Jayy Solo Exclusive Interview: Saskatchewan Rapper on Music, Mental Health & His Creative Journey
Name: Jeremy Dunlop
Location: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Talent Name: Jayy Solo
Category: Artist
Instagram: therealjayysolo
💬 INTRODUCTION
I was born in Edmonton but my stay was very short-lived, before I was 2 we also moved to Sherwood Park before taking the long haul off to Saskatchewan.
I currently stay in Saskatoon and work for a prestigious exterior company now rebranded as OXE. I’ve been working there for almost 7 years and 4th year as foreman of the in house siding crew.
My creative journey technically started at the tail end of 2014 but my passion for music has lived in me since before I could stand.
🔥 THE PASSION
The pivotal moment in my life came from an old roommate, Dylan Olsen (aka a ghost), who was there at the very beginning of my creative journey, always encouraging me to sit down with a notepad and, as he would say, “write some bars!”
It was an LA artist known as Hopsin who had inspired me to the point I thought that, hey, maybe I could turn these poems into raps. You could call me his Stan. That was the defining moment for me, where a hobby was formed and ultimately something much larger was discovered.
I started my journey as Jayy I wasn’t always Jayy Solo.
The passion burned so deep within me, I overextended a little bit. I dropped Good Things Coming, my first mixtape, very early summer of 2016, shortly followed by Off The Beat & Track EP late summer that same year.
I didn’t sleep much in the process of making that. Over a year and a half, I would stay up anywhere from 24–36 hours at a time, with 2 hours–30 minutes of rest in between. Highly not recommended, ’cause after dropping all that music and no sleep, I went through a drug-induced psychosis and was picked up by mobile crisis and held behind a glass wall under suicide watch for 24 hours.
Music stopped coming out for years and went through the battles I believe a lot of artists go through but a lot don’t see through it. The biggest struggle being do I quit? Or keep going. Something always told me keep going so I did.
🇨🇦 COMMUNITY & CANADIAN PRIDE
For me, identity has always been a struggle. I grew up in places where it seemed like everywhere someone had a family tree or knew of another when mentioned. I never had that... Being born in Edmonton, then growing up in rural Saskatchewan as a complete outsider up until high school, finding friends wasn’t something I was good at doing. I found fists from bullies better. I’m second-generation Canadian, and with that being said, I feel my roots lie deeper across the pond than they ever have on Canadian soil—and I’ve never been over there yet.
Blood-related family I can count on my fingers, but there are a few I don’t know that live in Scotland. They never left with my grandma; she went on her own.
So what does it mean to me to be a Canadian creative? I just live here, bro. I’m just doing me. I understand many are passionate about where they came from or a little more patriotic. My drive came from discovering who I was as a creative in general.
🚀 BUILDING THE DREAM
I’m very proud of every opportunity I had to perform on stage, in a back alley (yes, I said back alley), or in a car full of strangers. I’ve had the chance to perform in front of 4 people, did shows with 20 people in the crowd, to as many as 1,200 with the majority in the mosh pit.
The biggest moment for me on stage had to have been back in 2017. I opened up for Hopsin and Token, who were my primary inspiration at the time. During my performance, my ex yelled from the crowd, “fuck you Jeremy,” and I replied with mic in hand, “fuck you too bitch!” and the crowd went wild!
But any chance now I have to put out new music has been big for me, as I’ve been known for taking a hiatus.
🤝 NETWORKING SPOT
Recently, I’ve had the interest to work with Junk. I actually reached out to him, as he’s a friend on Facebook, and he hit me with the feature price of 2 bands, saying it was going to 2.5 soon. He was even willing to work with me on a deposit and instalments, but my money was low at that time, and I got embarrassed and ghosted that conversation. I still very much would like to work with him. I feel we could create something unreal, but I feel as though I walked away from a burning bridge. It looked bad on my end.
With Eazy Mac, I found his music very interesting, being a bit of a back seat fan to it all, but always found myself vibing to one of his songs. I too reached out to him on Facebook, as we are friends, but I was met with a read and no reply. I think with his sound, it may get me to evolve a bit as an artist, tapping into and discovering something new for me, ’cause I never stick with one flow.
My list for Canadian artists I’d like to work with doesn’t run very long. To get a song with Merkules would be cool, but a feature price I can’t fully justify for myself at this time. Most of the artists I like to work with are across borders. Always been that way. Don’t get me started on Drake.
ANYTHING ELSE?
The biggest thing that kept me going over the years was continuous signs. Some more subtle than others, and some, if I tried to explain to a closed-minded individual, they simply would not comprehend or would think I was crazy.
One of the closest songs to me off the EP would hands down be Speak My Truth, where I touch on that subject a lot, further dissecting it for myself and the listeners. You really have to read between the lines to get the full story whenever it comes to any of my music. I’ve always been big on analogies and metaphors, and I use those to build my therapy sessions I call art.
