Jastin Martin prefers not to hold onto her music. “I don’t really like to hoard. I feel like when you write a song you liked when you made it, you don’t want to give yourself time not to like it,” Martin tells Rated R&B over a video call from her home in Houston, Texas, where she was born.
The sun is beaming in the background, illuminating the two tall plants on opposite ends of her pink loveseat. It’s hard not to notice the Fender guitar resting comfortably within the serene environment. The guitar certainly isn’t just decoration; it’s the singer, songwriter and producer’s instrument of choice when crafting songs. “I had always subconsciously gravitated towards guitar-driven beats,” she shares. “A lot of my old songs, before I even thought about playing guitar, are mostly guitar-driven.”
About three years ago, Martin decided to take on the guitar. She recalls driving by a Guitar Center location, where the idea popped into her mind. “I was like, ‘I’m gonna go in there.’ And I bought one,” she recollects. Martin started her learning journey by watching videos on YouTube before encountering another budding guitarist. “I met somebody who had been teaching himself for the past year [and] he kind of filled me in on what he learned as far as the shapes and the chords,” she notes.
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Martin has an emotional connection to the guitar. The physicality of playing, coupled with the soothing melodies, work in synergy to help her process a myriad of thoughts and emotions. “A lot of my songs start with me just picking up and playing something. I’ll find what I like, kind of get the rhythm going, and then I’ll just start writing,” she reveals. “Those are some of my favorite songs, actually. I start on the guitar and just write them out loud. It’s a big part of my process.”
Listening to Martin’s debut album Miss Me Yet? often feels like reading pages from her journal. Each song on the album, which is out on House of Fame/Def Jam, is an entry that contemplates the aftermath of a breakup and delves into the gray areas. In the titular opening track, Martin wonders if her former lover still yearns for her before getting candid about the heartache that keeps her awake at night (“Up”). On “Wait Up,” Martin patiently awaits a conversation with her ex to repair what’s been fractured: “4 a.m. my time / I know you’re sleeping / But I’m really hoping that you call me,” she coos.
“Weird” and “W.A.I.D./Nothing” signal that it may be time to move forward. On the former track, Martin sings about feeling drained from trying to make love work. She is willing to work to maintain it, but there’s only so much of herself she can pour out without results. “Steady trying but I’m runnin’ all out of love to give,” she laments. On the latter track, Martin ponders whether that relationship was ever worth fighting for: “Maybe it’s good that we called it / Maybe a bullet I’m dodging.”
“Closure,” the triumphant concluding track on the standard edition, sees Martin embracing a new chapter (“I found my purpose / I’m focused”) while making it clear that she doesn’t harbor any ill will toward her ex; she simply needed to distance herself to allow for growth. “I had to shake back and get to my business / I swear I hate that I had to get distant / You wasn’t growing / Why so hard to listen? / Baby I don’t want no tension / See what you missing?” she sings.
On Valentine’s Day, Martin released the album’s expanded edition, Miss Me Yet… Now? (Deluxe), featuring six bonus tracks. Raheem DeVaughn, Eric Bellinger and Sammie each appear on a remix of a song from the album. The remaining three tracks are “Running From Love” and the previously shared “Mean Well” and “Right My Wrongs.”
Before Jastin Martin joins Omarion’s Vbz on Vbz Tour, Rated R&B caught up with the Houston singer to discuss Miss Me Yet… Now? (Deluxe), how she pours herself into her songs, her vision for 2024 and more.
How would you describe your relationship with the guitar?
I feel like I’m in a good place. I’ve been playing for like three years. I definitely want to be better. I’ve been planning on signing up for classes because I want to just go on stage and [be] like a real rockstar.
Your lyrics seem very vivid as if they document your emotions in real time. Do you write through your experiences or reflect on them?
These days I tend to write more about what I’m going through exactly at the time. But for the Miss Me Yet? album, I pulled from a past relationship that I was in three years ago. I’m able to put myself back into place, conjure up those feelings and get them back out as if it happened today or yesterday.
How do you mentally prepare yourself to unlock and reflect on those feelings when writing?
I try to put myself in a place when I know I’m feeling a way about something in the past, or I want to write about something in the past. A lot of times, to kind of set the mood, I’m like, “All right, I’m about to get deep, let me get my glass of wine so I can really tap in.” When I’m done, I try to detach and maybe go outside. I feel like after I wrote Miss Me Yet? the album and put it out, I felt like I needed to do that because it’s mainly about one specific experience in a relationship. Ever since I released that, I haven’t been making any songs about it or any sad songs for the most part. So it’s kind of crazy to see like, okay, I needed to do that. I needed to go tap back in there and get it all [out].
