About an hour before sound check, JackEL and his tour mates congregated outside of their tour bus that was parked on the legendary 6th Street in Austin, Texas. They just spent the past week in the city after playing a handful of shows while SXSW was in town. That night JackEL was headlining at the Vulcan Gas Company for the last show scheduled in Austin for their Spring Bass tour.
After a Google search you will be quick to find a few DJs in EDM who go by JackEL (with some variation in the spelling of the name), but that is not anything he pays attention to. With 20 million plays on SoundCloud and 7.4 million plays on Spotify, he has a formula that is entirely his own and is getting his music into the ears of the people who he loves the most: his fans.
Since he was just 16 years old, JackEL has been living in Las Vegas, refining his skills as a producer and DJ. At eight years old, JackEL took an interest in guitar, bass, drums and singing, setting a foundation of love for his craft. Today, he uses that foundation to seek out other talented artists like ZaZa Maree to collaborate with. Their single “Just Fine” already has 420 thousand Spotify plays. His work ethic and passion for the game is how his label, Fvydid, came to fruition. On April 20th 2019, Fvydid will be celebrating it’s third birthday, with over forty artists on their roster.
Stepping onto the tour bus was like walking into the aftermath of a frat party, but since it is a bus full of guys that could be expected. Their inside jokes and references to earlier parts of the tour shows how much they have bonded since they met each other nine months ago. The motley crew of Vegas-based producers are living the “sex, drugs and rock & roll” life on tour, but their collective pre-show ritual is simple: sit in the same room and run through their sets.
Three other guys are on the tour with JackEL, each with personalities fit for reality TV. Pozeidon is the youngest at 20 years old, and he met JackEL while headlining his own. The pink beard is part of his signature style, just like the autographs that he signs on his female fans. Bob-O is one of the newer artists to join the Fvydid label and with his own signature blue hair. As a former member of the group Fyer, Bob-O knows is no stranger to being on the road. Keeping the family together on tour is their manager Pennino, who is a harmonious balance of business, hustle and heart. As their team builds, he wears all the hats – motivator, big brother, booking agent – and pursues innovative marketing ideas, emulating and studying the career of his idol, Moe Shalizi.
With the way things are happening right now, JackEL could possibly having his breakout year. As he finishes his tour of the United States, the next tour is being booked with plans to make a mark overseas in cities like Ibiza, Barcelona, Berlin Tokyo and beyond. JackEL continues to be very interactive with his fans with live broadcasts, contests, stories, and shout-outs that many artists don’t do. While his music crosses genres, the theme for his music remains the same: “I always want people to know that they are gonna dance”.
Go here to get to JackEL’s Facebook and Instagram.
