There’s an emphasis at the end of Jeleel’s name and songs for a reason. His presence on the mic is just as commanding as it is off. When it comes to the booth, he has a high voltage delivery matched with a pleasantly shrill tone. The Pawtucket, R.I. native has gained recognition for blending rap, punk and R&B. His name is currently jumping off the page as one of the most polarizing rookies in the game of hip-hop.
Jeleel! had hoop dreams at first, but that goal not working out became a blessing in disguise. During college a few years back, he laid down his first record called "Play Me." The melodic record has since been deleted from the internet. However, it gave the 26-year-old talent a blissful feeling of creating that he wasn’t able to shake. Upon graduating from Loyola University in Maryland, Jeleel! booked a one way ticket to Los Angeles and pursued his dream of becoming an artist. He sold his brand to the masses, running around ripping his shirt and belting his signature "Jeleel!!, yeah!" artist tag until people noticed. Electric tracks like “Glo Up” served as the soundtrack to his come up.
In 2019, Jeleel! unleashed his first full project, Angel From Heaven, and the world started taking notice. As time moved on, he continued to refine his sound and find his singing voice through the process of trial and error. A couple of years later, he had the formula down pat and released tracks like "Dive In!" as proof that he figured out the formula. The song has nearly 50 million streams on Spotify now and led to his signing with 10K Projects, home to Trippie Redd, Iann Dior and Internet Money, among others. It also set the pace for his other high-powered singles like "Jeleel Juice!," "Rain On You!," "Showtime!" and "July!" to acquire millions of streams.
Now with an undeniable buzz, the producer, singer and rapper recently dropped a two-pack effort led by singles `"Uncivilized! (Go)" and "Clubhouse" with Mike Dimes. Those tracks embody his strategy of dropping all hits and no misses. And that’s exactly what he plans on continuing to do.
Catching up with XXL, here, Jeleel! swings by The Break: Live to discuss finding his sound, making it out of Los Angeles, the creation of tracks like "Dive In!" and "Clubhouse," plus more. Check out the interview below.
Follow Jeleel! on SoundCloud and Instagram.
Standouts:
"Clubhouse!" featuring Mike Dimes
"Dive In!"
"July!"
"Rain On You!"
Angel From Heaven
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