Jason "Jay" Kay

Posted March 5, 200718 yr

Jason "Jay" Kay

Taken from wikipedia.org

Jason Kay, real name Jason Cheetman and also known as Jay Kay (born on December 30, 1969 in Stretford, Manchester) is a British funk musician, based in Britain.

Kay is the principal member, songwriter, and lead singer of Jamiroquai.

Early life

Kay grew up with his Jewish mother Karen Kay, a cabaret singer and impressionist who performed around the world, and stepfather James Royal. He did not meet his biological father, a man of Portuguese origin, until 2003. He was educated at the independent Oakham School in Rutland, and spent six months in Thailand at the age of thirteen with his stepfather.

Kay learned as a schoolboy that he had a twin brother who died at six weeks, and had a father which he never met. Not being a schoolboy type of person, Kay found himself in trouble at school regularly, and after turning 15 he left home.

To support himself, Kay resorted to committing petty thievery and doing odd jobs, as he often lived on the streets. In 1989, he found himself an unused taxi depot, which he described as having holes in the roof and no electricity. During his accommodation there, Kay was involved in a fight in which he was gassed in the face and nearly stabbed, and was then accused and arrested for a robbery he was alleged to not have committed.

Upon returning home, he decided to change his life and began recording demos using his drum machine and some free studio time, and writing lyrics. During this time he coined the name Jamiroquai for his potential new band, based upon the name of a Native American tribe, the Iroquois, and "jam" from the word jamming, and also the distinctive Buffalo Man logo. His demos were soon spotted by the UK music label Acid Jazz, and Kay found himself signing a recording contract.

Career

Kay initially formed Jamiroquai with original members Toby Smith (Keyboards), Stuart Zender (bass), Nick Van Gelder (drums), Wallis Buchanan (Didgeridoo) and Maurizio Ravelico on percussion, together with a guest appearance of Gavin Dodds (guitar) of The Brand New Heavies, both on the band's debut album, and on their first tour.

Jamiroquai have sold over twenty million albums, and have spent a collective 162 weeks on the UK singles chart in the 14 years since 1992 with Kay's personal wealth is said to be around £40,000,000. He appeared on the Sunday Times Rich List 2004 at (joint) 950th.

After the huge success of his first single, "When You Gonna Learn," a $1.9 million, eight album deal was signed with Sony records. The band's first album Emergency on Planet Earth became a fast seller, and the unique nature of Jamiroquai soon became apparent. However, a fair amount of people were not attracted by the different style of music Jamiroquai presented.

The band's third album Travelling Without Moving soon generated international attention with the ground breaking video of Virtual Insanity which earned Jamiroquai four MTV awards. Since then, their fourth album Synkronized has done just as well, which was recorded in Kay's home studio of his 500 year old, 11 bedroom Buckinghamshire mansion, which is located in his garden. Although the press usually focus on Kay's passion for cars, his mansion and his love life, Jason Kay is environmentally aware and has donated a large quantity of his money to Greenpeace and Friends Of The Earth, as well as charities for the homeless. The main reason that his message is conveyed strongly through his music is because of his self-made nature, in the fact that all aspects of the band's work has to be approved by him, including artwork and credits.

On the production of his fourth album, a member of his band, Stuart Zender, departed from the band for reasons unclear (many suppose that the reason for departure was either Zender's lovelife, or unsettled payments. Some fans have speculated that Zender was fired by the band's record label, as he was an influential member of the band). Consequently, Kay scrapped almost a complete album worth of work to eliminate the album of all traces of Stuart Zender's playing. Kay has many years in the business yet, as he recently expressed that he would like his band to continue writing music for another 15-20 years.

It was reported in February 2007 that Kay has quit music due to a loss of inspiration. This was denied on Jamiroquai`s official website the day after.

Personal life

As of December 2006, Kay lives in Gairloch where he owns a house. He is regularly seen in the village.

Trivia

Jay Kay co-starred in an episode of the BBC series the Naked Chef alongside the chef Jamie Oliver. We get a glimpse at one of Jay's cars as the pair take his Rolls Royce Convertible to the local wine shop. Further in this episode we see Jay Kay's beautiful herb garden.

Relationships

Media reports about Kay often focus on his personal relationships. Kay has had a number of high-profile relationships, including Winona Ryder and Denise van Outen.

In November 2006, the tabloid press reported Kay was dating Emmerdale actress Amy Nuttall.

Headgear

Kay is well known for his array of elaborate hats and headgear, which he often wears when appearing professionally (in concerts, interviews etc.). He has been referred to as "mad hatter" and "the cat in the hat" for his love of headgear. It is said that he has over 50 different hats that he wears at concerts and in public.

Kay's most recognizable headgear is his mirrored "feather headdress" seen on the cover of High Times: Singles 1992-2006.

Discography

Studio albums

Emergency on Planet Earth

(May 17, 1993)

The Return of the Space Cowboy

(October 17, 1994)

Jazzmatazz, Vol. 2: The New Reality (Guest appearance)

(July 18, 1995)

Travelling without Moving

(September 9, 1996)

Synkronized