Jai

Self-described as "a mod for the hip-hop generation," Jason Rowe was born in Yeovil, England, and spent his formative years in the same British village that produced PJ Harvey. He performed in a three-piece group whose remaining members would eventually become her initial backing band. Drawing from both contemporary influences such as Kraftwerk, Massive Attack, and Public Enemy and earlier figures including Marvin Gaye and Burt Bacharach, Rowe first joined a pop ensemble. When his bandmates departed to accompany PJ Harvey, he relocated to London, where a chance club encounter introduced him to guitarist and producer Joel Bogen. The pair began collaborating, pairing Rowe’s aching falsetto with Bogen’s arranging approach shaped by rock & roll, traditional pop, soul, and jazz. After completing a three-track demo that featured a rendition of Gershwin’s “Summertime,” Rowe secured a deal with the independent British imprint M&G, which issued his first single, “Don’t Give Me Away,” in January 1997. The track found favor across England and mainland Europe, while a series of strong live performances backed by a full band solidified his reputation as a cocktail-pop vocalist suited to the 1990s. He later moved to RCA, which released his debut album, Heaven, in late 1997.