London can be an unforgiving city for musicians, but that doesn’t stop some from living out their dream.
Jeremy Leach – alias JR Fillion is a London hip hop artists, who over the last year has played some big concerts with some of the biggest names in hip hop.
Fresh off opening for rapper MGK at London Music Hall, Fillion came down to XFM to reflect on what a crazy year it’s been for him and his crew.
“It’s very humbling,” Fillion stated. “Just even getting the chance to open for an artist like Akon. Akon is a legend in my eyes and then MGK, like last year I opened for him, then I landed the Toronto show this year, and London again – which is crazy.”
Fillion adds that he doesn’t let the limelight of playing with big name artists go to his head.
“The excitement is so overwhelming, but I can’t even explain it, because I’ve gotta stay humble,” he chuckled.
IN THE BEGINNING
Fillion discovered his love of hip hop the same way a lot of us hip-hop heads do – through Eminem. It was through Slim Shady that JR found inspiration and motivation.
“I kinda just got addicted to that and I couldn’t stop listening to it,” he said. “Eventually at parties, I’d start rapping off the top of my head just for fun and people started loving it, and pushed me and pushed to do it more.”
Fillion says it was that peer support that pushed him to start putting his words to paper.
“At 17, I started writing, and this is basically my tenth year now.”
NEW ALBUM
Fillion’s been working tirelessly on producing his latest album entitled Northern Lights which will drop on November the 2nd. Fillion said it’s been an enduring process.
“I started recording with my old team, and then that old team broke up,” Fillion explained. “We literally had to re-record the album again, but it made the album that much better, and it’s called ‘Northern Lights,’ basically it’s a metaphor for me coming from up north, and being the light.”
Fillion feels with all the recent success, this project could prove to be a breakout for him personally.
“I just put my life on the table for everybody, and now they’re gonna get to know me and after that I can really just grow.”
WHAT’S NEXT JR?
In the last month alone, Fillion and his crew, under the ‘Party with the Majors’ movement – has opened for artists such as Akon, M-G-K.
Up next for J-R – he’ll be opening for Swollen Member’s MadChild which will be on October 10th at Rum Runners.
With so many big name shows – Fillion admits as a fan of music – he’s excited, but as a fellow artist, he’s looking forward to shining.
Click here for the full interview:
https://soundcloud.com/funk-piper/jr-fillion-int
