Jah Jah
The life and work partners behind the Afro-vegan canteen discuss their signature blend of music, food, and outdoor living.
Cyrus Goberville: Can you introduce yourself and tell me what you do?
Gomis Daquisiline: My name is Gomis Daquisiline, I am the co-founder of the restaurant Jah Jah, which I opened with my partner Coralie Jouhier five years ago. We started with a cargo bike, Le Tricycle, seven years ago, with which we sold hot dogs at festivals, did catering for events, etc. Besides that, we have a hiking club called Jahiking, where we prepare monthly hikes all over France. The goal is to do Kilimanjaro one day. We also organize live sets with the new sound system we designed, Jah Jah Sound System, which will be presented at KALEIDOSCOPE Manifesto. Kyu Steed, Juls, Shaun Sky, Cesta, Benjiflow, J2K, and myself, aka Jadaquiss, will be DJing over the course of the four days.
CG: How did you get into music?
GD: The goal of Jah Jah, what we are looking for, is bliss. For us, the balance of a life resides in three points: music, sport (outdoors), and good food (vegan).
CG: The restaurant has a strong emotional value for you?
GD: It’s a family business. I set it up with Coralie. I’ve been with her for almost 15 years, and I am 32 years old. We grew up together. This project, we did it from A to Z, together. For us, the vision was simple: the nomadic lifestyle. We wanted to move with the bike and present our hot dogs all over the world. So we started to do caterings, and little by little, we took off and people liked it very much. At some point, they started asking us when we would have a permanent venue. It all happened pretty quickly.
CG: Amazing! Love is the basis of this professional project?
GD: Love, passion, and dreams.
CG: Do you dream as a couple?
GD: We both dream and now we know what each of us brings. Well, we always knew it more or less, but now, it feels like we have a balance and we simply complement each other. It's a real joy to work with her.
CG: How do you manage to combine the different practices you mentioned within the same place? Is music an important part of the restaurant?
GD: It is, but the sound system was made to welcome people outside. The purpose of the sound system is that you don't have to pay a ticket or go to a nightclub to listen to music. We want it to be accessible to everyone. That is what is missing here. We have traveled a lot, and, in some countries, music is everywhere, and you can feel that it plays on people's moods, attitudes. It’s an essential approach to life that must be brought to Paris.
CG: What are the places you have traveled to where you thought, “Fuck, this is what I want to do with my life!”?
GD: Each trip has brought us a lot. Jamaica gave us a lot about Rastafarian culture and philosophy. They even showed us the way, so to speak. Our trip to Senegal also enriched us a lot. The fact that they didn't have much but still were able to give and had a smile on their face really moved me. In the West, you think that it is the possession of goods that makes you happy, and when you go there, you see that in fact it is not the case. With almost nothing you can make yourself happy, and above all there is dream and hope. It's silly, but where there is hope there is life.
CG: How would you relate to the sporting part of your approach?
GD: Sport is like a therapy. In this city you are surrounded by cement and concrete: I call it the cement jungle. Getting out of the city helps you to reconnect with yourself. The best way to connect with yourself is to connect directly with nature. This is what gives you that feeling of belonging to a world bigger than yourself, to a whole unity.
CG: It is crazy how, in this post-Covid period, when I feel a lot of activity, I struggle a bit. I sometimes feel devoured by the city, exhausted by everything around me.
GD: We were born into this world and have accepted this way of life as normal. The fact that we had a break-up helped us to understand why this reality is too strong. Covid helped people to understand that life is not about running in all directions to nowhere, but rather about seeking love, reconnecting with yourself, vibrating again. There is a fullness when you watch a sunset or wake up in nature. There are no words for that.
CG: It is actually a political process, what you're saying, on a micro-scale. Indeed, the fact of regaining control of oneself through gustatory pleasure, through the pleasure of the ear, through physical pleasure… The word “pleasure” is a bit off, but you know what I mean—an “accomplishment,” rather.
GD: I know what you mean. For me, music is the food of the soul.
CG: What are you listening to these days?
GD: I am really into jungle style at the moment. I am stuck on that. Otherwise, a lot of dub and a bit of rap. But I am more into jungle—I call it “afro-techno.” The whole South African movement Amapiano. I think that we really need that “BOOM” in our lives—that giant noise, that energy, that wake-up call, that slap in the face.