Here at Encourage The Creative, I’m running a Black History Month segment where I cover current Black Creatives that are forging their own paths in the creative-sphere. I thought that it would be a wonderful opportunity to shed light on the current creatives spearheading the culture. The next creative that I would like to place in the spotlight is:
Jroc, Jasper Noland, Chicago native, Entrepreneur/Filmmaker (Director and Producer)/Celebrity Barber, IG: @Jroclmtms
Jroc, Jasper Noland, grew up on the East side of Chicago, or to correctly say it in Chicago terms, “over East.” He is a masterful creative with a host of talents attached to his name. While, yes, he is a filmmaker, Jroc is also a professional barber and humanitarian.
As an entrepreneur, Jroc is passionate about encouraging other entrepreneurs to keep going or even to get started.“ His recipe for a successful entrepreneur is that “you gotta have the heart for entrepreneurship. You gotta have God first. You gotta have the whole mindset of going straight into entrepreneurship, I’m quitting my 9-5, I’m doing what I gotta do, but you gotta have a product to sell, whether that’s a podcast, shirts, lashes, whatever. If you want to enter entrepreneurship, find out what you’re passionate about doing.” Jroc encourages “everyone out there that wants to get something done JUST DO IT and worry bout the results later..”
Which are all great things for anyone already in the entrepreneurial lane or looking to get into it to hear. Being an entrepreneur takes a huge amount of passion, determination, being willing to get out of your own way and a will to be led by God through all parts of the journey. Jroc is very open and vocal about his love for God and the role he plays in his life.
As a filmmaker, Jroc really sprung into action when he began to create LMTMS (Let Me Tell My Story) in 2010 alongside his best friend Mark Thomas, also raised on the East side of Chicago. LMTMS is first a media company and secondly a self titled documentary about the stigma of wanting to break out of your shell and comfort zone. The film was released in September of 2018 with private screenings and officially placed on YouTube for mass consumption in October of 2018.
They “use their struggles as a positive outlet to express their unique talent.” Jroc admits that their inspiration for this was them being uncomfortable when they were younger and says they were also uncomfortable making a movie for their first time. The pair combined forces as a professional barber and tattoo artist/clothing designer to create LMTMS.
Adamantly seeing this idea through has led them to grow, with Jroc now being a celebrity stylist, and Mark working as a tattoo artist at one of the most prestigious tattoo shops located in Chicago, 9Mag. Talk about sticking to the script, they did exactly what they set out to do, shake off the shackles of the comfort zone. Remaining true to their entrepreneurial spirits, they also created and sold merchandise branded with LMTMS.
On the fifth anniversary of LMTMS in 2023, Jroc commented, “we worked so hard on this project for years to come back to our neighborhood theater and sell out 2-3 times 150 seats.. amazing experience but I couldn’t do it with out..” and he went on to thank everyone that made LMTMS come to life.
In November of 2022, Jroc went on to collaborate with Mo Media to release the short film titled, VOICES. VOICES is a Chicago story about a young man trying to find purpose while facing adversity. Jroc in his own words states that he “made this film within 7days in quarantine with a full team of dedicated people to show people what’s really going on in the world. We are in a time that’s difficult to explain but clear to see. This project was God driven. Everything we did all fall in place under a week. I make films to help the people see what’s up with the world and what we do to become better. We will rise, we will fight, POWER TO THE PEOPLE . We are the revolution.”
In 2023, VOICES was chosen to be shown for students at Columbia College Chicago (located 1104 S. Wabash Avenue, Chicago, IL) in honor of Black History Month.
As I mentioned before, Jroc is a professional barber and natural hair stylist. He added natural hair and loc styling into his journey in 2020 when he enrolled into Christian Fields Natural Hair Academy (located 6550 S Cottage Grove, Chicago, IL.
Jroc utilized 2020 as a rebranding year for himself as a barber. He stated that his “attention grew short for the art of barbering because of other things I wanted to accomplish. It’s always been a goal of mine visually to catch the attention of people through barbering.” He took a new approach to his marketing and even prices for his services. Jroc has had the opportunity to display his work at hair shows where he demonstrated his barber expertise for an audience. He has had celebrity clients such as Future, Metro Boomin, Saba Pivot, Frsh Waters and Matt Muse.
I met JRoc at a time where I was looking to break out of my comfort zone and do more of the things that I’ve always wanted to but didn’t necessarily have the confidence to. I remember seeing him post on Instagram looking for people to be a part of a project of his and Trent Williams titled, Creative Ties. Something in me just took that as a cue to commence project “come out of that shell” and so I did just that. I reached out and ended up being picked to come and be a part of it.
