bytha pound mag interviews

[bytha pound mag]

J. STALIN

J. Stalin
Interview by Black Dog Bone

Continued from Murder Dog vol 14 #2

The one reason the world is looking at the Bay right now is because of Hyphy. A lot of artists are afraid to be labeled as "Hyphy", but they should know that Hyphy can be whatever they make of it. You can rap any lyrics over Hyphy beats, you don’t have to get stuck on one or two subjects.

Hyphy gave the Bay Area a style. Like my album got a ton of Hyphy beats, but all my subjects is not talkin about goin dumb and jumpin on my car. You can talk about all kinda shit and still keep the Hyphy feeling. Hyphy is just feel good music. If you have that feel-good music then your shit is Hyphy. You don’t have to be talkin about stunna shades and al that typa stuff. Hyphy is just music that they play in the club and when you hear it you know that’s the Bay Area. It’s a stamp on it. It ain’t really the music, it’s the beats.

Do you think there are a lot of new artists in the Bay coming up doing Hyphy music?
FAB, he’s the front runner of it. He’s Hyphy king, him and Keak.

What about some young new artists?

You always like the Frisco cats like Mess and Quinn, but the young cats right now is like me, Beeda Weeda, Eddy Projects, Big Rich, Mistah FAB and The Pack.

All of these artists would be considered Hyphy?

We’re rounded out. We make Hyphy music, but our whole album don’t sound like that. If you hear my album I got hella Hyphy shit, but that ain’t all that’s on it.

What about as far as the producers go? Who are the hottest producers right now?
I think The Mekanix, Mal Amazing who did Big Rich’s album. Droop-E, DJ Fresh, he did all them mixtapes with Mistah FAB. Me and him did a mixtape called "The Real World West Oakland". And now me and Beeda Weeda did one with him called "The Tonight Show". Bedrock, Droop-E and Rob E—that’s FAB’s producers. Can’t forget about Sean T and Traxamillion. Trackademiks, he hella raw too. I’m workin with him right now.

What is the main ingredient in Hyphy music?

You go for a hundred-plus tempo. Make sure the beat is one hundred plus. And make sure the hook is real catchy. The beats are more simpler too now, cause that’s what sells. Them simple-ass drum patterns with a nice kick.

That’s what I’ve noticed. The production is real skeletal. People were overdoing it before.

Everybody doin it like that now. It’s a lotta up and coming good producers in the Bay that’s makin these tight-ass beats for these artists. With that Hyphy shit we created our own sound. Except for like Lil Jon did the beat for "Tell Me When To Go", but for the most part people are getting on just makin their own beats. Like The Pack, they got a deal and Young L make their beats in the group. FAB got his own personal producer, Rob E. Sean T did "Ghost Ride It", he’s been around for a long time. We ain’t go outside the Bay Area and go get no Dr. Dre. We didn’t led nobody else create our sound. We created our own sound.

Now the Bay Area listeners are buying a lot of Bay music. They’re not looking outside.

Right. The Bay sold a lot more records last year than we have in like 5-6 years. People are really buying records again now. They’ve got a lot of artists to chose from now. Back then it was only Keak, San Quinn, Messy Marv, E-40, basically that was it. You got the cats from Vallejo, the cats from Frisco and then Keak. You really ain’t had no choices. Now you got all these new cats representing the Bay Area.

And they’re coming up with a brand new sound. The Bay was on the Mobb sound for the last 15 years, it’s exciting to hear something new.

Really it’s about having fun, that’s what Hyphy is. Muthafuckas just wanna have fun, so we just make party music. Everybody don’t wanna shoot everybody up and kill everybody. It’s a positivity in the music. We just talkin about having a good time. And the mixtapes is another reason that the Bay Area hot. That’s the main reason I’m hot right now. Before my album I done put out 4 mixtapes. I was in the San Francisco Guardian newspaper, all these magazines—Explosive Magazine and The Ruckus and The Stash—off of straight mixtapes. The mixtapes is helpin the Hyphy movement all the way. Like "Ghostridin", he had put it on the mixtape first. That’s how it got popular like that. It circulated on the mixtapes. He did that like as a mixtape songs. It’s the whole "Ghostbuster" theme beat, he put it on the mixtapes and muthafuckas started likin it.

