Music sensation JXN set to don Kilsyth colours for first time in five years

Written by Julia Montesano

Kilsyth recruit Jackson Brazier never thought he would play basketball again.

After committing himself to be a Cobra for life as a junior, Brazier soon went on another path and consequently stopped playing the game he loved to pursue a career in music as JXN.

Five years later, after touring with high-profile Australian musicians Allday and Mallrat and collaborating with international artists like A Boogie wit da Hoodie and ASAP Twelvyy, Brazier is about to make a comeback in the new-look NBL1 South competition.

The up-and-coming music sensation says he has two people to thank for his return.

“With COVID-19, Pete Godfrey (Kilsyth NBL1 Men’s Head Coach) came back to Kilsyth and he hit me up and said, ‘do you want to come back and train?’” Brazier explained.

“I wasn’t planning on ever playing basketball again.

“My best friend is Kyle Adnam still and we play basketball together.

“I was also going to all the games and stuff, which just kept the passion burning.

“The whole COVID-19 situation and not being able to travel has given me another opportunity to get on the court, which I didn’t think I would get.”

After playing a practice game in the lead-up to NBL1 South opening round, Brazier says there’s one thing he has missed more than anything about basketball.

“I’ve missed that whole team aspect and the competitive style of the sport,” he says.

“It’s good to get out there and compete with other people.

“Our practice game was a bunch of fun and the season starts on Saturday, so it’s exciting.”

Of course, there are nerves that come with returning to a sport you haven’t played for a while.

But Brazier is no stranger to performing on the big stage, having seen his music career take off in the past five years.

“I most recently toured with Allday and Mallrat in Australia and those were my first ever live shows,” he says.

“The venues were packed out with over 4000 people, so to walk out to all those people in my first show in Perth was a bit crazy.”

Not only has Brazier toured with prominent musicians, but he has also collaborated with them.

One of the most notable features is A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, which Brazier says he had a blast recording with.

“He was on the same American label as me and when he was touring here for Laneway, I showed his team my song,” Brazier explains.

“His team liked it, they showed him, and he liked it.

“It was a kind of luck thing; I didn’t think he was going to do it.

“He recorded it in the studio the day before he went back home.

“He literally did it at 1 am and I was literally ordering cars for him, it was crazy.”

For Brazier, the craziness continues as a Cobra this season, aiming to find his feet on the court after a long lay-off.

The music prodigy will be in action on NBL1 South opening night this weekend when Kilsyth takes on Waverley.