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Rago Magazine is all about exposing those artists who really are breaking on the underground and here is one such man. Producer, remixer & all around top beat maker ‘Stealf’ has been putting it down for a few years so Rago sent Brendan Deane to get all the latest information with this exclusive interview...
Where are you from and what’s the Hip-Hop scene like there?
Originally, I'm from Reading, and that has a small hip hop scene. A friend of mine owns a shop there which imports rare trainers and clothing (he gets a lot of my money) and there's a couple of nights on at some of the bars. There are a lot of hip hop fans and signs of the culture in Reading. I recently moved to Basingstoke, which is very different. Pretty much no hip hop scene at all really. Luckily though, I'm only 30 minutes away from my mates shop.
How did you get into music and is there anybody or anything you credit as an influence?
I have been a fan of hip hop for a long time now, and eventually I got more and more interested in it. I started DJ'ing and playing around with some remixes and putting together some mixtapes for friends, which led me to want to know about producing music. My uncle was an engineer for artists like Chris Rea, Elton John, The Who and seeing him in these huge studios with these huge artists also made me want to get more involved. But the biggest influence was my mum. I wanted to try and do something by myself and make her proud. She was diagnosed with MotorNuerone Disease in November 2006, and my goal was to get my name on a CD credited as a producer. I never managed it though, she died on the 23rd of May 2008, and a few months after, I met with Dap C and he put my Bang Bang Bang remix on his Ma Money EP with Lil Wayne. There's still a copy of it on my mum's headstone.
As a producer you’ve worked with quite a few artists, but for those that don’t know tell us who you worked with?
I've worked with The Game, he's on my album, Jadakiss also did a verse for my album. I've also worked with Nu Jerzey Devil, Lil Wayne, 40 Glocc, Bo Roc, Joe Budden and I'm trying to get my foot in the door with Jim Jones and work more of my Blackwall Street connections too. I want to do more with UK artists too. So far I've done official remixes and tracks for UK artists like Professor Green, Skinnyman, Blak Twang, Kid Rad, Dap C, Geejay and Marvelous, who is an artist I'm working on developing and managing.
Out of all the artists that you have worked with what was the most memorable experience and why?
Working with The Game was HUGE for me. But it's all done through emails and digitally, but he's an artist I hold pretty high, same as Jadakiss too. But for actual in-studio experience, I always like working with Marvelous. We seems to achieve a lot everytime we work together, and it's very rewarding seeing him take on board advice and improve. That's a pretty rewarding experience.
So what you released to date and what releases have your beats been on?
So far I have beats on 3 Marvelous mixtapes, Forever, Southstar and Expressions. I also have a track on Nu Jerzey Devils new mixtape which is due out VERY soon. I produced the opening track on Dap C's new album, as well as 2 tracks on his Ma Money EP with Lil Wayne. I have 2 singles out on iTunes, Gwop, Money, Paper with Kid Rad and Respect Me featuring 40 Glocc, Bo Roc, Dap C and R H Bless. I have a mixtape out with DJ Ames called Avoiding Radar Detection.
When did you actually start making beats?
I started producing about 4 years ago. I had a DJ setup, and then I bought a Boss SP505 sampler and I was hooked from there really
How long did it take you to get moving and what was your first release?
It took a long time, and a lot of giving beats away too. It was only last year when I started working with Dap that I got my first placement. Dap let me remix Bang Bang Bang, which went on the Ma Money EP and then I did a remix of the title track which was added to the digital version later.
What’s your studio set up like?
I'm running a Mac with Logic Pro, with Focusrite Saffire Pro interface, KRK Rockit 8 monitors and Yamaha NS10's. The most important part of my studio is my MPC though. I love that thing. I got a few upgrades planned this year too.
What’s your favourite bit of kit in the studio?
Gotta be my MPC2500. I can't get my sound without that. I've tried using software samplers and things like Reason, but for me, nothing comes close to an MPC and a turntable.
Do you have any studio tips for any producers coming into the game?
Don't over complicate your setup; less is more in terms of equipment I feel. Also, don't always go with sounds good now or what the masses deem a good sound. I learnt very quickly that if I think a beat is sounding good, then I'm on the right tracks. It's about trusting your ear rather than trusting popular opinion.
When you set out to make a track do you have a certain formula that you work too?
Not really. I nearly always sample, I love sampling. So the sample will usually determine the direction of the beat, but if I really chop it up, then I can do anything with it. I have a system I work to, like, chopping the sample up, layering the drums on, adding extra instrumentation etc, but I wouldn't say I have a formula for a track.
So is there anything you are working on or promoting at the moment?
At the moment my main focus is on my album, which is due out later this year. It's about 60% complete at the moment. It's entirely produced by myself and features The Game, Jadakiss, Papoose, Broke N English, Dap C, Marvelous, Kid Rad, R H Bless, Manny Moscow, Late and more to be confirmed. It's shaping up to be a pretty big project. I've also got a mixtape out with DJ Ames right now which I'm pushing hard. That features official remixes of tracks from The Game & Joe Budden, Lil Wayne and Jim Jones as well as exclusive tracks from 40 Glocc, Bo Roc, Dap C, R H Bless, Kid Rad and loads more. You download it for free from http://www.multiupload.com/U8L8H74RC1.
Forget budgets and the politics, if you could work with any Hip-Hop artist who would it be and why?
I want to work with Royce Da 5'9", that guy is incredible; actually, the whole of Slaughterhouse would be pretty good. I wanna do a track with KRS too. I would also like to do a track with Kayne West.
Okay forget about Hip-Hop for a minute, is there anybody outside of our genre you would like to work with and why?
I would've given body parts to medical science to work with Michael Jackson, I've been a fan of his since I was about 4 I think. I would love to work with Lily Allen too and get my Mark Ronson on.
Do you have a My Space page?
I do. www.myspace.com/avoidingradardetection but my main site is www.stealftheproducer.com
People are jumping from My Space to Facebook and Twitter. It seems there are loads of these type of websites popping up. What’s your whole take on the Internet and these social networking websites?
Personally, I really like it all, I'm on all of them and I use them all every day. It's one of the best ways to keep in touch with artists, get your music heard and make sure people know when you have tracks dropping. I think the key though is to make sure what you do on all these sites is relevant. That means don't just send messages saying "yo, check out my shit" or status updates saying how great you are lol !!!!
Give us all the relevant website address…
Nick "Stealf" Lester - Producer
Avoiding Radar Detection Productions
www.stealftheproducer.com
www.reverbnation.com/stealf
www.twitter.com/stealf
www.facebook.com/stealftheproducer
www.myspace.com/avoidingradardetection
www.goldmic.com/ard
www.blogspot.stealftheproducer.com
Contact:
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This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel: +44 7590 118 902
Interview by Brendan Deane
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