Jehst is one of the UK’s leading Hip Hop artists. Growing up in both the South East and North West of England, the self-styled High Plains Drifter has a unique perspective on life in the UK. His music reflects this, which has earned him the respect of a loyal fan-base both sides of the North-South divide.
After establishing the Young N Restless crew along with Fools I View (now Eighteen18) and school friends Passive Resistance (Nmonic, Taharka and Nexus 6) during his teenage years in Huddersfield, he re-located to London in 1998. He made his vinyl debut the following year with the highly acclaimed "Premonitions" EP, launching the self-financed YNR Productions label from his University halls of residence.
Jehst began collaborating with other artists on the label, contributing both production and guest vocals to subsequent releases from Nmonic, Tommy Evans and Evil Ed. His profile was further raised when he put in an appearance on Task Force’s "Voice of the Great Outdoors" EP released on Low Life records in 2000, before dropping his second solo outing on the same label the following year. Entitled "The High Plains Drifter", this four track (plus skits & instrumentals) EP delivered a range of musical moods and lyrical content.
Jehst followed this up with a couple of Harry Love produced bangers; "Staircase 2 Stage" (Low Life) which teamed him up with NYC underground hero J-Zone, and the atmospheric "Alcoholic Author" (YNR) in 2002. Throughout this time Jehst was also a pivotal member of the legendary Champions Of Nature, the 7 man super-group who released 2 EP’s and the classic summer jam “Salsa Smurf” on their own CON Artists label before licensing “Salsa Smurf” to Wordplay / Source as the lead single from the “WordLab 2” compilation.
After a lot of hard graft and hollow promises the crew officially disbanded. Restless as ever, Jehst switched his focus back to solo material, rounding off the year with the club smash "People Under The Weather"(feat. Asaviour) on Low Life, accompanied with a full length CD of his collected works "The Return Of The Drifter". With all of this under his belt, not to mention contributions to the classic albums "Biro Funk" by Braintax (Low Life) and the long-awaited "It's All Happening Now" from Lewis Parker (Melankolic / Virgin), Jehst had established himself among the UK’s lyrical elite.
In 2003 he unveiled his debut album “Falling Down” (Low Life) which featured the smash singles “Run Hard” and “Monotony” (feat. Asaviour) as well as guest appearances from Klashnekoff, Lewis Parker, Usmaan and The Sundragon. A nationwide tour ensued with DJ IQ, Asaviour and Usmaan in tow, not to mention the mighty Terra Firma, accompanied by London’s infamous multi-media P.I.M.P / DJ A-Cyde.
In 2004 Jehst established his East London based studio Arkham Asylum in partnership with long time collaborator, and one half of Sit Tight Records, DJ / producer LG. During its short history the studio opened its doors to everyone from Foreign Beggars to Ransom Badbones, and allowed LG and Jehst to churn out 5 (count ‘em!) classic albums; Micall Parknsun “The Working Class Dad” (Sit Tight), LG and Biscuit “Smoke Rings” (Sit Tight), Sir Smurf Lil’ “Myalpha” (YNR) and 2 albums from Jehst, “Nuke Proof Suit” (High Plains Music) and “Jehst presents… Underworld Epics Vol. 1” (Low Life). They also used the studio to record tracks for Kashmere’s “In The Hour Of Chaos” LP (Receptor) Asaviour’s “The Borrowed Ladder” (Low Life) Micall Parknsun’s “The Interview” Mix CD (Sit Tight) and Terra Firma’s “Foundation: New Era” Mix CD to name a few.
Jehst released his next solo outing, “Nuke Proof Suit” in 2005. Despite its brevity, this 8 track milestone speaks volumes, not only about Jehst’s own lyrical persona but also the tense atmosphere of post 9/11 London. Short but bittersweet, the only guest appearances on this entirely self-produced future classic coming courtesy of Kashmere and Sir Smurf Lil’ on the blood-curdling “Pepper Spray”.
In 2006 Jehst finally released his long overdue production project “Jehst presents… Underworld epics Vol. 1” which featured brand new bangers and exclusive remixes from the likes of Kyza, Micall Parknsun and Rodney P, all produced by the High Plains Drifter himself. His most recent production can be heard on Sir Smurf Lil’s “Myalpha” LP (YNR), for which, with the exception of contributions from LG and Apa-Tight, he supplied every beat! It is a project that he clearly holds close to his heart, having already started work on the follow-up, due to drop in 2007.
With live performances as strong as his discography Jehst has torn-up shows all over the UK and abroad along side the likes of Non Phixion, Q-Bert, Atmosphere, J-Zone, Mr Lif, De La Soul, More Fire Crew and Big Brovaz. With 2006’s “Mengi Bus Mixtape Tour” he continued to smash stages across the UK, once more proving why he is without a doubt one of the UK’s most prolific and powerful Hip Hop masterminds!
