Interview

Scott Storch at the Red Bull Music Festival in Toronto. (Credit: Maria Jose Govea/Red Bull Music Academy)

In October, legendary producer Scott Storch sat down for an interview with the Red Bull Music Academy. The conversation took place during the Red Bull Music Festival in Toronto.

The 44-year-old is experiencing a comeback, having recently produced 6ix9ine‘s single “KIKA” (currently No. 1 on DJcity). He has also worked on tracks for Trippie Redd, Russ, and other buzzing rappers over the past year.

Storch covered many topics during the interview, including his early days with The Roots, producing Dr. Dre‘s classic “Still D.R.E.,” and today’s rappers. He also shared details about his fall from grace and the lessons he learned from it.

Joining The Roots:

“I started cutting school and taking the train from the suburbs of Philly into the city, and I met this guy Richard Nichols, who went on to become the manager of The Roots. And he took me under his wing. Eventually, after my parents found out I wasn’t going to school, they said, ‘You either go to school and you can stay or you’ve got to go.’ And I went. I did odd jobs and did whatever I had to do to support myself at 15, 16 years old. And I got a record deal with The Roots. It’s believing in what you do.”

Today’s rappers:

“I don’t want to offend anybody with this answer, but I feel like it’s more melodic today, and people were spitting bars more before. But you know, everybody has their own style. I’m finding a lot of these cats have what they bring to the table. Like Trippie [Redd], he’s almost like a rockstar. He’s very daring in what he does. … He’s an innovator, man, pioneer, which is the most important kind of musician to be.”

Advice for aspiring producers:

“Be a pioneer. Listen to what’s in the market but make it your own. And be the guy that creates the new sound, not just copies what’s out there. Break ground. And stay strong and don’t give up.”

Watch the interview below.

Related: Watch: Timbaland on Getting His Start as a DJ and Collaborating With Superstars

4KORNERS holds it down during a Toronto Raptors game at Scotiabank Arena

4KORNERS, the official DJ for the Toronto Raptors and director of DJcity Canada, was recently interviewed by Canadian DJ podcast, THE FIX.

The Toronto native discussed a number of topics, including what it’s like DJing for the Raptors and the development of his career. 4KORNERS also offered business advice to DJs.

“Networking is not just shooting out a bunch of DMs on Instagram and expecting the world to bow at your feet. Networking is going out and actually meeting people, humans, and not asking for stuff all the time but making legitimate relationships, building friendships, offering things.”

Listen to the interview below.

Related: DJcity Canada’s Top 10 Picks for Nov. 2018

Legendary producer Timbaland recently stopped by the Drink Champs podcast for an interview.

The Grammy award-winner has worked with superstars like Beyonce, Jay Z, and Justin Timberlake, among others. During the interview, Timbaland talked about getting his start as a DJ, the collaborations that defined his career, and more.

On how he got his start in music:

“I was beatboxing… [but] my main passion back then was DJing. And how I got into making beats is… let me try to make a beat so I can blend my records too… so I just took what I had, and I was passionate about sounds. I love noises.”

On first finding success in the industry:

“We weren’t thinking like, you know, ‘this is a hit,’ we’re thinking ‘we’re getting recognized… our passion is getting looked at, it’s not taken for granted…’ because we put in a lot of work, and our work was accepted.”

On working with Dr. Dre, and his influence on hip-hop’s sound:

“Dr. Dre. was the God of rap… he made rap sound clean, he made it sound so clean… I wanted to know like ‘yo how do you mix that drum, how do you get them drums to sound like [that]?’”

Watch the interview above.

Related: Watch: Marley Marl Talks Producing Electronic Music, Current State of Hip-Hop

DJ EFN, co-host of the Drink Champs podcast with N.O.R.E., has spent decades as an ambassador of hip-hop culture. EFN got his start making mixtapes in Miami in the early ’90s. He then established Crazy Hood Productions, a hip-hop crew and multifaceted entertainment company.

In 2016, EFN and veteran rapper N.O.R.E. started Drink Champs, a weekly podcast where they host casual interviews with hip-hop’s biggest names. It has become one of the most popular music podcasts in the world.

On this episode of A Moment With, EFN talks about launching Drinks Champs with N.O.R.E., building a career off of mixtapes, his mission to unite people around the world through hip-hop, and more.

Watch above.

Follow DJ EFN on Instagram and Twitter.

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Related: Watch: Spryte on How DJing Has Changed

Hip-hop legend Marley Marl recently down with the Drink Champs show for an extensive conversation.

