MUSIC
His eye for innovation can first be traced back to when Jason emceed under the moniker, J2K . He released his first mixtape, ‘Heat In The Streets Vol.1’, just as grime had started to heat up across London, with releases sprawling across the city’s record shops on either cassette or often vinyl. Rather than follow his peers however, J2K chose to release his mixtape on CD, an alien format for grime mixtapes and in fact, any sort of grime music at the time. He soon started a trend.
While widely respected on mic, Jason was always thinking about his next move. In 2012, he signed a solo publishing deal with Bucks Music Group and with the money he started to receive, he joined forces with business partners to help launch a product he’d been trialling and live demoing at J2K gigs across the country.
CREP PROTECT
Essentially a one-use spray to help protect trainers against scuffs, Jason’s eye for branding – and aim to connect with people on a cultural level – saw Crep Protect skyrocket over the following 12 months. Taking it to trade shows across the country, Crep Protect quickly won fans at retail – JD Sports and Footasylum were on board from the jump – and in TV, with Joey Essex (!) a key brand advocate early on.
Over the following years, Crep Protect quickly expanded internationally, touching down in the US in 2016 after Jason reached out to the NBA to collaborate on a series of specially designed Crep Protect cans and even teaming up with Adidas on a small UK capsule in the same year. “The conversations and relationships I had with brands as an artist, I never forgot about them”, Jason explains. “They trusted in me and in the brand early on because I’d made connections all those years prior.” And what made Crep Protect an industry-leading product, compared to other sprays in the market? “I always say ‘no one sells better to us than us’ if you know what I mean?” he says assertively.
This mantra, born out of deep-rooted cultural connections and a natural understanding of his core demographic, has proved a masterstroke, laying foundations for future business ventures.
CREPES & CONES
2018 then saw Jason partner with UK rappers Krept & Konan to open much-hyped restaurant Crepes & Cones, after the pair came to Jason to discuss their ideas at a Crep Protect launch in 2016. Although admittedly “a lot of hard work”, Crepes & Cones has become of London’s go-toeateries for young London, again tapping into Jason’s ability to build concepts and brands through harnessing cultural touch points and feeding those back into business.
atHOME
For the past few years he has been building atHOME a creative agency that houses all his services and expertise under one roof. Initially established as a late-night after party (“after the party, you’d go home innit”), Jason then took the concept to Notting Hill Carnival, where atHOME hosted a float for a fourth year running in 2019. “It’s a space for people who don’t always feel like they can go to Carnival freely”, he explains – guests have included everyone from Will Smith’s cousin and tour manager to actress Naomi Harris, rising star Damson Idris, Krept & Konan, AJ Odudu and a host of internationally renowned names from across various industries.
VUEPAY,
Vuepay is a social platform designed to empower creators via monetisation, a key feature to this platform is its identification and age verification process, it allows for anyone on there to be accounted for which ultimately eliminates trolling and online abuse.
Enabling creators to earn without the middle man and go direct to their consumer, is a major reason why me investing in Vuepay as a company, makes complete sense to my long-term vision right now. I’m excited to be on-board and part of a platform that represents us / the culture in a positive light, whilst allowing us to also monetise our efforts as we grow and flourish in a competitive, global landscape for multi-hyphenates.