Like mentioned before, the list for the artists I’d like to work with across the border runs far longer than the one from Canada. Primarily being my biggest influence throughout my music journey, from Orlando, Florida, by the name of Brandon Caskey, or better known as Caskey. His catalog runs deep within my veins, and his music has spoken to me on many occasions to the point I felt it helped guide me to this very path I’m on.
Lastly, the addition of Solo to my name came in 2018, when I officially left the group known as Mafia Clique Entertainment. One remains a day one homie of mine, but he was never about going big for himself; he would rather spit a free with the bros. The other turned jealous and drew bad blood. So I dropped the song Self Righteous, and it has been one of my biggest songs to date.
🧠 COMETS QUESTIONS
COMET: You’ve been building for a while now across different platforms — what’s kept you consistent when a lot of artists fall off?
JAYY SOLO: Like mentioned the passion within me built an unstoppable drive and force that kept me on a guided path, not always making sense at the time, but on it I remained.
Biggest shout out would be to my bro Kahdyn Headley-Wolf for relentlessly pushing me in the later years knowing of my potential being put aside. I hadn’t always been consistent throughout some periods as life got in the way but I know that it’s key if you want to build something successful in this industry.
COMET: You’ve used phrases like “Good Things Coming” and “Never Left” — what do those actually mean to you beyond just captions?
JAYY SOLO: Good Things Coming came to me at the very beginning of my journey. It spoke to me in the sense where manifesting something positive with the music, good things are to follow. Now it’s built into a motto I live and work by.
Never Left is the key point to the whole story I’ve built around the EP. I’ve set myself out for the long haul, as many times as I wanted to quit or give in. I could have almost a thousand times, it felt, but something kept me grounded and focused.
I’ve battled with thoughts of suicide and addictions, tangled with a few near-death experiences. Some that probably should have taken my life, but here I stand. Even if I wanted to at times, it felt I have NEVER LEFT!
COMET: You’ve got music, visuals, and presence — do you see yourself more as an artist, or as someone building a full brand?
JAYY SOLO: At the end of the day I will always be an artist who’s creating something I am very passionate about. With that being said I have generated it in a way that I was able to build a brand around something I truly believe in. The diamond stands for the pressure always built around me and Solo behind my original name Jayy as I’ve always taken the steps on my own.
It’s all in the logo.
COMET: You’ve released music over time, not just recently — how do you feel your sound or mindset has evolved from your earlier work to now?
JAYY SOLO: My earlier work I was definitely a lot more energetic and a lot would describe it as cocky. I don’t shy away from these terms. I was still very much discovering myself as an artist and honestly beyond hungry to get anything I could get recorded instantly pushed out to the public. I was ambitious and eager but also naive. Now I’ve learned to build patience and structure around release dates and not only that but to be more formal having higher quality productions and engineer work.
Before it would only cost me $40 to get a song out. Today it’s not that simple.
COMET: There’s a certain confidence in how you present yourself — was that always there, or did it come from experience?
JAYY SOLO: Honestly the confidence is merely the image, today that is something I strongly lack whereas in my beginning years I was bursting with it. Now I guess you could say that came with the experience cause I wish I could see what the others do sometimes. It’s been one of my biggest battles over the later years rebuilding and relocating my confidence as an artist and human being.
COMET: You’re active on multiple platforms — do you approach each one differently, or is it all just an extension of who you are?
JAYY SOLO: Every platform I use in synch so if it’s getting posted as a picture to Facebook you will see it in the gram. Etc etc. I’ve stayed away from tik tok for a long time and simply only go on there to post and dip I’m very passive with that platform.
But yes you could say they are all just an extension of the version of myself I created.
COMET: You’ve worked on visuals and videos — how important is it for you to control how your music is seen, not just heard?
JAYY SOLO: For one I’m a bit… ok no I’m a big time perfectionist, always been my own worst critic. I’ve always applied this beyond the audio side of things. I probably could’ve had more visuals out over the years but to me I needed it to be seen in the highest quality possible or I didn’t want it. I’ve done a few low budget shoots but was never fully satisfied by the results. So I knew I had to link up with the best of the best but unfortunately that means it won’t be cheap.
COMET: A lot of your work feels intentional — when you’re creating, are you thinking long-term or just focused on the moment?
JAYY SOLO: There are many times when I’m creating I try to stay present in the moment and focus just on that. But when I step back and look at the whole picture I can start to pick the pieces and put them into place. So in a way it’s unintentionally intentional. I’m big on concept albums and building a vision around a main idea, usually what ever I’m going through at the time, and finding projects I’ve worked on to build the story I’m trying to tell.
