Jovanii Nez, known as Jaynez (born c.1975) is a Navajo American urban R&B singer who and has won awards at the New Mexico Music Awards, and the "Best Debut Artist of the Year" at the 7th Annual

Native American Music Awards The Native American Music Awards (also known as the NAMAs or "Nammys") are an awards program presented annually by Elbel Productions, Inc., The Native American Music Awards Inc., and The Native American Music Association, a 501(c)(3) non-profi ...

. Jaynez has also been nominated in the 9th Annual

. His voice has been described as "soulful".

Musical career

In addition to his solo work, he owns and operates the New Visions record label which was formerly called Dream 1 records. He has also performed with the musical group Dream Team for 20 years (as of 2021); the band is also known as DT. He is one of the originators of the band. Jaynez' musical work has been reviewed in the

Navajo-Hopi Observer The ''Navajo-Hopi Observer'' is a weekly newspaper serving the Hopi and Navajo nations and the city of Flagstaff in northern Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United Sta ...

, among other publications. Jaynez was profiled in the documentary film, ''For the Generations: Native Story and Performance''.

Activism and service

The Navajo-Hopi Observer reports that he is of Navajo, Cheyenne and Pueblo heritage. In 2006, he had a meeting with the First Lady of the United States

Laura Bush Laura Lane Welch Bush (née Welch; born November 4, 1946) is an American educator who was the first lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009 as the wife of George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States. Bush was previously the fir ...

and the Attorney General of the United States

Alberto Gonzales Alberto R. Gonzales (born August 4, 1955) is an American lawyer who served as the 80th United States Attorney General from 2005 to 2007 and was the highest-ranking Hispanic American in executive government in American history until the appoin ...

to discuss prevention programs for alcohol and drug addictions, and gang violence. He has had first-hand experience with gangs when growing up in Fontana in the Los Angeles area. After a stint in prison, he enlisted in the military. While serving in the Marines, he was involved in four combat operations.

Visual art

Jaynez is also a muralist, and has worked on murals throughout Los Angeles addressing such issues as gang violence and child abuse. He was approached by

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

who asked Jaynez and his artist colleagues to paint a mural for

Death Row Records Death Row Records is an American record label that was founded in 1991 by The D.O.C., Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, and Dick Griffey. The label became a sensation by releasing multi-platinum hip-hop albums by West Coast-based artists such as Dr. D ...

, however, the following day Jaynez discovered he was to be shipped out (by the Marines) to fight in

Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jaynez American rhythm and blues musicians Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Native American musicians Navajo musicians Native American activists People from Fontana, California