Jay Singh: Meet the 13-year-old DJ mixing it up with the very best

ONE of the youngest music stars to have emerged during lockdown is a 13-year-old Scottish DJ named Beats By Jay.

Real name Jay Singh, the talented teenager, who was born and raised in Glasgow, has been delighting online audiences with his dynamite DJing skills on explosive musical sets.

“I was 11 years old when I first started to DJ, fusing the sounds of bhangra with hip hop, grime, r’n’b and even Afro beats. It started with a bit of fun on an iPad and quickly turned into a passion,” explained Jay.

He now hosts popular online shows and is being compared with some of Scotland’s best DJs. Having been surrounded by Punjabi music and culture from a young age, the youngster comes from a musical family and credits them for helping him find his DJing passion.

He said: “I’m forever grateful for having parents and family around me that push me, and support me to pursue my interests in music, but also remind me that my school education comes first, and how to best balance out my time between studying and practicing my mixing and scratching skills.”

Although he is too young to play at the big nightclubs, the youngster has honed his skills by playing at events organised by his family and friends, along with practicing at home and showing off his skills with online streams.

“I saw lockdown as providing me an opportunity. We couldn’t meet our friends, family or even play sports in person, so instead I used DJing to reach out to people and put out positive vibes through music,” Jay explained.

That love for entertaining audiences and a desire to DJ, combined with his mind-blowing ability to mix commercial music, is setting up the youngster for a big future. However, Jay said he isn’t looking too far ahead and for now just wants to entertain audiences.

“Who knows what’s next for me and where this will take me, but I take inspiration from the likes of Tru Skool, Panjabi MC, DJ Frenzy, Glasgow’s very own DJ Bobby B and any many more. I hope to follow in their footsteps.”

Tune into live sessions from Beats By Jay on Instagram: @beatsbyjay07 and Facebook: @Beats By Jay