Jordan L. Jones is a lead on the highly anticipate drama series “Bel-Air,” which premiered February 13th on Peacock. The show has made such an impact, it has already received a season 2 order. Additionally, the show was just named one of Entertainment Weekly’s Biggest Entertainment film/TV project of 2022 (#3).
“Bel-Air” is a contemporary drama that reimagines the beloved and culture defining 90s sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”. Jordan L. Jones, a series regular, plays ‘Jazz’, aka (DJ Jazzy Jeff), who is Will’s best friend and crucial outlet for life outside of Bel-Air and an important reminder for Will of the life he left behind in Philly.
We LOVED speaking with Jordan about his experience on the show & what we can expect on the rest of this season. He was such a delight; check out the interview to hear what he has to say!
Lauren: Hey guys, it’s Lauren Conlin from POP Style TV, super excited today because I have one of the stars of Bel Air Jordan L. Jones, who plays Jazz. Welcome Jordan.
Jordan: Thank you so much. Thank you for having me.
Lauren: Yeah, I love your voice. I meant to tell you, I love your speaking voice on this show. It’s very raspy.
Jordan: You know, what’s so crazy about that. That’s how I talk, right. This is just a small story, but like my mom thinks because like, I’m always like yelling and they’re like messing up my vocal cords and I’m like, nah, that’s just, I think that’s just how, you know, how it is. Like when I’m, when I’m talking low is kind of, and not in a bad way or anything.
I love it too. Actually. You’re not the first person to say that. And my mom was like, every time I talk, every single time I talked to my mom, you need to know, you know, you need to rest your voice. I’m like, this is how, this is how I talk.
Lauren: And you’re like, mom, I’m not singing Celine Dion. This is literally my voice. Yeah, no, it’s actually, it’s very sexy. I like that. I think a lot of girls like the raspy thing, because whenever I lose my voice, like guys, you’re like, oh, that sounds really hot. And I’m like, really? I feel like it sound like a man, but whatever.
Jordan: Just a little, a little flavor to your voice.
Lauren: I love, love that. I’m going to say that next time flavor to my voice. So this is really cool. I mean, I’m not caught up, but I have been watching and when I first heard about the show, I was like, this is not what I expected. I thought I was going to laugh. It’s very serious. And the writing is so intense and it’s so good. Right? I mean, you guys, sorry, you can correct me. I just want to, you don’t have to give anything away, but you guys get the scripts like week to week. You don’t actually know what’s going to happen, right?
No, no. Like the way it works is that like, yeah, like, you know, just say we’re shooting episode five, right? When we started shooting episode five, which tastes about like two weeks, we get episode six. So even though we’re not really worried about, I was saying like, we can, we can read it real quick and you know, but then by the time we shoot that two weeks, if stuff has changed and everything like that, but like, we really get it right before wishing watching the script.
Like, it’s crazy. Like, like we, ain’t not, um, we don’t get the script, get crazy in advance. Of course they give us enough time. It’s actually, yeah. Oh, it’s this stuff, which is why by the time we’re shooting episode five, we probably had the script, the first script for episode six, just to get the gist, but no, it’s not like, oh yeah, we got like the all 10 episodes and then if we want to a, or like read them whenever you want to, but it’s not like that enough.
Lauren: That’s what I was thinking. So it’s honestly like, you don’t know let’s say Jazz is going to die by episode. You know what I mean? You don’t know, you know, you’re learning it just like we are you basically, what you just said is you are only one episode ahead of us on, you know, knowing the plot line, which is so cool.
Now your character Jazz is freaking awesome. I mean, he obviously was very funny, um, in the original and, and you know, very quirky. You are quirky. You have your quirks. Um, you know, did you, I want to ask you, did you ever drive an Uber? Uber? I said Uber. Sorry. I met Uber. Yeah. Thank you. No. Cause your character drives like, did you ever drive an Uber? Did you ever own a record store or did you ever work in a record store? Nothing. Okay.
Jordan: That is all, that’s all character oriented. I’ve never done those things. I’m like, I’m an actor act like I a record store. And I act like, you know, I hear you. I’m just playing around, but no, those specifically, no, I have not. No. Okay.
Lauren: That’s interesting. Okay. So tell me this. I don’t know if you’re going to know this, um, or you can tell me this, but like, I feel like there’s like, are you and Hillary going to hook up or what? I know, I know there’s underlying.
Jordan: I will say, watch for and see, uh, the vibes and then you can come to that conclusion. Okay. So you haven’t seen me and Hillary in the record store? No. That okay. You should watch those scenes. I think that even, I’m not going to tell you cause it’s a spoiler, but I think you’ll have a better guest as to where we’re going to go once you watch okay.
Lauren: All right, that’s fine. I will accept that answer. And, and now why, why do you think the show is so timely and so important right now? I’ve I felt like it was not a lot of themes that I’m watching and a lot of things that, um, really hit close to home right now with just the way our society is and our culture.
