What better way to wrap up 2022 than with the visionary behind the Spotify Wrapped sharing trend?

Jewel Ham is rife with revolutionary ideas, including her viral contribution to Spotify’s year-end phenomenon. During her internship in 2019, Ham proposed layering social media sharing into the experience, and her idea has since become a key component in the annual campaign’s continued success.

A bonafide storyteller, the multidisciplinary visual artist, curator, and educator is dedicated to using her practice as a means of reparation. A Summa Cum Laude Fine Arts graduate of Howard University, Ham visualizes the mosaic of everyday Black life and its emotional realities through narrative portraiture.

Ham has had four solo exhibitions to date, all taking place in historical spaces within the Black community, including “i said what i said” held at Stony Island Arts Bank, an archival library and museum reimagined by Theaster Gates; and “keep it cute” held at Cierra Britton Gallery, the first all womxn of color gallery in New York City. Earlier this month, her work was exhibited at Art Basel Miami Beach as part of Jeffrey Deitch’s “Goddesses” group exhibition.

You can check out more of Ham’s work here on Creatively and @hellocreatively on Instagram.

What is the first creative project you remember?

I’m truly a Taurus to the core. We were snowed in once, and I created an entire spread of a paper feast, complete with custom fine china.

Describe your aesthetic in three words.

Chaotic, seductive, Black. (Although, “sh*t-talking Taurus” just about covers it, as well.)

What was the most fulfilling collaboration you’ve worked on?

It’s happening right now! My personal marijuana strain, jewelOG (officially dropping 4/20) is a collaboration with GorillaRX Wellness, the first (and only) all-Black women owned dispensary in Los Angeles. Though we brought out a few specialty pre-rolls for a soft launch during Art Basel Miami, we’ll also be curating a collaborative immersive exhibition opening in Los Angeles on April 20th, 2023. Book your tickets now and tap in with both of these powerhouses in the meantime!

What’s one creative project that taught you something fundamental about yourself?

I think some of my greatest lessons have come from creative projects I had absolutely no business taking on, so I won’t deal in specifics. But, something fundamental I’ve learned—and am still learning, sometimes the hard way—is that I can only take on projects that wholly sit right with my spirit.

Do you think creativity is something you’re born with or something you’re taught?

Born with, but we’ve all got at least a little. I think the environments and experiences we find ourselves in either cultivate or cramp that energy, but the ability to access energy is ever-present.

What’s the last dream you had?

That I was on time to submit for this Q&A deadline. (Clearly still dreaming!)

One hundred years from now, what do you hope people write about your work?

First, I hope my people are the ones writing. Then, I hope they’ll say “I felt that.”

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