Jay Givenchy
Top South Florida Rapper
South Florida artist Jay Givenchy made his debut in 2018 with the song “Cam Newton,” and ever since has been continuing his rise through the ranks of the rap game, both in Florida and on the national stage.
Representing Broward County, this Haitian rapper makes sure he stands out and does not imitate any other artist. While not having your average childhood, this only led to a path into becoming one of South Florida’s top rap artists of today’s generation. Continuing his consistency with the creation of quality music, Jay Givenchy’s latest release of “Forgive or Forget” is a song that not only defines him, but also proves that his talents separates him from the rest.
Jay Givenchy. Credit: Eniary Studios
Meet and Get To Know Jay Givenchy
Kulture Vulturez: Where did you originally grow up at?
Jay Givenchy: I grew up in Pompano [Beach, Florida], but I move to Oakland Park real young.
Kulture Vulturez: What was it like growing up there for you in Broward County?
Jay Givenchy: It was typical Broward [County, Florida] shit. When you are a kid, where I come from, everybody respects you off money. So, it was like a n**** was growing up trying to get a bag.
Kulture Vulturez: Can you explain the culture of Broward County or South Florida in general?
Jay Givenchy: South Florida is a fast city. It moves fast. You close your eyes one time and the n**** next to you done made 10 to 20 thousand. You have to keep your eyes open out here. It be all types of scams. Everybody trying find a way to get money.
Jay Givenchy – Forgive or Forget
Kulture Vulturez: I hear the term “Zoe” a lot, can you explain what does that mean?
Jay Givenchy: Zoe is like a term that Haitians call each other. Because at one point in time nobody liked Haitians, they treated us like we were zombies on earth. Nobody really messed with Zoes like that. So, we just took it a ran with it. We Zoes, we are zombies on earth. Then it became cool.
Kulture Vulturez: How did you get introduced into rapping?
Jay Givenchy: I grew up on watching 106 and Park, BET, and shit like that. My big brother use to rap before he got deported, so I started rapping when I was 7.
Kulture Vulturez: What made you want to take being an artist seriously?
Jay Givenchy: When I was in jail, I used to beat on my locker and everybody would be like ‘Aye yo, Jay hit that one song for me. I give you two honeybuns for it.’ ‘Aye, hit that other song you wrote. I give you a honeybun for it.’ They used to get me to rap and beat on my locker. So, I’m like I really can rap.
Jay Givenchy – Big Dawg
Kulture Vulturez: Listening to your music what can people expect?
Jay Givenchy: You for sure going to find something that does not sound like anything else. It’s never going to be anything like me trying sound like this person or the next person. Every time you have me in your speaker it’s something authentic.
Kulture Vulturez: In your opinion, what is your biggest or most popular song?
Jay Givenchy: Probably, “Cam Newton.” I really feel like I don’t have a breakthrough single yet, I’m still waiting on that.
Kulture Vulturez: You released a new song “Forgive and Forget,” can you talk about that?
Jay Givenchy: It’s basically a song I dropped because I feel a lot of people down play me. I feel like I gave a lot of people my energy that was not deserving. So, it’s like I can’t forgive them n***** or forget them n***** until I reach a point in life where “I told you so.”
Jay Givenchy – Sometimes
Kulture Vulturez: Being an artist what do you dislike about it and what do you like about it?
Jay Givenchy: It’s a lot of perks for being an artist. I go places, people know me, regular shit like that. I’ve done went to places and they like ‘Oh yeah, you that Givenchy guy, we are going give such and such half off,’ and shit like that.
The bad things about being an artist, a n**** can walk up to you and be trying to shake your hand, but you don’t know if he an enemy or if he a fan. It’s like you have to move a certain way, you don’t never know. A car could roll its window down and you don’t know whether to defend yourself or to embrace the car.
It’s like you are an artist and being a regular person if a car just pulls up and roll the window down in your mind why did this car just roll the window down. As an artist you have to think maybe it is not a threat, maybe it’s a fan. So, that gives you a split second hesitation type shit.
Kulture Vulturez: What do you want your legacy to be as an artist?
Jay Givenchy: I don’t want to lie, me personally I just want to be authentic. I was going to say I want to be a GOAT (Greatest of All Time), but if I would say I want to be a GOAT it wouldn’t be authentic, because too many n***** out here call themselves a GOAT.
I just want to be somebody who was different. They can put me down in the books with all of the best of people, but I don’t want to sound like none of the rest of the people. That’s why I barely even talk about being locked up behind the walls. It’s like certain shit I don’t talk about, because that’s what every other n**** is talking about.