In Orbit: Junglepussy

By Juliana Ukiomogbe

“In Orbit” spotlights some of the stars joining us at the Planet Brooklyn music and culture festival this weekend. Junglepussy, a local legend in the borough, is set to perform as part of the MUTHA show at Brooklyn Paramount on Saturday, August 23. Buy your tickets today. 

Junglepussy can’t imagine living anywhere but Brooklyn. “Girl, where else would you go?,” the East New York native jokes. “I love to travel, but whenever I come back to Brooklyn, I’m always like, ‘Yeah, I’m staying.’ I’ll visit other places and think, ‘Maybe I could live here,’ and one day I might move. But for now, I was born, raised, and bloom in Brooklyn.”

Born Shayna McHayle, 33, performing in her hometown is especially rewarding, which is exactly what she’ll be doing next weekend at the Planet Brooklyn music festival, a two-day celebration on August 23 and 24 that takes place across BAM, Barclays Center, and Brooklyn Paramount. She’s slated to take the stage on Saturday night at Brooklyn Paramount, joining a lineup called “MUTHA,” and a roster that includes LUDMILLA, Cupcakke, bbyMutha, Mykki Blanco, and Cakes Da Killa, among others.

And there’s even more on the horizon. On September 26, she’ll appear in the Oscar-nominated director Paul Thomas Anderson’s new film, One Battle After Another, starring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Teyana Taylor, and Regina Hall.

Just weeks before the festival, BKMAG caught up with Junglepussy to discuss the “360 moment” of performing at Brooklyn Paramount for the first time, her role in One Battle After Another, and what she’s been working on lately.

What can you share about your upcoming performance at Brooklyn Paramount?

I’m looking at this performance as a beautiful end-of-summer hurrah. Aside from the amazing Brazilian pop star LUDMILLA, I get to play with people from my New York City community that I performed with when I first started, so this is a nice 360 moment. Brooklyn Paramount is a venue that I’ve always wanted to play as a Brooklyn native. I have a little list in mind of all the places in Brooklyn that I want to play. I got to do Barclays in 2022 when I opened for Tame Impala, so now with Brooklyn Paramount, I’m like, “Oh my gosh.” It’s gonna be really fun and exciting. I love playing at home.

What’s your setlist going to look like?

Oh, it’s so funny. I was literally just DMing one of my fans about this. I’m like, “What do y’all want?” I have my ideas, but sometimes certain songs that I think they won’t care to hear, they want to hear. I played a Pride show in Bushwick this year, and my mind went to a certain section of my discography, but they wanted my emo shit. [Laughs] I was trying to keep the vibes up, but they were asking for my song “Arugula,” which is a little emo rap love song. So I’m always communicating with my supporters online just to make sure that I show up and give them what they want.

Last October, you dropped your EP, Cosmic Not Chronological. Will you perform anything from that project?

Oh, absolutely. A lot of times when I do my shows, I’m like, “Let’s just stick with the classics,” but people want to hear the new stuff. So I’m like definitely gonna include some of those songs, and also “Effortless” that I put out around then, too. It’s gonna be a nice roller coaster of emotions and vibes. I’m gonna put it all together in a nice set for them. I’m also excited to see other people play, like Cupcakke, BbyMutha, and Cakes Da Killa. I’m a fan of all of them. It’s going to be a great night.

How would you describe “Mutha?” Is it a collective?

I mean, they’re very much tapped in with all of us out here in New York. So I hope that this [performance] continues to grow it. It feels very communal and like a collective because they’re gathering us all up for this event. So, I’m really proud and honored to be a part of it.

What do you love most about performing in Brooklyn?

When I perform here, I know that I’ll have a good meal before and after. Thank God. And also, I get to see my people and see people that saw me play when I only had like two songs. My teachers from high school are even coming out for this performance. It’s just a very grounding, comfy feeling. Also, a few of my fans told me that they’re flying out. One person is coming from L.A., another is flying out from Vancouver, and somebody else is coming from Seattle. It’s going to be a fun weekend in Brooklyn anyway, because it’s the summer and there’s always something popping off.

I want to touch on your acting work, too. I saw One Battle After Another a few weeks ago. I thought you were great in it.

You saw it?! Oh, you’re so lucky. This is the first interviewer that I’m speaking to who has seen it. I’m super grateful for the opportunity to be in this story. This is a testament to my ability to continue to put myself out there and be open to the unexpected surprises and gifts along the way. If you would have told me years ago that this name would take me to these places and into these rooms and would inspire these amazing legends, I wouldn’t have ever believed that. It was amazing.

