Whose House? Jeremy’s House!

Photo by Callie Lugosi

“I’ve been in Winnipeg my whole life. I only started liking it a year ago.”

Jeremy Haywood-Smith, a.k.a. JayWood, is getting ready for his second appearance at the Big Fun Festival on Jan. 25.

“I call it Mac-DeMarco-Tame-Impala-weird-psych-pop-shoegaze thing going on. It’s always changing and doing stuff, because I get bored with it,” Haywood-Smith says of his musical style.

Beyond the categorization, his music comes from a more personal place.

“I use it to talk about myself. It’s a commentary on my behaviour and other people’s behaviour. Just watching people and watching society, you just make an opinion about things and people,” he says.

Haywood-Smith moved into this cozy ground-floor bachelor a stone’s throw from the Golden Boy last spring.

For him, living alone has been life-saving. After a raucous struggle last year, he has learned how to make his mental health a priority.

“I had to really look at myself and build myself back up. After, I was like ‘okay, how am I going to do this in a way that works?’”

His meditation practice, workouts, music and personal space are all essential to keeping the creative introvert grounded.

“For the past year, I’ve been keeping up with myself. A lot of self-checks. Keeping in tune with myself so I don’t lose my crap again. It’s exhausting, but it’s what you gotta do.”

Man's best socks


“At the (Forth) staff party, I got these lovely socks. (My coworker embroidered) my name on the paper. It was super pretty – I felt so guilty ripping it up. I’d never met Nicole or even talked to her and then she got those and I was like, ‘How did she know I love designer socks?’ I feel like I need an occasion to wear these. Probably Big Fun.”

Treasure Chest

“This is where I keep all my extra stuff. All my pedals, MIDI controllers. This is such a terrible drawer. It just slides open. I think there’s ghosts or something.”

Wall of Fame

“Jaywood started in 2014 but got more serious last year – went into full swing doing the concerts pretty regularly.”

Bedtime reading


“I read the Walking Dead comic series. I’ve been meaning to finish it again, because it’s really fun.”

Feline Facsimile


“I was trying to find where to put that for the longest time, and that just felt like the most perfect spot for it. I’ve been debating getting a cat. This might be the year I do that.”

Bring in the Zen


“I was really torn between a bunch of different tapestries, and this one kinda had a Japanese vibe to it. I was over in Japan in 2015, and I just love that country so much.”

Published in Volume 73, Number 14 of The Uniter (January 17, 2019)

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