A key figure in the development of hip-hop, Marley is considered to be the first producer to sample and chop drums. His credits include some of the most iconic tracks from the hip-hop’s golden age, including LL Cool J’s “Mama Said Knock You Out,” Big Daddy Kane’s “Ain’t No Half Steppin’,” Eric B. & Rakim’s “Eric B. Is President,” Biz Markie’s “Vapors,” and MC Shan’s “The Bridge.”

Most of the interview focused on Marley’s career, but he also spoke about the current state of hip-hop.

On the new generation of hip-hop:

“I look at it is evolution … The people who don’t like what the young kids is doing, you too old. Because when I fell in love with what I was doing, I was about 18 years old, so whoever is 18 years old [is] probably falling in love with what they doing right now and that’s their sh#t.”

On how he started out as an electronic music producer:

“Before I started making hip-hop, I was making electronic music … That’s why I had the edge over everybody, because I was already tech savvy.”

Watch the full convo above.

Related: Watch: Inside DJ Jazzy Jeff’s 2018 PLAYLIST Retreat

RL Grime is considered one of the pioneers of electronic trap music, influencing countless DJs and producers.

One of those has been Diplo, who recently sat down with RL Grime for a candid and insightful conversation. The discussion focused on his career, touching on topics like why he transitioned from house music to trap, the impact of his anthem with What So Not, “Tell Me,” his influence on Diplo, and more.

RL Grime on why he stopped producing house:

“I was seeing a shift in that big room house stuff and how it was becoming corny to me, and I wasn’t inspired and didn’t wanna make it anymore. I’d been listening to a lot of James Blake and Night Slugs stuff and just walking around New York and decided to start a project in that vein.”

Diplo on “Tell Me”:

“That record for me seems to be the staple of this whole scene. It’s up there with the biggest dance records … that record still goes off.”

Diplo on RL Grime’s influence on him:

“A lot of times, the edits you play are songs I don’t even know. And I’ll play them on the respect that I have of you and knowing what you’re doing. … You’re one of my favorite tastemakers. You always have the best attitude and the best taste of what’s about to happen, what’s gonna happen.”

Watch the convo above.

Related: Diplo Talks Career and Current State of Music at Oxford University

Whether or not you’re a DJ, chances are you’ve heard Fatman Scoop and Crooklyn Clan’s timeless anthem, “Be Faithful.” It’s a sure-fire party starter that gets played everywhere from clubs and stadiums to weddings and movies.

EDM stars drop it in between choreographed hand-hearts. Even Australian Parliament members “throw they hands up” when the song comes on. I’ve been playing it for over 16 years, and it’s never failed. Not once.

What many people don’t know is the story behind it and the on-going feud between Fatman and Crooklyn Clan member Sizzahandz. To shed light on the situation, the R.O.A.D. Podcast sat down with both of them to hear their sides of the story.

Watch below:

Listen to the full episode on SoundCloud

Listen to the full episode on SoundCloud

Related: TJR and Reece Low Enlist Fatman Scoop for Party Anthem, ‘Check This’

After a brief hiatus, DJ/producer Vice has returned with a new episode of his Electric Taco series. On this installment, the Los Angeles native meets up with EDC founder Pasquale Rotella as they drive to the Gracias Madre restaurant in West Hollywood.

The conversation covers topics such as Rotella’s upbringing in LA, his first time hearing dance music, and his inspiration for starting music festivals.

The episode features Vice’s latest single “Don’t Go” featuring Becky G and Mr Eazi.

Watch Electric Taco above.

Related: Vice Teams With Becky G and Mr Eazi for New Single, ‘Don’t Go

Akon sat down with the Drink Champs show earlier this week for an inspiring interview. The Senegalese-American, who has been busy bringing electricity to Africa and developing his own cryptocurrency, discussed a variety of topics.

One of the themes of the interview was his role in developing artists, most notably Lady Gaga and French Montana. Both were signed to his label early in their careers.

Akon discussed why he signed Gaga, whose label at the time, Interscope, didn’t see her as a priority. He also discussed signing Montana, only to let him leave for Bad Boy Records.

“I built my career off making other people’s careers,” Akon said. “If we all did that, we’d be good.”

Watch the inspiring interview above.

Related: GASHI Enlists French Montana and DJ Snake for New Single, ‘Creep on Me’

Borgore at Temple in San Francisco on Aug. 3, 2018. (Source: Facebook)

Borgore is a household name in the dance music scene. Whether he’s producing, DJing, singing, rapping, or shutting down festivals across the world, real name Yosef Asaf Borger stands as one of the most well-respected dubstep artists.

