Philly Plain Dealer

Philadelphia producers in the underground rap and hip hop space deserve their flowers. Producers are carrying the rap and hip-hop scene, doing everything except rapping on these tracks and we are past the point of giving credit where it’s due.  

The underground and newly discovered are running the city in terms of creating the best music out at the moment. But what about the producers who help create it all?

“Producers are just as important, if not more important, as artists in the current music sound of rap hip hop. People are listening to the sound and beat and how it makes them feel. I feel like producers are more important now than they’ve ever been. There will be more producer albums / maybe more producer tours, they’re happening at a small scale but I’m talking main (headlining),” said Amari Newman, Creator of Sleepwalker Ent.

The amount of musical talent that this city has “produced” amongst all different genres already has major recognition from the world. But often we only think about the artists in this concept. What about the composers who make it happen? What is a hit song or triple platinum album without some of the key people who make it happen? 

Today, it seems like social media coverage, word of mouth or music being heard in the streets is the golden ticket of being found as a producer. Meaning, being found through an instagram snippet or tiktok reel,  going through soundcloud and listening to various artists for hours, or through a viral dance where a song / beat is being played in the background.

“It is unfortunately harder for local talent to get noticed but people need to remember that making yourself noticeable is a skill in itself,” Philadelphia Producer, Qnorapname.

For the lesser known producers or those trying to come up. The process can look like this: There are thousands of producers out there sending hundreds of beats to artists. An artist will choose maybe 1-3 beats from a producer. If it’s good they purchase an instrumental. But just because they bought it doesn’t mean the artist will be back either. There’s a familiarity factor.  If an artist has a producer that matches their style consistently and makes the work effortless in a way,  they’re pretty much set and locked in who they are locked in with. 

Q, a small-time producer who experimented in 2017 but didn’t start taking beats seriously until 2020, believes everyone can get up together in Philadelphia for the producers at least. 

On his most recent project he worked with local artists such as  Q3, Lungs, Fatboi Sharif, Vic Spencer, Sekwence, Teller Bank$. His sound as a producer, as he would describe it, would be instrumental sample-based experimentation. Generally mid-tempo beats with a lot of random noises weaved into it.

“The only way to do (get recognized) is to get out there and go to more shows and meet like minded people and work together. I don’t even want to say “network” because that can be very shallow. You can tell when someone is just trying to network as opposed to trying to build actual relationships with people. The local rap scene needs to take a page or two out of the local punk scene’s book. Punk shows will be super lit on a random Wednesday night in a random basement because people show up to support the scene as a whole,” said Q.  

In his opinion, social media can definitely help get one in front of a larger audience on the internet but that needs to be balanced with finding an audience in real life in order for it to go further. Social media can be a trap. In Q’s opinion, the state of giving credit where it is due could be better, and not just philly. It’s better if producers can come together, or have a collective of some sort or even have a space to showcase their talent and sound. Every 3rd Friday of the month Q hosts a monthly beatmaking event, Flipabeatclub, at Cratediggaz Records and collaborates with different producers who come through. 

“It’s kind of crazy actually when you hear a beat people will be like ‘yo this artist flipped this beat so crazy’ when it was the producer who did that. There are countless artists who try as hard as they can to not pay or credit producers because they feel like we should work for free. That obviously isn’t everyone but it’s a lot of people and I hope the listening audiences can understand that the person making the music is just as important as the person saying the words.”

TRINIVIV BOUT THE SOUND

Even with no recognition or backing, like any craft, it’s important to stay the course and stay focused on growing one’s sound.

 “Philly is evolving melodically and rhythmically without a doubt. The second half of the 2020s is turning out to be a musical renaissance,” said Philadelphia Producer Triniviv.

Triniviv is a producer whose idea of space within music is something he focuses on very well. He likes to create musical sentences within his beats in a sense and experimenting with this idea is what creates the patterns and grooves in his beats. His sound is very influenced by jazz, funk, and hip hop of course. 

He’s very heavy on collaboration with other producers and believes that this is ultimately what’s shaping the sound in Philadelphia at the moment. Experimental sounds from every genre mixed into one sound for hip hop and believes this the space philly music is headed for. 

“Getting people together for the sake of music is the very start. More effort from producers towards planning shows/performances/concerts means more people recognizing their value as musicians through their own experiences.”