What was Mac Dre’s role in the creation of Hyphy?

Mac Dre started it before E-40. E-40 just took it from where Mac Dre left off at. Mac Dre started that whole "just wanna have fun", that silly Rap music. Mac Dre started that. E-40 took it from there. Mac Dre, E-40, Keak, and FAB. That’s how it went. But Dre started that shit. Mac Dre was the first one to do it. That’s where FAB got it from. FAB took it where Mac Dre kinda left off. On some of his songs you can hear the Mac Dre influence.

Also, the whole look with the dreadlocks and the stunna shades.

Mac Dre started that "shake your dreads" shit too. Hyphy is not only about dreads and gold teeth and stunna shades. If you Hyphy you Hyphy. It don’t got no color on it. It don’t got no particular style. It’s just if you Hyphy you Hyphy.

The door is wide open for anything. What type of stuff influenced you?
I got influence from like Richie Rich and Messy Marv, Tupac. Just people that spit rhymes from the heart. I listen to everybody, but my influences was like Mess and Pac and people like that. I been listening to Keak and 40 for a long time, they my friends so they influenced me automatically. Them my homeboys. But I really like people that spit lyrics from the heart.

 

[bytha pound mag]

YOUNG MOZART

Young Mozart
Interview by Black Dog Bone

Who are you working with at this time?

Right now I’m workin with Keak Da Sneak. I have a song that went number one on KMEL and in Sacramento on 103.5. It’s called "That Go". I did "That Go" with him. I’ve done a lotta Keak Da Sneak stuff. I’ve been workin with Keak for 3 years now. We’ve put out "Town Business" that was number one on KMEL a couple of years ago. That one I wasn’t really credited for. I’ve done a song called "Super Duper Hyphy" that was out there. I’m also workin with Jacka of Mob Figaz. I also do music for television. As far as MTV I do a show called "Parked", I do "Pimp My Ride". I’ve done stuff for the "Newlyweds". Anything that’s out on MTV, I do music for those shows. I also do "America’s Top Model". I’ve done songs for Neo. I’m working with Whitney Houston, Chris Brown. I do a lot of stuff.

When did you start doing music?

I started when I was 13. I’m 26 now. When I was 13 I started workin. I was producing by 16, but I started learning by 13.

You’re from Modesto. Were you in Modesto all your life?

No, I’m from Iraq originally. I’m from Baghdad, Iraq. I came here when I was 10.

Do you have a lot of Middle Eastern influence in your music? Do you listen to music from the Middle East.

Definitely. That where I get my influence from. That’s a major influence in everything I do. I grew up with it. I grew up to all the Middle Eastern greats.

Who are some of the main artists you listened to?
Omme Kalsoum was one. Then like Fairuz. She’s really good. I don’t know if you’re familiar with this music…

I love Fairuz. I have a lot of her CD’s.

I grew up with all the old 40’s and 50’s classic stuff. I listen to everything really.

How did you get into producing this Hyphy type of music?

The thing with Hyphy, Keak had a lot to do with shaping the sound. When he first came in the studio—me and him have good chemistry, I’ve been working with him for 3 years on a weekly basis. We never really tried to sit down and make Hyphy. Just by the way he flows, I started making the material that matched with him. Sooner or later, track after track that was developing in the Bay, we producers started getting influenced by the movement. The sound slowly crafted and came together. I don’t think anybody really sat down and said, "this is how Hyphy’s gonna sound." But when you hear the tracks on the radio sometimes you can’t tell if I produced a track or if Traxamillion produced a track. Somehow we’re all getting influence by whatever’s comin out that’s Hyphy. We’re just feeding off each other. Somehow the sound just took shape.

You’re saying that Keak’s flow is what influenced your tracks?

The stuff he talks about and the tempo that he’s rappin at, that’s how I get my beats. It’s off him. If you turn around and hear some of the stuff I’m doin with Jacka, although it might put in the Hyphy category, realistically it’s not. Keak has that personality that brings out whatever kind of music that I’m doin at the time. Whatever is comin out is comin out Hyphy for him. It depends on the artist that I’m workin with. We never really tried to make it Hyphy, but it just came out that way.

Who else are you working with from the Hyphy movement?
I’m so involved in the LA thing, that the Bay is on and off. Keak is definitely one of my main aritsts, and Jacka. I’m working with Pretty Black of the Regime.

