Interscope Follows @TEAM_TEKNODROME

 

So Pretty wild huh? 

R.O.C.A. Man (of The Ghost Smokers) Collabo- "Donkey Kong"

R.O.C.A. Man (a.k.a. Solwell) and I met through a mutual friend (Ed) and spent many hours of smoking blunts, listening to beats (my older ones), and playing Tekken. We always talked about doing a collabo, but he eventually moved back to Columbus, OH. After a few years we finally re-connected on Facebook we linked up and decided to do the long awaited collabo. This is the second of the collabos we were working on. Hopefully you guys enjoy!

R.O.C.A. Man - Donkey Kong (prod by TEKNODROME) by TEKNODROME / @UGLYBEATS

Anutha Sunset On Crenshaw ( #WestCoast ) FREE DOWNLOAD

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TEKNODROME @UGLYBEATS - Anotha Sunset On Crenshaw.mp3

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Created a back-up Twitter @TEKNODROME01FAN

When in fail, sex sells!

I seen twitter friends getting their accounts suspended or worse stolen! I figured I ought to make a backup now just in case something happens. Still learning about this site everyday- and some of the badass features you can use through it! So please be kind and follow my back-up account here at this handle @TEKNODROME01FAN

I decided to join the infamous RocBattle.com!

Figured if I'm gonna take this producing and working with other people in the music industry, might as well see what other producers think! I got some hot beats over here lets test em out! Wish me luck guys!

MUSICIANS: Learn How To Get A Million YouTube Views

Lots of people have videos on Youtube that reach a million views, but getting a million views based on musical talent is rare. It is important to showcase your musical talent in the videos because that's what you are promoting. There are a handful of Youtube Stars that understand this principle and continuously get millions of views on their Youtube channels. Here's how you can do it.

BE CREATIVE

Find creative ways to showcase your music. Do something that is so awesome that people have to show their friends. There are some really cheap video editing programs that do special effects. Experiment with a green screen and see what cool ideas you can come up with.

BE CONSISTENT

Don't post one video and get mad when it doesn't hit a million views in the first week. The most popular Youtube Stars post videos on a regular basis. You really don't know which video will go viral so just post quality videos and build your fan base.

BE STICKY

Ever wonder how these Youtube Stars views are so high on all of their videos? Its because after fans discover their Youtube channel, they watch multiple videos. If the videos have similarities, they watch another video. Soon, they've watched all the videos on the channel. Have a central theme to your videos. Consider covering popular bands' songs or accepting musical challenges from your viewers.

PROMOTE YOUR CHANNEL

This is pretty self-explanatory. Promote your videos on social networks to get people to watch your videos. This is not limited to the internet. Make sure all your friends and family watch the videos you post. Youtube also has several built-in features that allow you to promote your videos to other Youtubers.

SPONSOR A VIDEO

If all else fails, you could approach a Youtube Star that is already established and sponsor a future video of theirs. This does not necessarily mean pay money either. Try writing a song for them or send them some of your music and merchandise to give away.

BE CONNECTED

Contact people that you admire on Youtube by sending them a message. Introduce yourself and tell them what you like about their videos. By befriending other Youtubers, you can learn more tips for success. You could even collaborate some time down the line to cross promote each other's Youtube channels. Don't be afraid to reach out to top level Youtube Stars for advice.

BE PATIENT

There are a lot of undiscovered musicians getting millions of views on Youtube. Don't be discouraged if your great content does not get a lot of views at first. Once more and more people discover your channel your views will eventually increase.


Remember, you are aiming to get millions of views to gain millions of fans. Don't chase the record labels and major corporations. Make them come to you. Once you build your audience, they will approach you to work with them to expose their brands to your fan base.

How To Build A Home Studio On A Budget

Today I'll be telling you what you need to set up a home studio on a budget.  We'll start off with the computer. You can either go with a laptop or standard, most people should have one already. Next you'll need a sound card, you can go either external for laptop or internal for desktop, both are very cheap these days. I would recommend you go to www.maudio.com. They carry good quality equipment at a good price.

