Jalessa Vincent — Feature Article

JALEESA VINCENT

WORDS — ALI KLINKENBERG PHOTOS — JESS JAMES

FROM FREE SURFING TO TAP DANCING TO PAINTING AND JEWELLERY DESIGN, JALEESA VINCENT IS JUST TRYING TO EXPAND HER MIND.

Jaleesa Vincent writes “lifeguard” on her immigration forms—or she did, a couple of years back when there were regular opportunities to travel—but she’s generally a professional freesurfer. She’s one of only a few women who are paid to surf non-competitively. But aside from surfing, she paints, makes jewellery, writes poetry and dances Chicago-style onstage with her band, Cupid and the Stupids. It’s this whole package, along with her ability to do it all with style, that makes her such an interesting character.

There’s a mysterious quality that makes people stand out, regardless of the crowd. It’s a hard-to-define trait, but one that’s coveted and largely absent, especially in the art, surf, skate and music worlds, where being contrived is the cardinal sin and 99% of participants are certified sinners. No, it’s unknown what one does to be blessed with this elusive je ne sais quoi, but Jaleesa Vincent has it. Whatever it is, she’s got it in abundance. “Even in kindy I was trying to perfect the self-portrait,” she says. “It was a big part of my life even before I started surfing. I haven’t been to art school or anything, but I had a really amazing art teacher, Miss Robinson. I hated high school, but she inspired me heaps and I used to spend break times in the art [rooms].”

Jaleesa’s known to some as “Jellybean”, as she’s apparently also blessed with the gift of being able to accurately estimate the number of jelly beans in a jar. When I caught up with the 22-year-old Bangalow resident, she was back where she grew up, on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, visiting her parents. Jaleesa blowing back into town coincided with another lockdown, so she had time to chat. Jaleesa says that going to art school one day is not completely out of the question, but admits that the main thing holding her back is the “fear of staying in the same spot.” As for the art practice in her current life-work balance, Jaleesa says that consistency is the key for maximum peace of mind.

“I guess growing up on the Sunny Coast was a pretty chill environment,” Jaleesa tells me. “Lots of surfy groms, so I got into the surfing and did all the classic boardriders stuff and all that. But then I’ve got a group of friends who are all creative and into art and music, so they guided me into that.” “Putting bones back together, fashion, sewing, writing, poetry, it all informs part of who I am,” she says. “If I do a little bit each day then I feel good. It makes me feel productive, but it also clears my mind and makes me excited. I like going to sleep with a new idea for the next day. That’s how my brain works. I can’t not be doing anything.”

Surfing has had a long and sordid relationship with art. Surfers have painted their crafts for decades, and plenty log their tax returns under “surfer/artist”. From surf art’s psychedelic origins with artists like Rick Griffin, through Australian interpretations like the early Hot Buttered offerings, Mambo, Lost… and then more of the surfer first, artist a close second, in the style of Ozzie Wright. There’s a difference between those who can make art, and those who can’t not make art. Jaleesa tells me that she’s always been in the latter camp. When it comes to surfing, Jaleesa’s a member of an elite squad. “Elite” because of the surfing pedigree required to join and the highly selective nature, but not in terms of how the word’s regularly used. If anything, you’d call RAGE antielite, but that certainly doesn’t mean anyone can join. It’s the grip company started by surfers Noa Deane, Creed McTaggart, Ellis Ericson, Beau Foster, and filmmaker/Skeggs bassist Toby Cregan (with Shaun Manners and Jaleesa and her brother Jake as the additional teamriders).

“PUTTING BONES BACK TOGETHER, FASHION, SEWING, WRITING, POETRY, IT ALL INFORMS PART OF WHO I AM.”

“I FEEL LIKE I’M ONLY JUST STARTING OUT, AND I MAINLY GET NERVOUS BECAUSE FEEL SORRY FOR PEOPLE STANDING ON THE BEACH. I JUST TRY SURFING LIKE IT’S A FREESURF. WHICH IT IS.” The RAGE mob is more akin to the blueprint of a skate company than your usual surf squad. It’s rider-owned and the only place to get a grip, leash or hoodie is on rageragerage.com. Their hallmark output is their films. Jaleesa made her debut in the latest, RAGE 3, which saw all the gang board a boat to Indonesia’s Mentawai Islands for a week of straight raging.

