William G. Shields, better known as Jehst or a slew of aliases including The High Plains Drifter and Jay Star, is an English rapper and co-founder of hip hop label YNR. Born in Kent in ’79, Jehst spent his early childhood in Crowborough in Sussex before moving to Huddersfield where he experienced the bleak realities of the post-industrial north, which have been such an influence on his lyrical style. After schooling Jehst moved to the Harrow Campus of the University of Westminster to study illustration and English Literature. His debut release came in 1999 with the Premonitions EP on YNR, which he co-founded with Leeds hip-hop artist, Tommy Evans. His solo career extended further when he appeared on Task Force’s EP Voice of the Great Outdoors (2000) with the track ‘Cosmic Gypsies’, which resulted in a long time association with Low Life Records. The release of four 12″ records on the same label soon followed, while at around the same time in 2002 Jehst was also a pivotal member of the seven man group ‘Champions of Nature’, whose members included AM, Apollo, L. Dolo, Lewis Parker, Profound and Supa T. The group eventually released two EP’s before disbanding, but not … Continue reading (Video) Jehst, One of UK’s Finest