J. Cartier, “Midnight Confessions”
Julian Williams, professionally known as “J. Cartier”, is an executive producer and artist based in Bluffton, South Carolina. J. Cartier is the self-described “creative mind behind all of (his) songs.” Acting as a 'puppetmaster of the arts', he is best known for his ability to connect, oversee, and manage collaboration between a diverse group of underground artists.
While this type of top-down visionary position is commonplace in the mainstream music & entertainment industries, J. Cartier is one of the few creatives willing to take on an EP role in the modern underground, not to mention that he is doing it all at the young age of 17.
Cartier’s talents provide unaffiliated musicians with new broader platforms, both stemming from his personal audience, alongside those of fellow collaborators met through his projects. Cartier, who also is known online under the name “JustJulian”, has the unique ability to foster genuine creative networks and introduce artists to new communities & out-of-the-box styles, producing innovative tracks with artistic combinations of voices and talents that otherwise may have never overlapped.
As the man behind the scenes, Cartier takes inspiration from figures like DJ Khaled. He grew up admiring the executive-producing journeys of online underground legends like Cole Bennet of Lyrical Lemonade and Patrick CC:. As he finishes his final year of high school, Julian now follows in the creative footsteps of these success stories and is building an artistic vision for “something nobody has ever seen”.
“Midnight Confessions”, J. Cartier’s upcoming project, currently stands as his primary creative focus. Two of the tracks from this R&B style work have already released to streaming platforms as singles, marking an accomplishment for Julian, standing already at 15,000 total streams prior to the tape’s release.
This “15k” figure mirrors the successes of his debut track “Rubi Rose”, which dropped when Cartier was only 15 years old. This self-written and executively-produced release was named after Rubi Rose, the Kentucky artist best known for her appearance in the 2016 “Bad & Boujee” music video, which kickstarted her solo rap career. Julian’s “Rubi Rose” single is also reported to have gained around 15,000 streams worldwide after releasing on the final day of March 2023.
The latest single from “Midnight Confessions” is titled “INTOXICATED” and dropped on September 20th, 2024, with an INTOXICATED Official Visualizer being published to Cartier's YouTube channel the same day. INTOXICATED features verses from J. Cartier in addition to artists EMXNII of nearby Charleston, SC, along with Fall$ (aka nvjakee) of Effingham, GA. On May 31st, 2024, J. Cartier released “i miss you”, a 2:31 collaborative single off “Midnight Confessions” that features both EMXNII and Mahal, an artist J. Cartier describes as an “incredibly talented artist who deserves way more recognition. He’s also been a big inspiration to (him)”.
Julian recently teamed up with Mahal again on 2 of 3 tracks from the “SWANK” project, which was released to Cartier’s discography on August 9th, 2024. In addition to performances by Mahal, SWANK also features Carolina artist “birzrk”, with "YvngDone", "Rosey!", and “WizTheBreaker”.
Julian Williams’ creative timeline for executive producing includes a wide variety of activities covering all aspects of music creation and release in the digital age. He begins with track conceptualization and brainstorming ideas, either communicating his visions with a beat-maker or occasionally co-producing instrumentals himself alongside these producers.
As a dedicated songwriter, J. Cartier personally cultivates his lyrics and structures his songs, before gathering and connecting underground artists to perform his written refrains, verses, and bars. Once these performances are recorded, J. Cartier works alongside audio engineers during the mixing and mastering processes, adding interesting song intros and quirks to form his signature touches and flair.
Even after the final master tracks are uploaded to streaming services, his passion and efforts for the project continue into the promotional and marketing phases. Cartier represents these creations to media outlets, in addition to managing in-house advertising and posting for his brands on social networks.
The young rising artist is building the local music scene from the ground up to put Bluffton, SC on the creative culture’s radar. In a city that he currently describes as “pretty small, (with) not many artists are making music here,” J. Cartier notes that (despite the current scale of the underground community) there are key players making waves in his hometown. His visionary skillset as an executive producer is creating a network of community and collaboration to put Bluffton’s underground on the map!
In an exclusive interview with RSO Underground, J. Cartier reveals which 2014 rap track used to be his phone’s voicemail message, explains his unique creation process of making a track, and shares a message to the world, saying “use your creativity to your advantage, and create something nobody has ever seen.”
RSO Underground Interview with J. Cartier
Who are you?
My name is Julian Williams, or also known as “J. Cartier.” I’m an executive producer from Bluffton, South Carolina. I’m the creative mind behind all of my songs. I handle the song structure, develop the concept, bring together artists (often ones who’ve never met) write choruses and verses, add intros, and sometimes mix vocals or co-produce beats. I also design marketing strategies to ensure the music we make gets the attention it deserves.
Where are you from? (How is the music scene there?)
(Bluffton, South Carolina) The music scene in Bluffton is pretty small. Not many artists are making music here, but shoutout to those who are, especially my guy Mahal. He’s an incredibly talented artist who deserves way more recognition. He’s also been a big inspiration to me.
Why did you get into the music/creative industry??
I love what I do because it’s different. Not many people take on a role like mine, especially in the underground scene, and it’s even more unusual at 17 years old.
Who and what inspires you?
The people around me who continuously support and motivate me to create high quality music. I appreciate every single one of you who has streamed even one of my songs.
What song/project are you currently promoting and what is the story behind it?
I’m currently working on an R&B project titled “Midnight Confessions”, which has a Bryson Tiller vibe. The two singles from this project have already gained over 15k streams across all platforms.
What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
My voicemail used to be 0 to 100 by Drake
Where can we find your music and art?
You can listen to my music on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. I’ve also started uploading to SoundCloud after getting requests from fans to do so.
What is your message to the world?
my message to the world is - use your creativity to your advantage, and create something nobody has ever seen.
Check out J. Cartier Everywhere!
3 comments
Nice work, continue to be serious and have fun!
Nice, how do I get a bigger more powerful sound than just streaming through these earbuds or whatever? I’m old-school so I don’t know all the tricks….
J.Cartier the goat 🐐