Jai Paul shares optimistic message ahead of first live performance

Jai Paul is scheduled to play his first ever live show this coming Sunday at Coachella. Ahead of his performance, he posted a message to Reddit which a commenter (arguing over the veracity of parts of the post, of course) referred to as “the first time he’s interacted directly to the fanbase in 2 years.” Paul’s publicist has confirmed the post’s authenticity to The FADER.

“Yoo it’s Jai… this weekend I’m gonna be playing my first ever live show 😳🥴😅,” the post begins. “I always wanted to do something like this but yeah Im not gonna lie I am absolutely shitting it 😆 Anyway, I just wanted to let u lot know how much I appreciate all you staying with me for all this time. Hopefully it’s gonna be worth it ☺️ Rehearsals been going good so far i reckon… Not long to go innit. For those of you able to make to make it out there, i will see you in a few days 😱🤪🙏🏼.” The message is followed by a photo that appears to show Jai, his brother A.K., their past collaborator Fabiana Palladino, and two others rehearsing for Paul’s fast-approaching set.

After an exciting run of viral singles in the early ’10s, Jai Paul’s career was derailed when a leaker uploaded demos from his debut album to Bandcamp in 2013 before its scheduled release, leading him to take an extended hiatus from his music career. Paul finally released his own version of the illegally shared record in 2019 under the title Leak 04-13 (Bait Ones), featuring the new songs “Do You Love Her Now” and “He.” In 2021, he celebrated the 10th anniversary of his breakout track “BTSTU” by launching a website where he shared some of his rare early cuts, as well as a new song called “Super Salamander.”