FromThaGutta.com

Stealf (UK Producer) Interview

Thanks for taking the time out to do this exclusive interview for us. Tell us where you’re from and what the dubstep scene is like there.

I’m from Basingstoke, Hampshire. Only been here a couple of years now, and I’ve noticed a big dubstep scene, I used to live in Reading and there’s a bigger scene there.

How long have you been producing and what would you consider to be your first break into the music industry?

I got in to making hip hop about 2004. I used to mess about on my brother decks, then I got my own. I started to do mixtapes for friends and I just ended up getting more interested in how the music was made. That interest made me go and get my first sampler, and from then on I haven’t looked back. I would say my production career probably only started about 2007, before then I was purely treating it as a hobby. But I started getting some positive feedback, and started making my own moves and networking and its evolved from a hobby in to a career. I would consider my first break in to the industry to be remixes I did for Dap C and Lil Wayne, Dap put together an EP called Ma Money with Lil Wayne and he asked me to remix 3 tracks. To see them on a physical CD in the shops was a pretty big moment for me.

To date how many releases have you had out and what would you say is your biggest track to date?

Right now there are about 21 releases with either a Stealf production on or something I’ve produced in it’s entirety. I have 4 instrumental EP’s out, various mixtapes with my beats on, a mixtape with DJ Ames that I produced, remixes and the single from my album.
As for my biggest track to date…there’s a bunch of them on my album, and picking a few from there would be impossible, but seeing as the album isn’t out yet, I would have to say the lead single from it, “Rain Bring Pain’ which features Nu JerZey Devil. I remember sending him a bunch of beats, and I didn’t hear anything for probably about a month, and then I was out shopping and I got an email from him saying he really loved the beat and he wanted to do a track, and Rain Bring Pain is the result.
“Respect Me” featuring 40 Glocc, Bo Roc, Dap C & R H Bless is also big track for me. That was my first experience dealing with established artists too. That track came about through Havoc of Mobb Deep messaging me on Myspace and saying he liked my work and he wanted to make something happen, and literally within 2 weeks, it was a wrap. I would’ve really liked him on there, but his prices were a bit out of my budget at the time lol

What software do you use to make your music and what’s your favourite piece of software and why?

I only really use software for mixing down. I used to use Reason when I first started, but then I got more involved in sampling and hardware samplers. So these days the only software I use is Logic and that’s purely to mix down and very rarely to add extra instrumentation. All my beats are made on my MPC’s. There’s something about using hardware samplers that I find a lot easier than software. I think it’s more a case of actually feeling like you’re playing the music rather than moving bit of audio around on a screen. I feel you have to trust your ears a lot more when you don’t have it all laid out visually on a screen.

When you make music do you stick to a certain formula? Can you give us any tips for up & coming producers?

I wouldn’t say there was a formula, but I do use the same method every time I make a beat. I always have the kick and snares on the same pads on the MPC, I chop my samples in a certain way and then I construct the beats layers in the same way and I have a certain way I go about mixing a beat down. If an up and coming producer asked me for advice, the best thing I can say to them is find your own sound. You’re obviously gonna have your influences and inspirations, but don’t copy them. Find you own sound, establish your name and be prepared to do a lot of work for free too.

Are you associated with any record labels or do you have your own label?

My label is called De Facto Entertainment. I started building it last year and getting a few things in place. The roster boast 3 very skilled UK rappers and all will be dropping at least one project this year, as well as featuring on other artists work too. Dap C helps me run the label. He’s the A&R Head, so he scouts the talent and puts the feelers out there, but with his experience of running his own label for many years, his expertise will go beyond the A&R role. I have a number of other people working behind the scenes on PR, manufacturing, distribution and sales too, so with all the right people in place, there should’nt be any reason why we can’t get things really moving in 2011.

Music is definitely moving into a digital age. Do you see the MP3 revolution as a good thing or bad thing?

It’s both good and bad. MP3′s kill sales because they can be so easily distributed illegally, but that also means you’re music is getting heard in A LOT more places than it would if it was just on CD. On the plus side though, it does mean an artist has to do more touring in order to keep their revenue stream up, so more live music is never a bad thing either. If the music industry wasn’t so sales driven, and sales seem to determine the success of an artist these days, then it would be more good than bad, but we gotta eat too. MP3′s are a gift and a curse.

So what tracks and artists are you really liking at the moment?

I am really liking Ghostface’s new album, that’s gotta be one of my favorites from 2010. Kanye did it again with his album, that was HUGE, Devlin surprised me too. I wasn’t prepared for his album and I was pleasantly surprised. Premiers All Year Round album was nice too.

So what are your plans for the future and where do you see yourself in five years time?

Once my album is released, I want to focus on my label and developing my artists. I feel that’s an area that lacks attention these days. Labels are far too quick to drop an artist rather than invest in them and develop them. So in the next 5 years I would like to see my label and artists go from strength to strength, I would have started to make more major placements hopefully and I really want to work with Ghostface too. I have a lot of goals just for 2011 alone.

Before you go can you give us all the relevant links to your websites please?

www.stealftheproducer.com
www.reverbnation.com/stealf
www.twitter.com/stealf
www.facebook.com/stealftheproducer
www.myspace.com/avoidingradardetection
www.last.fm/music/Stealf
www.goldmic.com/ard
www.stealftheproducer.wordpress.com
www.youtube.com/ardbeats
www.soundcloud.com/stealf
www.stealftheproducer.bandcamp.com

info@ard-beats.com
stealf@ard-beats.com
stealf@stealftheproducer.com

Interview by Alan Yates