Born on June 26, 1994, James Edward Roan is an American rapper, recording artist, songwriter, and narrator hailing from Miami, Florida. His love for music stems from his childhood when he grew up listening to legendary musicians played by his family members, including his mom, grandma, aunts, and uncles. Inspired by their music, he developed his unique style and started telling his life stories through his music.
At the age of 17, James released his first musical project, a mixtape titled “Time Will Tell,” during his high school years. Since then, he has released several mixtapes and three full albums. In addition, he has lent his voice to narrate Relay For Life, GAP Inc. Breast Cancer Awareness commercials, as well as his self-directed and self-produced advertisements and documentaries.
James is passionate about creating music based on his genuine emotions and life experiences. He uses his songs and music videos to tell stories and convey messages. He aspires to become the future leader of the next generation of hip-hop artists and believes that he can bring a fresh and unique perspective to the genre.
James enjoys experimenting with different sounds and approaches to music. He takes his time to master the art or style of each project he works on, whether it’s R&B, smoother cuts, or bass-heavy commercial tracks. He intends to showcase his versatility with each new project that he releases.
James Roan Rock the Hip Hop Interview
What city are you from?
Miami, Florida.
How has your city influenced your sound?
My city really hasn’t influenced my sound as much as other places. I love Rick Ross, Trick Daddy, Trina, and other legendary artists from here. However, I’m more so drawn inspiration from the culture of South Florida here itself. However, the sound in music comes from elsewhere and can be heard in my style. Up north hence the lyrical skills of an emcee and whatnot. There’s been plenty of times when I’ve gotten asked where I’m from or people wouldn’t think I’m from Miami due to my sound being “different”
Tell us about your best performance.
My best performance is really hard to narrow down because I’d like to think I give 100% every time I touch a stage or perform at an event. However, what I will say is my most “memorable performance would have to be at “Miami Live” on South Beach back in 2019.
Talk about your latest project.
My latest project is an Album/EP titled “Elements of Life” produced by Richy B. We’ve worked on the project for over 3 years. We started back in 2020 when I had my own recording studio. We can up with the idea of a concept for the songs during the lockdown and pandemic. After I lost the studio we put a stop to the album temporarily until 2022 when we met back up and knocked out some more songs to further push the project’s potential. The project will focus on topics such as Love, Lust, Anger, Happiness, Wins, Losses, Addiction, Mental Health, Fun, Financial Hardships, and many more things most people can relate to. We want to focus on making this more of a therapeutic experience to get listeners out of their slumps and recognize the full potential they may have in life. Each song will bring a different emotion or “Element” of life itself. In so many words, everything that makes us human.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I see myself being in a position to be a leader for the next generation. Doing guest speaking events, being an established artist in music, and a well-rounded brand to open doors for other avenues and endeavors. Traveling the globe doing shows, hosting events, and also being an entrepreneur, and also even getting into film as a writer and director. I have a lot of creative ideas that I believe can influence an entire culture of people. That’s what it’s all about.
