Mohammed Jarmak, aka Jares, is a 29-year-old engineer by day and a DJ and music producer by night. Originally from Lebanon, he moved to Montreal ten years ago. Jares is known for excelling in the melodic techno and progressive house subgenres.

“I sound quite dark, quite emotional and quite catchy. Those are the three words that best describe my music,” he said.

Although he may not have come from a very musical background, Jares was always interested in music and listened to a lot of different genres growing up. Ten years ago, when he came to study in Montreal, he went to his first rave and it changed his life. He became even more interested in music and started mixing for fun for his university radio: PolyRad, where he mixed for four years. At that time, he was also mixing at university parties.

It wasn't until years later that he started to dabble in music production, installing Ableton music software in 2018, but not taking it too seriously.

I started creating music because I wanted to be the person on the other side who created music to help people with their days, with their vibe or whatever other feeling they wanted to feel, ” Jares said.

While he had already learned the basics of music production, it wasn't until 2020 that he started taking it more seriously. With COVID-19 quarantining everyone, Jares had more time and spent much of his time producing music.

“I can't even imagine how my quarantine would have been if I hadn't started producing music. I had so much going on in my personal life that I had to find a way to get it all out and the music was one of them, and it was the best,” Jares said.

His music career really started to pick up steam after that, posting lots of songs online and mixing for different clubs and events while being an engineer during the day. His day job does not prevent him from concentrating on his musical career since he devotes about 25 hours a week to his passion. His hard work and love for music led him to play some of the hottest places in Montreal, like the Stereobar, which he says was one of the best nights of his life.

“Just getting the chance to be there, writing my own story with my music and playing original sounds too was just amazing. Honestly, I never thought that one day it would be possible and I'm really, really grateful to everyone who supported me to get me there,” said Jares.

Something important for Jares is that it is possible to enjoy electronic music without using drugs. While he believes people are free to do whatever they want, he believes people often associate electronic music with drug use, but would like to remind everyone that it is still possible to vibe with the music without being under the influence.

Do not believe that drugs are a barrier between you and electronic music. If you want to get into electronic music, go to any party, try not to have expectations, have fun and let off steam,” Jares said.

Jares Fact: When he was younger, Jares played Ping Pong competitively.