WHO I AM---Jai Harris

Real Murder Caught on Tape!! See it here first!! from Jai Harris on Vimeo.



Raised in the streets of Park Hill, 25-year-old Jai Harris has mastered many arts. She’s a Filmmaker; producer, director, writer, editor, actor as well as an Emcee and Poet (ranked 4th in the Nation 2007). Jai has done it all. Growing up, film and poetry were Jai’s only means of escaping the negativity in the world she was living in. “My mother and uncles were addicted to crack and my brother and cousins were starting to get involved in gangs,” she said. With nowhere else to go, Jai freed herself through writing. “[Writing] exposed to me the idea that anything is possible and I didn’t have to be a victim of my own environment.”

Jai’s passion for film making goes back as far as she can remember. When most children were watching cartoons, Jai was captivated by watching black and white movies from the 50’s with her grandmother. Jai’s favorite actresses include Dorothy Dandridge and Halle Berry. Berry’s role as a crack addict in “Jungle Fever,” hit close to home and inspired Jai to study the art of acting. Comparing her favorite director to a “black Superman,” Spike Lee’s exclusive style has also encouraged Jai to stand above the rest.

In the future, Jai wants to create a new genre of spoken word videos. “I think hip- hop is running out of lifelines and until emcees take the time to remember that rap is poetry, hip-hop will die.” With her frustration in rappers relying on beats instead of lyrics, Jai expresses that “poets don’t have a beat to hide behind.”

Writing her first rap when she was seven, Jai was intrigued by the realism of N.W.A., Ice Cube and Tupac. Jai put music on hold for a while to concentrate on poetry and creative writing. However, she recently got back into it since the sudden death of her baby brother Marques. The siblings were very close and both shared a love for rhyme. “He motivates me to be great at everything I do because that’s the way he was,” she said. After their time was cut short together, Jai made a promise that she would “continue their mission.”

Currently working on her debut album “The Jai Harris Project,” we can expect to see a different side of Jai. There is definitely a message being sent out and Jai hopes that she can inspire all listeners. In company with her many other accomplishments, Jai recently finished working on a show for PBS called “Good Grief,” as a key editor and assistant with the production process. She is also the Featured Poet in episode 4 scheduled to air Jan 29, 2009. Presently attending the University of Colorado at Denver, studying theater, film and television with an emphasis in writing/directing and post production, this talented young woman is without doubt a “JACKie of All Trades.”

A MUST SEE FILM
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