Fade
The Beat Strangler
Administrator
illest o.g.
Sup Dac, tell everyone who you are and where you're from.
I was born and raised in Washington D.C. I went to college at NCA&TSU in Greensboro where I majored in Industrial Engineering. My parents decided to make North Carolina their home. After I graduated, I landed a job working for Lifetime Studio's in NYC. I stayed there for 2 years then moved back to NC. Now I live just outside of Ft. Bragg, NC.
Ft. Bragg? Are you some sort of Black Ops sniper guy?
When I moved back to NC, I got a job working for a Government Contractor designing torpedo tubes. One day I was asked to solve a problem dealing with the disposal of ballistic casings on military vehicles. I ended up developing an ammo dump that would efficiently catch rounds. I ended up selling the patent on that design to the government which brought me to Ft. Bragg... and NO, I didn't get rich from that (LOL).
What kind of setup do you have? From your videos and pictures it looks like it's stacked.
I'm a "gear freak", so I have two setups, one is mostly software and the other is mostly hardware. Lately I've been focusing more on digital music production but some days I prefer to be on my Technic 1210's and now that I have 3 Samplers (SP-404, MV-8800 and Maschine) I'm gonna start a rotation on them as well. It mainly depends on how I'm feeling at the time.
I noticed at first how you were anti-Maschine, what convinced you to buy one?
LOL, for the record, I wasn't anti-Maschine. I just wasn't gonna jump on the bandwagon because everybody else did, but I gotta admit peer pressure was a factor. I was very content using my MV-8800 and my SP-404, plus my workflow is pretty lean as it is. I like experimenting though and Native Instruments' commitment to Maschine has been outstanding. I've never seen a company work so hard on one single product before. That's impressive and worthy of a try.
Are you more into hardware or software?
I would have to say that I'm a mixture of both. I prefer software for its convenience and ease of use but then again, I just can't reproduce the same sound as hardware using software. So I try to bring out the best of both worlds by mixing the two. I'm leaning more on the software side though. Everything is about workflow nowadays and you can't beat software when it comes to that.
So what kind of style of hip hop would you put yourself in?
Definitely Mainstream, where all of my influences come from. Back in the day, it was the commercial Hip Hop that really made people move. I remember all of my favorite songs had that little something that I really liked. Whether it be the baseline, the piano, strings or even the scratching. Whatever stood out is basically what I shoot for when I make my beats. I try to take each one of those elements and put them together to make one beat out of them. My goal isn't for any targeted group, I want everybody bopping their heads.
What was the best era of hip hop?
The 90's by far. We had so much of a variety back then. We could actually pick and choose what we wanted to listen to. Some days I would rock some "lyrically clean" Will Smith, then some days I would rock some NWA. If I wanted some motivation, I went for some Public Enemy or for knowledge, I went with KRS-1. Today, it's all about "whats hot right now" or "this is what makes money". The "variety" has been replaced with "what sells".
Tell us what your process is for making a beat.
I start most of my beats with the sample. Then I work the drums in and whatever other sounds come afterwards. Scratches are usually last. Then I mix and master it to complete the project. I don't have a checklist or follow any specific rules, I do what I want to do and if I'm not happy with it I may rethink the process but I refuse to be bound like so many are with "this comes first" or "that's not the proper way". My motto is "have fun with whatever you do". Test and experiment to find out what you like the best.
What are you doing when you're not making beats?
Flipping Real Estate. I was blessed to inherit 8 homes back in 2003 and I really didn't want them so I decided to fix them up and sell them. Once things started rolling, I had a change of heart. Flipping properties turned into a passion and I was able to witness how it changed peoples lives being a new home owner. Now I own a lot more property and the business is steadily growing even in today's economy. I also spend a lot of time at Audio Factor 1 Sound Mastering - my recording studio that I changed to a Sound Mastering Studio. Otherwise, I'm chillin on illmuzik.com.
You seem to be doing more DJ'ing lately, when did you get started in that?
I started DJ'ing in the early 90's. Red Alert was my favorite DJ. Then as I heard other DJ's like Scratch, Terminator X and Kid Capri, it was over. I started following the DMC Championships and trying to mimic some of their scratches. It took a while to get good but I spent a lot of hours practicing.
If you had to pick one MC to spit over your track, who would it be and why?
Rakim, I admire everything about his style of rapping. His vocals were more complex than most during his era yet very understandable. I liked the logic he used in his raps. His deliver was always on point and I consider him as being one of the dopest rappers ever.
Do you have any up-and-coming projects?
Yes, I do. I have a couple of projects that will be announced at a later date. Sorry. But you can check out my latest project on the album 'Artificial Shortage' by Lion the Uncommon Samurai called "Reacquaint". Dope!
Any shoutouts you'd like to give?
I'm not big on shout outs but first and foremost - my father. My wife, my daughter, all of my ILLMUZIK Family, MC Huggs, Delgato B., Kevin W. and Cran "Da Man" H. Last but far from least... all of my peeps over at Audio Factor 1 Sound Mastering. Peace!
