About Jahmi Roc
Weaving Inspiration in Song
Her Story
Jahmi Roc (Racquel Bernard) is a Kingston-born, Los Angeles–based singer-songwriter and scholar whose music fuses reggae, dancehall, R&B, gospel, and hip hop into radiant, socially conscious anthems. A self-described freedom singer, her core message is simple yet profound: love and liberate yourself. Through lyrics of healing, romance, and justice, she bridges artistry with scholarship to create music that empowers.
A PhD candidate in musicology at UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music, Bernard’s research explores how Black women’s reggae embodies freedom singing and resists oppression. Guided by a “spiritual umbrella” of Christianity, Judaism, and Rastafari, and informed by her lens as a scholar-poet, she threads academic insights and cultural history into her songs—naming systems while singing a new future.
Her artistry crystallized with the 2021 single “I Am”, a poem-to-song breakthrough and her first embrace of rap—an “aha” moment that defined her creative process. On stage, she blends movement and voice; in writing, she often begins with poetry before finding the hook.
Academic milestones include Dartmouth honors, a Distinction at UWI Mona, advancement to candidacy at UCLA, and the prestigious Dissertation Year Award. Musically, she received the Paul Robeson Award for Performing Arts and Scholarship, released singles such as I Am and Purpose Lullaby, and now opens a new chapter with producer Dale “Dizzle” Virgo. Her upcoming single, “Write Your Name,” is cosmic empowerment over Caribbean-rooted rhythm, produced by Virgo.