1.8.7


Jordana LeSesne, formerly known as 1.8.7, is an American musician and producer from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She became known in the mid-1990s as an American Drum and Bass producer. The Village Voice described her as being "widely regarded as the top U.S. drum'n'bass producer." Vibe magazine called her "one of the most respected Drum ‘n' Bass producers in the US." In 2015, Jordana was named as one of "20 women who shaped the history of dance music" by the authoritative dance music magazine Mixmag.In 2014, Harriet Magazine named Jordana as one of "12 women in black music history you should know".During the same year, Complex Magazine UK named one of her songs to a list of "36 great American drum & bass tracks". She is transgender and has been out since 1998.
She has released of over 50 tracks, including four full-length albums, several EPs, and many remixes under the alias 1.8.7. The album When Worlds Collide, released in 1997, became known for its "dark pummeling assaults". She has also licensed tracks for numerous compilations as well as the Sci Fi Channel. Three of her albums charted in the Top 25 of both the CMJ and Mixmag U.S. for 1997 as well as 1998 and 1999. Her third album "The Cities Collection" debuted in the CMJ Top 5 climbed to the #2 position on CMJ Music Monthly's dance chart for June 2000.
Her works have been reviewed by the likes of Billboard, Spin, Rolling Stone, Urb, Mixer, Mixmag, Raygun, Vibe, and Trip, as well as Knowledge – the U.K. Drum and Bass magazine. In 1999, she was listed in Raygun's Who's Who of International DJs. She was one of the headlining DJs on Knowledge Magazine's 28 city Kung Fu Knowledge tour in 1999. She also made Out Magazine's OUT100 list for the year 2000.

Impact on Music

Jordana's work has influenced other artists such as a well-known dubstep producer Bassnectar, who heavily sampled 5 A.M. Rinse , the last song on her first album When Worlds Collide for his song Here We Go of his 2010 EP and single Timestretch. Additionally, electronic rock act Celldweller sampled "Wake Up" off of her first album as well as "San Francisco" off of her third album "The Cities Collection" in their 2013 song "Uncrowned".
In 1999, Drum & Bass/Hip Hop producer and label owner Hive approached Jordana to remix her song Defcon-1 also off of When Worlds Collide. Hive's remix appears on his 2001 album The Raw Uncut. Jordana collaborated with Lady Sovereign on a song early in Sov's career after the two met through an internet chat room for StrikeFM.co.uk, an online radio station which Jordana had a show, and the now defunct UKGarageWorldwide.com forums. The two would later team up when Jordana under her Lady J alias, had Lady Sovereign MC for her radio show on Flex FM London.
New Zealand based Dubstep and Drum & Bass producer Alexis K/Unsub has also cited Jordana as an influence and the two are collaborating on music and a possible tour.

History

Jordana first came to the attention of the music industry when she was asked to remix Blondie's "Atomic." Her Drum & Bass remix appeared along with Armand Van Helden and Diddy's remixes on the single. A little over a year following that release Mac McFarlane, the promoter of the well established and legendary New York city Drum'n'Bass club night, Konkrete Jungle, contacted Jordana to create a Konkrete Jungle themed song for a CD compilation/mix-CD. Jordana created the song "Konkrete Jungle" for that purpose. Described by CMJ as containing "menacing hardstep attacks", it was released on the Ultra Records compilation, Konkrete Jungle - Maximum Drum & Bass, mixed by BBC Radio 1 Drum'n'Bass show regular host Jumping Jack Frost. Following extensive touring throughout North America and abroad as a live Drum & Bass artist, Liquid Sky Music, an indie label distributed by Caroline Distribution signed her to a three-album contract in late 1996.

Hate Crime in Ohio

On the night of February 22, 2000 in Kent, Ohio Jordana was attacked and brutally beaten in a transphobic hate crime by a group of men including Matthew Gostlin of Akron, Ohio. Gostlin and other assailants jumped her in the parking lot outside of the Robin Hood nightclub where she had just performed on the Cities Collection tour. The attack took place while she was escorted from the event with the event promoter to the promoters car. The group of men attacked suddenly and Jordana lost consciousness almost immediately after being struck in the face. She suffered nerve damage to the lower part of her face from her lower lip down as a result.
She was quoted as saying in the May issue of CMJ New Music Monthly that in the seconds just prior to the attack: "I saw his face. I remember the look on his face. It was this look of utter hate, like 'I'm going to kill you.'" In an interview with the Village Voice following the attack, George Meesig, a fan from Cleveland, Ohio who defended Jordana during the attack, stated that Gostlin had misgendered her, saying “his is personal”. Other reports noted by the Village Voice on the message board for Breakbeat Science mentioned transphobic slurs being shouted during the attack. Jordana subsequently cancelled the tour to recover. Gostlin, while charged, was never arrested nor spent any time in court. Jordana's family was told by the Portage County prosecutor's office that attempts had been made to serve the warrant but Gostlin's whereabouts were unknown. As a result of no movement on the case by the authorities, Jordana felt that justice would not be served. She left the U.S. for England because of their concerns about personal safety and well-being.

Additional Work in Music Industry

In addition to production, Jordana has also been a DJ, musician and singer. From 2001–2002, Jordana worked at Flex FM in London, England as Lady J with Lady Sovereign MCing for her during Jordana's radio show. In 2002, she held a club residency spinning UK Garage, 2-Step Garage and House Music at legendary club night Trinity in London's Vauxhall neighborhood.
After returning to the US, Jordana has returned to her rock roots and fronts a melodic goth metal band in Seattle. Just prior to that, she was asked to play bass in another band briefly where she met and became close friends with singer/songwriter Shelita Burke.
Currently, Jordana is scoring the documentary, Free CeCe, produced and directed by Jacqueline Gares and actress/director Laverne Cox of the series Orange Is The New Black. The documentary details the struggles of CeCe McDonald, an African-American transwoman who was wrongfully incarcerated for murder for defending herself against a hate driven attack on her life outside of a bar in Minneapolis.
Jordana is working on a new Drum and Bass E.P. for Bristol, UK based Complex Records. Her guitar and vocal work have featured on clips of songs off of her new E.P. posted to Soundcloud and on cover songs she has posted on AfroPunk.com.

Literary Mentions

Jordana has been featured in several books. Her success in rising from the depressed 80s economy of a "rust belt" city to MTV-featured electronica artist garnered a mention in the 2002 The New York Times bestseller "The Rise of the Creative Class" by economist Richard Florida. She appears in two books examining the history and rise of the American rave/EDM scene: Michaelangelo Matos's The Underground is Massive, which details an early online exchange between her and Moby dealing with the role of live performance in a rave context; and Rave Culture, an Insider's Overview by Jimi Fritz and Virginia Smallfry.

Personal life

An extensive interview with Jordana was also featured in the "New Transsexuals", a book published in 2012 by rock journalist and illustrator George Petros. She currently resides in Seattle, Washington.

Discography

1.8.7 has recorded numerous albums and songs, including When Worlds Collide, Konkrete Jungle and Free CeCe.

Vinyl

In 2002, Jordana licensed "One vocal, background use, forty-five seconds in length" from her song "Break In" to Paramount Pictures for the Zoolander DVD release.