JahFragrance finds a sweet scent in music

Before he became JahFragrance, Roger Grant was selling cologne and answering to names given to him by his customers.

Today, the Jamaican singer is drawing on those experiences as he promotes his single, Girl.

“It’s an extension of an old name I went by, ‘Jah Scent’. My customers called me ‘Fragrance’ or ‘Fresh A Scent’, so I did a play on them both,” he explained.

Raised off St John’s Road in St Catherine, JahFragrance remembers music as “the heartbeat of the town”. However, he said resistance to his musical ambitions helped prompt his move to the United States. The relocation has provided the financial means to pursue music, with his children becoming an important part of his motivation.

“I had so much pushback in Jamaica,” he said. “Now, so that my kids will have this for them, [I want] to get everything that is inside of me out to the people.”

Released on August 7, Girl began with a beat supplied by Khago. When Khago did not like the result, JahFragrance enlisted another composer to create music around his lyrics. The song also carries a childhood memory: its “give me tha” refrain came from a song his older brother often asked him to sing.

“It has always been there waiting to come out,” he said.

JahFragrance wrote Girl, which was produced by YZR Entertainment Inc, the corporation he established with his wife to retain rights to his music. It was recorded at Dream Machine. He reports positive listener feedback and airplay on various local stations. A video was also shot in Jamaica by Bloozick Filmwork.

With an EP planned for mid-2027, JahFragrance hopes to offer songs with greater depth while maintaining an uplifting spirit.

“I hope to bring inspiration, positivity and love to everyone who listens to my music,” he said.