Being the founder of Buygore Records and doing gigs all across the globe, he still manages to find time to test the waters and experiment with new sounds. Adventures in Time is his first jazz album, a pleasant surprise from his usual hard-hitting, head-banging, moshpit-friendly tunes.

On day one of HARD Summer 2018, Borgore’s back-to-back set with Getter proved to be one of the most highly-anticipated acts on the bill. DJcity caught up with Borgore in his trailer after his performance, squeezing in the 10-minute time slot given by his management to accommodate his busy schedule. Before we begin the interview, he pours himself some Jameson, blaming it on the “long weekend” ahead.

How does it feel to be back at HARD Summer without Destructo?

I don’t think it affects me personally. He’s moved on to other things; he has big ventures. I don’t know what people know and don’t know, but HARD is something he built that was incredible. I’ve always really appreciated HARD. It was my first show where I was like “holy sh#t!” It was M.I.A., Die Antwoord, and me, a dubstep producer from a bedroom somewhere in Tel Aviv. I was just blown away. Destructo did amazing things, and the festival is still going.

How was your set?

Usually, I’m nervous, but HARD had me a little bit more nervous. There were so many different factors, including some serious competition on the other stages. The second thing was: I live in Los Angeles, so there’s a lot of friends and people I hang out with that come to see me. It becomes more personal. The third thing was: HARD was the first time Getter and I did a [back-to-back set], and it was on a big festival stage. We didn’t practice on a small festival stage. We went straight into headlining that stage. We wanted to practice and go over things, but we are both extremely busy. I was in Europe for two months before that show, so we couldn’t really hang out and work on it. Although we are really close friends, I wish we had more time to just chill. But all and all it was super fun.

You’ve had features with everyone from Miley Cyrus to G-Eazy and Waka Flocka Flame. What do you look for in a feature?

It’s like dogs. [laughs] I’m not very picky. I just love working with other people. Every singer is like a new instrument. They sound different. They bring something else to the table, so any collab for me is blessed. Whether it’s the biggest artist in the world or someone who just got his name, you can learn or do something with anyone. There’s a very small list of people that I wouldn’t work with, and I’m also not the type of person to throw shade. I’m not going to mention anyone, but in general, most people are more than welcome.

With dubstep going back into the underground, do you feel you have to change your sound?

It really depends where you’re playing. It depends on the venue, the crowd, and the country. You have to know the crowd. Before the set, I do my homework. If it’s a Las Vegas show, obviously I’ll play way more commercial. If it’s a Borgore show, then I’ll probably play the harder stuff.

What are you playing in the club right now?

My sets are kind of funny. I play the popular stuff like Britney Spears mixed with the gnarliest riddim drops. I like to play a lot of hip-hop mixed with like riddim, but then all of a sudden I’ll play a super commercial Steve Aoki song from 2012. I just play party music, but with a strong spice.

Do you prefer playing clubs or festivals?

It really depends on the club and it really depends on the festival. Some festivals can have the biggest crowd, but they can be people who randomly went to a festival. It’s kind of annoying to play for them because they don’t know what they’re listening to. At the same time, you can play a festival, and the crowd is the best f#cking crowd in the world. That sh#t — it’s a crazy experience. Clubs are, for the most part, safer for the DJ to have fun and explore. But then again, you can end up on a built-in crowd night, and you have to play a little safer. I personally prefer to play to an open-minded crowd rather than a crowd where I need to play certain songs.

What’s your optimal setup when you perform?

I like to use four Pioneer CDJ-2000NXS into a Pioneer DJM-900NXS most of the time. I don’t really care about the mixer, as long as it’s a Pioneer. And then two microphones. I’ll usually have an idea of a set on the two middle CDJs — just like a general playlist. I’ll play my set and all of a sudden I’m like, “Okay, they like this type of music.” So I start pulling songs from playlists on the two CDJs on the ends.

What are three things you need in the studio?

A computer, speakers, and a MIDI keyboard. [laughs] Because it’s really difficult for me to write music without being able to play it. I’m not so much of a “draw it with the mouse” guy. I’m more of a “play it” type guy.

How has the music scene changed since you started?

It’s growing in crazy ways. When I started, there was more of a UK dubstep boom in Europe and Israel. Then it came [to the US] with Skrillex, it was like the biggest thing. Then there was the whole big room, Martin Garrix, and all that sh#t. Then it changed into pop: The Chainsmokers, Major Lazer, DJ Snake. Right now, we’re kind of waiting for the next wave. The electronic scene is chill because the music scene is mainly focused on SoundCloud hip-hop. As far as electronic music, it’s back in the underground. We will see what’s next.

Follow Borgore on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, and Twitter.

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