Jaz Karis, Time for Take Off with ‘SAFE FLIGHT’ the Album

It’s here! Jaz Karis's first album, 'SAFE FLIGHT' a transatlantic exploration, an odyssey that illustrates and tells the story of her adventures from the past year. South London to Los Angeles - she takes you through the motions mirroring her physical and emotional travels along the way. The album -  a flight with multiple destinations from the vibrant energy of Barbados with the clear blue sea and white sand beaches; the parties that last all day and night in Ghana, and the sense of homecoming to London, where the first things you grab from your local corner shop are Heinz Baked Beans and PG tips - home comforts.

Official Artwork for 'SAFE FLIGHT'

Before we take off, Jaz has really made a name for herself over the past few years, both in the UK and internationally. Recognition from platforms like Notion, Wonderland, Fred Perry Subculture, Clash, Complex UK, GRM Daily, and COLOURS, among others. Her 2020 track with Juls, 'SOWETO BLUES,' pops off to this day, and her monthly Spotify listeners now stand at around 1.2 million.

Back to the flight...

The imagery for this album centres around themes of identity, travel - IDs, lanyards, film footage - with slightly faded colours, a subtle graininess, an intimate quality as if the viewers are experiencing these memories through Jaz’s own eyes. Capturing these vintage charm moments - a nostalgic feel - personal and timeless. 

Next we take a look at the selection of features and collaborations, Jaz notes; “I wanted the features to also reflect my travels & I’m so fortunate to have had so many stellar artists from across the globe collaborate with me on this.” 

So who can we expect to see on this album? Mahali on ‘NICE GIRLS’, Juls on ‘SIMS CASTAWAY’, others like Reekado Banks, June Freedom, Tone Stith and more - all anchored by her signature soulful sound. Smooth Afrobeats, heartfelt R&B, gospel influences from her childhood, pop, hip-hop, jazz and amapiano - giving her listeners a little sprinkle of everything. 

Let’s continue, the album opens with ‘NOSTALGIA,’ 2-minute, 14-second intro feels like a time capsule, grabbing snippets of Jaz’s journey, “I just had a dream I was 21 don’t know what it means but it was so much fun,” to reminiscing on her mothers cooking “mama’s always cooking on a Saturday.” The track spills into pre recordings of friends telling their account of memories with Jaz - "remember when we first met?", "we use to talk for hours...", "your so nostalgic."

Take off, seat belt signs are still firmly switched on in ‘LYTM’ saying goodbye and closing the chapter on a former lover, sometimes it's the right person, wrong time or just the right person for that moment in time and it’s about knowing when to let go.

‘TEQUILA’, the excitement and butterflies tied to connecting with someone new. At this point the seat belt signs are switched off, cabin crew are walking through with the drinks menu - Casamigos, Jalisco, Mexico bottle number 23090 - seats recline.

Then we have ‘SUNSET BLVD’ “It just feels like you're driving down Sunset Boulevard with the love of your life, having a great time, hands in the air,” Jaz explains. 

The story behind ‘TALK ABOUT IT

“Let me not speak for everyone, speaking from my own experience and myself and I think people are quick to quit things, I wrote talk about it because including myself people are very quick to quit things and walk away from things and whats next, the idea that the grass is greener. I wanted to make a song that I think sounds lovely but it is actually also about a very serious topic which is actually ‘let’s talk about it’ let’s figure it out. Instead of doing what everyone is doing now which is just dropping stuff and nothing solves it.” 

'WATER [Interlude]' produced by Etienne brings us down to earth for a moment, a soft focus, the surreal feeling of being in LA - a place where everything feels possible. It’s a pause in the album, she lets us take a breath.

Breaks over, we are up in the air again with 'SIMS CASTAWAY', produced by Juls, the recognisable ‘Juls Baby’ tag followed by a tropical island beat introduces the song.

"This is the oldest song on the album. I was pretty lit when it wrote that song, I made it and I re discovered it weirdly when creating this album, it just fell into place."

"All I was doing was playing sims or recording music and I use to like having a gin and tonic and playing sims. So that's what sims castaway is about. It’s leaving ‘dream state’ about to hit into real life again."

The night before Jaz's album launch party, I caught up with someone close to me, and we had a conversation about the impact a person can leave behind, even if their name isn't always remembered—what sticks is the story.

This came to mind when Jaz introduced track 10, titled '2242'. 

"It’s my favorite song on the album, the name of the song, so what it is to other people is that we use military time, well British people use military time so 2242 is ten forty two pm right? That’s just like you know it’s late at night, it’s cheeky time but really and truly it was actually just the code to the bathroom for that session.” She shared. It's funny how inspiration sometimes comes from the most random, everyday moments.

In ‘LOVE ME’, the seatbelt sign is back on, grounding the album with a message about heartbreak, vulnerability and strength with lines like, “and even if you don’t love me I’m good on God,” and follows it up with, “but it’s all love, I don’t even need a response babe.” A powerful reminder - finding and protecting your peace irrespective of the ‘others’ response. 

The final track, ‘PRAYER’ “You can apply this song in so many ways, because it’s a song to say, ‘I’m not giving up’. I'm a Christian and I believe that prayer works, and I do a prayer to end the day always – so, a prayer to end the album, hope to end the album…Hopefully it reaches someone who needs it.” 

It’s a final message as we embark on our own individual journeys, a reminder that within prayer there is a home, and within faith there is hope. The plane doors open, we pick up our bags, cabin crew wish us goodbye as we disembark this ‘SAFE FLIGHT.’

“I hope my journey can encourage even just one person that your dreams really are achievable & life is short, so do it how you see fit.”

You can catch Jaz performing live November 10th in LA and November 22nd in London.