Would you say Pretty Black is doing Hyphy stuff?

Just bein from the Bay, we’re all effected by it. Just cause it’s going on people are gonna get put in that category. We’ve done tracks like where Pretty Black and Keak on both on the track and it’s definitely Hyphy. It’s hard to say. So many artists touch on the Hyphy sound, but I don’t know if they’re considered Hyphy artists.

How would you define the Hyphy sound?

I would say more up-tempo. Hyphy is about getting loud and hyper, so it’s gotta get you dancing and wild. From seeing the dances and stuff we make music that caters to the movement. It’s not just music, obviously. You got your dancing, your scrapin and dippin and the cars stuff. You need that sound to make all of it work.

Hyphy is nothing like Crunk or anything else I’ve heard.

It has nothing to do with Crunk. The South has got their sound and the Bay Area’s got theirs. LA’s got theirs and New York’s got theirs.

Are you making good money making Hyphy tracks?

My main money comes from the television stuff. I have a publishing deal down in Los Angeles, so I have a lot of work. That’s why I haven’t worked with too many Bay Area artists.
Would you like to work with more Bay Area Hyphy artists?
Definitely. There is no denying that I am already part of the Hyphy sound. There’s a lot of stuff that I’ve never been credited for. Many times someone will tell me my tracks are on the radio right now. People don’t really know what I’ve done. Things happen like that in the Bay for some reason. People are not real professional in the business.

Do you think each Hyphy producer has a distinct sound?

We all have to have our own sound, but we are all influenced by each other. To me that’s what makes the Hyphy sound. It’s really the artist that makes the sound. When you hear Keak’s voice you just wanna compliment it with certain sounds. Sometimes I might hear a track somebody else did for Keak and it sounds like something I might do.

Do you think there is an actual sound that can be called Hyphy?

We have a sound. I’m sayin it’s not just the sound, it’s the whole thing put together. Sometimes it’s the track, sometimes it’s the music, sometimes it’s the artist that makes it Hyphy. There is definitely a sound. When I hear a Bay track I right away know it’s a Bay track. I could be in New York, maybe it’s a New York artist, but that track sounds like it came outa the Bay Area.

Musically, what is the key factor in a Hyphy track?
I would say the synth. There’s a lotta synth in there. More like sharp cutting edge, that low bass. Not so much of a sub. I don’t know how to describe it. It’s almost like a Trance sound. There should be a lot of space in the track, and it’s gotta be knockin too. The bass has got to be in, and like high-pitched worms and stuff definitely make it all happen. Most important is the tempo.

Do you use Middle Eastern type melodies on your tracks?

There’s stuff that I’ve created like that. But my Hyphy stuff is not always Middle Eastern. I have stuff that is Middle Eastern and stuff that isn’t. If you hear the "That Go" song, talk about simple. It’s not overdone at all, I think that’s what makes the track. That’s some thing I’ve gotten into lately, before I was really complex with my compositions. I can play the piano, I can play the guitar. I play all these instrument.

Do you play Arabic instruments like dumbek or oud?

Dumbek I play. I don’t have an oud on me, but I definitely will in the future. The Middle Eastern music is in my blood, I grew up with it. But my musical training was more classical. I love classical music. That’s where I got the name Young Mozart, when I was 17. Because the music I was making was so classically influenced, to where one of my friends started calling me Young Mozart.

How did you connect with Keak and the Rap world?
I got friends out here who work with them. One of my buddies told Keak to come by and check out Mozart. Keak walked in and we knocked out 4 songs in two days. One of those songs was "Town Business".

How do you go about building a beat. Like when you work with Keak what comes first?

I’ve been workin with Keak for so long, there’s nothing we haven’t done. There’s time when he comes in and I’ll go through the beats that I’ve worked on that week. Sometimes I do exclusive stuff. Like if I know Keak’s gonna be here tomorrow I’ll sit down and make some new tracks that I know he’ll wanna work with. Like when he hears it, he’ll be like, "That one’s for me, right?" There’s been times when I’ll just create on the spot, a lot of times. I’ll just sit on the spot and make it. That’s how "Town Business" was made.