Jordan: Yeah. I mean, well, there’s two things really. I mean, you know, it’s the black excellence, uh, part about it. Um, we try to hone in on that. We do, we try to hone in on different people from the black community. You know, you have Jazz who’s coming from the inner city. You have Will, who’s coming from inner city Philly coming here, which is why me and Will click because I’m like that piece of home still.
He goes to his black family, but they’re not. Really really wealthy, uh, go to Bel-Air academy, uh, call to act different. I have friends like that now. Not that are evil. Cause people aren’t hating my boy. He’s the nicest person ever. My grandmother, that it was like, happy birthday, Jordan. I love you so much. I just hate Carlton. Like he’s not real grandma.
He’s not he’s actually that you would love have you met him in person, but just that dynamic. And then either with Jeffrey, you know, uh, African-American from the UK, just that dynamic, you know, there’s certain episodes we’ll be able to braiding Ashley’s hair, uh, and, and, um, um, Hillary is a cook in the dishes that she makes green shrimp.
Po’Boys like all of that, the music on the show, it’s just a lot about black excellence and that’s one part. But the second part too is just about in a way adolescents, you know, I mean, at the end of the day, like we’ll, you know, my characters, like I think like early twenties, same with Hillary, but will Lisa calls him like, no, they go to Baylor academy to, I think they’re 11th graders, like 16, 17, and.
That journey, that journey of fish out of water, in a new school, trying to fit in that journey of Carlton being around his friends and a new guy. And you know, it doesn’t have to be a cousin. I’m just like the new guy comes in and people like, how do you adjust that happens? You know? So I just feel like in, for everybody set the black ice on this thing, but then now for everybody who.
Best part about, um, the show is that yes, we’re being really noticed like out in public and stuff like that, but we noticed kids and that means that it’s moving in it and it’s compelling to kids. I got 12 year old came up to us and we’re no, my dad is my favorite. She wasn’t really you guys. Oh my God. And we’re like the demographic of people that are watching it can relate to obviously adults, kids, elderly, and I’m just wearing, I’m excited.
Lauren: That’s actually a good point. This show is actually appropriate for all ages. Not all ages, but yes, it’s a very wide spectrum of age. Um, and my friend Chris is actually from Philly and he made a comment to me and he’s like, the writing is very accurately Philly. Like, it’s very, it’s not like, oh, because you know, you watch a show and your hometown.
Jordan: You’re like, it’s not like that, that makes me didn’t really make sense to a T. And I’m like, I wouldn’t know, but that’s actually, that makes me feel good while I’m watching it, you know?
And I love that too. Cause I’m not from Philly. Um, you know, I’ve been there a couple of times, but I don’t know the residents and how stuff goes. I haven’t been in the house and like touristy stuff and. We were watching him like influences what we did, like the Bel-Air mansion thing experience. And then we watched it influences everybody from Allen Iverson. You know, he was like, yo, this is Philly. That’s like
from Philly, you know? Cause we use like real rappers, like, you know yeah. The Douglas Rashad was like a real rapper and like real like dudes from Philly. So we, and I would ask that question too. I was like, yo. So I wonder if like we’re doing a Philly right. I wonder if people were like, ah, that ain’t really I’d go.
If everybody’s from Philly was like, nah, this is. That was right.
Lauren: I mean, it’s a trash city, so we might, I’m just kidding. I don’t, honestly, at the few times I’ve been there. It’s been like, I don’t have a reason to go back, but, um, but no, I. like, um, what’s his face fill up? I’m like, oh, he’s pretty hot. I’m like, dude, I spent a fat guy and I’m like, whoa.I was like, yeah, I’m here.
Jordan: And I, and I love that about Morgan too. Like all the characters are similar, like you know, like I don’t look like Jazz, but I looked like Jazz, you know, like, you know, glasses and the way I dress, but don’t make it look like light skin Hilary, you know, verses dark skin Hilary. But like keeping certain parts of them, you know, because even though it is not a diss and stuff, she’s still like famous people. Like, and then same with this. And then, you know, Carlton X the same as the first people say yourself, when people say that we hate cards and we liked first call too.
And y’all are quick to forget the ones, especially when it first came out. Nobody liked Carlton, nobody liked Carlton until him and Will got cool. Yeah. Oh yeah. I went the old Carlton and it’s like, y’all did the same thing. You just forgot because it’s.
Just like, I think what Morgan wanted to do is like, bring that aura. No, he’s not going to look the same, but he’s going to feel like we’re, we’ll feel speaks. It’s like, oh, the field saying something profound, same Initia, you know, of course. And the plot line is different because this is a drama it’s completely different, but everybody’s like energy is similar.
Lauren: I totally, I can see that. I can definitely see that now is a perfect mix. You are, you’re very young, obviously you, and honestly, like I’m older than you, but I, you know, I watched Fresh Prince, but it still was a little bit, um, So it was a little old for me when I was growing up.
Jordan: So by the time I started watching you, it was already in syndication.
