MUMBAI: South London multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer Jax Jones are riding high following the worldwide success of smash single You Don’t Know Me featuring BBC Sound of 2017 nominee and future Star Raye, and looks set to continue his winning streak with brand new single Instruction.
“Nothing says summer to me more than Notting Hill Carnival,” Jax says of his new single. “That was the mental image I used throughout the making of this song. I took the idea to my good friend MNEK and the song came together really quickly. The DJ is the controller of the dance floor and lyrically, I wanted to reflect, that’s why we’re giving instructions!”
The accompanying video, shot in sunny LA and directed by Ozzie Pullin perfectly visualises the song’s summer carnival vibes. Complete with their own samba band, carnival floats and adornments, the video captures Jax Jones, Demi Lovato and Stefflon Don partying into the night.
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Enlisting global pop superstar Demi Lovato and the UK’s fiercest MC Stefflon Don, Instruction is an empowering percussion led call to the dancefloor. B*tch I don’t need introduction, Lovato snaps, while Steff delivers fiery bad gal bars that leave you in no doubt, she really is the Don.
“I wanted to continue where I left off with You Don’t Know Me,” Jax explains. “We knew we needed someone with a certain level of swag and confidence to pull off a song like this so we sent it to Demi Lovato to see if she was interested. I thought it was long shot but she loved the record and delivered us all the right feels in the vocal. Stefflon Don is one of the most exciting new rappers to come out of the UK today, so getting her on a song with a pop superstar like Demi is a defining moment for me as a fan of music. I love clashing genres together. It’s one of those collaborations which are as exciting on paper as it sounds on record. I can’t wait to play this song at my festival shows this summer.”
You Don’t Know Me, a sassy rebuff to fake friends, has had over 275 million combined global streams and gone three times Platinum in The Netherlands, two times Platinum in Australia, Ireland, Sweden, Platinum in Norway, UK, Italy and Gold in Belgium, France, Germany, with over 6.3m total Shazams hitting the spot one on Shazam globally, making it Jax’s biggest hit to date.
Jax’s music is rooted in the hip hop, grime and house music he was surrounded by in his teenage years. These influences come through both in the studio and in his wild live sets most recently in his sold out House Work UK tour where he helms all the instruments himself, layering them upon beats and bass for a fresh, modern take on an old school sound.
Prior to You Don’t Know Me his biggest success to date had been as the writer and co-producer on Duke Dumont’s huge international 2014 hit I Got U, which resulted in his first UK no one in addition to nominations on both sides of the Atlantic, at the BRIT and Grammy Awards. As well as producing Duke’s following two singles, he has remixed the likes of Charli XCX, Lil Yachty, Missy Elliot and Pharrell.
Jax has a very busy summer ahead of him with appearances at Tomorrowland, Reading & Leeds, Boardmasters, Ushuaia and Pacha.
