Fade
The Beat Strangler
Administrator
illest o.g.
First let me thank you for taking the time to sit with IllMuzik again, October will make two years. What's been going on since?
Thanks for having me again!!! Since the last time we met I have been pretty busy with a few things on the DJ tip traveling, studying and analyzing the game so I can create a bigger lane for myself to run through.
You rep Brooklyn to the fullest! Tell me why you put it on for your city the way you do?
Bushwick Brooklyn to be exact. NY is the foundation of this hip hop culture. I feel I got to rep it even more now because NY has been losing its identity for the past few years to everything from music to fashion. There was a point in time where people outside of NY was trying to sound like and copy whatever was going on in NY. Now it's just reversed NY is doing everything everybody else is doing and not being NY. It's time for NY to return to its old form.
Who and or what influences you?
If we speaking production wise, Dilla, Pete, Preem, Large Pro, Beatminerz, just to name a few those guys put 100% of themselves into their music. Life influences I can speak for the next two hours about that but to sum it up I will say the state of the economy alone is enough to influence a person to want more for themselves. It's getting real ugly.
When was the first track you put together, do you remember? What software do you use now and compare the ease of production from your first track now that everything has gone "computerized".
Lol I don't have an exact time frame but I will say I was young. I started out with a dual cassette deck and a Casio SK-5 lol that keyboard sampled for like 5 seconds so you had to sample on 45 or even 78 rpm. I would sample a record, loop it manually on cassette for a few minutes then take that cassette play it back while recording another sample over that then I took that cassette played it back and recorded another sample over that you get the picture? So now by the time I'm done there is so much air in the cassette tape from re-recording that it sounds like you recorded the beat outside lol but atleast I was able to hear the results of my thoughts. Then I went on to a sampler and a 4 track recorder and so forth. Now things are different everything has gone from analog track boards to digital software and gear which makes things a lot easier but you lose a lot of the umph and grittiness of the analog sound now that things have gone digital.
Tell me a bit about your style of production. Heavy on the samples? Lots of instruments, do you play any?
No I don't play any instruments but I was mean with the spoons when I was a kid... lol! Yes heavy on the sampling, it's not easy to create dope music using just instruments. Everybody can't be a Pharell or any of those other guys that don't do a lot of sampling. So yes, I do use a lot of sampling.
Who are your favorite producers? Give me a current song that blew your mind and tell me why?
To be honest with the way music has changed there really isn't anything that has come out on a broad scale that has blown my mind but I can give you my all time favorites: "Shut Em' Down"- Pete Rock remix that joint right there was ill. The way Pete pan mixed that he had samples playing in the left he had samples playing in the right then he had that horn that was bouncing from one ear to the other probably the best hip hop remix of all times. "Players" Slum Village. The way J Dilla flipped that sample he had you thinking it was saying plaaaaaayers when it was actually saying Claaaaaaaire only a mind of a genius would have thought of doing that. "Murray's Revenge"-Murs. The way 9th wonder chopped up Bob James "Nautilus" was incredible it had me in instant head nod mode from beginning to end. I can't forget DJ Premier for all the numerous bangers he produced. So there you have it - some of my favorite producers.
What's the process when your beats are made? Is it all about stacking product or getting it out to artists as soon as you've made it?
When I make a beat I just go with what ever record catch my ear at the time. I think my best work is done late night in the wee hours of the morning when my brain has settled down from all the stuff going on throughout the day. When I'm done sometimes I'll just sit there and listen to the beat for about 30 mins and try to imagine different rappers on it. When I make a beat most of the time my beats are just a shell then I'll give it to the artist, when the artist records the song then I'll go back and add stuff to it to tighten up the song.
Anything we should be looking out for, I don't know like ummm maybe a particular album?
Yes indeed! Look out for the long awaited Dysfunkshunal Familee LP titled "Familee Reunion" this September. A group which consist of D-Rock, Amayss, Bazarro & myself. There is a lot of joints on there we got features from General Steele (Smif n Wessun), Sadat X, O.C, MC Graig G, Jean Grae, 5 FT (Blackmoon) just to name a few. With production by myself, Da Beatminerz, 9th Wonder, Will Tell, AaGee (Hieroglyphics) Bazarro and more. I'm hoping it's labeled a "classic".
Where can we find you online?
You can catch my hip hop show "The DuRag Hour" every Friday 8pm [est] on Beatminerz Radio www.dabeatminerz.com or Beatminerz Radio on your Ustream channel and of course you can find me on twitter @dj_skinny so log on and hit me up.
Let's get those shout outs, shall we?