You released “Mean Well” as the first offering from Miss Me Yet… Now? (Deluxe). What inspired that song?
“Mean Well” is a collage of different experiences. That’s kind of how I have felt about recent relationships I have been in or attempted to be in. I feel like people’s intentions are never what they say they are. I feel like most times people don’t mean well. So it was very easy to write that one. That’s one of my new favorites, actually.
Raheem DeVaughn, Eric Bellinger and Sammie appear on three remixes on the deluxe. What was your intention with these collaborations?
I’m a huge fan of Eric [Bellinger]. He’s always shown love and support. I’ve done a lot of work on some of his songs, just kind of making them my own and he’s really loved what I’ve done. We’ve always talked about working together. As far as Sammie and Raheem DeVaughn, I grew up listening to them, so it’s kind of crazy. Me and my mom was singing Raheem DeVaughn when I was like seven years old. I knew all the words to “Customer.” Both Raheem and Sammie hit me up on their own just giving me my flowers. I think it’s just so crazy, in a full circle way, that they were willing to work with me and were excited to get on the songs.
What do you look for in a collaborative partner?
Definitely lyricism. I’m very big on just how the music makes me feel. What are you talking about? What are you saying? Do I relate? Does it make sense? That’s a big one.
The deluxe album features three men in R&B. If you could choose three women in R&B to collaborate with, who would they be?
Jhené Aiko — who is my all-time favorite artist [and] a big inspiration as far as my sound — H.E.R., [and] SZA.
You have a knack for putting complicated emotions into a song. What was the most intricate song you wrote for the album?
“Celebration.” I love that my ways kind of reflect through my music. I’m very contradicting. I change my mind all the time. I might say this and then unsend the message. I might tweet and delete. “Celebration” really taps into a place of like, we were together. I wasn’t where I am now. I kind of know I don’t need you, but I kind of miss you [and] want you to see how good I’m doing. And so it’s like, “What if we link up and get a drink?” It’s kind of just a back-and-forth.
What do you hope listeners will take away from the album?
So recently, I have been getting a lot of messages and DMs from people saying that this album has healed them and has helped them through these breakups. And, to me, it’s just so crazy because it’s like when I’m writing, I’m writing a song for myself because I just need to express it. I’m never thinking this could heal or help somebody. So I think it’s already doing what I would love for it to do.
What’s your vision for 2024?
On my vision board this year, I’m definitely leaning into some new sounds. I’m very excited to do so. I always talk about my musical influences growing up and how I grew up with my paw-paw listening to country and reggae: Bob Marley and Brooks & Dunn. And then with my grannies, Johnnie Taylor and old school stuff. And then my mom was John Legend, Lenny Kravitz and Evanescence. So I’m kind of all over the place musically, and I feel like this is my year that I’m going really jump out of my box and showcase my versatility.
Stream Jastin Martin’s Miss Me Yet… Now? (Deluxe) album and check out her tour dates below.
Jastin Martin’s 2024 Tour Dates
Apr 5 – Grand Prairie, TX @ Texas Trust CU Theatre
Apr 6 – Houston, TX Smart @ Financial Centre
Apr 11 – New York, NY @ Kings Theatre
Apr 12 – Washington, DC @ DAR Constitution Hall
Apr 14 – Newark, NJ @ NJPAC
Apr 19 – Chicago, IL @ Arie Crown Theater
Apr 20 – St. Louis, MO @ Stifel Theatre
Apr 21 – Detroit, MI @ Masonic Temple
Apr 26 – Los Angeles, CA @ Peacock Theatre
Apr 27 – Oakland, CA @ Paramount Theatre
Apr 28 – Las Vegas, NV @ Theater at Virgin Hotel
May 3 – Philadelphia, PA @ Liacouras Center
May 4 – Portsmouth, VA @ Atlantic Union Bank Pavilion
May 9 – Greensboro, NC @ Tanger Theater
May 10 – Charlotte, NC @ Ovens Auditorium
May 11 – Baltimore, MD @ Lyric Theater
May 12 – Cleveland, OH @ Jacob’s Pavilion at Nautica
May 17 – Richmond, VA @ Altria Theater
May 18 – Cary, NC Koka @ Booth Amphitheatre
May 19 – Atlanta, GA @ Cobb Energy Center
Get tickets at bpctickets.com.
