So officially pride month is June but let’s be honest, we could do with it all year round and when we’re this fabulous, it makes zero sense to limit ourselves to just a single month.
Speaking of fabulous, today we’re here to celebrate one of our incredible trans sisters on releasing their new uplifting and playful single. That’s right, we’ve got a new pride anthem for ya’ll to add to your playlists, so don’t be putting the poppers away or taking your flags down any time soon.
Let us introduce you to Jae XO and get this party started!
First things first, if someone is discovering you for the first time, what would be your one line to describe yourself and really hook them in?
The only way to make true art is to be true to yourself – that’s not shade, it’s pure light!
You’ve just released your super fun and fresh single “Fabulous”, can you tell us a little about the story behind it?
This is actually a very silly story. Last fall some friends and I took the PATH train out of New York City to New Jersey for the sole purpose of eating at The Cheesecake Factory, because there unfortunately is not a location in New York City. After several hours of indulging in a variety of cuisines and beverages, we took our cheesecake to go and called a car back into the city (our current state of bloat and inebriation wasn’t going to fare well on the trains). Try to imagine it: a gaggle of queers shoved into an UberXL with our take out bags, drunk and full and giggly, heading home on the West Side Highway. In classic Jae XO fashion, out of nowhere I burst into song – “me and the dolls on the west side highway” – and it’s an instant hit. We’re all singing it the rest of the ride home between fits of laughter and hiccups. I knew that it would find itself into a song of mine someday, and now it’s the opening lyric of “FABULOUS”.
What was the most fun moment you had when producing or recording the single?
When I heard the final version of this track from Velvet Code, I knew I had to get to the studio immediately with my friends at MONOLisa Studios in Queens. 3x Grammy award winning recording engineer Denise Barbarita, who owns the studio, is a powerhouse and an absolute delight. My favorite part of the session was when we recorded all of the fills and laughs – she hit record and let me just be silly with it for about 15 minutes. By the end of it the laughs were genuine because I was having such a blast!
Do you have a dream collab in mind for a future hit?
There are so many iconic artists I’d love to collaborate with like Lorde, Chappell Roan, Adam Lambert, Ke$ha, Imogen Heap, and more! But even as basic as it sounds, my number one dream collab would have to be Lady Gaga. I’ve been a Little Monster since my childhood friend first played Just Dance for me one afternoon in the 5th grade.
Now, there was a few years between your debut single “Spinning” and the incredible new bop, what was the journey like between the two?
I spent the majority of 2024 grieving the loss of my mother, and learning to live as a new version of myself. Around the new year I promised myself that I wouldn’t let another year be defined solely by my grief. I wrote “FABULOUS” because I needed to remind myself how fabulous I am. I was finally ready to pull myself up by the bootstraps, put on some waterproof mascara, and find Jae again. “FABULOUS” hasn’t just brought me back to who I was, it’s shown me who I was always meant to be. And I hope it can do the same for listeners everywhere as they jump on the Jae XO train, because this is just the beginning!
Who would you say had the biggest influence on your queer identity?
I am who I am because of my community. I have so much gratitude for all of the fabulous queer people that are in my life who inspire and support me every single day. They say you are an average of the people you spend the most time around, but it’s hard to imagine anything average about the unique and powerful personalities that I get to call my family.
So that we can uplift our community, can you give a shoutout to 3 fellow queer artists people should check out?
I have so many lovely and talented friends making waves in the music industry right now! Colette March just released a new banger “Franco” and Holly Cinnamon has one of my favourite songs of all time “La Langue”. I’m also a huge fan of Madison Rose and her entire catalogue has me dancing like there’s no tomorrow!
As a fabulous trans individual yourself, what is the best piece of advice you could give to our trans youth?
The beauty in owning your queer identity is that you’ll discover a new version of yourself every single day. So it’s okay to try new things and explore a wide range of options around your transness. Don’t worry too much about an end goal and just try to find joy in the ever evolving beauty of your magical life!
Just for fun, can you tell us a queer themed joke?
What do you call the line outside a queer night club? An LGBTQueue.
Finally, we have to hope that Fabulous is just the start, so what else can we look forward to from you in 2025?
Oh I have so many ideas of where to head next! I’m lucky to have worked with some amazing producers this year, and to have joined the SoFierce Music family! In the vault right now I have a power anthem about being young and chasing the sunrise, a semi-psychedelic tune about dancing through fields of flowers with all of your friends, a medieval punk headbanger about banding together to topple the patriarchy, and an electro-siren confessional ballad about learning to protect your heart from evil men. Jae XO has a lot of layers, and we’re just beginning to peel them back one by one!
Now what are you waiting for? Go stream FABULOUS right now!
iTunes I Spotify
Once you’re done, head over to Instagram and give Jae XO some love
