JoJo - "Porcelain" + Over the Influence: A Memoir

chrisjche

chrisjche

stopthestatic said:
She classified Trying Not To Think About It as EP too and that was her best project to date, so I wouldn't worry. It'll most likely be 6-8 new songs with a bunch of interludes. I'm just happy to be getting new music!!

I haven't posted in here in a bit but I loved the book, obviously, and I'm already ready to reread it, so going to listen to the audiobook next. I also got to go to her book event at the Strand and it was so lovely to meet her again and get another photo with her.

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I've been fully immersed in all things JoJo since then and have been listening to her nonstop (leaks and mixtapes included, of course).
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Ah I was sitting pretty close to you!! Had a great time at The Strand event also and the audiobook is great. She has a really nice voice to listen to. I've also been going through her whole discography again too. I really didn't realize all the label issues she was still having with "Mad Love" and onwards. I think it's hilarious how much she drags on "When Love Hurts" cause that whole 'tringle' era was definitely a bit... underwhelming.



She only has a few more weeks in Moulin Rouge and I'm tempted to see her one more time...
 
G

Golowhore

Veeis said:
I don’t really feel the snippet at the moment.

Also apparently it’s for an EP? If it’s true then I have to laugh, really.
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She said she's planning to release an EP, tour, see what her audience is into and then release an album. My guess is that she wanted to try out a poppier sound for this release. I just hope she can finally release consistently, which hasn't been the case at any point in her career.
RainOnFire said:
The book is actually much heavier than I was expecting, I just finished reading it and while I'm glad that she's on the path toward healing, I feel a bit unsettled and sad for her. As a fan from the beginning, I felt like I knew how bad things had gotten with Blackground, but I didn't realize the extent of just how tumultuous her life had become even years after she was free from them. Especially in regards to her mother, her former manager, and Atlantic.

I sort of had the impression that things were fine after Mad Love, but the fact that there were still personal/label struggles up until last year is throwing me for a loop. I feel sorry for doubting her because I was low-key ready to drag her about the lack of new music, but she's clearly had a ton to process over the past twenty years and it seems like she's only just started to properly take care of herself. I know she made it clear that she doesn't want to be seen as just a victim, but my heart still feels heavy for her.

I will say that the pop music nerd in me really appreciated that she included lots of details about all of the singles and albums/mixtapes/EPs and all of the label fuckery that came along with it. Sometimes it can feel like popstar memoirs and documentaries make the music a mere sidenote, but she did a great job of intertwining stories about her popstar life with her personal life.
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Agreed with this. And even during the difficult moments post-blackground, she always came across as a strong, confident person who rose above all of her issues even if they had negatively affected her career. It was alarming to learn just how much those personal and professional issues completely broke her down and destroyed her self belief. Her meeting with Bruno Mars
where she was too scared to even have a conversation with him and the head of her label
was a bit shocking.
 
Veeis

Veeis

Golowhore said:
She said she's planning to release an EP, tour, see what her audience is into and then release an album. My guess is that she wanted to try out a poppier sound for this release.
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I'm sorry but this is ridiculous. I think that at this point it would be the best for both parties to just release music, and to release music that she finally wants to release, not testing the waters.

Q2 2026 for album then.
 
T

timothy_b

She shared a snippet on Tik Tok. Sound is not what I was expecting… but I‘m intrigued! Definitely the most pop she’s released in ages.
 
LeBratt

LeBratt

JoJo's been one of my faves since childhood, and besides having one of my favourite voices in pop music, her story has been so touching and heartbreaking since we've been watching it real-time. She is only two years older than me and I can't imagine growing up in such a toxic industry and with so many struggles. She is also such a underrated songwriter with so much honesty and reflection. Not getting music from her more often is frustrating and knowing that she's still had trouble with the labels even after getting free from Blackground is so unfair and makes me angry. But even then I'm just happy if she manages to find peace, comfort and joy in her life. So hearing that she seems to have found a good place is the greatest win for me.
 
Up Down Suite

Up Down Suite

I had a mini-heart attack when I read The Strand thinking I missed her in London!

Ordered my copy and I'm ecstatic to dive in. Artist memoirs are fascinating even if they're a bit nothing-y so to hear the good reviews makes me even more excited.
 
JORDAN

JORDAN

Up Down Suite said:
I had a mini-heart attack when I read The Strand thinking I missed her in London!

