Gent just a boy wonder
At just 17 years of age, Newcastle's Jacob Grant, aka Just a Gent, is taking the DJ world by storm. His remix of American Authors' Best Day of My Life made it to the top spot on blog aggregator Hype Machine and helped land him a deal with Island Def Jam in the process.
But it's Grant's own productions that are earning respect around the world. Megastars Skrillex and Diplo have picked up on the boy wonder's collaboration with Swedish producer Kasbo, Sovereign, with Skrillex even including the track in his monthly Top 10 playlist.
Chatting from his parents' home in Maitland, just outside of Newcastle, Grant explains that while Sovereign has been a big hit in clubs and with critics, Best Day of My Life is more popular with the masses.
On the local front, he's just finished a remix for recent ARIA winners Peking Duk but it was Flume side project What So Not that first championed Grant's brand of "love step" - his genre of choice.
"Specifically (Sydney DJ/producer) Emoh from What So Not, he posted (Sovereign) on his Facebook page and took me under his wing, which was a huge thing for me because I'm such a big fan of the duo," Grant says, still clearly somewhat amazed at the past 12 months.
Until recently he was still studying Year 11 at school, although he's now dropped out to pursue music full-time. "Which is pretty bloody awesome considering I get to do my dream job at 17 years old," he laughs.
If it all sounds like way too much fun and games for someone still under drinking age, bear in mind the strict conditions under which Grant performs at licensed events.
"In legal terms you have to have a guardian with you and I have to arrive 15 minutes before and leave immediately after my set," he explains. "We use my manager as my legal guardian.
"My parents come when they can but they have work commitments so it's quite hard for them to drop everything and come on tour with me."
