Jay Sean is the stage name of Kamaljit Singh Jhooti, a UK singer, songwriter, producer and actor. He is born in 1981 and comes from Hounslow, with Punjabi and Indian heritage. His music works across contemporary R&B, dance-pop, electropop, hip hop, pop and R&B, and his early work also draws on soul, pop rap and traditional Indian music, including Bhangra.

Career

Jay Sean starts out in London’s English-Indian underground scene and begins rapping at 12. He says rap helps him structure, produce and write songs, and he also starts singing hooks. At the same time, he is at medical school. He gains attention through a project that fuses Punjabi music with contemporary pop and R&B, and becomes associated with The Rishi Rich Project through his early development.

He releases his debut album, Me Against Myself, in 2004 on 2Point9 Records, Relentless Records and Virgin Records. The album includes political material, personal writing about insecurity and struggle, and influences from Indian pop music. It receives strong critical response, is certified multi-platinum in India and gold in the UK, and its singles are written with help from his mentor Rishi Rich. Those singles are “Dance With You”, “Eyes On You” and “Stolen”.

His second album, My Own Way, appears in 2008 on Jayded Records and 2Point9 Records. It reaches number 6 on the UK Albums Chart, number 1 on the UK R&B Chart and becomes platinum. Its lead single is “Ride It”.

His third studio album, All or Nothing, follows in 2009. It is his first American release and his first for Cash Money / Universal Republic Records. The album includes “Down” and “Do You Remember”, both international top 40 hits. “Down”, also issued with Lil’ Wayne’s name attached, reaches number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

He also releases “I’m All Yours” as the first official single from Worth It All; it features Pitbull and reaches the top 40 in Germany and New Zealand. It is multi-platinum in Australia.

Recognition and profile

Jay Sean is nominated twice for the MOBO Awards. His work gains a wide following across multiple countries, and his videos and singles circulate heavily online and on radio. His breakthrough also makes him the first UK artist to join Cash Money.