Lauren: Okay. So that’s what I thought. I figured you been like out of you. Yeah. So you had already seen it when you got this part or when you auditioned or do you have to go ahead and watch it or you already saw it. You were like, this is my favorite show. I’m sorry. I’m not a mind reader, bro. Um, yeah. Okay. So, so, okay.
Jordan: Who has not seen the Fresh Prince we need to get them on this.
Lauren: You were gen, I assume you were gen X. I’m sorry, gen Z. So it’s like a lot of gen Z or yeah, but I’m saying, you know, a lot of people haven’t seen it. So did you work with Will Smith, like before? How was that?
Jordan: Uh, I mean, Will Smith obviously is one of the greatest individuals I’ve ever met, but I think, and especially as an idol of mine, I’m a really a comedic actor, but in being a comedian, I don’t want to be boxed in, you know, I don’t, you know, I want it, I love that’s why. That’s. What I love about this show is the fact that, you know, I have comedic scenes, serious scenes, flirtatious scenes, and it’s like, people would see me in different lights and I love that.
I would say that, um, when it comes to the fresh prince though, like, it’s really my favorite show. Seriously, it’s on like right now, it’s just not on the TV, but it’s probably a little serious. Um, but what I did do, what I didn’t do is when I’m, you know, attacking the character, none of us do that. So what about this too? Even though, so I kinda, cause we just all bring ourselves.
Oh, sort of role. And, um, and I think that’s the beautiful part. So in meeting Will. Uh, not to be cliche in the name of the best advice he told me was to do just do it because you know what I’m saying? We don’t want you to be like the old Jack the script, not even the same as a Trump. So I came to sometimes relate, you know what I’m saying?
To be like, okay, how would DJ jazzy Jeff react in this situation? He ain’t never been in this situation, you know? There was no point of doing it. And Jay and Jeff told me the same thing. They both told me the same thing because I saw the pilot and there was so good, dude. It was great to get this recognition from the original cast.
Lauren: I can only imagine that must’ve been totally surreal for you guys.
Jordan: Oh, beyond for a meeting. Yeah. We just did a podcast where I’m literally right before this. And I was like, man. And I was talking about the first time we met and I was like, dude, remember the first time we met, I was like, well, I couldn’t, I didn’t say a thing to him like I did, but it’s just a whole bunch of like nothing. I was like, Hey man.
And he just hugged me, said, Hey man, this is just the beginning. You’re doing your thing. His son told me that he was like, yeah, we was, was kind of scared, just not scared, you know, take it with a grain of salt. But like, he was like, ah, yeah, anxious to see who it was. And they were like, you made my family proud.
Laure: Yeah. And I mean, honestly, you should really take this time for yourself as an actor and as a human, just knowing, I mean, you guys already got signed for season two. You know, you have a job already, you know, you have a job for a long time and this business is very tumultuous. It’s very stressful. I can only imagine. So if I were you, I would just wake up every morning and just be like, I have a job for as long as, you know, XYZ and it’s freaking phenomenal job.
Jordan: Yeah. Especially in this acting journey, I call it the profession of, no, we try not to get attached to auditions this time, because even if you kill it, even if you’re right for the part yet, more chances than not, it’s going to be enough a no, not also like, oh, like that’s just what people say. No, it’s just kinda like, there’s so many people auditioning and it’s just like the law of average, you know what I’m saying?
Just so many, you know what I’m saying? So I also believe in the statements like that, the more nos you get, the closer you get to your yes. So basically when it’s, so when I do that sorting auditions, Like, even if I kill her or whatever, like I throw away the script, like I throw it away.
I don’t want to look at it and be attached it. Oh, I’m waiting. I’m waiting to get a call. And, you know, I know, I know both sides of it. I really do. And you know, you just have to stay humble, grounding this to always believe in yourself because you know that the reason why you’re not booking, if it. You know, period where you’re not booking, it’s not because of you just because are
Lauren: Very mature that you can actually address it that way, because it took me I’m not an actor, but just, you know, in media, it, it takes a lot, uh, to, to process a lot of the, uh, what’s the word I’m looking for when you just have to process being turned down all the time, the rejection it gets in your head, whether you like it or not. So I love the way that you think of this. It’s very, very mature.
Um, and how do you mind if I ask how old you are?
Jordan: I just turned 29.
Lauren: Okay. You’re a little older than I thought. Um, so you actually, you are thinking you’re a millennial, you’re not a gen Z. Like I originally I originally imagined, so, um
Jordan: I like that it means I don’t look 29 which is great
Lauren: That’s the main thing. Seriously. It’s a very, it’s a very lovely gift. Well, Jordan, thank you so much. I’m so excited to keep watching this show and keep following you and your career. You are, you’re a lovely human. You really are.
Jordan: Thank you so much. Thank you so much. This was so special to me. So, um, it was nice talking to you. Thank you for the opportunity.
Lauren: It was great talking to you would love to do it again. Yes. Amazing. Thanks Jordan. Bye.
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