J. Worra

“You never know what’s gonna change your trajectory as an artist. I was just making music for the moment. Pre pandemic was all club music. I’ve really explored song writing recently rather than just tech house bangers. What makes a good song? What makes a good listening record? It’s been a clash of different worlds in the time off, especially looking back at that [“Downtown Diva EP”] release.” J Worra—aka Jamie—has seen a steady rise since entering the tech house scene in 2015. She started her career in the bass house realm, and transitioned smoothly as the worlds of tech house and bass house were finding their union. Jamie has had a career-altering 18 months, exploding onto the scene and cementing herself as one to watch despite the holdbacks on live performances due to the COVID pandemic.  Her introduction to house music came as it does for many of us. Musically inclined at a young age, she attended a local electronic music festival and was instantly hooked. She was also acutely aware of the lack of female representation on stage and knew she had to take action.  “I went to a festival early in my life and saw no women on the lineup at all. I had to give it my best to join this world and try and flip that. Now there’s so many of us doing our best. LP Giobbi with Femme House, streaming every week with new female artists… I was able to book people for my tour that I found off her stream. Just having that exposure is a game changer. When I started it was desolate for females but we’re seeing a big surge now. Men are paying more attention, and women are trying harder to help one another out.” After deciding to begin her music career, Jamie quickly realized she was in a great city to build herself up as a promising local act. Coming up in Chicago, she had loads of opportunities to get gigs and hone her craft. That being said, she readily admits that she did not truly understand the depth and history of the house music scene in Chicago until after she left for LA. “I feel like I’m a completely different artist than I was pre pandemic. I took time to listen to old school Chicago house and sort my roots more. I can’t even remember what I used to play like. It’s fun to start fresh… Being able to sit still for a while and dig through old music is a rare opportunity for artists wh tour. It changed a lot of perspective.”  The time off was a massive refresher for many artists in this world. Jamie took the opportunity to dig into the history of house music, develop and grow her sound, and field new opportunities. She began taking on the challenge of remixing other artists more frequently and realized how it can open doors. “Griz sent me ‘Meduza’ to remix. I wasn’t sure how the release would pan out. You never know with remixes what’s gonna catch on. I’ve actually never met Griz but I have so many association relationships and I think that remix just opened me up to a new crowd.”  Jamie is now touring the country, playing new markets, big slots, and releasing tons of awesome music. She just played two sets at the Brooklyn Mirage and will be opening for Kaskade in California. We look forward to having her back in NYC for the massive Elrow December show and she will likely be coming to a city near you sometime soon.