GROWING UP'My parents introduced me to the violin at age 4. I started playing the Suzuki method which has a philosophy of teaching its students to play by ear. I remember playing a lot of recitals with my father at the piano. I continued with the violin up until Jr. High when hip hop was really starting to form into its golden era. I remember hearing Big Daddy Kane's, 'Ain't No Half Steppin''. That song changed my life. Almost overnight, I went from being a heavy metal head to being a hip hop head.''When I was about 15, my Mom bought me an ASR-10 keyboard/sampler and a 4 track recorder. I lived right next to the high school, so right after school I'd invite all of my friends back and we'd have freestyle ciphers and record.
''In the early 90s, go-go was at its peak in DC. I played with a group called Young Ecstasy from 1991-1996. There was so much craziness and violence at those shows. I've had a couple near death moments. It has such an intense rhythm. Playing those gigs gave me confidence to go anywhere.
''Around the same time, I was introduced to raves. We used to drive out to 'Rise' which was a rave in Baltimore back in the early 90s. The vibes in that place were electric. It was a place where everyone could be themselves. It was everything that a good night out should be. High school for me really became about experimenting as it is for most kids.
''One big concert that stands out was the Pink Floyd tour of '94. I think I had an out of body experience. There was nothing and might never be anything quite as extravagant as that tour. This may have been the most influential 2 hours of my musical existence.
'FIRST PROJECTS'One of my best friends in high school was Rosko. We had a group called Melodramatic (1990-2001). My parents bought me an ASR-10 to make beats and a 4 track recorder. Some of our best songs came out of those days. We went on to release an album in 2000.
''I went to college at Purchase College, NY. There was a huge amount of artists there. While in school I worked on Imani Coppola's album which ended up being up released on Columbia Records. I roomed with a friend J-Zone who was a major factor in my development in college. All we did was listen to and talk about music.
''When I got back from college, I was like most other kids who don't know what they're going to do to make money. I started up a label (L-Tight) with my man from home, Rosko to release the Melodramatic CD. Releasing that album was a really proud moment. I remember getting the CDs and vinyl back from Disc Makers and looking at them all mesmerized. We threw a nice album release party which pulled about 300 people. We were throwing parties a few times a month. It was a pretty wild time.
'PARTYING'In music, money tends to go out a lot faster than it comes in. I was getting frustrated with the US hip hop scene. Around the same time drum-n-bass had a strong scene. With my last bit of savings, I decided to head to London for 4 months. I loved drum-n-bass and there was no better place for it in 2002 (and now as well) than London. The scene out there is incredible. Seeing acts like Andy C and GQ made my time out there. We'd go raving like 3 times a week. Fabric and The-End night clubs were favorite spots. I brought the vibe I got out there back to DC with me and linked up with a close friend, Double Edge. We collaborated on a few drum-n-bass/hip hop fusion tracks, one of which was xGirl.
'STARTING A MUSIC BUSINESS'When I returned from London, I was 25 and feeling a lot of pressure to make serious money and finally get up out of my parents house. I started to look into going back to school. At the same time I put out a few ads offering production, studio time and production classes. Things ...
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