COMET: What’s something about your journey that people would completely miss if they only saw your content online?
JAYY SOLO: The tough times, the times that I wanted to give up not just on the music and had nobody to turn to but myself. The times I was so broke I picked up cigarette butts to feed a habit, living out of a suitcase and having no place to call home for years. That was early on in my creative journey I made a lot of mistakes because I felt I had nothing to lose. The other part they would completely miss is my true demeanour, I know I come across as cocky or maybe even arrogant from an online setting or from how I portray myself in my music, but that is not at all how I carry myself in any normal day to day interactions.
COMET: Have you had a moment where you felt like everything you’ve been building is starting to connect?
JAYY SOLO: Again in my earlier years I had a sense of these connections coming together but I watched it all come crashing down. Then like I said I played the waiting game for the right time to release the latest project I have been holding onto for 3 years. It wasn’t really until this year and I set all the bullshit aside and started focusing on the music a lot more staying consistent with it. That’s when I noticed things started to fall into place like it was meant to be.
COMET: What’s one project or track you’ve released that really represents where you’re at right now?
JAYY SOLO: It’s not directly my song, it was recorded back in early 2023 but K Niggz released it this year under the project labeled ‘The Offering’
Even though written then I feel it represents where I’m at now the best. Song is called Make A Difference also featuring another artist I’ve had the chance to work with a fair amount. Goes by the name Jay Aye The Poet.
COMET: Along your journey, have you had anyone guide you or put you on game — or has it been more self-built? How has that shaped the way you move today?
JAYY SOLO: Most people I have come across simply have opinions verses game to put me on. I will say this, my day one homie from the original group I joined (Mafia Clique Entertainment) in late 2015, saw my potential day one of officially meeting him and from that moment he ALWAYS put me on game and made me question everything. He was wise beyond his years so I took a lot from what he had to offer me in terms of wisdom in the industry. Life has separated once what seemed like an unbreakable bond to a mere how you been every few years. So I stuck to my name and what I know best and built it back up from the ground using what I learned from others along the way but essentially this is all self built.
COMET: What have you been listening to lately? Any artists or songs that have been in rotation or influencing your mindset right now?
JAYY SOLO: Sometimes I step away from the hip hop scene and get a taste of some other genres so it’s not over saturated. Black Sheep 5 dropped late last year by Caskey so that was in heavy rotation for a while and still a lot of his older stuff. But the one that’s new in my playlist that is heavily in rotation would be Oliver Trees 2020 album Ugly Is Beautiful but most specifically off that was Alien Boy.
COMET: What are you building right now that people aren’t seeing yet behind the scenes?
JAYY SOLO: Once again, I started to see myself overextending. Before releasing Never Left, Was Never Here, I had already started on another project with a producer who goes by the name of Mason Rex. I’m excited to finish this project, as it’s 100% custom beats built around some pre-existing verses or hooks I valued but couldn’t quite get the motivation back to finish. I feel like this project is a lot more organic than my earlier work, but I first had to set my sights on finishing what I started with Never Left, Was Never Here.
COMET: A year from now, what would make you feel like you didn’t just stay active — but actually elevated?
JAYY SOLO: This is a tough question to answer because I’ve tried painting that picture for myself a 1000 times and got upset with the results. I know I lost momentum and traction years ago and it’s not easy getting it back. I emerged from the shadows retaining my focus on getting this project out, so to fully answer the question I would need to see some numbers up on the board to truly know I have elevated more so than just staying active. With consistency and forward movement this could be my truth but I’m not setting any kind of limiting expectations.
🔒 CLOSING
I’ve been making the odd travel down south to the Such A Sound Studio with my good buddies Kahdyn and Desmond Ali where we primarily went there to work on the albums Jaymie Graefer, aka Jay G would typically premiere hosting a handful of local artists through Such A Sound Records. Unbeknownst to us all we had started working on K Niggz album We Should See Other People. Maybe Kahdyn had a sneaky plan all along but I appeared on that a couple times allowing me to work alongside Buggy Bennett for Highrise.
As for myself and what I’m working on, let’s just say I cleared a bit of dust off an old project before moving on to the next one. I get a bit ADHD with my music and a little ahead of myself, so I had to really dial in this year and focus on putting out NEVER LEFT, WAS NEVER HERE EP. Now that it’s out, I’m continuing the next project, which still does not have a name but has a healthy start to it.
This project means a lot to me, and I’ve done the little dance a few artists may know of, “waiting for the right moment,” since very early 2023. But it never seemed to appear.
2025 was a horrible year for me mentally and emotionally, and 2026 didn’t start much better. But the moment I put all the bullshit aside, mostly being my cheating ex, and started focusing on the music again, I noticed things started to fall into place with releasing the WEALTH music video, the first official title off the now-released EP.
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