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The Beat Strangler
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Being relatively new to IllMuzik didn’t stop Matty Jones from taking on twenty other competitors and winning the most recent Beat This! Competition. With synth buildups and 808 drums, the beat stood out from the rest in an already talented lineup.
Now that he studying at Full Sail University and ready to unleash some more Hip Hop tracks upon us, Matty Jones took a time out to let us know what’s going on.
Hey Matty, tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m from Kansas City, MO and I’ve been making beats since like ’97 or ’98. I started out before the whole beat-making craze came with DAW’s and was still using cassette tapes. (There’s a hint on my age. LOL.) It was all Rap and Hip Hop at first, until I went to my first rave (I know that sounds cliché, but it’s true) and discovered what was to me, a whole new realm of musical possibilities. I actually quit for about ten years and started up again last spring playing catch-up.
I saw that you’re attending Full Sail, are you looking into becoming a recording engineer?
Not exactly. I’m in the MPBS program (Music Production Bachelor of Science) and while that certainly is a possibility, I’m really aiming more towards licensing and contract work. It’d be cool to get my music in all facets of the entertainment industry, from TV to video games. I’d really love to just remix songs all day for a living if I could, honestly.
Congratulations on your Beat This! Competition win with “Dark City”. Tell us about how you did this beat.
It all started with the chord progression. Everything else pretty much fell into place. As far as the style, I just wanted something a little more gangster and a little less Boom Bap at the time (although I’m more akin to the latter these days). That’s why there’s all of the arpeggiated synths and heavy 808s and such.
You also used “Dark City” with an acapella from the new Prhyme album of DJ Premier and Royce da 5’9. Is that why you originally produced that beat?
No. It was just a track I was currently working on and Prhyme had just issued a remix contest as well as the Beat This! Competition, so I used it for both.
I always tell producers and beatmakers to keep the beat flowing along instead of just changing up loops. Was that a focus you had with “Dark City”?
It wasn’t in the forefront of my mind at all, although I know exactly what you are saying. While third-party loops can be great when used correctly, they can also tend to be a crutch for some who can’t or won’t put in the time and effort to actually create their own loops. That being said, even when you create it yourself, it’s easy to get into that 8-bar rut, where you don’t want it to be too repetitive nor go off the rails with it.
One piece of advice I can give on that is to get good at doing your own drums. Melodic and chordal loops are another monster in and of themselves (musically speaking), but if you’re gonna use sample packs and such for those and you don’t know theory very well or at all, the drums should be flexible. Make them your own and don’t use loops with entire drum ensembles. Whole drum tracks are difficult to work with when you have such little control over the mix and arrangement.
You also produce electronic music. How does that play into how you make your Hip Hop beat?
A lot. That takes me back to the synths. Often, I’ll throw in pieces that bend the style to keep it more chameleon-like. So unless I’m going for a specific type of sound, I do what I can to push it when I can to cross over genres and sub-genres. It all bleeds together at certain points, like a Venn diagram to me.
What’s in your studio?
It’s all done on my MacBook Pro running 8 gigs. I Have Pro Tools 11, Logic Pro X, Komplete 9 and a simple 25 key MIDI controller (Oxygen 25). My speakers are very cheap and lo-fi. I’m using a set of Logitec computer speakers with the subwoofer. I have Sennheiser HD 280 pro headphones, but I hardly ever use them. I also have a simple MBox mini interface that I use if needed.
What is the one piece of gear or software that is the center of your productions?
Logic X without a doubt. I can mix in Pro Tools, but I am still learning my way around it, as far a writing/composing goes. I started using Logic last April and have gotten so used to it that now it’s very easy to simply go with what I know. I feel like I’ve been using it for years. LOL.
What is the toughest part of doing a remix?
That’s a good question. Probably the same as any other beat, though. Just trying to find a good direction to take it and whether I should compliment the original sound more or take it more in a different direction.
A lot of people have trouble lining up an acapella with their own instrumental. What kind of tips can you give them?
I’m not sure about other DAWs. With Logic, when you activate flextime it adds lines into the transients that are adjustable. I can spend an hour or two sometimes just lining everything up before I lock the track into the BPM and bounce it down. However, I can say one thing that has helped me tremendously is getting the original track and importing it into the project so I have a side-by-side comparison of how the vocals should sound. This can be especially helpful with Hip Hop vocals unless you already have the words memorized and know exactly how they’re supposed to sound, rhythmically.
If you had the chance to work with your favorite artist, how would you work with them in the studio?
Honestly, I’d love to work with Bone Thugs, Krayzie in particular. I think we could actually get down and create something together rather than simply emailing tracks back and forth. I think I could certainly bring something to the table that he could work with and it could make for some good back and forth creativity.
What can we expect from Matty Jones in the near future?
You can definitely expect a lot more Hip Hop. I’ll even say some more like “Dark City,” as well as some Trap styles. People are asking for this from me. Besides, with Hip Hop roots, it’s kind of weird that my Soundcloud page is like 75 to 85 percent dance music. Also, I plan to write and get back on the mic very soon, so within the next year maybe even an EP. Who knows? Sky’s the limit (until Sony calls, LOL).
Thanks for doing the interview, do you have any shoutouts you would like to give?
No problem and very glad to do it. Thank you. Just everybody check out my homie Mack Malone (@Mackmalone816) if you get the time. He raps and we started out together years ago. Sick flows.
Also, all my Full Sail peoples and KC peoples and fam! Thanks again for the interview.
Check out Matty Jones at:
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