noise kinda went OFF with this line up & you’re not gonna wanna miss it - ticket link in bio 🎫