Ordered my copy and I'm ecstatic to dive in. Artist memoirs are fascinating even if they're a bit nothing-y so to hear the good reviews makes me even more excited.
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Yeah I usually find autobiographies to be a bit juvenile but this is the best one I’ve read. It’s really raw and honest and she doesn’t try to paint herself in the best light either which is refreshing.
 
RainOnFire

RainOnFire

Staff member
She's always been a great songwriter and it's absolutely reflected in the memoir. It's pretty incredible to me that she wrote it on her own without a ghostwriter unlike so many if not all celeb memoirs.

Also this is a bit random to bring up but one of the wildest parts of the story to me was when Vincent left her and popped up again a year later with Gaga. Maybe it's because Gaga has operated like a sixty-year-old for the past several years but the way I suddenly came to the realization that The High Road and The Fame were only 2 years apart, and their age difference is less than 5 years, had me doing the biggest double-take.
 
G

Golowhore

Veeis said:
I'm sorry but this is ridiculous. I think that at this point it would be the best for both parties to just release music, and to release music that she finally wants to release, not testing the waters.

Q2 2026 for album then.
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I mean, yeah, she should just release an album. But she has a history of making fully fleshed out EPs and mixtapes that could easily pass for whole albums. If it is an "EP" in the vein of Trying Not To Think About It or even Agape/Can't Take That Away From Me then I'll have no complaints. If it's four songs then I'll be pissed.

Now that she's independent and it seems that, finally, nobody else has power over her, I just hope she has reached the point where she is ready to release consistently. If she can turn around a full album in a year, then, again, no issues here.
 
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Blayke

Blayke

AussiePopstar said:
No one seems to have the answer to why I can't get the audiobook in Australia.
I had it pre-ordered on Audible and they said the release was cancelled and refunded me.
More proof Jojo hates Australia.....

Obviously I'm joking but I WANT the audiobook.
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I’m the same, but if you look at all our book distributors, JoJo’s book doesn’t come out here until 31 December. I’m ordering the book from the US now, but I became delulu and thought maybe she will be doing a book tour here early next year. I doubt it though!
 
AussiePopstar

AussiePopstar

That book was a journey.
I still feel like I want more info on the all of the shelved albums/singles etc but it was great to hear her talk about that music and the process from "The High Road" to now.
I'm kinda bummed that she doesn't love "The Other Chick" as it's definitely top tier Jojo for me (along with the demo of "Sexy to Me").
The amount of unreleased material is so staggering.
Can't wait to hear "Porcelain" and glad this has been a success for her.
 
Jacques

Jacques

Not asking for links or where to find them, but does anyone have a comprehensive list of all the leaks/unreleased album material/mixtapes - basically anything not on Spotify!
 
godspeed

godspeed

Up Down Suite said:
Couple chapters in and revisiting her music at the same time. How fabulous is We Get By? I completely wiped it from my memory. A real treat to have a moment with her music again.
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"We Get By" is a gem, a vibe, a lifestyle and one of her finest songs in terms of production. I've been waiting for it – and that entire Agape mixtape, her best project to date – to hit Spotify for years. I need to add "Take The Canyon" to my "night ride" playlist.
 
RainOnFire

RainOnFire

Staff member
Jacques said:
Not asking for links or where to find them, but does anyone have a comprehensive list of all the leaks/unreleased album material/mixtapes - basically anything not on Spotify!
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The amount of leaks is insane, it must be over 100 at this point? I gave up trying to track them all after a bit and just kept my favourites, but I'm sure someone can help.

In terms of the stuff that she's officially released but isn't on Spotify:
JoJo bonus tracks
- Butterflies
- Back & Forth
- Baby It's You (remix with Bow Wow)

The High Road bonus track
- Do Whatcha Gotta Do

Can't Take That Away From Me mixtape

Cover/response singles
- Beautiful Girls
- Marvin's Room (Can't Do Better)

Orphaned singles
- The Other Chick
- Disaster
- Sexy to Me
- Demonstrate

Agapé mixtape

#LoveJo EP

#LoveJo2 EP
(One of the songs, Right On Time, was removed because it interpolated I Love You Always Forever and Donna Lewis threatened to sue even though JoJo released it for free on Soundcloud and therefore was making no money off it. Brainworms. It's still on YouTube though!)
 
-M-

-M-

I have to admit that I didn’t really like the snippet, but the full song turned out to be yet another little masterpiece. These overcoming a difficult time / growing as a person songs can often feel very formulaic and clichéd, but not with her. I particularly loved the imagery she used in the lyrics. She’s such an underrated songwriter.
 
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