behind the spotlight

Behind the spotlight   Name:  PEEED ONE  Occupation:  BEATSMITH 

Can you tell us a little about yourself?  I'm an ex-graffiti writer that fell in love with the hip-hop culture at a young age. As a hard-core fan back then, my love for the culture evolved into me becoming an artist and creating music. Always a fan first. Once I learned and realized that most of the music I listened to religiously, came from sampling old records, I invested in a turntable and started collecting records for fun and made making music my hobby. Kept evolving and now i create boom bap beats and I'm still obsessed with chopping records to this day. I'm also a super passionate individual, about everything i do, My passion has helped me succeed, but it has also gotten me in trouble, the difference now is that I've learned to channel my passion into positive things, like music. An ultimate goal of mine is to have a chance to contribute to the same culture that saved my life. 

Did you ever want to be a singer/rapper?  Never... Even though I used to freestyle in the beginning for fun, and even recorded a few songs, I never really enjoyed performing or entertaining I mostly enjoyed the creative process in the studio and producing music, digging through records, and playing with studio equipment.   

What makes a good song in your opinion, do you think there is a formula?   That depends on what type of song. I believe there's a time and place for all music and in some cases a formula may be used. Personally, i prefer creating freely, with no formula. i like to think that the greatest music that's ever been created was not created from a formula, but simply from raw artistic expression from talented artists.  What makes a good song?  I guess it depends what kind of genre we're talking about. I enjoy music that's from the heart. and songs I can relate to... I think it comes down to the individual. Perspective, taste of music and what genre it is. All music is good music to someone. And Art is Subjective. What I don't think is great can be great to someone else. And viceversa.

Why should you be hired and how do you price yourself or justify your pay?  If I was the one hiring, I'd prefer to hire someone that's truly passionate about their craft. Work ethics would be important to me as well. I have both of these two qualities and that would be my reason for why I would hire Me. Passion and a strong work ethic are definitely a must.   Price myself.  I really don't price myself. I think my music is priceless to me. I don't put a price on my music because if I did, most could not afford to work with me. Instead, I measure my value based on the service I provide. Although I no longer use my studio to record other artists, I did it in the past, if something is a collaborative effort, we come up with an agreement. It can vary depending on who I'm working with. 

How familiar are you with audio equipment and software, and what advice would you give future studio owners?    I'm fairly familiar.. I love gear, I love software as well. I try to stay up to speed with the latest. I'd say I'm fairly familiar with both software and equipment...  Advice.. I'd say don't worry too much about having the best equipment or best looking studio.   Use what you got and you'll succeed with the 2 things I mentioned in my previous question. Passion for your craft, consistency,  and strong work ethic, master these two and the rest will come later. A wise man once said,  it's not what you use but how you use what you have, make it work.  Nowadays you don't need much. Madlib created classics on his IPad. Ninth wonder created classics on his laptop with fruityloops. Don't worry about having the best studio.  Having a million-dollar studio will not guarantee that your music will be great. 

What is the best part in engineering or producing music, compared to a regular 9 to 5?  You're being creative and making a living . Nothing like getting paid to create art. That's the ultimate 9 to 5.   

How do you measure success, what makes you feel you are doing something that you will look back and be proud of?    To me success is waking up everyday happy to be alive. If you wake up in the morning and you're excited for your day, you are successful. Second part of the question.. Raising my son.. To know that my son wakes up and is excited for his day. I'd be proud of that because that would mean I did a decent job raising him. 

What do you feel is the difference in working with singers or urban artists?  I don't think there's a difference. It's all just creativity to me.   

Any shout outs or news we should know about?    I want to shout out to my wife, for always supporting what I do and never getting upset with me for always turning our bedroom into a studio. I have separate a room now, but most of my studios in the past have also been our bedroom.   News.  Go listen to my latest album titled NUCLEO.  A collaborative effort between a few artists around the way. It's available on all platforms. Lots of music still to be released this year as well.