Although balancing the many aspects of being a multi-hyphenate creative can be challenging the song itself focuses on the deeper issue of self sabotage. Mind Maze focuses on the stored up emotions that we carry within and how they can create a sort of maze like trap that we can find ourselves in. For many years I suffered from depression; I was unable to do the things I enjoyed, my passions, I was debilitated by low feelings and sadness. Mind Maze is a reflection on this time and taking note of how it can come and go. Pain has such strong memory within us and can produce cycles of thought and effects that hinder our growth if it is not dealt with properly. So Mind Maze was a form of healing for me by taking the step to address it and become aware.

I don’t really think the sound can be described. They’re a collection of emotions and a blend of multiple genres that have raised me up or have flown through me naturally. There is no intention of sound style or genre when I make the initial track. I just make a beat, write the feeling and everything evolves. My audience are open minded and eclectic so they receive the works with no expectation. They know I can flow in a million different directions.

Isolation is actually very natural to me. I’m an only child and grew up in a home where my mother worked a lot of overtime and late shifts. I spent a lot of time alone and that carried on as I moved into my own spaces. As I’m constantly working on various projects in my studios, I didn’t really feel a change. I picked a new location and carried on as normal. I felt removed from the coronavirus experience in many ways as I had moved deep into the mountains just before lockdown, so I wasn’t having many interactions with humans in general. It kind of played out at a distance for me and it was interesting to observe. I think it provided a lot of perspective for humanity as a whole and for me it was a reminder to how precious life is.

I discovered the name as I was searching for information on my birth parents. A couple years back I briefly had the feeling that I wanted to find them and find out more about my history. I had one folder that came with me from the adoption agency, and I started to dig through to look for some clues. I found a copy of my birth certificate which I had never seen and under middle name I saw ‘Jadine’. I’d always been told I didn’t have a middle name and never used one throughout the years. In that very moment I began to cry. Deeply. I put the certificate back in the folder and haven’t opened it since.
For a while I just kept it to myself. I wrote it down on a piece of paper a few times, folded it and put it away. Every now and then I’d find the paper and look at it, and feel confused. This was a part of me that has existed since I was born, and I never knew. I avoided it for a while but after researching the name and learning about the qualities of Jade I started to let it in. Now Jadine is a part of who I am. I associate the name with the softer side of me, which I rarely share, but as I move forward in my journey [this part of me] is slowly but surely pushing through past traumas and stepping into the world.

I mean it’s different for everyone. Things aren’t always so black and white when it comes to your inner battles. There are a lot of grey areas but in this form of expression I’ve chosen to make it clear as my yin and yang are very strong, and my pendulum can swing far and wide. Everything you see is just the beginning. I am introducing the characters and setting the stage for what will be a long and complex ride. So, for now it’s important to me to have clear distinctions.

Now instead of hours it takes months. Years. Those pieces were what I consider to be short form expressions. They were timed and combined with moving image to put forth a feeling or emotion that I had in those months. They were attached to a series of work called What Are We Worshipping? A show studying the effect of mass media and celebrity worship. Plus, multiple unreleased demos and evolutionary works. Now I still make those but they’re my demos which I then select and build out over a long and in-depth process.

TENNNN originally had 10 Ns. Each N was to represent a “New being” that could inject some light and positivity into the vast landscape of the music industry. I stripped back the N’s for typing purposes, but the logo still has the 10. As time went by the concept of the label morphed into something else it’s really multifaceted now. We are open to a wider scope of people and concepts. We also provide creative direction, consulting and much more.

I already knew in my heart I wanted to release independently. TENNNN already existed before I met Prince, but the concept was different. It was going to be a music curation site and performance platform but once we met and he gave his words of wisdom I changed the whole thing to a label. As soon as I did this, I felt a lot safer as my music is so untraditional many labels don’t understand me. They’re looking for ‘insta-hits’ and I’m out here making 8-minute sonic landscapes.
I knew when I started it that I wanted to also work with others. I know how to refine and enhance an artist. I can do it with my eyes closed. So, we built a number of artists from scratch on the label because we wanted to see people with real talent win.

I think it’s easy for people to have issue with things they’re not using. But search engines, video platforms, social media are creating just as much environmental costs [as NFTs] if not more. So, unless we’re going to shut the whole internet down, I’m going to take the opportunity to move forward with the times and utilise the space to sell and protect my work. Although there are the usual boring levels of hierarchy there are spaces for people to independently show their work and connect with collectors directly which I find refreshing.

When I design for myself, for my brand, it is more impulsive. I create what I want to see on myself, or others and it flows very organically and expressively. I see the piece forming right in front of me and I know what I want. When working with others I’m much more methodical. I want to make people feel comfortable, and I want to work within their brackets of expression, so I blend the two together to make something that allows me to still design within my realms but also makes the person feel understood.

This musical period will continue as I carry on juggling all the other elements to form one fluid motion. Eventually they will blur into one and the vision will become clear.