Maya J Is A Star Without Limits
Written by Daphne Bryant
Maya Jenkins, known professionally as Maya J, doesn’t fit neatly into a single lane. The singer, songwriter, musician, and actress has been building a world of her own since childhood, one shaped by instinctive pulls toward creative expression of all kinds. While some artists spend years narrowing in on their sound, Maya leans into the full spectrum of her influences, blending pop, R&B, indie, and more elements into something distinctly hers.
Earlier this month DWG’s founder Daphne Bryant had the pleasure of sitting down with Maya J to chat about everything from her origin story to her dream collaborations and advocacy work; read the full feature below!
Maya J was always meant to be a star. The multihyphenate artist was singing full melodies before she could talk and, as a child, found herself drawn to a wide range of artistic mediums.“ I was obsessed with movies and film, and I liked dance. I was also very intrigued by visual [art and] media after multiple summer camps at a premier art gallery in Florida,” says Maya. Ultimately, a gravitational pull of sorts routinely brought Maya to the music room, and thus, music became her first focus.
Sade, Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan, Vivaldi, Britney Spears, Hannah Montana: this isn’t a mysterious game of icon trivia, they’re just some of Maya’s musical influences, all of which blend together to inspire her and her artistry.“ I think I [take inspiration] from every bit of music that I love. You know, I love so many different sounds in music, and at the beginning of my record making, it was kind of hard to pinpoint exactly where I was going with my sound,” Maya says. Even so, what some might perceive as lack of niche or tight cohesion is really just Maya staying true to herself and what she loves; musically, Maya J doesn’t conform to any one group.“ I’ve been the kid at every lunch table because I have pieces of me that fit everywhere.” The main advantage of this genre-bending sound is that Maya is able to incorporate pop, R&B, indie, and alternative sounds in a way that really works for her (and considering her classical background, you might hear some fun strings too).
When it comes to songwriting, Maya doesn’t have a specific formula.“ I would have had a different answer for you if you’d caught me 4 or 5 years ago, but now I feel like it just changes every time. It depends on the emotion I’m feeling, or what inspires the lyrics or the chords that I put down,” says Maya. Before she was a melody-first kind of girl, but now there are boatloads of lyrics written with no melodies attached yet, and conversely, melodies with no lyrics attached yet, and it’s all a constant work in process. Once a song is finished and ready for the stage, Maya’s pre-show ritual is simple: maintain a good vibe for a minimum of twenty-four hours before.“ You have to think of audience members as friends [too]. Singing while strained or stressed or tense is awful, so keeping my body loose and smiling is definitely the name of the game.” Out of all the songs in her discography, Maya’s favorite one to perform is“ Home”;“ it just feels very powerful, it has spacious verses, and an intensity that allows you to have an intimate performance experience.”
One thing I love in music is when my favorite artists team up, or an artist that I love collaborates with another artist, and it’s something that I didn’t expect but end up really loving, thus leading me to a new sound or musician. Maya J’s dream collaboration is a duet with none other than JB himself:“ I’ve been keeping that collab dream alive since I started making records. Justin Bieber is definitely one, right?” Maya also has aspirations of collaborating with someone like Sabrina Claudio or SZA, who she resonates with on an industry peer level and feels aligned with sonically.
For many artists, fashion and music are very interconnected, and for Maya, colorful clothing and accessories is everything.“ Similar to Dreamworldgirl Zine, colors play a huge part in my artistic expression. Just because I get business done doesn’t mean that I don’t have a pink computer,” Maya jokes. On a real note, colors are the perfect way to express oneself, and with our clothing, we can all show off moods, emotions, and our unique personalities through an outfit.“ Wardrobe for a music video or a visualizer or television project is such a critical part of storytelling, and that’s why I love fashion.”
Songwriting, collabs, fashion: they’re all exciting parts of being a certified popstar, but Maya J goes a step beyond and is heavily involved in advocacy work and protecting artists and their intellectual property.“ I’ve always thought of copyright, trademarks, and patents as sacred, and they all are things that you have to protect in [this] business,” says Maya. The name Maya J is trademarked with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, which, in essence, provides federal protection for her stage name — along with visual or phonetic equivalent versions — and prevents others from using it as a business name in commerce or the music marketplace.“ Altering the spelling of a stage name when it still sounds the same, OR adding an apostrophe to a trademark doesn’t change the fact that it’s trademark infringement. I think that this is a topic that a lot of people don’t understand, and also flat-out refuse to honor, especially in the music industry, where there’s little to no oversight. At least in the acting world, we do have a little bit of oversight from, you know, unions like SAG-AFTRA, and that’s helpful, but in music, we don’t have that.” Trademark infringement dilutes one’s digital imprint. It diminishes your searchability, prevents consumers from finding you online and negatively impacts booking and brand deal opportunities: an endless domino effect that is often painful and beyond frustrating. After becoming a frequent target of trademark infringement herself, Maya is determined to educate the entire music industry, even the fans, on this growing problem and raise awareness. While business copycats usually are a sign that you’re doing something right, it’s important to look past the flattery and take real ownership over your art and effort.“ I’m working hard, and I hope to help other artists, because I know I’m not the only one going through this.”
As a Black woman, Maya J’s journey and navigating the music industry has been tougher than most.“ Being a girl, it’s hard, [particularly] a Black woman. I do think there’s a lot of people that say,‘ oh, well, she’s just a girl, or she’s not a serious fight.’” Luckily, community with other women is becoming an increasingly prominent way of combatting the misogyny and racism that persists in a predominantly male space.“ I have recently been making more connections of girlhood in the industry, and finding that there’s a rising class of female producers, which is actually amazing, because most of my producers have been male. I’m ready to see some female perspectives hidden within the music,” says Maya. Right now Maya J’s working on a project with an amazing group that includes a female producer, and she couldn’t be more excited.