Next well look at microphones. Now you can get a standard stage mic, everyone goes with the Shure SM58 (my first mic was a Shure Sm78) for that. Should be around $100.00. If you can afford one or two more, it is really worth it to get whats called a 'condenser' microphone, all the major studios have one. That will improve your sound dramatically!
  

Now if you want to make beats, I would also recommend going to m-audio and getting whats called a midi keyboard. You can get one for a couple hundred, then link it with a program like Pro-Tools and trigger sounds that way.

Now for recording software. Of course you've heard everyone and their homies has Pro-Tools. They now have an Mbox you can get for a few hundred. Pro-Tools is so cheap now. I would highly recommend that. (Even though I personally have used Adobe Audition since it was Cool Edit 96!)


You can build up how you want as your budget allows from this point, such as monitors, a better keyboard like a Triton or XP, an MPC is also a must, mix board and turntable(s)...


You REALLY can set up a good sounding studio for under $500.


So get your music career started, what are you waiting for!!!

DIY Methods and Community Still Matter

Being involved in the local indie music community for a several years, I often hear the same complaints from different bands year after year ie "The music industry is corrupted. Nobody will even show a minimal interest in young bands unless they have cash. Your talent, your music and your emotions don't matter at all. You need to hire a manager who will make you a rock star. People still trust what TV and radio feed them. People are not interested in attending indie gigs…", and so on.

Statements like these are so popular that often they sound to me like excuses for not putting in enough effort, or the lack of will to see the wider picture and a lack of willingness to try different ways. At the same time I can't deny all the problems in today's music world. However no problem has ever been solved by just sitting and beefing. Even if it sounds pretentious, it is still true - your life is what you make it. The same applies to your musical career and the only one who can make it work is you.

Recently I watched a documentary by Kenneth Thomas titled "Blood, Sweat and Vinyl: DIY in the 21st Century". Of course it is a must-see movie for all the metalheads and post-rockers, but it's interesting for almost everyone fascinated with music as art, business and industry. Actually this is a story of 3 charismatic and influential labels, each with it's own philosophy, style and ethics. All 3 are founded by musicians and among them there are bands such as ISIS, Neurosis, Godspeed You! Black Emperor. I'm not gonna spoil the plot or turn this article into movie review. Instead i'll just share a couple of things that are proved yet again by this documentary and by the experience of the labels and acts it is dedicated to.

DIY doesn't mean low quality. Each of labels mentioned above are famous for their physical releases. They treat CD and vinyl as art rather than a method of publishing and selling music.

DIY still means a personal and professional approach. In the case of indie labels only those founded and run by people who love and understand this particular kind of music can succeed and satisfy both musicians and listeners.

DIY is about hard work, complete dedication, being honest with yourself and others and loving of everything you are doing. Again, sounds a kinda pretentious but it's still a fact.

Therefore the main outcome of the story is that it's all about a community of like-minded people. Going back to the main point of this article, before blaming the industry, ask yourself what have you done to change things or to make an alternative. I'm not saying that each musician must start his own label, put in all their money and run a label as well as being something of a teacher in elementary school.. as Steve von Till from Neurosis does.

There're a lot of things you can start changing in your local music life right now. Find out who's playing where in your neighbourhood tomorrow night, get your friends, go and see your peers on stage. Talk to them after the show, look at their audience, plan some events together. It's so simple, isn't it? So why not do it regularly? The better your network is the more chances you can change things the way you need.

Worried post from...

Boston, MA

Been on the road for about a week, worried about being able to pay rent in time. I really don't want to lose that house. 

10 Hot Tips For Producing Music In Hip-Hop and R&B

When you’re just starting out how to make beats it can be fun and frustrating at the same time. Trust me I was there. But it really is easier then you think. If you’re making a beat here are 10 tips that will get yo stated.

