Canada's latest rising electronic talent LOSTBOYJAY, also known as Jay Daillie recently released single "COULD BE WRONG". The track, which accumulated more than ten million streams on Spotify alone, landed the producer offers from nearly every major record label. Now signed with Polydor Records (UK) under exclusive license to Universal Music Group, Daillie prepares to put out more infectiously catchy dance bops.
Daillie masterfully infuses hip-hop and R&B roots into uptempo house beats through sampling. "COULD BE WRONG" turns Brandy's 1994 classic "I Wanna Be Down" on its head. Daillie transforms the slow, sultry song into a lively, rave-ready electronic number. Steady synths and booming are guaranteed to have listeners nodding their heads to the beat, with a savvy, building electronic drum kit as the backbone. Brandy's voice and lyrics suit the instrumentals perfectly, giving her iconic R&B performance an electrifying house music makeover. Daillie performed the tune in an entrancing set at Toronto's Lower Bay Station for his eye and ear-catching live recording video. The song continues to skyrocket in streams and reshares across social media platforms and DSPs and seems to be well on its way to major music charts.
We spoke with LOSTBOYJAY about his musical journey, "COULD BE WRONG", his set at Lower Bay Station, and more. Read the full interview below and check out his music.
How did you get started in music?
I’ve been playing music since I was a kid. The first music I was exposed to in terms of playing was when I went to school in Toronto and I played in a steel pan band. That was my intro to playing and understanding how it all goes together (with all the different kinds of steel pans and everything). I played the steel pan for about five years until I moved up to Aurora and went to school here.
I started playing different instruments, like the trumpet, saxophone, and french horn because I was in jazz band and classical band at my school. Obviously, when you’re a kid it doesn’t sound good and you’re just kind of screwing around, but when I got to high school, I got my first laptop. I got more exposed to the internet–and at the time YouTube and other platforms weren’t the same as they are now, since it was like 2009.
There wasn’t a tutorial online to teach me how to make beats. I figured it out on my own and started making them for my boys in high school. They were all rappers using some dusty beats from YouTube. One day, I just thought, “I’m gonna do this. I’m gonna buy a microphone and just do this shit.” I figured that if I could make it, I wouldn’t have to go to university and I could just do what I loved to do.
"There wasn’t a tutorial online to teach me how to make beats. I figured it out on my own and started making them for my boys in high school."
Where did you go from there?
I started making beats every day. I was recording and skipping class; I was just obsessed. Eventually, it turned into me wanting to be an artist myself, rather than just making stuff for other people. SoundCloud and Facebook were basically brand new at the time and I was suddenly able to find people on the internet. I ended up going to university and giving my family some peace of mind. I spent the majority of my time working on music, though. I met someone that I thought really had it.
We made music together for around four or five years. It just came to the point where I felt like I was doing more and putting more time and money into it than the other person. I had to find the confidence to step out on my own and take it really seriously by myself. I didn’t want to put my life on hold or sacrifice my time for other people to finally catch up to the things they said they wanted anymore. I started doing things on my own three or four years ago.
I started producing R&B and hip-hop stuff and people would say, “that’s a great song,” or whatever, but I wanted to move towards something else, I just didn’t know what it was yet. I got into slower dance music–110 BPM Kaytranada-type stuff. I wasn’t liking it for myself, but then my boy Brandon started taking me to raves. I’d gone to some in the past but forgotten how much I liked dance and house music. I really got back into it. I started going to the club and raves again, going to After Hours. I just soaked in the scene and tried to understand what I was listening to and what was making people want to go to the dance floor and get wild for hours.
When I finally thought my music was good enough, I started posting it on TikTok. I had a few remixes on my SoundCloud page and other platforms, but “COULD BE WRONG” just went crazy and changed my life. That one song changed everything. It’s not overnight–it took me a long time to get to this point and I’m just happy to be here. I just want to do the best that I can and have the best possible music career.
"I just soaked in the scene and tried to understand what I was listening to and what was making people want to go to the dance floor and get wild for hours."
Tell us more about “COULD BE WRONG” and more generally, how you find the songs you want to sample.
Coming from an R&B background, I love that genre and hip-hop. I wanted to put those two things and electronic music together, even though I know I’m not the first person to ever do that. Even the song I sampled for “COULD BE WRONG” has been used in dance music before, but I was just doing it for me and because I liked it. I wasn’t thinking it was some massive innovation, it was just cool. I love soulful vocals on house beats. I just sit here and press “next” on YouTube listening to music all day long. When I hear that one perfect thing, I throw it into my program and get going.
I made “COULD BE WRONG” in a couple of hours and I was just looking for a vocal. I just sat there and listened to R&B a capellas until I found the one I used. I actually started with a different part of the song but then I heard this one and I knew it was the right thing to add. I posted it the same day I made the song. It went nuts on TikTok and then on SoundCloud… the funny part is that I was starting to question what I was doing wrong that all these other people were doing right.
