KICKSTART your career: Introducing our super-star video wrangler Aleah MO

Jeeni Blog

Helping the next generation of talent to build a global fanbase

KICKSTART your career: Introducing our super-star video wrangler Aleah MO

JEENI are delighted to be employing with the Government’s Kickstart Scheme initiative.

Aleah Mo (she/her) was our first Kickstart recruit. Aleah is a 19-year-old dancer and dance teacher from Portsmouth. Since Aleah joined the team, JEENI has helped her to showcase her talent and keep 100% of the rewards.

Launched by Rishi Sunak last September as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Government’s Kickstart Scheme provides funding to employers to create jobs for 16–24-year-olds who are receiving Universal Credit and at risk of long-term unemployment.

As a fast-growing new business, still in its exciting dewy youth. JEENI are delighted to have signed up for the scheme. The successful Kickstart employees are taken on for initial placement of up to 6 months. And given training to learn new skills, and ongoing support to look for long-term, permanent work.

To qualify for the Kickstart Scheme, jobs offered must be brand new positions that were not previously available at the company. For JEENI, this works perfectly as the company is currently growing and expanding at a rapid rate. Meaning that these exciting new roles have evolved naturally.

Aleah joined Team JEENI in March. As one of our Marketing Assistants, she creates showcases for many different independent performers like herself. And she’s already using the skills she has learned so far to promote her own talent and services. With Kickstart Employees working for up to 25 hours per week. Aleah says her hours easily fit around her busy schedule of teaching and dancing.

“JEENI is such a great company and the hours I work really fit around my dance, which is really beneficial for me, because I am a teacher, so most evenings I am dancing as well as on the weekends. “
Aleah Mo.

The Movement Initiative

The Dance Company that Aleah dances for is called The Movement Initiative (TMI). TMI is a Charity Dance School located in Southsea, formed to help dancers fulfil their full potential. By providing opportunities, facilities, and classes for dancers to learn excel, and perform regardless of their age and ability. TMI are World Champions in the International Dance Organisation. Aleah is already using what she's learnt as a Marketing Assistant for JEENI to help promote her dance school and increase their following. As well as her own individual talent, all or free.

Aleah, along with some other dance school members, and a wide range of independent dancers will also be featuring in JEENI’s next online festival! Our first themed festival, the theme, of course, being DANCE which Aleah is “super-excited” about!

If you’re interested in working for JEENI, featuring in one of our upcoming festivals or just want to find out how we can help you promote your talents and services. Contact the Business Helpdesk here: https://jeeni.com/support/

To check out the full Inside Story Interview with Aleah Mo click here: Inside Story: Aleah Mo interview