I

Jaleesa’s surfing in the film was refreshing. As well as being the only female on team RAGE, she’s also the only goofy. Her surfing’s everything we’ve not come to expect from the few females surf companies allow to enter the freesurfing space. In short, Jaleesa doesn’t just go straight and look great, she rips; throwing fins, chucking buckets with signature laybacks in the pocket and hunting any left tube breaking throughout the archipelago. It’s a brand of femme thrash not before seen, reminiscent of Ozzie Wright’s career defining performance in seminal classic Seven Days Seven Slaves.

“I’m so lucky to have such a sick crew to inspire me and push me,” Jaleesa says of the RAGE gang. “I always want to surf with them, but I mainly have fun and don’t like to put too much pressure on myself.”

Filming for a surf film can be fraught. Far more time is spent in the car, plane or boat than in the ocean, and when it’s go time, the pressure to perform is often overwhelming. Jaleesa says she tries to focus less on banking clips and more on having fun, then hoping it translates.

“There’s no point me filming and having a shit time,” Jaleesa says. “I feel like I’m only just starting out, and I mainly get nervous because I feel sorry for people standing on the beach. I just try surfing like it’s a freesurf. Which it is.”

Below Paintings by Jaleesa Vincent

Jaleesa keeps the purse strings tight and survives from her modest surfing pay-cheque, but music’s becoming more and more a part of her life. Currently she sings and dances—mainly tap dances—in a band called Cupid and the Stupids, which also features her brother Jake on rhythm guitar. The band’s on-stage presence is pure Rocky Horror chaos. There’s an army of them all dressed up like ‘80s glam vampires, and the songs are high energy and catchy. Jaleesa holds down the percussion section, shaking the tambourine and stomping and clacking at the tap dancing board. She also joins in on the vocals – many of Cupid and the Stupids’ songs contain a mishmash of harmonies and layered vocal tracks.

“Originally the band was called Israeli Chicks, but they had to change the name,” Jaleesa says. “They figured they may as well start a new band, and my brother was keen to join and I can tap dance. It’s seven of us all up. We play rock and roll love songs, and it’s kind of a cabaret show.”

The pandemic’s obviously slowed Cupid and the Stupids from spreading their raunchy live show as widely as they’d like, but Jaleesa says that they’ve managed to squeeze in a few memorable gigs between the ever-changing Australian restrictions.

“We played Forest Fuzz near Bribie Island, that was super special,” says Jaleesa. “But heaps of gigs have been cancelled. It seems like whenever we organise something, COVID pops back up, so we’ve been working on an album as at least we can do that in our own time. Then we’re definitely doing a tour.”

“IF I’M AT HOME I TRY AND STAY OCCUPIED WITH PAINTING, CAMPING, READING A BOOK AND LEARNING SOME NEW WORDS. AS LONG AS I’M EXPANDING MY MIND, I FEEL PRODUCTIVE.”

From the outside, you’d be forgiven for thinking that someone like Jaleesa is absolutely cruising through the current period of uncertainty. In some ways, it has been a ripe time for creatives like her to hunker down and be productive. But then again, music touring is on hold, art shows are hard to organise and you can’t travel for waves. That makes it hard. When your job description’s broad, the fear that the rug’s going to be yanked out from under you at any point is ever present, and during the pandemic it’s been all-consuming for some. Jaleesa, however, seems positive about it all. She’s still ticking along with her various projects, staying patient and learning what she can along the way.

“I’ve never really had a plan,” she says. “I’ve been trying to get some good waves and would love to make a surf film. Other than that I’ve been working on some paintings for a show at the end of the year and recording music. But even if I’m at home I try and stay occupied with painting, camping, reading a book and learning some new words. As long as I’m expanding my mind, I feel productive.”