Model and producer JNR CHOI spontaneously started DJing just this last September.
"I threw a party in Miami and bought some decks to accommodate the DJ’s playing," he says. "One night, I started playing around with them, remembering the one lesson a friend gave me on how to beat match mix a song. I sat on Beatport downloading music all day, fell in love with the art of it and practiced four hours a day for three months. I’ve always had a hand in production, co-producing most of my music, but this year i’m taking the time to learn and produce my own tracks. DJing naturally pushed me deeper into production because I want to create records that work in the club as well as outside of it."
The artist says that his sound is all about atmosphere.
"My sound creates the atmosphere that has you feeling like you’re on a yacht in the south of France in the middle of summer," he says. "I blend afrobeat, afro house and amapiano sounds with a radio ready, r&b/hip hop vocal placement to create music that you can play in a keine music set or sing along to in the car on your way home after a night out in Mykonos. I like records that feel luxurious but still have rhythm."
JNR CHOI's latest release is "PICK UP."
"'PICK UP' is a song I wrote shortly after a breakup last year where I had to really confront my own flaws," he says. "I started deep diving into my attachment style and understanding where I went wrong. The song ended up becoming almost like a letter the kind of message you wish you sent earlier. Sonically it sits in the Afro-influenced world I’m exploring right now, but the emotion comes from a very honest place."
As for gear: "My home setup is two CDJ-3000s and a Pioneer DJM-V10 mixer, with Yamaha speakers. When recording on the road I travel with iLoud monitors because they fit easily in cabin luggage. I run an Apollo Twin X interface, a Shure SM7B microphone and Beyerdynamic DT 700 Pro X headphones."
Looking ahead, JNR CHOI has plenty planned for 2026.
"I’m rolling out my introduction as a DJ. I’ll be releasing a few filmed live sets so people can understand the sound and the world around it," he says. "Alongside that I have a run of singles coming that push further into the Afro house and Afro-influenced space. Tour wise I’ll be playing around Europe this summer and spending time in Asia shortly after. The goal this year is to build a real bridge between my artist world and the DJ world."
Photo credit: @Originalgamenation
