Young Stunnuh (Rajdeep Singha), a native of Shillong, currently staying in Pune, has started making moves in the Indian Hip Hop’s production arena. He has already started producing for American artists. He is currently a Masters student of Marketing Management at Neville Wadia Institute of Management (Pune University). Apart from being a producer, he also considers himself as a future entrepreneur and aspires to setup a restaurant/club or a clothing line in future. He dreams of settling in Atlanta some day. He is all set to drop his debut Instrumentals EP, ‘Summertime Hits – Vol. 1’ any time soon, this Summer. (Update - 23/05/2014) : Click here to download EP.
Let us begin by talking about your Instrumentals EP. Is it going to shake things up, or make a mark? What objectives do you have in mind for this EP’s release?
 |
| Hope, it won't be a Cruel Summer for him. |
My aim with this EP is to promote myself. I have tried to put out the best and I want this to be on Datpiff, because many producers have built a name for themselves after uploading their productions on that site. My target currently is to grab potential customers from Datpiff because that is like the single largest online place for all hip hop heads and fans.
--
Datpiff is a crowded place already. How will you distinguish yourself from millions others that are already there? Anything in the EP, which you think, will help your brand appear different and attractive?
That is upto the listeners to decide. I am doing my part and giving it my all, in order to stand out. I put only those beats out, which my ears have given the green signal to. From there on, it all depends on a lot of factors, including luck, but the grind will never stop.
--
You have been a Rapper, and an RnB artist before. When did you decide to make the switch to being a full-time producer? How many years have you been producing now?
I am still a Rapper and I still love to sing, but as of now, I have put those activities on pause because right now my focus is to generate some hard cash from my beats. I need that to build a good studio, by investing on quality hardware. Once that is settled, I will resume my vocalist endeavours and aim to drop some quality stuff.
I haven’t stopped rapping or singing yet and still continue to practice it in private, but I fear I may have lost touch when it comes to writing lyrics. But I hope, that when things are in place the way I want them to, it should be easy to get back all of that.
As a producer, I started fiddling with stuff on Fruity Loops, back in 2009, but I never put any of that stuff out because, a lack of good kits, VSTs and a good internet connection were stumbling blocks to a desired output. It was a Youtube Tutorial Video, that inspired me a lot and got me really serious on production. I produced a couple of beats after that and getting a positive feedback from some of my folks decided it for me. I am also thankful to Lex Luger, as he played a big role in my learning.
--
So why did you turn to production from being a vocal artist? Is it because, perhaps as a vocalist you realized that there is an infrastructure gap for Indian Underground hip hop - that producers will have to appear before any significant rappers can emerge?
I never thought of anything on those terms. Back then, all that I had wanted was to be a well-known Indian producer. I used to take help from Sez on production and he motivated me a lot for it, and I gradually started getting appreciation from others. As things went by, I thought, why not produce beats for my own rapping?
--
Was there a feeling that, as an Indian rapper, one won’t collect paychecks as easily as a producer might and so it makes better sense to be a producer, at the moment?
Somewhat, yes, I thought so too, but my current aim is to fulfill my studio dream via producing beats. But, I will also say, I really love to produce and I equally love rapping too. But yes, production assumes more importance because that way, one can bring out a genuine touch to one’s rapping.
--
You currently focus on producing southern styled beats, and are interested in Trap music. Why do you think you have a preference for Trap beats? You feel anything special about that sound?
Oh! Yes, man! I love their 808 Kicks, Synths and those dark strings they have. Plus, they sound pretty aggressive. The BPM is actually slower than default hip hop beats, but then, that is what makes Trap so unique. Salute to the person who originated it.
--
Trap beats have been a trend for a decade now, since they originated back in 2000. Don’t you think Hip Hop will need a new sound about now or you expect Trap music to continue with more evolved variations?
Yes, people are getting sick of the regular Trap now. Rappers now prefer something different and genuine and things have started to change a little now. We have seen Cam’ ron and A-Trak, dropping a new Just Blaze produced joint, ‘Dipsh*ts’, which has the potential to change the NY Hip Hop Scene. You can hear the old Dipset music coming back to life in NY. Rappers are bringing a change in the NY scene. Even 50 cent is back with doing some old NY shit.
