Trevor Jackson croons the highs and lows on his new mixtape In My Feelings. Starting with some wise words from his grandmomma, the buzzy R&B singer/ actor pens “songs that feed the soul” but doesn’t shy away from gliding on the dance floor (bump “All Day” and “Bang Bang”), even tapping Kevin Gates, Mystikal and Iamsu! for complimentary bars. After holing up in the studio for the past six months with Delante Murphy, who executive produced Trey Songz’ breakthrough album Ready, Jackson is ready to make you remember his name.
Get more familiar with Jackson in our Q&A and dive into his In My Feelings mixtape below.
VIBE: What was it like like transitioning from Disney kid to singer?
Trevor Jackson: I was 15 years old. It’s like any other job. You take the job, you learn from it, and you move on. For me, it wasn’t really about trying to start a new image. We’re always evolving. It forces us to grow. I’ve kinda been doing music the whole time but not for real, for real. It was probably after I did “Let it Shine.”
How did producing this mixtape differ from your previous work?
This is the first project that I wrote the majority of—almost every song. Before I started writing for myself, I was writing country records and they were coming out dope. Most people who listen to R&B don’t listen to country. Most people who listen to country don’t listen to R&B. I thought, “Why can’t I do this, if I just made a mixtape?” I didn’t wait. I just started writing. Me and my brother. I just put the pen to the pad. Just growing up and being around different people, we would just write about different things we were seeing.
Is this a compete 180 for you as an artist?
For me, I wanted to go away for a little bit. It’s still me. I’ve just been through a lot. That also caused my music to change, my vision to change. But yeah, I’m super excited about the new stuff, how it’s all coming together.
READ: Trevor Jackson Talks New Single ‘Drop It,’ Michael Jackson And Dating Older Women
Did you feel like your past music really captured who Trevor Jackson is?
I feel like I don’t regret anything up to this point. It got me where I am, and I’m pretty happy. I feel like everything I did, I put my twist on. I mean I enjoyed them. I was kind of listening to people around me, kind of just trusting everything that they said. That’s what you have to learn with life. It’s your life at the end of the day. There’s really no right or wrong way to do things. Everybody has a way they think you should do it. So why not do it your way, you know what I mean, respectfully.
How did producers, managers, and the rest of your team react to your new attitude?
They respected it. I think a lot of people at first were like, ‘Wow, crazy,’ because they were expecting the typical young, R&B artist thing. But I’d rather be different. I want to say something. With this new music, I’ve just been able to tap more into myself. My vision-they can relate to that.