Inspired by Whitney Houston, OKC rapper Jabee focuses on music with innovative new series

A Boys & Girls Club might sound like a surprising place for a professional rapper to record the vocals for his latest album.

But Jabee indeed laid down his newest set of rhymes inside the Memorial Park Club, the flagship youth center for the Oklahoma County chapter of the nonprofit organization.

"I do a program up there, and I'm up there three or four times a week. So, I would record there ... after hours or early in the morning," he recalled with a chuckle.

The unusual location speaks to how much Jabee's life has changed over the past few years. Once one of Oklahoma City's top hip-hop artists, he's now a business owner, community activist, event organizer and father of four — and he's still rapping, too.

"Because I have all those different things going on — and all of it sometimes can feel like work, and I guess it is — I have to do something musically or I'm not feeling good. I'm not in a good space," he said.

"Music has gotten to be like a therapeutic thing for me. It's the one thing I can do that is just me, and I can do it my way. As opposed to, with everything else, there's so many other things that's taken into account when I'm doing it. So, music is like my escape ... and it's still just as important."

So, it's not surprising that the rapper, actor and visual artist is celebrating his birthday Friday playing a release show at the Tower Theatre for his new album "AM," the first in a series of four conceptual EPs he has planned. Murs, Sarafina Byrd, Stringsmen OKC and Brandon Birdwell also are on the lineup for the concert.

"I'll be turning 30 for the ninth time," Jabee joked. "I just always try to remind myself that I'm built for this if I ever get tired. ... All this work is important, and the rest will come when the work is done."

Inspiration behind new music project

A Heartland Emmy Award winner, Jabee's ambitious new four-part EP project is collectively titled "AM I GOOD ENOUGH."

Each EP will have a one-word title taken from that phrase, spoken by Oscar winner Kevin Costner during his now-iconic speech at Whitney Houston's 2012 funeral. In his emotional eulogy, Costner said the superstar singer wondered "Am I good enough?"

"I'm a really big fan of Whitney Houston, so I watched this documentary on her daughter. And when I finished watching that, I went back and watched highlights of Whitney Houston's funeral. ... It really messed me up that Whitney, in the prime of her career, when she was as big as she could be, she was still questioning and doubting herself. I know that's how I get, and I know there are probably other people who get that way, as well," Jabee said.

"Then I said, 'Wait, that's four words. ... Oh, man, that's it. That's the project: AM I GOOD ENOUGH.' I wanted each one to kind of show a different aspect of my life, a different period of my life, because that's something I've struggled with and dealt with my entire life."

Debuting on his birthday, the initial six-song collection, "AM," was produced by Derek Minor and features collaborations with Michael Christmas, K.O, Chuuwee, Bub Styles and more.

"It was just an opportunity to collaborate and really get out of that moment of really trying to be so perfect and just having fun with the beat and having fun with the raps," Jabee said.

Making music helps process the emotional toll of rapper's activism

Over the past few years, Jabee has become more visibly involved in activism, from organizing the display of a lighted sign reading "Stop killing us" after the death of George Floyd to spearheading several events on behalf of high-profile former death row inmate Julius Jones.

Featuring Arizona-based rapper Lando Chill, his harrowing new song "How Many More" asks how many more Black men and women must die and how many more injustices they must face.

"Being able to do music helps me come to grips with it, helps me process it, helps me get through it and helps me talk about it. After the Julius Jones stuff, a lot of us were getting counseling and therapy, and part of mine was being able to get back to the music, being able to rap and record," he said.

"When I recorded this project, I recorded it by myself. I recorded all my vocals in a small room alone ... and I was able to just dig in in a different way that I hadn't been able to before."

The Oklahoma native closes his new EP by paying homage to his home base on OKC's east side with the track "Eastside With Love," featuring Kadence, JRolla, TD Badazz, Grand National and Marvuluzz Thugg.

"I just went and hit some of my favorite people from the east side," Jabee said. "The east side is growing, and I know that in five or 10 years, there's no telling how it'll look. But I want it to be different than other parts of the city that used to be Black, like Deep Deuce, where you go there now and there's no way to even know that it was ever Black and we were ever there.

"I want everybody to understand and know this was the heart and soul of Black people in Oklahoma City and a thriving community. And there's a lot of good things happening."

Jabee embraces the past and future of OKC's Black community

Between spearheading the burgeoning Juneteenth on the East festival and opening up his popular Eastside Pizza House, Jabee continues to play a big role in the growth of the part of OKC he calls home.

Since opening in February, his restaurant has quickly become beloved for serving up pizzas with innovative combinations of toppings on a distinctive black crust, which is made with activated charcoal.

"I still feel like it just hasn't hit me yet that I have a pizza restaurant on the east side on 23rd Street. It still doesn't feel real, but it's going good. We're about to add some more stuff to the menu, and we're just trying to continue to get better and be that hub for the community. It's been dope just to hear all the feedback. It's been really cool to hear all the love," he said.

"I've never owned anything before. I don't even own my own house yet, so I'm still learning all of that stuff. It just goes to show Oklahoma, man, (why) I love it here. I know none of this would be possible if I lived in another city."

After wrapping the successful second annual Juneteenth on the East, Jabee has turned his attention to helping organize the Aug. 18-21 Freedom Fiesta Celebration, marking the 64th anniversary of Clara Luper leading the 1958 Katz Drug Store sit-in. The festivities will include a jazz concert, art exhibit, panel discussion and a reenactment of the sit-in. Since Katz is no longer around, Kaiser's Grateful Bean Cafe, which is of a similar vintage, hosts the annual reenactment.

"It's a chance for people to come and meet the sit-inners and hear the stories of what happened ... and be a part of that real history. I love it," he said.

"One of my favorite things we do is whenever we get there, Miss Joyce Henderson will lead us in several songs. To see all these different people, different ages, different colors, singing the songs and letting Miss Marilyn (Hildreth, Luper's daughter) talk about those days and what happened and how she felt as a little kid is so dope, man — and so inspiring."

Rapper already has planned out next three EPs

Even as he prepares to release "AM," Jabee already has mapped out his three follow-up EPs. Boasting a lo-fi abstract style, "I" will be produced entirely by underground legend Blu.

"GOOD" will explore life and spirituality with production from Griselda producer Conductor Williams and collaborations with Boldy James and Blu.

For the final installment, "ENOUGH," Jabee is working with Havoc, one half of the legendary New York hip-hop duo Mobb Deep, and featuring Murs, Che Noir and Mistah FAB.

"I used to write and record and make music and be so consumed about what people thought about it. But what I realize now is that a lot of those people, they're never gonna listen to me, they're never gonna come to my show, they're never gonna be a supporter of mine," he said.

"Why am I trying to impress people who'll never listen anyway? ... It's almost a disrespect to all those people who really do listen to me ... so now I'm just to the point to where I'm just making the kind of music I know how to make and not trying to be down with anybody, not trying to impress anybody."

Whether he is delivering one of his crowd-pleasing concerts or working with youngsters at a local Boys & Girls Club, Jabee said he also is learning to appreciate where the rap career that he started when he was a youngster himself has taken him so far.

"No matter what I do — if it's food, the restaurant, activism, organizing, the Clara Luper (Legacy), Thunder stuff, commercials — all those things started because of music. The platform that I built for myself started because of me putting out music and performing and doing shows," he said. "Everything else just kind of came as a natural progression, so music is always going to be the center."

Jabee 'AM' EP release show

When: 7 p.m. Friday.

Where: Tower Theatre, 425 NW 23.

Tickets and information: https://towertheatreokc.com.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC activist and restaurateur Jabee keeps focus on music with new EP