What’s the word everyone? It’s been a minute… Although, not too long of a minute, but enough to be considered a minute regardless. I hope all is well with everyone, and felt especially inspired to write a blog post and get myself back in action around these parts.

Music surrounds us in every single way… Driving to work, pre-game Sunday Night Football, getting lunch at Jimmy Johns, department stores, movies, and all of us making it. It’s a way of life. What are each of you doing it for? I don’t ask that in the sense of getting the response of: I make music to get dudes to rap on and make money… I mean… What do you REALLY do it for? 

I know people who make music to stay out of trouble… Who make it as a stress reliever… Who make it as a hobby… And some who make it as a career pursuit… 

I started rapping first and foremost. I wanted to be the most ridiculous lyricist in combining rhyme schemes, flow, charisma, and pretty much be a mold of all of my favorite emcee’s in one. I got as far as being able to open up for Cypress Hill. Yeah… That Cypress Hill… Insane in the Membrane. Yes. Cypress Hill. Don’t roll your eyes (insert chuckle here). I was fortunate enough to have a partner producer out of Iceland, and what really sparked me to actually jump in to production was the fact that….. The amount of rhymes I was writing, wasn’t being met by the production demand. I was clearly demanding too much out of him as far as matching quantity and quality. I felt I could pick up some slack by making my own beats. I started on the MPC because… Well, in the day I was rhyming, DJ Premier was my favorite producer… He was THE producer for the ‘hip hop’ heads, and I wanted to use what he used. Just like when we buy Jordans and play basketball. Because Mike wore them. And their super dope of course.

Over the course of time, I became very disinterested in rhyming. Primarily due to the lack of recording spaces and not as educated to record vocals or anything like that myself. I started just making beats to make them. Chopping, sampling, laying my favorite DJ Premier chopped drum sounds, and most of all… Not giving 1 single flying f*ck about the mix or sound. I couldn’t tell you what a mix was. It was when a couple buddies I had over at my house just started randomly rhyming over my beats for absolutely no reason that the ‘light bulb’ went off. They sucked at rhyming, but I wasn’t listening to them, I was listening to the possibilities. 

I privately decided to just hibernate and make music but I was doing it on the down low. Just because I didn’t want my music to be heard without me being ready for anyone to hear it. I can remember the first time I let someone hear it. I still didn’t conquer a mix, or drum quality, or sample quality… Everything was peaking, and it was…. Nonsense… But they didn’t know either. I lucked out in that. At that age, I wasn’t ready for criticism. I just kept making beats. Had I been told anything critical, I’d have been naive enough to say “To hell with this”. I’ve been producing now for 7 1/2 years. That’s a long time. Somewhere in there I did manage to have an approximate total of 2 years hiatus, but I don’t count that. When I wasn’t making beats, I was making and creating ideas in my head…. Still plotting. To me, that still counts. Now I’m fortunate/blessed/lucky enough to have an unbelievable management group that looks after my production. Opportunities for tv/radio/movie licensing.. As well as some commercial artist placements. And all it took was dedication. Now don’t get it twisted, I’m nowhere, I’m nothing, and I’m nobody. I haven’t done shit, and haven’t done anything. But the trick is… Even if and ever if I do something, and turn in to somebody, you’ve got to keep that same mentality that got you there.

I don’t have any secrets. I work 65 hours a week to keep a roof over my lady and my 2 son’s heads. My day consists of waking up at 6am, getting dressed, taking my 5 year old to school by 7, going to work at 730 until 5pm, go to my second job from 530-1030, come home, have a beer, kiss my 2 kids on the cheek while they sleep since I didn’t get to see them all day, make a beat, shower, and go to sleep. I’m lucky if I can get to sleep by midnight and get 6 hours of sleep. I’m not bragging or saying how hard I have it. But I make and do music to grind, and be the best at it. What do YOU do it for?

As always, I kindly appreciate and am humbled by anyone who reads and comments. I’m just a real dude with real life things trying to talk about real life stuff on here.

Kind regards to all of you. And if you have time, you can now check me out and some tracks from my upcoming album I produced with various guests entitled #HeroMusic. below

https://soundcloud.com/maddenmiles/wanted-heroes-feat-amber-ruthe

http://www.facebook.com/maddenmiles

Tweets by maddenmiles

Peace all!