The only assignment we were given was to wear clothing that was made a black brand. I vividly remember driving to Succezz, a clothing/shoe store (located 2214 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL), praying my car didn’t get ticketed or towed because Chicago doesn’t waste any time. I had always had intentions on buying from there and this was the perfect opportunity. When filming day came, I walked into a room filled with other creatives such as directors, videographers, singers, rappers, graphic designers, dancers, audio engineers, you name it. It was an amazing atmosphere.
I can personally attest to JRoc’s growth in confidence and not being anywhere in the vicinity of a comfort zone. He was full of life, very welcoming, and vocal about what was going on in every scene and what he was looking for. His personality filled the room. He put an emphasis on all of the participants to exchange information to keep up with each other to network and just see what everybody is up to as we all are out on our own journeys. After filming, a few of us got food after and just joked and got to share more about what everyone did and future goals and plans. It was the perfect place for me to be at exactly the right moment. I got to see people that were extremely passionate about what they do, people like JRoc.
I later came back to work on a final piece for this same project. We had to meet at the Buckingham Fountain (located 301 S Columbus Dr, Chicago, IL) for a dance scene. I had no idea that I would be dancing, once again, I was still trying to get comfortable living out loud. This was the moment I found out JRoc also could….dance. He footworked, a beloved Chicago dance style that emerged from hip-hop and juke music during the 90s as local party goers encouraged DJs to speed up the tempo.
In between making short films and documentaries, Jroc likes to travel, attend concerts and festivals. He even takes out time to document those experiences. Jroc also directs other projects such as music videos, content and ads for brands, etc.
Jroc’s latest filmmaking endeavor is “Socks on Concrete” which is a collaboration between himself and Devin Brown. Socks on Concrete tells a story of betrayal and culture. It’s a 3 part saga about 4 young men that are forced to make decisions as young adults. It also highlights the importance of Chicago and its influence throughout the world today.
As an independent filmmaker, raising money for projects is done independently as well. Jroc has been seen several times on social media persistently raising funds for Socks on Concrete via social media and actual in person events. It takes extreme belief in self to not only come up with an idea but then put yourself in the spotlight to raise funds to bring your dream into fruition. As of February 27, 2024, Jroc’s GoFundMe reports a total of 1.2k donations, totaling $9,035 out of a $10,000 goal. Click the link to become a part of history by helping him to reach or possibly even exceed that $10,000 goal for Socks on Concrete.
Jroc uses his platform to entertain and educate. Often you can find him speaking on current events and the current state of the world and encouraging others to stay strong during the times. I believe that in addition to his skills, his superpower is that he has an incredible sense of humor with a balance of seriousness for what’s going on in the world. He cares, and cares enough to try to steer the world into a better direction. This allows him to be able to connect with a wide range of audience. He has depth and comes across as someone authentic that you can really relate to.
As you can see Jroc’s resume is extensive and really speaks volumes for the hunger and passion that lies within him. Jroc is a wonderful embodiment of what Chicago has the potential to mold and produce. He has a huge love for the culture and making sure that people are given a real and rare view of life in the city of Chicago. In a city where economic and social pressures can easily force the youth to be led astray, he is actively showing them that he understands those pressures and is constantly showing them positive ways to outlet. Not only for the youth, but just for people in general, Jroc is proof of what can happen when you really choose to tune out fear and doubt and choose to take a leap of faith into your destiny instead.
Jroc is a humanitarian, I’ve never seen him proclaim himself as one, but his words and actions fall directly in line with what a humanitarian is. In a world that can be dark at times, Jroc’s star will without a doubt continue to lead us into some wonderful enlightened spaces. Chicago is proud of Jasper “Jroc” Noland for every way that he has chosen to portray it, encourage the people in it, and for continuously following his dreams. Our creative ancestors would be so proud to see the path that you’ve carved for yourself and how you continue to pave new lanes for the culture.
We have only seen the beginning of Jroc’s journey and I look forward to seeing his future projects and entrepreneurial endeavors. Follow Jroc on Instagram (@Jroclmtms) to keep up with his journey, collaborate, or book him for his services. Remember that you have the opportunity to help Jroc bring “Socks on Concrete” to life by donating to his almost reached goal of $10,000 on GoFundMe. Please support this black creative!
Happy Black History Month! Thank you for reading and please return to read about the next highlighted Black creative that will conclude this segment for Black History Month 2024.
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✨K-E-E-P✨ C-R-E-A-T-I-N-G✨
