A few weeks into NO SLEEP, nothing has slowed down. JBEE is still moving, still outside, still carrying the same rhythm that built the tape in the first place. It started in the early hours, sessions stretching into the morning, pushing through fatigue, showing up even when the energy wasn’t fully there. That repetition, that discipline, sits at the core of the project. You hear the hours in it, the effort, the need to keep going until something clicks and feels worth holding onto.
“NO SLEEP is more than just the title, it’s evidence of all the sleepless nights it took to bring this mixtape to life,” he says. This conversation moves between that process and everything around it, from the way music becomes a way to carry personal moments into something shared, to the changes that come with being more visible, when people start to treat you differently and the pressure takes on a new shape. It all feeds into the same place, where work, emotion, and momentum meet without needing to be separated.
You released NO SLEEP a couple of weeks ago. How does it feel now that it’s out in the world?
I feel great that the tape is finally out. I was working on NO SLEEP for quite some time, so it’s a relief to give the fans what they’ve been waiting for.
And these past two weeks, what have they looked like? Do you slow down at all, or are you straight back into work?
Nothing has changed in my opinion. Still writing music and prepping the next few releases, we even ran an activation with Puma a week after the tape dropped and hit the road to link some of the supporters and give back, so I think I’ve been still at the same pace I was before it dropped.
NO SLEEP feels very intentional as a title, almost like a statement. When did that idea click for you?
NO SLEEP is a statement I’ve stood by since the start of my career. It stemmed from me writing my track 4AM at that exact time and writing music at those hours just stuck with me and became my thing.
You’ve spoken about the late nights behind the project, even the sessions where you didn’t feel inspired but still showed up. What did that period ask from you?
That period asked a lot of me. Late nights pushing past points, I felt fatigued trying to get things done, and channelling the right energy into the tape was challenging but rewarding with the outcome and feedback I’ve received from the supporters.
How would you compare the process behind NO SLEEP to HBK in 2023?
The process of making both tapes was quite similar. Writing at late hours, in and out of the booth weekly, touching up on the music. The only difference I would say is I feel like NO SLEEP had more structure and every track and its placement on the tape was intentional. Whereas with HBK, it was more just a bunch of songs I liked put into one project, and the name of the project represented what I felt like at the time.
Pressure with Cash Cobain sits right at the centre of the tape. How did that collaboration come about, and what did he bring into the track from your perspective?
I was heading to New York last summer and I had the track made prior to linking with him. I felt like he was the only person that made sense, so my manager lined it up and got us in the booth.
Tell us more about the video directed by ShotByCharlie. What was the idea behind it, and how did you want to translate the energy of the track on screen?
So, a few videos I’ve shot and dropped recently have been on VHS and that started with a track I dropped in 2025 called 90MPH. I just feel like it brings a different vibe to a music video where there’s less pressure of having a full concept, so I can just have fun with it.
There’s a certain intensity that runs through the record, but it’s not one-dimensional. Tracks like MIA / ONLINE or If I Lose open things up in a different way. Was that balance something you were aware of while making it?
It was definitely intentional. I didn’t want the whole tape to feel intense, and having that balance between songs like If I Lose and Pressure for instance, was deliberate and important to have so that the listeners could feel different emotions throughout.
On If I Lose, there’s that line about losing hope and trying to find it again. Was that coming from a specific moment, or something more constant in the background?
That line represents a couple of moments in my life where I’ve lost hope and found it hard to stay motivated because I’ve kept losing, and it’s made what I’m working towards feel like it isn’t worth working this hard for.
You’ve been building momentum for a while now, and the spotlight is different when more people are watching. Has that changed the way people treat you, or the way you move through things day to day?
A hundred per cent. People might think I’m oblivious to it, but I see everything. There are people who enjoy that type of attention as someone who is known publicly, but I’m quite the opposite. I like living life as I did before rap, sometimes a bit too much, as you might catch me in places I shouldn’t be.
Do you ever feel a distance between who you are and how people see you now? Not in a dramatic way, but moments where it feels like you have to step into a version of yourself just to keep up with everything around you. And with that growth, does pressure come in as well?
Yeah, I feel like people hold me to a certain standard because I do music, and I know other musicians feel this way too. I’m normally a quiet and private person, and being a rapper defeats who I am really, but I try and put myself out there more because I enjoy what I’m doing and understand that that’s what it comes with. It does feel draining sometimes.
There’s discipline in the project, but also moments that feel very instinctive. When you’re in the studio, do you try to control the outcome or just follow where it goes?
It’s a bit of both. I make music based on how I feel at that moment and what vibe the beat makes me feel. But in the end, I feel like I control the narrative of making the song sound how I want it to sound.
Looking back at your earlier work, do you still recognise that version of yourself, or does NO SLEEP feel like a clear shift?
NO SLEEP isn’t a complete clear shift, but I feel like I’m more focused on how I feel in this present moment rather than before, when I’d talk way more about past experiences, which I kind of want to start doing again. I feel like the fans resonated with that version rather than the rapper me.
Lately, what’s something you can’t seem to stop thinking about?
Buying my mum a car for her birthday last year. It was a lit achievement.