Jazzie
“Being a Black woman has defined my life. While things have been more difficult for me because of my identity, I cannot imagine being who I am today without it. I’ve had to give 110% every step of the way, and I’m glad I can show that I’ve worked hard to be where I am in a predominantly white male field.”
Jazzie is an accomplished musician and activist who is on a mission to make classical music inclusive and accessible. After experiencing racism and white supremacy first-hand in college, she made a valiant decision to devote her time to reshaping the classical music field, seeking to diversify and protect its members. She has taken many initiatives to reach this goal, including participating in research studies, spotlighting black musicians, speaking to panels, as well as teaching and performing in marginalized communities. She is a trailblazer and social justice warrior, proving that one person can make a lasting impact on the structures that continue to enable inequality. Meet Jazzie. This is her story.
**TW: This piece details blatant racism and hate speech, in the form of racial slurs.
K: Please introduce yourself!
J: I’m Jazzie. I’m a tuba player, composer, certified personal trainer, writer, and podcaster currently based in Baltimore, MD.
K: Describe yourself in your own words
J: I’m a musician with a passion for social justice, health, and wellness. I want to empower the next generation of musicians of color and to encourage musicians to seek active and healthy lifestyles.
K: What is your favourite thing about yourself?
J: I would say my overall drive and ambition. I have almost always been able to do anything I put my mind to, and I’m always striving to keep working towards the next goal or project.
K: Tell us a story. Have you had an experience that has defined you or made you stronger?
J: In sophomore year of my undergrad, my best friend and roommate ended up being a white supremacist.
We met at orientation and had been attached at the hip since. We decided to room together sophomore year and continued to strengthen our friendship. We rarely had disagreements until the 2016 election happened and I found out he voted for Trump. After I pretended to build a wall in the middle of the room out of his things, we found a way to resolve our differences and move on, or so I thought.
A few months after the election, I returned from my morning class to see his side of the room empty. I was shocked—nothing had seemed to be wrong. The night before, we were laughing and enjoying each other’s company as always. When I reached out to him to figure out what happened, he said he’d “talk to me later.” Later ended up being a few days, but I finally received a lengthy text describing how Black people were the problem with the country, we were the reason he wasn’t as successful as he wanted to be, and that we were making up racism and institutional racism.
I had no idea how to respond, so I didn’t, but that angered him. He spent weeks finding ways to harass me even after I blocked him. He went through every group chat we were a member of since starting college and removed himself from all but one so I would get the flood of notifications. He sent the same message I didn’t respond to over and over through every communication platform he could think of. Eventually, the communications died down, and I thought it was over.
There was one group chat, however, that he deliberately didn’t leave. I didn’t understand it at the time, but a few months later, he used it to have one final chance to communicate with me. This message was a rant about how he manipulated and lied to me over the course of our entire friendship, and that he would continue to try to make my life miserable in whatever ways he could.
Panicked by the threat, I went to the police and received a no-contact order. But again, when I thought it was over, I got a text from one of my friends with a screenshot of the text that changed my life.
“Wow. I can’t believe that N****R decided to call the police on me. Now I’m going to go join the glorious Ku Klux Klan”
Instantly, my life changed. I was scared before, but now I was angry. I used that anger to begin demanding institutional change within my college. I started pursuing research opportunities to dismantle the systems that allowed white supremacy to prevail in classical music. I devoted my life to ensuring no other Black person would have to go through an experience like that.
(In the end, this person was arrested for “hacking” one of the college’s social media profiles and posting a confederate flag, so justice prevailed.)
K: What is one piece of advice you’d give to your younger self?
J: Things may be hard at times, but keep going and trust what you’re doing. You’ll get through it and be stronger in the end.
K: What does being a woman mean to you?
J: Being a Black woman has defined my life. While things have been more difficult for me because of my identity, I cannot imagine being who I am today without it. I’ve had to give 110% every step of the way, and I’m glad I can show that I’ve worked hard to be where I am in a predominantly white male field.
K: Who is one woman that inspires you? What would you say to her if she were here now?
J: Viola Davis. You’re amazing and have given me so much hope.