About
Ricky Jamaraz is a 16 year old kid who lives in the suburbs of Nottingham, UK. Ever since he was a 13 year old tearfuck he has been independently writing, recording and releasing his own music all from the confines of his bedroom. He is now 17 and he is still afraid to set foot in a 'real' recording studio. Along with writing and performing his music, Ricky is completely self-managed, and he wrote this stupid bio because someone on the internet said it would be a good idea.
Ricky's music is sometimes quite meaningless, and sometimes quite meaningful. One listen to any RJ album and you'll find that his music never seems to sound similar to itself, and is constantly morphing from one genre to another, often blending multiple musical aspects to create some sort of freak indie hybrid genre. Despite this, every song is unmistakably "Jamarazcore", be it the memorable hooks, hum-able melodies, or the feeling it instils upon his listeners that make them either cry or bop their head from side to side. I'm talking out of my arse here by the way, this is just filler to make the website look nice.
RJ's 7th studio album 'Return To Zero' it out now. It's quite dark so don't listen to it with your grandma. It was record on tape without a computer. He wrote and produced all the songs. There's more guitar solos than on any other of his records. There's one song that doesn't have any guitars. There's a song called 'Wonder If She's High Yet'. This shit is the deepest thing you'll hear all week.
The album is mainly about sex and drugs and sadness and society. Where the album 'Honestly?' is an album that focuses on Ricky's own personal problems, 'Return Zero' is the opposite, and looks out at the world focuses on the world's problems.
Credits to someone on my discord server for pointing that out to me. I had no idea RTZ was sort of a reaction to Honestly... and I bloody wrote both of them!
FAQ
What do you use to produce music?
For digital recording, I use a DAW called StudioOne by Presonus, and I use a drum VST called Addictive Drums 2 when not recording drums myself. As you may know however, my latest album Return To Zero was recorded on a Yamaha MT8Xii, which is an analogue multitrack cassette recorder from 1994 I think. I love it. I also have an MT-50, which is a 4-track I used to make a bunch of demos for the album. I started recording on tape in late 2023.
How long does it take to produce a song?
So like, fastest I've done it is in about 2-3 hours. That's going from an idea to the finished product. Longest it's ever taken is maybe 2 weeks, but that's only because I would've been juggling other songs at the same time. It really depends on the circumstances. If I'm sad I generally work quicker because I lock in more and making songs is one of the only things that really makes me feel any better.
What artists/bands inspire your music?
I'm rubbish at this question, guess for yourself because I don't know...
How do you get over creativity/writer's block?
I'm not sure how to explain this, but I just don't let writer's block happen. I'm always writing, and people around me will often see me carrying a notebook with me, and writing lyrics and songs has almost become a daily habit. This being said however, there are times when I deliberately want to write a song but I can't think of any ideas in the moment. When this happens, I just let go, and accept the fact that now isn't the time. I think too many people try to fight writer's block and it's like trying to fight nature. Instead you have to just deal with it and let the flow of the river take you where it takes you... or some deep shit like that.
When did you start making music and why?
During the lockdown of 2020, my school was shut from March till September because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and with all that time off school I taught myself how to play guitar and began writing my own songs. I started doing that because it made me happy, and it was something fun to do instead of sitting around doing nothing, and that's why I still do it today.
Is Ricky Jamaraz your real name?
Nope, my real name is Thomas Ison, it's not a secret but not many people know that. If you look up the credits in my songs you'll see Thomas Ison everywhere because that's my legal name I have to put for credits :)
In the first place I chose to have a stage name because I didn't want people from my school finding out about my music (they did anyway when I started getting popular) and I also wanted to make sure I had a way to keep my personal and musical life separate. Some people DM me on Instagram and think they're being cool and quirky by calling me Thomas or Tom. When strangers do that it makes me cringe so much. My name is Ricky Jamaraz as far as you're concerned !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why did you make an FAQ?
Because I thought it would be kinda funny and unique, you don't see many artists really putting this much effort into stuff like this. I also think it might be quite useful to some people, you never know. Even if no-one reads this, it kept me busy for an afternoon so I'm happy!
Ricky Jamaraz's cat Zoomer standing on his bed along with two guitars.
Ricky Jamaraz the indie musician standing against a blank wall, looking suspicious.
Ricky Jamaraz making electronic music without a computer.
