Jaylen Wright, also known as Jay Dub, is a senior at Adams, and one of South Bend’s most beloved SoundCloud rappers. It’s hard to find a JAHS students who doesn’t know Jaylen, and his positive and fun energy is appreciated by his friends, classmates, and teachers. 

Academically, Jaylen has been an Honors student since his freshman year. His favorite teacher “would have to be either Raymer or Nowicki” because he has always excelled in his English classes. He identifies it as his favorite subject because, “English helps grow your vocabulary,” which applies to his daily life as well as his rap lyrics.  

Jaylen has been a part of the track team since he was a freshman, and feels like he has been improving ever since he joined. For him, track has been “a great way to get closer to people and meet new people.” He also added, “I’m really social, and I like making new friends. Every year I make new friends.” 

Jaylen’s real passion, though, is his music. He has been singing and dancing since he was only six years old, which explains his involvement in the John Adams Show Choir, and said, “the musical arts have always been my favorite.” Jaylen had always wanted to record his own songs, but “never had the assets or resources,” so discovering that he could record music on his phone was a game changer. Jaylen recalled making his first ever single, explaining that after one of his finals, he sat out in his friend Michael Evans’s car, “shout out Michael,” and recorded his first song. After releasing the track on SoundCloud, he felt that “people were vibing with it,” and ever since, he has been “trying to get better and evolve.” Jaylen’s SoundCloud rap career is so important to him because “being famous and making music is my dream,” and producing his own music “makes me feel like I am one step closer.”

Jaylen has made a lot of memories at Adams, but his favorite is the senior prank from two years ago, when students filled the halls and classrooms with Lime Bikes. He asked, “how did they get all those in there?” When asked what advice he would give to underclassmen, Jaylen offered, “Basically just work hard your first three years so when senior year comes around, you can slack off a little bit.” More seriously, though, he advised, “Never move too fast. Take your time. Enjoy High School while you can.” 

Jaylen plans to attend Indiana State University next fall, and major in accounting. He believes he is “probably going to get a degree” but his dream is “still to be a rap artist.”