Q&A With Up And Coming Underground Artist Dubs Life
Hey Dubs Life! Much respect on your new single ““I Got The Sauce”“. . We always appreciate artist who bring a true STYLE to the table!, especially form raw up and coming MC’s. Please tell me how long have you been rapping? Where are you from? Do you remember where you were at exactly when you wrote your first track!!??
Thank you, I appreciate it! I’ve been working hard to create my own sound for years. I’ve been rapping since the fourth grade. I used to listen to Eminem and write my own little raps in a Blue’s Clues notebook, haha. I was fifteen years old when I wrote my first song. At that point in time I was living with my parents and listening to a lot of heavy metal music, so I was writing songs of that style and recording myself playing live instruments (drum, bass, guitar, synths), then I would layer the tracks on top of each other. My first song was recorded in my childhood home.
Your style is real hard-hitting and influenced hard by EDM, Drum&Bass, Trap & Experimental!! How did that mix come about? And tell us what motivated you to actually start pushing your sound even further and start BRANDING your music?
Shakalaka ding dong, baby! Gather ‘round, let me tell a story…
There was a boy who loved music with all of his heart, he listened to all genres and admired all of the different elements and sounds of music. This fascinated boy would jam to Pop, Rock, Country, Rap, Dubstep, EDM, and Classical music from all decades. One day, this little boy became a man, at about 23 years old and decided to seriously pursue a career in music. Nowadays, that man is not concerned with following the crowd and riding a wave, but rather to only make pure and unique top-of-the-line bangers, my brother. That man is now known as The Dubs.
I make music the way it sounds good to me and nothing is off-limits because this is my art and my (Dubs) Life.
In all seriousness, that’s really how the song came about though. With no limits, no rules. Music is art and it can literally be anything, and that’s what my brand is. If I would have went and told somebody that I’m going to make song that is Hip-Hop/Trap/EDM/Rock/Experimental they would look at me like I’m retarded…but then I turn around and I pull this song off and a lot of people like it. It’s about having a good ear and understanding how to arrange and manipulate old and modern things into new things, and just because nobody has done something a certain way before doesn’t mean it can’t be done that way.
I’m actually a big EDM fan myself!! Do you listen to EDM? And if so, who are your favorite producers/DJs?
I listen to EDM, but not very much. I like Calvin Harris, Mike Posner, Daft Punk, and Classixx a lot. Daft Punk and Classixx are my favorites. I think both of those bands are genius.
Please breakdown the creative process of your latest single “I Got The Sauce“. Do you produce yourself? Also, tell us a little bit about the single artwork?
I produce all of my music. Everything you will ever see from me is produced by myself and no one else. I used to get music produced from other professionals but a few years ago I decided that if I just work to learn how to produce music, then I can execute my vision better than anyone else, and I don’t have to pay anybody for a track. So, I’ve literally been working in a home studio six hours straight for five nights every week for 2 years. I made over one hundred songs before I ever felt I made something good enough to release. Now, I’m at the point with my music that I am making high quality songs and I continue to grow and get better as a producer and an artist.
I Got the Sauce started with the main synth riff that plays throughout the song. It’s a sample from an old 80’s German rock band. I normally don’t work with samples but that one really caught my ear. After I looped that sample, I started putting hip hop/trap drums over it and I could hear a cool groove going on. The real magic happened when I recorded an 808 bass line under it. BOOM! That shit was going hard now, haha. Then I recorded some brass, because I love brass and I think it sounds good with anything. After I had most of the song written, I recorded vocals. I tried several styles and the one that sounded best to me and my pals was the low and raspy tone. The low and raspy vocals compliment the doom rock elements of the song. After vocals, I went in and added finishing touches to the production and that’s when I added the EDM synth horns in the chorus. I was just going through instruments in my library, playing riffs in order to make the song more full, and I came across that and I wrote the melody and recorded. The EDM synth horns added another dimension to the song and helped contrast the song structure in a unique way.
Any new projects/videos coming out!?
Yes sir! New song coming out on July 7th! This new song is a more traditional hip-hop piece. This new song is called Heroes and I’m really excited about it. I think it will do big things.
Rappers nowadays think by throwing up a few videos up on social media and pushing quick projects, they can blow up overnight! Give us your view on how over saturated the market is right now with so many MC’s/Producers but not to many quality music.
Haha. SO SATURATED. Everyone wants to be a star. The first thing that you absolutely have to have is great music that stands out. It’s a must. So many people, actually the majority of people trying to “blow up”, don’t make good music. If you don’t make good music, you have no chance at all. Even if you make good music, good is not good enough. It’s a business and you are the brand, your songs are the product. If you’ve been doing this for two, three, five, ten years and you’re still in the same spot or have not made any significant progress, it’s time to give up. You are not going to make it, plain and simple. Red flags, guys. You know? This is what I count as my first song and I started a brand from scratch with it. Over a month’s time from releasing this song, I gained over 1,000 followers on SoundCloud, and have had my song shared by a handful of communities. I am very proud to share that I just got verified and accepted into the premier program with SoundCloud and that I now get paid for my music, get it distributed for free across all major digital media outlets, and have access to many more promotional tools. I started from zero and jumped to that in a month. I worked super hard for that and sacrificed a lot of things. That kind of progress takes an extreme amount of self-discipline and hard work. That’s the kind of progress you see from people who are going to become stars. A lot of people just don’t have that, they’re lazy and/or not talented enough. I know a handful of people where I live who have been doing this for years and years and have been stuck in the same spot the whole way along. My point is that so many people believe they have what it takes to be a star and that they are on their way, but it’s a long difficult road that only few can walk (keyword walk, not run). Numbers don’t lie, except fake ones, and lot of these bozos do have fake numbers, I have witnessed it with local artists. Measure yourself and your progress against your REAL numbers and be honest with yourself about your performance. Are you making significant progress? Do you understand the process of becoming a star? Do you understand that music is a business? Do you understand how it works? No? Then you’re way behind and you are the kind of MC/Producer that we’re talking about.
If you were not making music, what other profession you feel you would be able to excel at the most?
Entertainment. Comedy. I’m have a strong natural talent for entertaining. I used to make comedy sketches on SnapChat and they were getting me a lot of attention. I had a lot of people reach out to me about how much they enjoyed my comedy.
Actually, I am getting back into that in addition to my music. I am working on an internet show called “The Jordan Show” right now. I love entertainment just as much as I love music and I shouldn’t let my talents go to waste.
Here it is! Our most popular question! What is your definition of “underground hip hop”?
Rising talent in the music industry that cater to the Hip-Hop genre.
Where can people find you on the web? Drop all the vital links.
New friends welcomed:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adubslife/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adubslife
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/adubslife
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5iStXJDCINMofffCk22ACf
Website: https://www.adubslife.com/
Lastly, and shout out?
Keep an eye out for me! New song dropping on July 7th! The Jordan Show to be announced on social media soon!
Shout out to Stephany Proctor (soon to be Stephany Hinton) bow chikkaa wow wowww. Shout out to my mom and dad, Amy and Sidney Hinton! Shout out to my siblings, Holly, Haley, and Jonathan Hinton! Shout out to all of my fans (old and new) who are supporting me and helping me succeed! Shout out to all of my haters (you all suck, I rock)! Shout out to Underground Hip Hop Blog for the opportunity to introduce myself to their community!
