From Childhood Slang to a Mobile Game, CJ Nurse Brings JANK to Life
Decades ago, Christopher “CJ” Nurse remembers spending time with his friends Troy and Patrick at the Lake Edwards apartments in Virginia Beach. The three were fans of hip-hop, which was still emerging nationally as a cultural force. That influence sparked their interest in slang, and they began experimenting with words, including their own variation of “joint.” The resulting expression, “jank,” became part of their everyday conversations, whether on the basketball court or at school.
Years later, after living in several cities and states, Nurse returned to Virginia, moving to Richmond in 2025. While teaching students and interacting with people around the city, he began hearing that same expression again. A word he remembered using in his youth was still part of the local vernacular decades later. The experience renewed his curiosity about the origins of slang, how language travels and its influence on culture. Although Nurse does not claim to have established the word’s origins, the personal connection eventually inspired him to develop a mobile word game that he aptly named JANK.
Nurse moved from Atlanta to Richmond to teach Mass Communications at Virginia Union University, bringing experience in filmmaking, creative production, education and software development. As the founder of ContentCreators.life, his work has included documentaries, interviews, live events and educational content, along with helping other creators develop their platforms. At heart, Nurse is a storyteller and communicator working across multiple mediums. Those experiences helped shape JANK, which combines his interest in language with his technical and creative abilities.
JANK’s home screen displays city packs and play modes. (Image courtesy of Christopher “CJ” Nurse)
JANK’s timed gameplay screen features a letter grid, score and heat meter. (Image courtesy of Christopher “CJ” Nurse)
JANK’s profile screen offers a selection of player avatars. (Image courtesy of Christopher “CJ” Nurse)
A Different Kind of Word Game
Nurse recognized that there were already numerous word games available, including Ruzzle, which helped inspire JANK. What he wanted, however, was an experience built around words and expressions that people commonly use but might not find in traditional word games. Slang can communicate geography, generational identity, shared experiences and humor. A single expression can carry different meanings depending on where it is used, who is speaking and the circumstances surrounding a conversation.
“There’s so much creativity in everyday language. Slang carries humor, personality, place, and shared experience,” Nurse said. He wanted JANK to recognize that familiarity by combining the competitive experience of a word game with language drawn from everyday conversations. As an example, Nurse points to the word “cap,” which he has used in his Language for Communicators class. Depending on the context, the word can refer to a hat or suggest that someone is lying. Understanding the difference requires more than knowing how to spell it.
The game also introduces players to expressions they might not recognize, creating opportunities for different generations and communities to share their knowledge of language. Nurse recognizes that tracing slang to its origins is not always straightforward. Words travel between cities and communities, often acquiring different meanings along the way, and hearing an expression in one place does not necessarily establish where it originated. Determining which expressions belong in JANK requires a similar awareness of how language evolves. Nurse draws on his experiences living in different cities, researching expressions and listening to the ways people communicate. Players can also submit slang for consideration, helping expand the game’s vocabulary beyond his personal knowledge and allowing it to reflect language from different communities and generations.
From an Idea to an App
Turning the idea into a functioning mobile game proved challenging. Development required a continuous process of building, playing, testing and revising. Nurse worked with an AI assistant he calls Bonita to help develop the game, drawing on his existing experience creating websites, applications and software. Throughout the process, he tested different aspects of the experience, from the responsiveness of tracing words on a screen to the sounds, scoring system and competitive features. Developing an enjoyable game was only part of the challenge. Making it available on both iPhone and Android required additional attention to user profiles, purchases, connectivity and the technical requirements of each platform.
JANK has already progressed through its initial release and the launch of version 2.0, but Nurse continues to develop the game. The newer version expands its cultural and competitive elements with artist-name boards, text slang, HBCU rankings, “Who Want Smoke” challenges, streaks and bonuses. Players can also contribute expressions for consideration, allowing the game’s vocabulary to evolve alongside the language it represents. Subsequent updates have addressed stability, user profiles, purchase restoration and additional word packs, while Nurse continues working to improve the ways players connect, challenge one another and return to the game.
Maintaining and expanding the application requires ongoing work, particularly as Nurse continues teaching at Virginia Union University while operating his filmmaking and production business. For him, the development process is an extension of his creative work rather than a departure from it. The same attention to pacing, presentation and audience engagement that informs his production work also influences the experience he is building for players.
Beyond the Mobile Screen
As an educator at Virginia Union University, Nurse remains immersed in the language and competitive culture of college students. Their interest in the game has helped him envision opportunities beyond individual mobile gameplay, including live competitions that begin with students at VUU and eventually expand into campus-to-campus tournaments. His vision includes potential competitions involving Virginia State University and other historically Black colleges and universities, along with the possibility of broadcasting events through platforms such as Twitch.
Although those tournaments remain aspirations rather than established competitions, they reflect a broader purpose behind the project. Organizing and broadcasting events could provide students with opportunities to gain experience in content production, technology, entrepreneurship and audience development. Nurse sees those possibilities as another way to connect his work as an educator with his interests in media and technology.
Ultimately, Nurse wants students to recognize that their own ideas can become products and potentially lead to professional opportunities. “I want them to see that they can build something people actually use,” he said. JANK is an example of that philosophy. What began as a childhood expression among friends became a source of curiosity about language and culture, eventually inspiring a mobile game that others can experience. For Nurse, the journey demonstrates that creative opportunities do not always begin with elaborate plans or major resources. Sometimes they begin with something as simple as a word.
JANK is available for iPhone through Apple’s App Store and Android through Google Play.