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18
Feb

Artist Focus: Cassius Gray

With casual, effortless rhymes and relatable vibes, Cassius Gray is making huge waves in the UK jazz rap scene. Cassius Gray has expanded and diversified Jeeni’s hip-hop, rap and RnB channels with six incredible tracks, each one different to the last and totally refreshing. His last single, ‘Sunbeds’ is a lush and lavish piece, fueled by smooth, old-school RnB samples and sentiments; listen on Jeeni here: https://jeeni.com/sunbeds-cassius-gray/. And check out Cassius’ showcase here: https://jeeni.com/showcase/0xr7kzzd8v5p/ Cassius has been making music for seven years now and has been developing his sound with every chance he’s had. His track from 2019, ‘A.M’ has nearly 1 million listens and according to Cassius is a surefire crowd-pleaser, “my favourite to perform was my song A.M with Souleymane Noe/Luther King, it bangs so hard live man!” Luther King contributes an icy cold verse on ‘A.M’, as well as providing the dangerously catchy “I don’t care if this tune don’t bang” hook. One of many successful collaborations, ‘A.M’ set a trend of sorts; ‘Jp from 640’, Teddy, J P Rose, and producer San Tino all followed with collaborations after the 2019 single. Cassius especially praised the latter for the creative synergy the two have, “Specifically shout out to my guy San Tino - the producer of our 2021 Single ‘Cookoo’”. This track from last year saw Cassius venture into an entirely new direction for his vocal talent: garage. San Tino lays down an unmistakable modern garage beat over which he plays calming synth pads and minimal, yet effective added percussion. As well as just rapping, Cassius also sings over the freeing instrumental in the form of expressive, auto-tuned vocalisations and humming. This stylistic risk and subsequent pay-off makes ‘Cookoo’ a clearly special moment in Cassius Gray’s young discography. ‘Chillhop’ and ‘jazz rap’ are broad genres that Cassius is often inclined towards, but to expect one style from this artist is pointless. Cassius’ influences act like a rolling snowball, picking up anything and everything in its path and using it to make it stronger, more complex and layered. His inspirations stem back to early 90s hip-hop, namely ‘A Tibe Called Quest’. Q-Tip's crew redefined hip-hop and continues to stir the imaginations of entire generations of artists even now. Tribe’s approach to samples, beats and attitude can regularly be seen in Cassius’ own work, especially with tracks like ‘Mum Called?’ and the collaborative, ‘World Spins Too Fast’. Cassius is an essential component of this new and exciting wave of UK hip-hop and Jeeni, along with all of his fans, can’t wait for his debut album, which he promises is lined up for this year. Make sure you’re following Cassius on social media to stay in the loop of his ever-developing sound. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cassiusgray_/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cassiusgraymusic Jeeni showcase: https://jeeni.com/showcase/0xr7kzzd8v5p/ How can Jeeni support artists like Cassius Gray? JEENI is a multi-channel platform for original entertainment on demand. We’re a direct service between creatives and the global audience. • We give creatives, independent artists and performers a showcase for their talent and services. And they keep 100% of everything they make. • We empower our audience and reward them every step of the way. • We promise to treat our members ethically, fairly, honestly and with respect. • Access to artist liaison and a supportive marketing team. artist biography

06
Jun

Love in the Time of COVID-19: Working Apart but Creating Together.

By Sammie Venn Jeeni's Official Writer, Columnist and Blogger. Here at Jeeni.com we celebrate and support all musicians and performers, and poetry has its own dedicated channel for artists and performers to showcase their work and earn 100% of their sales, ticketing, merchandise and donations. Today, Jeeni has returned to Crowdcube to raise more funds for helping new talent. If you want to see our pitch click HERE. Today we showcase Sammie Venn as a very talented and creative writer. “No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it” – H.E Luccock Sammie says, "Creativity brings people together. Artists, poets, writers and musicians have been forced apart, to distance, to isolate due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet collaboration has flourished. Adversity has brought us together to create in new and innovative ways. I have learnt over the years that it is not possible to be great at everything. Different skills that blend and morph with each other are key to an effective alliance. That’s where the magic happens. I have forged a new partnership with a UK-based award winning sound designer to launch a series of poetry short films – I call them “Poetry Porn” – on YouTube as a prelude to publishing an anthology of work in the autumn. Joe Churchman and I have worked on various projects together over the years. She wrote and co-directed the multi-award winning short film “Gloop” and collaborated with Sir David Attenborough. Joe has worked with MC Saatchi and the BBC, her talents and eye for creativity know no bounds . Where once we joined forces over the kitchen table, enjoying a glass of wine, we have been forced by the pandemic to find new ways of working together, including our latest venture. We both have a thirst for learning and a need to enthusiastically share and impart the wisdom we have gained. Creating during COVID-19 has been an exhilarating and challenging experience for us both, but one we have overcome and enjoyed with fervour and passion. Never before have Zoom, WhatsApp and the desire to teleport been at the forefront of our combined creativity. Despite the 50 plus miles between our respective homes the soul sister bond that we have nurtured over the years has never been lost. The verve for all things lyrical has surfaced again whilst working on the Poetry films. Having created a series of 100 poems, I am now in the editorial process: altering verses, changing words and making sure rhythm, beat and iambic pentameter all synchronise. The work embodies the emotive journey of womanhood: traversing sorrow, despair, anger and liberation. The natural environment heals all woes and this journey is told through the changes in season. Death, loss, renewal and growth are all subjects covered within the poems and the films. Winter teaches us how to be patient, to rest, hibernate and prepare for growth. Autumn helps us to embrace the process of letting go. Spring is a period of regrowth and birth. Whilst Summer is our time to blossom and burst into the most vibrant versions of ourselves. In the depths of winter combined with a broken heart, “Kiss the Tinder” was born. Poetry was and still is my solace, it helped me to rediscover compassion, serenity and hope. I was lucky enough to meet a fellow poet and songwriter via the writing community on Instagram a couple of years ago, Renée is from Texas, so we have only ever virtually met but he kindly agreed to record this poem. A true gift. I woke one morning to his dulcet tones in my inbox, and with a voice of liquid silk, he is the soundscape to this film. This Poetry Short is therefore a true collaboration. Global restraints from continental distance to COVID-19 have not curbed our resourcefulness. The project has only just begun. This poem was published in June in American Journal “The Starlight Emporium” along with a collection of my other work. “Kiss the Tinder” by Sammie Venn Kiss the tinder, fall in love with the ashesThe storm destroys the pain with lashesIndigo shards, incandescent stainsLife blood flowing, ripped like veins.Lightening shreds the Arial skyIt punches, spits and angrily criesGlorifying the night with celestial screamsMother Nature voices her savage dreams.Dancing with Hope, thunder follows alongside,For now, there is nowhere in the world to hide.Like a love-lorn couple, they rampantly combustTears of anguish wash away rage and lust. Click HERE to visit or return to jeeni.com

