Although Jersey Club music has been the soundtrack to many of New Jerseyan’s lives for decades- it seems as if the rest of the world is just catching on.
From sexy walking to rocking our hips- the Jersey Club music movement has always been a way to bring the dancers, DJs, producers, athletes and everyone in between together.
Many people believe that Jersey Club music became popular this year with the help of mainstream artists such as Drake, Beyonce, and Lil Uzi but according to Newark, NJ native, rapper Unicorn151– those artists simply “brought more excitement to the Jersey club movement.”
He explains, “I gave Drake’s ‘Honestly, Nevermind’ album a listen, and I actually f*cked with the overall feel of the album, felt fun and dancey, felt exactly like what I’ve been working on. My first reaction was.. ‘THIS IS GREAT FOR THE JERSEY CLUB CULTURE.’” Kherk went on to say he hopes mainstream artists gives “us the recognition we deserve.”
HOT 97’s DJ Drewski says he is excited to see the growth of the Jersey Club genre. “Being from Jersey and growing up on Jersey club music it’s an exciting time to see it finally get the recognition it deserves. It has always been that underground genre of music that I felt people ignored for a long time.” He continues, “I always knew it would take a little longer for people to understand the unique sounds and dances of Jersey Club, but now that people are paying attention, I just hope it doesn’t lose its identity. I would love for people to understand where it originated and give credit to the artist, DJs, dancers and producers who have been carrying it on their backs for a long time.”
Similarly, to Unicorn151, Drewski too hopes mainstream artist gives credit where credit is deserved. “It’s great to see mainstream artist jumping on Jersey club beats and doing their own rendition to the sound because it will definitely open more doors for Jersey Club artist. Young DJ Drewski who couldn’t wait for the Jersey Club set at the teen party, is excited to see how far it has come and where it will go next.”
Speaking of going far, MCVertt, a 19-year-old producer from Newark, NJ is responsible for the current must trending song on TikTok, Lil Uzi’s ‘Just Wanna Rock.’ The viral hit features a catchy Jersey Club beat. MCVertt says after DMing Uzi for a while- Uzi responded and invited him to the studio. “Then he danced to one of my songs in April, I sent him a couple more Jersey club beats, and he hit me back and said he went crazy and asked me to share it everywhere.” It now has over 70 million streams on Spotify- which is just a testament to how infectious the Jersey Club sound is.
Coi Leray, who herself is a New Jersey native, recently took over the internet by filming a music video to her new single ‘Players (Jersey Club Mix)’ in the heart of Newark, New Jersey. The club mix is produced by DJ Smallz 732, in which Coi Leray says, “Jersey is unstoppable when we come together. we can’t grow being divided. 2023 we taking over.” The video was shoot by another Jersey native, Nimi ‘Film God’ Hendrix. Nimi expresses, “made Jersey history yesterday. Brought Coi Leray to Newark to shoot Players Remix with DJ Smallz 732.”
Some similar faces attended the video shoot including HOT 97’s very own DJ Wallah, DJ Mike Medium, and DJ Lil Taj, as well as DJ Jayhood, Chad B, DJ Bake and many more. “We worked overtime to get it to where we are now, I appreciate everyone that been supporting the movement and anyone that’s new to the sound. Jersey Club will be here for a long time” expressed DJ Lil Taj.
Take a look at a sneak peek below.
It’s safe to say that the Jersey Club movement will be here for years to come- it best to just get used to it.