1. Pick a style- Know the style of beat you want to make before you start making it. Like rnb,rap,pop, etc. There have been plenty of beats that I made and could not figure out what style it was.

2. Pick A Major Artist- Think of a known artist that you would want to make the beat for. Like if you chose a style a rap, think now what rap artist do you want to make the beat for. Try to imagine that artist on your beat. This will make your hip hop beat-making experience a whole lot easier.

3. Listen To Their Song- Take a listen to the rap artist you are making the beat for songs. See the style. Get a feel for the kind of hip hop beats the artist raps over.

4. Formatting The Song- Very important. formatting is, the intro, verse, chorus, verse, bridge, etc. That’s all it is but basically you just change the order around however you feel like it. Turn on the radio and see how your favorite artist formats there song. When instruments come in, when they drop out. The most basic form to start with is, 2 or 4 bar intro, 16 bar verse, 8 bar chorus, 16 bar verse, 8bar chorus, 16 bar verse, 8 bars chorus. This is the most basic beat-making song format. This is very common in rap. If you want an even simpler way, you can create an 8 bar loop and keep it the same throughout the whole song. I have seen this done a lot.

5. Laying down the beat- I have learned that for starters, it’s easier to start with the drums. Kick, Snare, Hi hat, are always a good start. Record a pattern for four bars with those first. Then layer that with maybe some toms, cow-bell, symbols, etc. Whatever you want to use. THE DRUMS ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT IN MAKING HIP HOP BEATS! Your drums must hit and hit HARD. The best way to get your drums hitting hard is by not using “pitty pat” free kits you downloaded from the internet for free. If your drums are weak, then your beat is going to be weak.

6. Laying Down A Melody- This is where most hip hop beat-makers have the most trouble. Because most eat makers can’t play the keys. For starters, you might want to learn basic keyboard skills. The major thing you need to learn are, major and minor scales. After you learn that, try and do different combinations and patterns with the drum beat you have made. Use an instrument like, a lead guitar, horns, clav, something that will stand out. Your melody can be however you want it, but for starters, you could do a 4 bar melody, or an 8 bar melody.

7. Layering The Beat- What is done a lot in beat making is layering. If you have your whole beat finished. You can go and make it sound bigger by layering. All you do is fill in some gaps, do the same pattern you did with one instrument with another instrument. Do this throughout your beat. This will make you beat sound a lot fatter.

8. Pan- Panning is basically having an instrument all the way to the right, all the way to the left, and anywhere in between. You pan for all kinds of different reasons. It gives each track its own little space in the stereo field. There are no rules for panning, put you have to do it. So just try it out and see what you like best.

9. The Mixdown- Very important! Very Important! Very Important! If you have a poor mix on your beat, then you have pretty much wasted your time. When mixing a beat, start with each track individually. Solo each track and make sure it sounds good by itself. EQ it if you have to, but if each track sounds good by itself, the whole beat will sound that much better. DO NOT DISTORT! If your master levels are in the red before you bounce to disc or .mp3, your distorting. Don’t worry about if its not loud enough. You never ever ever want to distort. If you are distorting, check any instrument that has boom or low end, Like a kick, bass, sub, etc. these tend to distort more often.

10. The Bounce- Now that you made you’re beat, Its the hottest hip hop beat ever, you want to put it on cd or upload it to the internet. When you’re exporting a beat for cd, Use .wav file. 44.1 16bit. If you want to upload to the internet use, 320kbps (the highest .mp3 quality) or 128kbps. Most websites wont accept 320kbps because the file size is too big. So go with 128kbps.

These are all just guidelines to help you get started. There are millions of ways to make a beat, But this is just to help you get your feet wet if you don’t know where to start.