12
Mar

Reading and Leeds Festival is On!

Huzzah - Reading and Leeds Festival is on! Festival organisers confirmed today, the event will go ahead as planned, after the Prime Minister set out his plans for the the easing of the Lockdown. The expectation is for England to be free from all restrictions by the end of June. Posting on social media Reading and Leeds organisers shared footage from classic performances at previous festivals, as well as telling fans, “Reading and Leeds 2021. Following the government’s recent announcement, we can’t wait to get back to the fields this summer. LET’S GO,” they wrote in a tweet. https://twitter.com/OfficialRandL/status/1364526936660336643?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1364526936660336643%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nme.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D2887744action%3Dedit Reading and Leeds Festival Announcement on Twitter The festival in in the diary for August Bank Holiday, which this year is falls on the weekend of 27-29 August. Headline performances will come from the likes of Liam Gallagher, Stormzy, Post Malone, Catfish & The Bottlemen and Queens of The Stone Age. However, given the events that have already cancelled, could there be other names appearing in the line-up? Announcing his excitement with his usual style, Liam Gallagher rallied his fans.......! https://twitter.com/liamgallagher/status/1364569671182262277 Liam Gallager's Reaction on Twitter This year’s festival will also see Reading & Leeds featuring six headliners and, for the first time, two main stages. The newly introduced West Main Stage will take in headline performances from the likes of Catfish & The Bottlemen, Disclosure and Queens Of The Stone Age. It comes after the government confirmed that they will “aim to remove all legal limits on social contact” by June 21. Before that, outdoor hospitality, such as pubs and outdoor dining, could reopen on April 12, with indoor hospitality following on May 17. The latter date is also the first point where live events could return, however, limited capacities and social distancing may still be required. After June 21, all other restrictions should be removed – however, the roadmap is contingent on vaccinations going to plan, COVID-19 variants not causing new problems, and the infection rate lowering. The main stage at Leeds Festival 2019. (Photo by Katja Ogrin/Redferns) Earlier this year, Reading & Leeds boss Melvin Benn told NME he was “super confident” about the event taking place. “If everyone over the age of 60, or definitely the age of 50, is vaccinated by the end of May, then Jesus – there should be no stopping us,” Benn told NME. “Imagine what fun it’s going to be. It’s going to be bloody awesome, isn’t it? Rain or shine, being out in that field with thousands of people, wherever it is, watching any band or your favourite band, I just can’t wait. It’s mouth-watering just to think about.” www.jeeni.com www.readingfestival.com

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