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Out of the urban setting of Baltimore comes one of the most unique talents to ever come out of the shadows of just being a dancer. In his childhood John M. Johnson Jr. aka Jay Rags was exposed to club life and disco music through his parents/elders taking him to the kiddy discos of Baltimore’s famous Odell’s nightclub. He also got a taste for music from all the records lying around from his mom’s 70’s house parties; from Diana Ross to old Richard Pryor comedy albums. During the early to mid-80’s Jay Rags began to get emerged, like so many other young people at the time, into the new hip-hop and House sounds beginning to take over nightlife and radio. Thus begun a journey into releasing his talents through break dancing at Baltimore’s Rhythm Skate, dancing at Odell’s, and writing rhymes & lyrics.

Jay Rags’ love of music and dancing carried on all the way through the early 2000’s when he noticed local dj’s, singers, and producers were getting so much praise internationally, but the local Baltimore House scene was almost completely absent except for one college radio show keeping it alive. This was the beginning of his promotional talents as he created and designed Blackbookscafe.com in the Fall of 2002. It was a website dedicated to showcasing happenings in the Baltimore/DC House Music and Poetry scenes. The name Blackbookscafe.com came from his desire to open a Coffee shop/Internet Café and had already acquired the domain name. The website listed parties and open-mic events in the region, featured interviews from local producers/dj’s/singers, and online House mixes. This was a time before the myspace and facebook era so the website’s local popularity grew fast. Folks would go there see pics from parties and more.

In March 2003 John “Jay Rags” Johnson decided to fill a void that his friends expressed was missing in the scene, and thus began the start of promotions in Baltimore and the beginning of the Soul Fiesta party. Which was a monthly themed soulful party centered around Afro, Latin, Classic House music. The most recognizable resident dj’s were Karizma, and then DJ Oji; with dozens of local guest dj’s, performers, and singers showcased. The party would last nearly 4 years and John “Jay Rags” Johnson quickly became known for turning empty spaces into dance places. During that same period Jay Rags also promoted open-mic events that showcased talented poets and singers in the Baltimore area. From 2003-2009 Jay Rags has independently produced events that featured nearly 200 artists, bands, dj’s, singers, poets, etc. One event, during Baltimore’s famous Artscape Festival, “Studio Sessions Live” included over 40 acts in 3 days. His own talents as a poet started to emerge also with two spoken word pieces being published; “A Tribe Called Soul Fiesta” on POJI Records and “Deep Not Deep” licensed to Italy’s Gotta Keep Faith records. In 2004 he created a movement that started from a dream, and successfully pitched it to the Baltimore/DC’s soulful House scene. It is now known as “Collective Minds”; a House music picnic and festival in Baltimore’s historic Druid Hill Park. The main goal was to showcase the local House scene in the Balto/DC area. Over the years it had many Presidents/Vice-Presidents, and with the help of its members(dozens), is now a full fledged non-profit organization and is one of the most anticipated soulful House events in the mid-Atlantic area.

The emergence of Jay Rags as a dj/producer is quite a unique occurrence and different from the normal path of dj’s. At the end of the Soul Fiesta party Jay Rags owned just about all the sound/dj equipment. So to get his “House fix” he would play the music he had been buying for years. He also went on a quest to re-acquire a small House music collection that he had given away to another local dj years ago. It started out as a hobby but he noticed that he had a unique style that his friends really liked. He also inherited a collection of music from the passing of his grandfather with sounds dating way back to the 1960’s. Already knowing his tastes in music, all that was left was blending two records. With the invention of Serato Scratch his skills quickly matched his unique selections and ability to not let a dance floor stay empty when he plays. He specializes in House music for dancers, and has a love for neosoul, afrobeat, Latin, & disco sounds.

During his initial year of officially coming out as a dj he was interviewed and showcased on XM satelite radio’s(channel 80) “The Move” House music show, mix featured on handzonradio.fm, and had a weekly residency at Baltimore’s Latin Palace. The following year he played all over Baltimore and Dc at The Loft/Warehouse(DC), Winter Music Conference(South Beach), Hometown Heroes(DC), Gossip’s(Balto), Rendezvous(DC), and many private parties & fashion shows given by underground House heads in Baltimore. He even produced a few tracks for a possible EP release and created a mashup called “Baba Yaga’s Revenge that has become an underground smash in the soulful scene of the U.S. in 2008/9. Being a promoter first meant Jay Rags had already amassed a following in Baltimore/Dc, so as a dj he pulls from a pool of house heads and music lovers that remember him from Blackbookscafe.com and promoting events.

In 2009 he returned to promoting and joined with Blackout Studios(Fertile Ground, etc.) for a monthly at Baltimore’s Eden’s Lounge called Soul Fiesta exp. Night @ Flow Theory Thursdays. This was a show and small after party featuring live soul/neosoul bands and House music. In 2009 Jay Rags finally debut his band “Jay Rags & The Soul Fiesta Experience” at Baltimore’s live venue 8X10. It’s house music featuring live musicians, a poet or vocalist, acapellas, and more. Look out for the soon to be launch of “Fiesta gear” with the first line being the “i Roc House” tees.