I don’t want to give anything away, but there’s a line in the movie that calls back to one of your songs. How did that feel to have your artistry integrated into the narrative in that way?

I felt like such a writer. Like, okay, I’m not just a rapper. I’m an artist. I’m really honored. That song of mine started as a voice note in the shower. I was in the shower and that line came to me and I just recorded a little singsongy thing to it and then I was like, “I like this. I wanna write a poem about this. I wanna just make this song.” It started backwards. Sometimes I’ll get the production and then I’ll write over the production. This song came as a whole poem. It was pure storytelling. So when I read the script and saw that in there, I was so gagged. And thank you for confirming that it’s in the movie because I haven’t seen it yet. I just feel so grateful for my writing. I can’t wait for my people to see how I was written into that story. Paul and his people were super respectful and so kind and generous. They just wanted me as I am, and I really love and respect that.

You and Teyana Taylor also have such great chemistry on screen.

I love that Paul kept both of us because I find sometimes that people will say, “Oh, we got one New York girl already. Let’s not get two.” And Paul was like, “No, both.” He gets it. I can’t wait to see our dynamic on screen because in real life and on set, she was so welcoming and such a good castmate. And she took us all out. We went to a basketball game when we were in Sacramento and then she took us out again to a members only type of club. She’s just super cool. And she also had her own chef on set, so she would invite us to her trailer to have lunch. No shade to craft services and the catering. It was good on some days, but you can’t compete with the rasta pasta and the homemade Red Lobster biscuits. We was eating good.

And you also got to reunite with Regina Hall, who co-starred with you in your film debut, Support the Girls.

We’re low-key sisters. She is another person that’s super nurturing. [Regina] really made me feel comfortable shooting this film. She was my big sis throughout the whole process. She was an angel to me, really. 

Going forward, what types of film projects are you most interested in?

(Photo by Storm Dave)

I want to do a horror film. I want to do a love story. I want to do something mysterious, thrilling, and suspenseful. I’m also open to roles that I’m not even imagining right in this minute. I think that once this movie comes out and people get more familiar with my acting work, it will open up my mind to different worlds that I could see myself in. I’m really looking forward to all of that because all the movies that I’ve been in so far have happened because the directors were fans of my music and my music videos. So I’m just hoping to stay in alignment with all the greatness out there for me to be a part of.

And I know that you paint, too. How does that fit into your creative practice?

That’s a must. Throughout my music career, I’ve always had to draw things out. Music video ideas will come from a painting, or when I’m trying to communicate my ideas to other artists for a collab, I’ll draw it out and they’ll be like, “Oh okay, I get it now.” I’ve painted a lot of my music artwork, like the covers for Jp3, “State of the Union,” and “Trader Joe.” Now I’m really looking for ways to incorporate that into my live shows. When I did my Jp3 tour, I brought some of the paintings on stage with me and it was really cool. So I’m really interested in expanding on that and having my live shows be this experience where I’m performing, and then the art is also around for people to enjoy as well.

I love that. And these days, what’s been creatively feeding you?

I’ve been free writing lately, just letting the words flow out on the paper. I’m not judging the thoughts that come or trying to pick them apart. I’m just documenting them. I’m also really into my dreams lately. I don’t know if you’ve heard about this magnesium wave, but I’ve been taking it and my dreams have been so vivid. I wake up feeling this excitement because I feel like I just came from a whole other world. So when I wake up, I’ll just open the notes app and put it all down. I’m very much in my downloading phase of creation right now where I’m just taking all the things in. And then I’ll be bursting with ideas and creation as the summer winds down.

Is there anything about your artistry that you never get asked about that you want people to know?

I’ve always been independent and have funded my music through my work. I’ve always just managed my money right and made sure that I had the funds to pour back into myself. I’ve never had any label invest in me or anything like that. All of the things that have come to me, any accomplishments or cool opportunities, have come straight to me. People will just hit me up. Even with this movie, Paul just hit me up. I never know what song or project is gonna put people onto my work. That’s something I always want people to remember because I know this industry makes it seem like you have to be so clout-chasy. It makes you feel like you can’t be a direct channel for yourself. I like having that connection with people out in the world. That’s something that I really appreciate and am grateful for because cool, unique things get to come in that way, and it’s the result of a genuine admiration.