Anchor: Jaron Payne is obsessed with music. His parents met in a band and he remembers playing instruments and participating in choir growing up. By the time Jaron was sixteen his taste developed and his new obsession was rap music, so much so Jaron began writing and editing his own songs.
Anchor: The creative process began slowly for Jaron.
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Anchor: Now 24 years old Jaron has eight years of music making under his belt, the only problem is trying to make a living through music isn’t easy for a young artist like Jaron. Streaming services like Spotify and Soundcloud offer little royalty and lots of competition. Jaron says he hardly even uses soundcloud anymore.
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Anchor: Although Jaron has grown discouraged he’s taken one valuable lesson from trying to get into the business. It’s rarely about just the music…
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Anchor: James Fazio attended Solvay High School with Jaron. He now works in the upstarting Syracuse film industry and has directed music videos for Jaron in the past. Fazio thinks an artist like Jaron would find more success in a bigger market.
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Anchor: Jaron and James both agreed that the business aspect of the music industry is important for any artist to understand, but often it goes unnoticed by musicians.
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Achor: Jaron understood early in his career to make an impact he would need to make valuable connections, so after two years at St. John Fischer in Rochester Jaron left home to find producers who would work with him.
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Anchor: Over the next two years Jaron moved between Santa Cruz California, Chicago, and Florida. By the time he returned to Syracuse in 2016 Jaron had met the producers who, he’s hoping, could jump start his career.
Anchor: Heading into 2019 Jaron is still looking for his big break, but for now he’s controlling what he can. That’s means creating good music and increasing his social media presence. Evan Beebe, NCC News.
SYRACUSE, N.Y (NCC News)– Jaron Payne’s life revolves around music. It would be a challenge to find Payne walking around without headphones in, and the Solvay native has spent the past eight years working on rhymes and producing music.
While Payne’s been committed to his craft a long time he’s begun growing frustrated with the current state of the music industry, especially the streaming services millions of Americans rely on for their music. “I don’t focus on SoundCloud anymore because that’s such a crowded medium,” he said. “I’m competing with the same kids who are ripping YouTube beats and rapping complete nonsense.”
Payne is like thousands of young artists across the country, hungry to get noticed but upset with the magnitude of competition.
“I think people realize, that in every career, there’s always politics, money drives everything your’e not just gonna pick up a mic and record a song then get 300,000 views,” Payne said.
If Payne wants to succeed he says he needs a way to separate himself from the rest of the pack.
“Drake’s popular because he started this trend of rappers being able to both sing and rap, and I think that’s something I’m trying to do with my sound,” he said.
Music style aside, Payne says he is always looking for ways to grow his brand. James Fazio is a friend of Payne’s, and is interested in helping Payne market himself. Fazio and Payne are friends dating back to their time at Solvay High School, and Fazio is a location coordinator for the film industry in town. Fazio has directed music videos for Payne in the past and does everything he can to get his friends name out.
“I think Jaron’s the best artist in Syracuse,” Fazio said. “I mean the plays just don’t up. He’s such a talented writer, you know, a real artist.”
Fazio and Payne said shooting more music videos and increasing social media interactions are all options to raise Payne’s popularity in 2019.
