Fade
The Beat Strangler
Administrator
illest o.g.
Wizdom recently won our April 2007 Beat This! Competition and he takes the time to tell us about himself, his recording techniques, and offers advice for the rest of us!
Sup Wizdom, tell us about yourself.
Well, what can I say - I'm probably a bit older than most cats on this site. I'm getting my grown man on - married with one son and just tryna live the American dream. Been a fan of hip hop from the jump and have evolved to try to be an influencer of hip hop, not just a consumer.
When and how did you find IllMuzik?
I found IllMuzik only last year while surfing the internet. I was really just looking for some information and started digging a bit on areas to "improve me sound." lol... (that still makes me laugh).
How does it feel winning the Beat This! Competition?
Honestly, it feels really good. Almost like it is a "growth of feeling." What I mean by this is, when I first saw that I won, yeah I was happy and was like "cool." But as I thought about it more and reflected on the level of talent, dopeness and creativity within the IllMuzik family, I was like, "d*mn, I really won the joint..." So it feels really good and to know, at least for one day, that some well respected cats scattered around the planet thought that I brought the heat the best among my peers here at IllMuzik.
How did you create the winning beat?
This was a somewhat difficult Beat This! competition. I think you can tell by the lower number of entrants than last month that cats were probably scratching there heads on this one. I usually always start with the melody and build around that. The hardest thing about this was that you figure that's how most cats would start this since the melody's were pretty much given to everyone in the download package.
So, to answer your question, the first step in the creative process was to think of how I could differentiate my beat given that I would normally just start with the melody. The second thing I did was basically visualize the song itself. So, as I was playing with the beat, I actually wrote notes on how I "viewed" certain actions going on within the beat (like being on the stage - see intro)... I think this allowed me to be creative both visually and by sound. Sounds kinda funny, but it's pretty cool when you can visualize your beat in a certain scenario.
Do you usually use samples in your beats? Or do you mainly compose?
Aha!! So the interviewer fuels the debate!! (lol)... I definitely, positively, absolutely use samples. I played the flute and the d*mn cello as a kid and hated them both. So, while I've always been musically inclined, I don't have the depth of musical understanding and training to even fake like I compose. I can play a bit by ear, so most of my beats usually always have an element of both sampling and instrumentation (I won't offend the musical purists by claiming to compose)... I pretty much always sample as a foundation and then play my basslines and other instruments around the sample to taste.
What's your setup like?
I'm pretty basic man. The brain of the operation is FL Studio 7. I've been using FL since 2000 (was like Fruity Loops 3 or something) so I've just stuck with what I'm comfortable with. But I actually have various software are hardware elements that are all part of the mix: - Roland XP-80 keyboard workstation - Roland MC-307 - KRK Rockit 8 Monitors - Tascam US-428 (doesn't get much love these days) - Mackie 1202-VLZ - KORG padKONTROL - Stanton T.60 - Dell - VSTs/DXIs - Adobe Audition 2.0
When did you fist start making beats?
Well - I'll try to keep the drama to a low here while being honest. I used to make beats back in high school in the late 80's with this Casio keyboard I had. Once in college, my funds (lack thereof) pretty much killed any chance to keep at it. I started managing some R&B and Hip Hop cats in early / mid 90's and would go in some studios and get the bug. My boy knows this cat named Neal (originally did the Crystal Water's 'Homeless' track that TI used that was hot last year) and I remember getting the production bug after leaving his studio one day. It wasn't until the late 90's when I really started putting things together and then along came FL in March 2k.
What attracted you to the art of beat-making?
This may sound funny man, but Prince actually. Yes - the Artist himself. I actually used to get down on the singing tip and really wanted to make beats for myself. I loved the musical style of Prince, just as much as I loved hip hop. His complete genius of music from top to bottom made me try to emulate him on some level. It wasn't until I got serious in the early 2000's that I started studying other hip hop producers.
Do you also DJ or MC?
Nah man... What did Easy-E say - "yo Dre - stick to producing!!" Man, I tried my hand at rap and I'll tell you, I'm the type of cat that'll make rappin' Duke sound like Nas and sh*t...
Walk us through your typical beat-making session.
As I said earlier I normally start with finding that base sample. I like to pull about 3 to 6 good samples that I can work with. When I hear them, I normally can start to hear the beat before I even mess with them. Sometimes I'll chop a sample up and sometimes I'll leave it alone depending on the sample. Once I got my loop going I'll build the beat or bass line around the sample. If I can "feel" the basic loop then I usually keep pluggin away at creating more with the beat (intro's, changes, hooks, etc.)... I've also learned that some beats I'll stop working on within the first 5 - 10 minutes because I think they're wack off the break. I normally just save those. I can go back to that beat a month later and hear something different and end up making a pretty good track.
Have you worked with MC's? If so, what was it like?