A Music Producers Job: The Breakdown

A music producer's job has many facets.  He does everything from making the beat, to arrange, compose and even helps song write tracks.  He will work the the sound engineer who will help with the technical aspects of the recording process. Some engineers are also producers.  Coaching and directing vocalists are also functions of the music producer. You also act as a middle man between the artist and the label, finding a happy medium for everyone involved.



Producers make anywhere from $50 to $500,000 a track.  He is also in charge of the creative mix.  If you're a new and up and coming producer, most will suggest that you start doing work free just to get your name out.  You can also bring on some artist yourself, blow them up, then everyone will be asking who produced those tracks. There is definitely a lot of money to be made if you have enough perseverance and talent.


A producer should be enthusiastic about music and the artist.  One who is an expert in the genre that they work in. You should be able to give constructive criticism, and develop an honest and successful relationship with the artist. Who you know is everything in the industry.

Random post from...

Well, right now I'm in a Columbus (Ohio) hotel swearing up and down I wanna go home (new place in Costonia). We're finished working until Monday then on to New York baby!

Microphone Check! Simple Studio Techniques

When setting up your mic in your home studio I would suggest using a nice condenser mic, you can get one from 100 and up. You also want to get a pop filter, this will cut out the excessive p's and b's from getting to the mic. If you can, you should also invest in a mic pre-amp. This will give a good clean sound. If not you can just use the phantom power on your mix board.


The distance your artist should be from the mic is about a fist away. You should also set a ceiling on your mix board or software. This will prevent clipping from occurring during the recording.


I would advise you not to put any effects on the microphone during recording. You can always add those afterwords, if you put a bad effect on the artist during recording and don't like it, you can't remove it!

Now if you have the budget you should create an isolation booth. This will stop all outside noise from interfering with the recording. If you can't do this, most people use anything from a bathroom to a closet to create a good recording atmosphere. Use foam padding wherever possible to reduce and echoing effect.


So all in all its pretty easy to create a professional sounding microphone with a couple simple steps. Good luck and stay tuned for more posts!

MUSIC BUSINESS 101: What EVERY "Artist" Should Know

What is ASCAP, BMI, SEASAC and/or Other?
ASCAP stands for The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) which is a not-for-profit performance rights organization that protects its members' musical copyrights by monitoring public performances of their music, whether via a broadcast or live performance, and compensating them accordingly.

What is BDS?
Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems, better known as BDS, is a service that tracks monitored radio, television and internet airplay of songs based on the number of spins and detections. The service, which is a subsidiary of ACNielsen provides the basis for Nielsen Media publication Billboard in the United States, while in Canada, BDS helps determine the Canadian BDS Airplay Chart and the Canadian Hot 100 chart, which is published by Jam! and in the website for Canadian Music Network, in determining their radio airplay music charts and determines the chart movement in Billboard's Hot 100 chart when combined with single sales from Nielsen SoundScan. From August 2006 to its final June 2009 publication, BDS also provided chart data for R&R after Nielsen acquired the trade. On September 10, 2009, the website Radio-Info struck a partnership with Nielsen BDS to provide radio airplay charts and related data for over 20 formats.

What is Copyright?
Copyrights are huge in the music industry.  Everywhere you turn when dealing with music you will come across different copyright laws and requirements.  That said, it is extremely important for you to know and understand what is all involved in copyrights.  You will also need to know how to obtain one to protect the music that you and your band create.  This is relatively simply and most of the forms can be found at the US Copyright Office website, www.copyright.gov

What is an EPK?
An electronic press kit (or "EPK") is a press kit equivalent in electronic form. In business, electronic press kits are more commonly referred to as online or electronic media kits. They are used to promote artists and businesses via mass media. (Must be .DOC, .PDF or similar Format)

I am born!

Two weeks after birth! Seattle, WA

Robert Brian Clark Jr.
Monday July 30, 1979 7:30 AM (Pacific)
Kennewick, WA


My dad was an Iron worker and my mom was working as a receptionist at the Grand Coulee Dam. They met in The Tri-Cities, during a boatrace or some ish...