What kind of equipment do you use?
I use a Motif ES Rack. I’m using that Roland Juno. It’s the new one. It kinda simulates the old 1980’s Juno, so it’s very analog sounding. My main board is still a Roland XB-80. They stopped making it in 1988. I got a Korg Triton. I got a Korg MS 2000. I got a Protius Rack. Pretty much there’s nothing that I don’t have at this point.

Do you still play live instruments like guitar or bass?

Yeah, I have guitars and basses. I play guitar, bass, and I play the keys.
It seems like Hyphy is still just coming into being. There will be a lot of new artists bringing the Hyphy sound in the next couple of years.

It’s true, but I’m very proud of the Bay. It seems like every time New York or LA gets their chance the Bay’s always left out. But there’s a lot of great talent in the Bay. Artists like San Quinn, Messy Marv, Mac Mall, all these artists deserve to get known on a national level. It’s way overdue. I know there was a time in the early ‘90’s when Spice 1 was out, Mac Mall was out, people were getting signed and we had videos on television. The Bay was up at that time, and it’s taken a long time to come back around. Right now I’m proud that Mistah FAB has his Atlantic deal and The Pack has their thing with Jive. Keak could easily be signed right now. He’s talking to a lot of labels, but he doesn’t want to sign. He likes his independence. He doesn’t like to be held down.

Do you come across a lot of people doing Hyphy music in Modesto?

I think everybody in the Central Valley region is on the Hyphy thing. There’s a lotta new groups doing it.

You probably have a very unique sound because you have a very different background from other producers out there, being from Iraq.

I remember when that song with Jay Z and Timbaland first came out. I was with my mom and my mom recognized the beat before I did. That was an Arabic song, like a classic from the 50’s or something. My mom pointed that out to me right away. That’s my roots, my blood is Middle Eastern. The influence is there, it’s natural for me. I don’t try to make something that’s Middle Eastern. When I do Middle Eastern it’s just part of me. I was also big on classical music, and on R & B and Pop. One of my biggest influences is Michael Jackson. My biggest influences are not from the Rap world, that’s probably what makes my style unique. I’m very melodic. That’s not really in the Hyphy sound. I can’t just sit here and make songs that are Hyphy. I just make music.

I see that Hyphy will be getting more of a defined sound in the future.

Yeah. I’m in LA often and people are onto Hyphy as much as the Bay is. They’ve been following the sound for a couple of years in LA definitely. I know people in Chicago right now who are influenced by it. There’s a lotta people that are into it. I’m hoping that the Bay gets its time. I’m happy to see people like Clyde Carson and Mistah FAB getting signed. I hope Keak signs too just to let the world know about this great new music. I’d hate for the sound to come and go and just stay in the Bay Area. Let’s put that sound out there and open up more doors. Let’s get some attention on the Bay so we can always have something to offer. The next thing will come and will be out there and we can always be working.

Artists in the Bay are making good money a independents, so they’re not real motivated to sign with the majors. They don’t want to sign any deal unless the money is a lot better than what they’re already getting.

I can’t blame them. If you’re making 200 grand cash a year and a label’s offering a little advance for his project that he’s gonna have to end up paying back, it just doesn’t make sense. I hope the labels will finally realize that the sound deserves more money. It’s a commercial sound definitely. It’s very marketable. That’s why we’re getting our commission. That’s why all these networks and TV are pickin up on it. A lot of the stuff you hear on these reality shows are using Hyphy. I actually told my publishing company about Hyphy a couple of years ago. Half of the Hyphy stuff that started playin with my stuff first. It’s getting introduced into the mainstream. I just hope people like Mistah FAB do their videos right then the doors will open up wide.

 

[Silver&Black151]

well i'm glad that the whole front page is covered with these interviews...

 

[MuneyHongry650]

J. Stalin

The door is wide open for anything. What type of stuff influenced you?
I got influence from like Richie Rich and Messy Marv, Tupac. Just people that spit rhymes from the heart. I listen to everybody, but my influences was like Mess and Pac and people like that. I been listening to Keak and 40 for a long time, they my friends so they influenced me automatically. Them my homeboys. But I really like people that spit lyrics from the heart.

aint that the truth!

STALINTINO!

Real World West Oakland and Early Morning Shift always stay on rotation.. cant wait for that Beeda/Stalin DJ Fresh production