Yes, I have worked with a few MC's. Each time it's different because MC's are different. Some come in and know what they want and have it prepared. Others are just "cipha gangstas." I'll call these cats that can sit around and spit to someone doing a Doug E Fresh impersonation but can't put down a verse or hook to save their *ss...
Give us some tips on working with MC's.
Well, let me say this - I consider myself to be a Producer, but I'm still learning. So my whole thing right now is to master the basics of recording an MC so when we get to the larger studio, neither he nor I look like idiots. So, besides going into detail of what to do in a recording session, I'll give two pieces of advice: 1) understand the basics of vocal recording (much of which is covered or referenced here on IllMuzik) and 2) make sure both the MC and you are on the same page so that you both understand each other and know what your tryna get accomplished in the studio. Since I have a wife and child, I don't have a lot of time to just "kick it" in the studio so we gotta be in sync. Kinda what I call - "Concentrated Creativity".
What do you think is lacking in most of today's beats?
Honestly, I really don't think anything is lacking. Why - because there are more sub-genres of hip hop than there has ever been. More producers with access to the world than there has ever been (see MySpace, Soundclick). It just depends on what you as an individual like to hear and what you are willing to do to find it. Think about it, the beats that we hear on the radio are for the kids and the trends. That's only one fraction of hip hop beats out there - it just happens to be the one's that record companies push to make the most money off of the masses. So, those 808, snap, crackle & pop beats are consistently in our face because they make $$$. Nothing wrong with those beats for the audience they're intended for.
Answer these 5 quick questions:
a. Who's your favorite rapper? Nas
b. Who's your favorite producer? Dr Dre
c. What's your favorite album?
d. What's your favorite style of music besides rap? 70's soul
e. What's your favorite year for rap music? 92
Do you have any upcoming projects?
Yes, I'm working with a cat in Maryland that hopefully should be out later this summer. I'll share more about that later.
If you could describe your own music to someone, what would you say?
Soul felt neck knockin' hip hop.
Any tips you'd like to give to the rest of the Ill-Fam?
I'd say to find what brings out the creativity in you to find your own sound. The root of music is just sound. If your ears ate food they'd want to taste something different from time to time. If you create a bangin' recipe that a large number of folks have a hunger for - boom, you just might have some folks that want to take an order.
Any shoutouts you'd like to give?
Yeah sure why not - shouts out to my wonderful Wife Jacquie and son AJ. Also whattup to Perry, Jay, CEO Ced, LocoAce and Darkside and Con Sin. Oh yeah, and all my IllMuzik fellow producers. Keep holdin' it down...
Sup Wizdom, tell us about yourself.
Well, what can I say - I'm probably a bit older than most cats on this site. I'm getting my grown man on - married with one son and just tryna live the American dream. Been a fan of hip hop from the jump and have evolved to try to be an influencer of hip hop, not just a consumer.
When and how did you find IllMuzik?
I found IllMuzik only last year while surfing the internet. I was really just looking for some information and started digging a bit on areas to "improve me sound." lol... (that still makes me laugh).
How does it feel winning the Beat This! Competition?
Honestly, it feels really good. Almost like it is a "growth of feeling." What I mean by this is, when I first saw that I won, yeah I was happy and was like "cool." But as I thought about it more and reflected on the level of talent, dopeness and creativity within the IllMuzik family, I was like, "d*mn, I really won the joint..." So it feels really good and to know, at least for one day, that some well respected cats scattered around the planet thought that I brought the heat the best among my peers here at IllMuzik.
How did you create the winning beat?
This was a somewhat difficult Beat This! competition. I think you can tell by the lower number of entrants than last month that cats were probably scratching there heads on this one. I usually always start with the melody and build around that. The hardest thing about this was that you figure that's how most cats would start this since the melody's were pretty much given to everyone in the download package.
So, to answer your question, the first step in the creative process was to think of how I could differentiate my beat given that I would normally just start with the melody. The second thing I did was basically visualize the song itself. So, as I was playing with the beat, I actually wrote notes on how I "viewed" certain actions going on within the beat (like being on the stage - see intro)... I think this allowed me to be creative both visually and by sound. Sounds kinda funny, but it's pretty cool when you can visualize your beat in a certain scenario.
Do you usually use samples in your beats? Or do you mainly compose?
Aha!! So the interviewer fuels the debate!! (lol)... I definitely, positively, absolutely use samples. I played the flute and the d*mn cello as a kid and hated them both. So, while I've always been musically inclined, I don't have the depth of musical understanding and training to even fake like I compose. I can play a bit by ear, so most of my beats usually always have an element of both sampling and instrumentation (I won't offend the musical purists by claiming to compose)... I pretty much always sample as a foundation and then play my basslines and other instruments around the sample to taste.
What's your setup like?
