Lyric Jones
Lyric Jones (born Janelle Clinton, 1988) is an American rapper, singer, and drummer based in Los Angeles.[1][2] A Boston native, she has released several independent albums and is a lecturer at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.[1][3]
Early life and education
[edit]Jones was born in 1988 and raised in Boston.[1][4] She sang in church and learned bass, saxophone, and drums.[5] While in high school, she trained in the Berklee College of Music's City Music program.[2][1] She earned a Bachelor of Arts in broadcast news journalism from the University of Georgia.[3]
Jones lived in Atlanta before moving to Los Angeles in 2012.[4][6]
Career
[edit]Jones has contributed guest verses and hooks to projects by artists including J-Live, Planet Asia, and B. Slade.[7][8] She released her debut album, Jones St., in 2012.[8] The album featured Esperanza Spalding and an interlude by Phife Dawg.[1] Her EP Love's Trail Mix followed in 2014.[9][1]
In 2016, Jones released the single "Ski Mask Way" with Rah Digga.[5] In 2019, she and the producer Nameless released the collaborative album Ga$ Money.[1][10] NPR presented her Tiny Desk (Home) Concert in July 2020.[2]
Jones released the album Closer Than They Appear in October 2020.[9][7] The album was executive produced by Phonte of Little Brother.[9][4] It featured guest appearances by Little Brother, Vic Mensa, and Sy Smith.[8][10] Pitchfork reviewed the record, and AllMusic listed it among its favorite rap and hip-hop albums of 2020.[9][11] In December 2020, Good Morning America placed the album at number 47 on its list of the 50 best albums of 2020.[12]
In 2022, Jones appeared on Forever, the posthumous album by Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest.[13] That year, the Recording Academy invited her to join its new class of voting members.[14] She performed at the Grammy Museum's City Sounds concert series in August 2022.[15]
In 2024, Jones released the house single "Better Now".[1] In 2025, she released the single "Sunshine" with Moon Boots on Fool's Gold Records and performed with him at Coachella.[16][17] That year, she founded the independent label Tempo Soul Records.[16]
Teaching
[edit]Jones has taught rap technique, songwriting, and artist development at Musicians Institute in Hollywood.[6][3] She is a lecturer in music industry at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.[3] In 2023, she led workshops for the Audio Affect Series, a producer-mentorship program hosted by Serato.[18]
Discography
[edit]Studio albums
[edit]| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Jones St. | 2012[8][6] |
| Ga$ Money (with Nameless) |
2019[1][10] |
| Closer Than They Appear | 2020[9][7] |
Extended plays
[edit]| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Love's Trail Mix | 2014[9][1] |
| Gems from the Cubicle | 2017[4] |
Singles
[edit]| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| "Ski Mask Way" (with Rah Digga) |
2016[5] |
| "Got Bills" | 2018[19] |
| "Show You How" (featuring Vic Mensa) |
2020[8][6] |
| "Better Now" | 2024[1] |
| "Sunshine" (with Moon Boots) |
2025[16][17] |
Guest appearances
[edit]| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "R.A.I.D." (Quakers featuring Lyric Jones) |
2012 | Quakers[20] |
| "Constellations" (Blu & Exile featuring Lyric Jones) |
2017 | In the Beginning: Before the Heavens[21] |
| "Residual Curiosities" (Phife Dawg featuring Lyric Jones) |
2022 | Forever[22] |
| "The Hard Way" (Sol Messiah featuring Che Noir, Lyric Jones and Sa-Roc) |
2022 | GOD CMPLX[23] |
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Kellman, Andy. "Lyric Jones Biography". AllMusic.
- 1 2 3 O'Neill, Abby (July 29, 2020). "Lyric Jones: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert". NPR.
- 1 2 3 4 "Lyric Jones". UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.
- 1 2 3 4 Ketchum III, William E. (January 6, 2021). "Lyric Jones Chooses Herself on "Closer Than They Appear"". Bandcamp Daily.
- 1 2 3 "KCRW Presents Lockdown Listening: Lyric Jones". NPR. March 11, 2021.
- 1 2 3 4 Sanfiorenzo, Dimas (December 4, 2020). "First Look Friday: Lyric Jones Raps Better Than Your Favorite MC". Okayplayer.
- 1 2 3 Kellman, Andy. "Closer Than They Appear – Lyric Jones". AllMusic.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Interview: Lyric Jones Sets the Tone of Showing All of Her Talents With New Album 'Closer Than They Appear'". Vibe. October 27, 2020.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Green, Dylan (November 4, 2020). "Lyric Jones: Closer Than They Appear". Pitchfork.
- 1 2 3 Sacher, Andrew (October 28, 2020). "Stream Lyric Jones' new album ft. Little Brother, Vic Mensa & more". BrooklynVegan.
- ↑ "Favorite Rap & Hip-Hop Albums: 2020 in Review". AllMusic.
- ↑ Raible, Allan (December 28, 2020). "50 best albums of 2020, featuring Fiona Apple, Taylor Swift and The Weeknd". Good Morning America.
- ↑ Sacher, Andrew (April 4, 2022). "10 Best Rap Albums of March 2022". BrooklynVegan.
- ↑ "Recording Academy Invites More than 2,000 New Voting Members". Billboard. June 28, 2022.
- ↑ "City Sounds / Hollywood". Grammy Museum.
- 1 2 3 Robert, Walter (2025). "Lyric Jones: The House That Patience Built". TMRW Magazine.
- 1 2 "Sunshine – Single by Moon Boots & Lyric Jones". Apple Music.
- ↑ Brown, Kailyn (July 30, 2025). "LA hip-hop Jedi training camp mentors the producers of tomorrow". Los Angeles Times.
- ↑ "Lyric Jones Celebrates Solidarity & Getting By in "Got Bills" (Video)". Ambrosia for Heads. January 2018.
- ↑ Taylor, Patrick (April 3, 2012). "Quakers :: Quakers". RapReviews.
- ↑ "New Blu & Exile: "Constellations (ft. Lyric Jones)", from In The Beginning: Before The Heavens". The Find Magazine. September 14, 2017.
- ↑ "Phife Dawg's "Forever": Stream Rapper's Posthumous Single". Consequence. March 2022.
- ↑ Jones, Grant (October 18, 2022). "Sol Messiah :: GOD CMPLX". RapReviews.