He came. He saw. He conquered. JayDaYoungan, born Javorius Scott, lost his short life in his own hometown of Bogalusa, Louisiana. The 24-year-old was with his father, Kenyatta Scott Sr., when he was shot several times in front of their home, succumbing to his injuries on July 27. His father also suffered from gunshot wounds, but survived after being rushed to the hospital.
JayDaYoungan had made his imprint within the new era of rap with his independent mixtape releases, The Real Jumpman 23 (2017) and 23 (2018), among many others released on the homegrown label Ruff Way. He’s most known for songs, “On Gang,” “Made The List,” “Speak Facts,” with his most popular singles, “Elimination,” “Repo,” “Opps,” “23 Island,” and “Thot Thot,” garnering millions of streams across music platforms.
By the time he signed with major label, Universal Music, in 2018, later joining Atlantic under Warner Music, his life was riddled with fruits of his gift and its subsequent curse. JayDaYoungan was constantly having run-ins with law enforcement. In 2019, he famously was missing from the Rolling Loud Miami lineup after being arrested for drug possession.
The years that followed included the release of his debut studio album, Baby23 (2020), the mixtape 23 Is Back (2021) and two EPs, Scarred (2022) and his final farewell, All Is Well (2022). Unfortunately, with these successful releases came a number of arrests stemming from alleged drug and domestic issues.
As an artist, JayDaYoungan was influenced by the likes of fellow Louisiana artists Boosie Badazz and Kevin Gates, and the Chicago drill music movement. Prone to talk about real things affecting his day-to-day, JayDaYoungan would use his music to delve into the duality of being a young, Black man navigating a rising professional career with one foot still in the hood. Fans often linked him artistically to Youngboy Never Broke Again, another Louisiana native — a point of contention for some.
Out of his discography, one of the most compelling songs he created was the introspective “Hellcat” from his album 23 Is Back. Brandished over a solemn, emo beat led by gentle guitar strings, JayDaYoungan lets listeners into a sliver of his true self.
He raps, “So afraid to open up, I been like that since a child / I was always posted up, since a jit, been livin’ wild / Lost my love for silly clowns and all the ones ain’t with me now / And I don’t give two f**ks, so b***h, don’t ask me how I feel about you.”
On “Hellcat,” he goes on to admit that he’s “tired of trying,” all while telling people he’s really not okay. To make something out of nothing and get to the level that so many people aspire to and then, still have to deal with the emotions and pressures of being immersed in a system that only wants one thing from you is a sad realization for anyone who thought wealth and fame would answer all problems.
It wouldn’t be the first time that the father of a 2-year-old boy went the vulnerable route. In fact, on the other side of the run-of-the-mill checklist for a modern-day rap song, he would often slip in references to spirituality and mortality. Examples of that can be found on “Heaven Gates,” “Pain,” and “Depressed,” to name a few.
It can get complicated when there are so many rappers mobilizing the same styles, from music to fashion. At some point, everyone starts to look the same. But, every once in a while, one of those rappers will release a song that touches the core of their communities and spearheads a legacy that lives beyond the orator’s expiration. JayDaYoungan has a lot of those type of songs in his discography. It’s just really unfortunate that most of them will be discovered after his death.
Pain don’t last forever. Rest in Peace.
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