I'm pretty basic man. The brain of the operation is FL Studio 7. I've been using FL since 2000 (was like Fruity Loops 3 or something) so I've just stuck with what I'm comfortable with. But I actually have various software are hardware elements that are all part of the mix: - Roland XP-80 keyboard workstation - Roland MC-307 - KRK Rockit 8 Monitors - Tascam US-428 (doesn't get much love these days) - Mackie 1202-VLZ - KORG padKONTROL - Stanton T.60 - Dell - VSTs/DXIs - Adobe Audition 2.0
When did you fist start making beats?
Well - I'll try to keep the drama to a low here while being honest. I used to make beats back in high school in the late 80's with this Casio keyboard I had. Once in college, my funds (lack thereof) pretty much killed any chance to keep at it. I started managing some R&B and Hip Hop cats in early / mid 90's and would go in some studios and get the bug. My boy knows this cat named Neal (originally did the Crystal Water's 'Homeless' track that TI used that was hot last year) and I remember getting the production bug after leaving his studio one day. It wasn't until the late 90's when I really started putting things together and then along came FL in March 2k.
What attracted you to the art of beat-making?
This may sound funny man, but Prince actually. Yes - the Artist himself. I actually used to get down on the singing tip and really wanted to make beats for myself. I loved the musical style of Prince, just as much as I loved hip hop. His complete genius of music from top to bottom made me try to emulate him on some level. It wasn't until I got serious in the early 2000's that I started studying other hip hop producers.
Do you also DJ or MC?
Nah man... What did Easy-E say - "yo Dre - stick to producing!!" Man, I tried my hand at rap and I'll tell you, I'm the type of cat that'll make rappin' Duke sound like Nas and sh*t...
Walk us through your typical beat-making session.
As I said earlier I normally start with finding that base sample. I like to pull about 3 to 6 good samples that I can work with. When I hear them, I normally can start to hear the beat before I even mess with them. Sometimes I'll chop a sample up and sometimes I'll leave it alone depending on the sample. Once I got my loop going I'll build the beat or bass line around the sample. If I can "feel" the basic loop then I usually keep pluggin away at creating more with the beat (intro's, changes, hooks, etc.)... I've also learned that some beats I'll stop working on within the first 5 - 10 minutes because I think they're wack off the break. I normally just save those. I can go back to that beat a month later and hear something different and end up making a pretty good track.
Have you worked with MC's? If so, what was it like?
Yes, I have worked with a few MC's. Each time it's different because MC's are different. Some come in and know what they want and have it prepared. Others are just "cipha gangstas." I'll call these cats that can sit around and spit to someone doing a Doug E Fresh impersonation but can't put down a verse or hook to save their *ss...
Give us some tips on working with MC's.
Well, let me say this - I consider myself to be a Producer, but I'm still learning. So my whole thing right now is to master the basics of recording an MC so when we get to the larger studio, neither he nor I look like idiots. So, besides going into detail of what to do in a recording session, I'll give two pieces of advice: 1) understand the basics of vocal recording (much of which is covered or referenced here on IllMuzik) and 2) make sure both the MC and you are on the same page so that you both understand each other and know what your tryna get accomplished in the studio. Since I have a wife and child, I don't have a lot of time to just "kick it" in the studio so we gotta be in sync. Kinda what I call - "Concentrated Creativity".
What do you think is lacking in most of today's beats?
Honestly, I really don't think anything is lacking. Why - because there are more sub-genres of hip hop than there has ever been. More producers with access to the world than there has ever been (see MySpace, Soundclick). It just depends on what you as an individual like to hear and what you are willing to do to find it. Think about it, the beats that we hear on the radio are for the kids and the trends. That's only one fraction of hip hop beats out there - it just happens to be the one's that record companies push to make the most money off of the masses. So, those 808, snap, crackle & pop beats are consistently in our face because they make $$$. Nothing wrong with those beats for the audience they're intended for.
Answer these 5 quick questions:
a. Who's your favorite rapper? Nas
b. Who's your favorite producer? Dr Dre
c. What's your favorite album?
d. What's your favorite style of music besides rap? 70's soul
e. What's your favorite year for rap music? 92
Do you have any upcoming projects?
Yes, I'm working with a cat in Maryland that hopefully should be out later this summer. I'll share more about that later.
If you could describe your own music to someone, what would you say?
Soul felt neck knockin' hip hop.
Any tips you'd like to give to the rest of the Ill-Fam?
I'd say to find what brings out the creativity in you to find your own sound. The root of music is just sound. If your ears ate food they'd want to taste something different from time to time. If you create a bangin' recipe that a large number of folks have a hunger for - boom, you just might have some folks that want to take an order.
Any shoutouts you'd like to give?
Yeah sure why not - shouts out to my wonderful Wife Jacquie and son AJ. Also whattup to Perry, Jay, CEO Ced, LocoAce and Darkside and Con Sin. Oh yeah, and all my IllMuzik fellow producers. Keep holdin' it down...