The next morning, I had every major label in my email interested in signing “COULD BE WRONG”. I took the first meeting with Warner Music alone to feel it out and see what was going on, but then I realized that I need somebody to help me out and look out for me. I asked Armand to be my manager and the guy’s a workhorse in the best way. He doesn’t fuck around; he’s serious business but also one of my closest friends. We met with a bunch of labels and I really loved the team at Polydor, which is where I ended up signing a record. These guys know what they're doing. It’s unreal. I’m working on getting new bookings and making some music now. I just played a show at CODA, which was my first time doing a set in the club.
"I just sat there and listened to R&B a capellas until I found the one I used. I actually started with a different part of the song but then I heard this one and I knew it was the right thing to add."
Do you plan to incorporate any steel pan drumming or the instruments you’ve picked up in your future releases?
For sure. It wasn’t summertime yet and those are summer vibes instruments, so I’m waiting to bring those instruments into the mix. I also want to expose myself to it a bit more and get back into it first, since it’s been maybe 15 years. My friend Brandon is from Trinidad, which is where the steel pan comes from, so I’m actually going there with him in June. I’m going to catch some vibes and see if I can do something out there. I want to re-expose myself to different worlds and music. I’ve been so into the underground, deep tech house genre that I need to come outside and get back into the day party stuff.
Share about the projects you’re working on now.
I’m working on putting out good music right now, mostly just singles. There are always songs that aren’t necessarily good for a single, but could work well in a larger project. I have some of those, but right now, I’m more focused on getting booked and getting “COULD BE WRONG” even bigger than it already is. I want it to go number one! I’m going to work as hard as I can to make that happen.
People don’t really digest full albums as well anymore. I do, but that’s just because I’m always looking for something people wouldn’t normally play. I want to find the hidden gems on any album, but I’m not huge on the idea of doing an album myself right now. I would do a club EP or a four track extended play, though. You can put four songs on an EP and they could all sound different, whereas an album has to be a more cohesive body of work.
How did your set at Lower Bay Station come about?
It was wild, we were actually originally trying to shoot a rave video in a laundromat. Everything was going well; we found a perfect spot. It could fit 30 or 40 people pretty snugly and we were going to do lighting to make it look crazy and epic. Then, the owner of the laundromat’s sister derailed the entire thing at the last minute. He had never asked her and she came and put her foot down, so we had to find another location at the last minute. My manager’s girlfriend at the time suggested that we try Lower Bay Station. I’d heard of people and companies doing events there and we got into contact with the woman who handles events there. She was totally into it because she was retiring soon and wanted to go out with a bang. We only had three days from when people were supposed to be at the laundromat to switch up the location and get like 150 people to RSVP. About three quarters of them actually showed up and it was a great time.
I hope to do something like that again. I love those shows in weird places, and I’d love to do another one even bigger. It would be a big party with a bunch of DJs playing, it’s just expensive to rent the area and have such a big event. I’m thankful to have major label support now because if I didn’t, it would be really tough to have these opportunities. They’ve done a lot for me by investing in me as an artist.
"Everything was going well; we found a perfect spot. It could fit 30 or 40 people pretty snugly and we were going to do lighting to make it look crazy and epic. Then, the owner of the laundromat’s sister derailed the entire thing at the last minute."
What’s your dream venue for a show?
It’s a weird spot because it’s one I’ve gone to a lot to watch sets. It’s called Vertigo in Toronto and it’s an After Hours club. I love it there and I want to be able to come back to Toronto and have a huge night with people who listen to my music and like it. I’d also love to do a show in a cave somewhere (a huge rave).
What’s next for LOSTBOYJAY?
I have my singles that I’m planning to release, I just haven’t chosen dates to do that yet. My team and I are trying to coordinate my releases with bookings. If I go to Europe, I’m not only going to play a show but will also have a new song coming out at around the same time. I also have an hour-long guest mix at ISO Radio on May 18th at Stacked Market in Toronto.
Who are three other artists or industry professionals you’d like to see on Enharmonic Magazine next?
The STAY OUT LATE crew from Toronto have always supported me, even when before I met them. They’ve got really cool music out and they’re just great guys. The second artist is my favorite DJ/producer, Michael Bibi. I would absolutely love to play a show with him one day–that’s a big dream for me. The last artist I want to see on Enharmonic Magazine is Sam Green from London. I just recently became internet friends with him and worked on a couple tracks through TikTok, but his song “Jam Inside Your Love” is going crazy right now. Unreal guy, great producer.
Who do you want to hear from next on Enharmonic Magazine? Let us know in the comments.