--
So, you admit that Trap beats are getting passé. What is going to be your next move in that case? Will you try something altogether new or focus on novelty in the same genre? What is the direction you intend to take in the coming time?
Currently, I am putting my hands on a variety of styles and not limiting myself to Trap only. I keep on experimenting continuously. I intend to produce for artists like Drake, T.I, Kid Ink and many more. Although, right now, I do not think myself as an exclusive sub-genre producer because all I do is open my FL studio and put in some Chords and Synths, and if that comes out as a good sound, I mix and master it for release.
--
 |
| 'Stunnah Salute' - The Beat Tag |
So, you are aiming to be a producer for the big league?, which is a good thing in itself. But you might have to start small, like everyone else. But smaller artists might be looking for different sounds, because that is the only way they can make themselves visible, i.e., by not following the trend. Artists will pull your production into different directions, in the ways they want. How will you handle such opposite pulls?
Yes that's true but everything has been defined already. So many producers emerged and shit but you can still see Metro booming Zaytoven (the producer of the Migos track, ‘Versace'). All these are producers who sound similar to Lex Luger, etc., but they still made it to the Industry. So, I too am currently focused on making beats and hopefully people will keep coming because it’s a 6 billion people world after all. But, I am also up for challenges. When artists approach me for different type of beats, I just ask them to give me an example of the sound they want to get. That way, I also get to learn something new.
--
What do you think Indian hip hop should sound like? Should it have Indian content on western influenced beats or develop its own sound?
I must say, it should contain our cultural sounds. Sometimes, I tend to use Tablas and Sitars on my song. Once, I tried infusing those instruments with a Trap beat. We should keep in touch with the latest trends, but at the same time, add Indian sensibilities to develop dope beats with culturally authentic variations. Doopey Lamagxx spit on that beat and people found that dope. He is working very hard to make a name for himself on the streets.
--
You have started reaching out to overseas artists. What do they say to you about working on your beats? How many of them have you worked with so far?
All they tell me is to get my passport ready and to fly over to the States. They have even offered to pay for my tickets to fly over to there. Lol. The maturity they show when they put out their work shows how serious they are about themselves. The scene there is very different from our Desi scene. So far now, I have worked with a total of 6-7 artists and have managed to sell my beats, ‘Seduction’ and ‘Keep Dreaming’, though I don’t know who the purchasers were. Lol
--
It’s a nice thing to be selling beats. You, also started becoming aggressive with marketing yourself on Facebook, by putting out different content, contests and by sponsoring posts. What do you think is the most cost-effective way for a new indie producer to market himself?
Yes, I am working on my website which will be launched soon. I have started investing a little on marketing, from my savings, in order to expand my base. Tagging others on Facebook, on links to your productions, does not work anymore as most of the time your post is going to be ignored. I figured, spending on advertising will become important because it’s becoming a huge challenge now since there are a lot of artists and producers who are entering the fray, every day.
To indie producers, I would point out the worthlessness of buying views or fans. The best option, is advertising on Facebook as it is the largest community right now. Advertising on Facebook is really flexible because it helps one target its intended audience, using different criteria to bring only interested people to your page. Currently, I am focusing on advertising to Facebook users from US, UK, Canada and India.
--
Do you feel positive about Facebook marketing and the returns on the money that you are putting into it?
The experience has been good so far and I plan to get my page to reach a certain threshold of members before I stop advertising it and then I hope to balance the cost with future sales. I believe, it’s important and good to do this than going around with friends aimlessly and blowing 2-3K INR in a night. I regret, spending like that in the past because if I had invested that amount on advertising earlier, I would have been on some other shit now. But, atleast I realized it soon enough.
--
Do you have any views on Indian rappers with respect to where they could be going wrong ? And what they should be doing?
There are some really good artists who have a bright future ahead. But some of the newer talent emerging right now is too soft with the lyrics and sometimes they don’t even rhyme well. Additionally, to be internationally competitive, the accent also needs to be taken care of. These few things need to be checked.
---
Connect with Young Stunnah/Stunnah Beatz on Facebook, Twitter & Soundcloud.
No comments:
Post a Comment