Shout out to my Beatminerz Radio family and to everyone that has given me their support from day one to now, IllMuzik and you Pink for having me again.
Thanks for having me again!!! Since the last time we met I have been pretty busy with a few things on the DJ tip traveling, studying and analyzing the game so I can create a bigger lane for myself to run through.
You rep Brooklyn to the fullest! Tell me why you put it on for your city the way you do?
Bushwick Brooklyn to be exact. NY is the foundation of this hip hop culture. I feel I got to rep it even more now because NY has been losing its identity for the past few years to everything from music to fashion. There was a point in time where people outside of NY was trying to sound like and copy whatever was going on in NY. Now it's just reversed NY is doing everything everybody else is doing and not being NY. It's time for NY to return to its old form.
Who and or what influences you?
If we speaking production wise, Dilla, Pete, Preem, Large Pro, Beatminerz, just to name a few those guys put 100% of themselves into their music. Life influences I can speak for the next two hours about that but to sum it up I will say the state of the economy alone is enough to influence a person to want more for themselves. It's getting real ugly.
When was the first track you put together, do you remember? What software do you use now and compare the ease of production from your first track now that everything has gone "computerized".
Lol I don't have an exact time frame but I will say I was young. I started out with a dual cassette deck and a Casio SK-5 lol that keyboard sampled for like 5 seconds so you had to sample on 45 or even 78 rpm. I would sample a record, loop it manually on cassette for a few minutes then take that cassette play it back while recording another sample over that then I took that cassette played it back and recorded another sample over that you get the picture? So now by the time I'm done there is so much air in the cassette tape from re-recording that it sounds like you recorded the beat outside lol but atleast I was able to hear the results of my thoughts. Then I went on to a sampler and a 4 track recorder and so forth. Now things are different everything has gone from analog track boards to digital software and gear which makes things a lot easier but you lose a lot of the umph and grittiness of the analog sound now that things have gone digital.
Tell me a bit about your style of production. Heavy on the samples? Lots of instruments, do you play any?
No I don't play any instruments but I was mean with the spoons when I was a kid... lol! Yes heavy on the sampling, it's not easy to create dope music using just instruments. Everybody can't be a Pharell or any of those other guys that don't do a lot of sampling. So yes, I do use a lot of sampling.
Who are your favorite producers? Give me a current song that blew your mind and tell me why?
To be honest with the way music has changed there really isn't anything that has come out on a broad scale that has blown my mind but I can give you my all time favorites: "Shut Em' Down"- Pete Rock remix that joint right there was ill. The way Pete pan mixed that he had samples playing in the left he had samples playing in the right then he had that horn that was bouncing from one ear to the other probably the best hip hop remix of all times. "Players" Slum Village. The way J Dilla flipped that sample he had you thinking it was saying plaaaaaayers when it was actually saying Claaaaaaaire only a mind of a genius would have thought of doing that. "Murray's Revenge"-Murs. The way 9th wonder chopped up Bob James "Nautilus" was incredible it had me in instant head nod mode from beginning to end. I can't forget DJ Premier for all the numerous bangers he produced. So there you have it - some of my favorite producers.
What's the process when your beats are made? Is it all about stacking product or getting it out to artists as soon as you've made it?
When I make a beat I just go with what ever record catch my ear at the time. I think my best work is done late night in the wee hours of the morning when my brain has settled down from all the stuff going on throughout the day. When I'm done sometimes I'll just sit there and listen to the beat for about 30 mins and try to imagine different rappers on it. When I make a beat most of the time my beats are just a shell then I'll give it to the artist, when the artist records the song then I'll go back and add stuff to it to tighten up the song.
Anything we should be looking out for, I don't know like ummm maybe a particular album?
Yes indeed! Look out for the long awaited Dysfunkshunal Familee LP titled "Familee Reunion" this September. A group which consist of D-Rock, Amayss, Bazarro & myself. There is a lot of joints on there we got features from General Steele (Smif n Wessun), Sadat X, O.C, MC Graig G, Jean Grae, 5 FT (Blackmoon) just to name a few. With production by myself, Da Beatminerz, 9th Wonder, Will Tell, AaGee (Hieroglyphics) Bazarro and more. I'm hoping it's labeled a "classic".
Where can we find you online?
You can catch my hip hop show "The DuRag Hour" every Friday 8pm [est] on Beatminerz Radio www.dabeatminerz.com or Beatminerz Radio on your Ustream channel and of course you can find me on twitter @dj_skinny so log on and hit me up.
Let's get those shout outs, shall we?
Shout out to my Beatminerz Radio family and to everyone that has given me their support from day one to now, IllMuzik and you Pink for having me again.
