Love to love, baby

Every day is a love song for R&B singer Jovan Dais. Since bare-handedly constructing his own five-bedroom, two-booth recording studio/residence four years ago, the southwest Atlanta native literally lives and breathes good ol’ baby-I-need-you soul. And it shows. On his seductive, seven-track EP Simplicity, Jovan — in a slightly raspy but confident voice — is so hopelessly smitten, so earnest in his desire to please his lady, you almost get a little starry-eyed yourself. “I’m trying to make songs that people are gonna make children off of 10 years from now,” he explains.

A former member of a gospel rap group, Dais struggled for more than 10 years to get record labels to take him seriously — which seems odd since his father, Joe Jacket, is a longtime music exec who founded and manages Latin group the Barrio Boyzz. Though Jacket was able to set Dais up with auditions at Def Jam, Elektra, Motown and more, the singer’s career didn’t take off until he decided to create opportunities for himself. With a $5,000 investment from his dad, Dais bought some wood, leased warehouse space in the West End, took a few carpentry classes at Atlanta Technical College, and — despite several do-overs — built Anotha Dais Productions, a fully equipped recording studio that’ll rival any high-tech facility.

Now Dais had a place to craft tender love songs like the moving “Dust Yourself” and “Fedex,” both of which he put on Simplicity, which he sold over the Internet. The music found its way to local label and marketing firm Cloud 9 Entertainment. Dais inked a deal with Cloud 9 in May and has since added a lively 10-piece band — complete with a stiletto-clad girl drummer — and guitar soloist to his act. With his suave vocals and heart-wrenching lyrics, Dais’ show may indeed move you to tears. But hey, that’s what good ol’ soul does to ya.




Jovan performs Tues., Sept. 21 at Club Eleven 50. Doors open at 10 p.m. Advance passes are required for entrance. Call 404-320-5211 for more information.