M-Phazes interview Questions by Sean Deezill via Beat Society
It’s always a great “up and coming” story when an artist from an unknown place or region gets tons of mention and love in the hip hop world. Fortunately, it’s an all too familiar story in hip hop and one the world can never have too many of. With that said, super-producer M-Phazes isn’t asking for sympathy, an “I made it!” story, or any headlines. This diamond from the beautiful country of Australia has only encompassed the most educated hip hop listener and exposed them to sounds via Down Under that don’t sound Aussie at all. M-Phazes exemplifies the universality of hip hop and hip hop’s sound, essentially, driving home the message of Beat Society without even saying a word. He’s living proof that hip hop is a geographically unlimited genre just as much as rock or pop. We got a chance to catch up with M and discuss a variety of things ranging from his grassroots with Supastition, the M-Phazes sound, his eventual rise (including a joint with Pharaohe Monch on Monch’s upcoming LP), the influence his native country has had on him, and his relationship with Beat Society. Rarely will cats go as in depth like this, so listen to the knowledge the man behind the music has to kick.
SD: Sup M, pleasure to have you answering some questions here for the Beat
Society fam. For anyone new to M-Phazes, would you be able to introduce
yourself?
M: I’m a 26 year old producer from Australia, been producing for a little
over 10 years, and am still a broke ass.
SD: [laughs] Well, if you met someone new to hip hop, and were really keen about getting into it and came to M-Phazes first, what record of yours would you tell
them to check out and why? Essentially, is there a record of yours that
either might stand out the most, might’ve set off your career, or even
just act as the nutshell that captures the M-Phazes attitude?
M: That’s a tough one, I would defiantly tell them to check out “Step it
up” by Supastition. Supa is the foundation of my professional production.
He pretty much put out my first commercially released production work.
“Step it up” is basically my style, it’s soulful, melodic but with a gritty
twist, early 90’s feel but also current. That sounds mad corny but I
guess that’s what I try to do. Though that is kinda old I have changed a
lot since then. Another standout would be Kenn Starr’s “Back at it again”
where you can hear where I got my little tag line from! Shouts to Median!
SD: Of course! “M-Phazes, good gracious!” Moving on from that, one thing Beat Society is heavily known for is their beat competitions. You took place in a competition that had some superstar producers judging your beats. Can you talk a bit about that experience and
how beat contests have essentially paved a greater way for you?
M: That competition was a huge thing for me, just to have those judges
who I look up to like my stuff is a huge compliment and very humbling.
Basically it put my name out there to a huge array of big names at once
and got me my biggest placements yet, which would be Amerie and a movie
placement with a track from Joell Ortiz. I couldn’t ask for anything more
to come from that competition; it was amazing!
SD: Going back once again, what was it about your work on Supastition’s Chain Letters that kind of got you out there a lot more? Were more people hollering at you or did
you feel like you had a solid credible name on your resume (along with
your contest win) that you could use to shop yourself around?
M: I owe a hell of a lot to Supa, even though he might not say that. He
put faith in me, I know he is mad picky with new producers so he took a
chance and listened to my shit, and he liked it and ended up using my
work. We formed a kind of musical alliance and I did a lot of work with
him back then, I thought of it like a Guru/Premo type of thing, even
though he worked with a lot of other guys, I still felt like our shit
meshed the best. And even though we stopped working together as much I
still want to do a solid M-phazes/Supastition record. We are both
insanely busy people and he has a family to handle as well so I guess when
the time is right it will happen hopefully.
I never felt like working with Supa was just to gain a rep, I just loved
the music we were making, every song we did I got mad excited about, but
it defiantly helped me get a little buzz going.
SD: I asked this because plenty of new producers may have that one track
with a fairly known artist or that contest win in their back pocket and
just aren’t sure how to use that to their advantage. How do you break out
from doing one or two tracks with an artist to doing records with people
that they are affiliated with, etc? Is it all about the music speaking for
itself or do you really have to grease some wheels and get personable?
M: It’s all about persistence, don’t think cause you did a track with a
bigger name people are going to drop everything to get a track from you,
you gotta get your hands dirty and work with people for free. But yeah at
the end of the day, if your music is wack, or isn't “timeless,” then your
limiting yourself to a very short career. Just throw your music out there
and take feedback, use it, work for free, be prolific with quality, and
don’t just chase a “hit” because people can hear that watered down shit
and will dismiss it straight up.
SD: We spoke previous about your contest win and the affect it had on your current career, DJ KO recently held a contest that had producers all over remix your produced joint, “Best to Do It.” Did you get a chance to hear some of the remixes
M: I have only heard Marco [Polo]’s remix of that joint, I would love to hear
them though! Send some through KO!!
SD: How important to you are remixes in hip hop and how have they changed from when Pete Rock was creating remixes that were most of the time better than the original?
M: I started out remixing; there was no one to work with so I would just
remix tracks. I love remixes as long as they take the track in a whole
different direction. Pete Rock’s remixes were incredible but that’s
because he is an incredible producer, not just a beat maker, he knew the
feeling he wanted or thought a track needed and he could pull it off to a
T. That’s what I try to do with a remix, if I feel the original is
something I might have done anyway; I’ll switch the remix up on an R&B
tip, or a grimy hip-hop tip. If ya’ll seen the remix of “Lollipop” by Wayne
I did, I tried to make that track listenable to an average hip-hop head.
That’s what I think a remix should entail, to give the audience an
alternative to the original so you please the other side of listeners!
SD: Recently, KO also told KevinNottingham.com in an interview a story about how he
was the first one to get Elzhi and Royce in the same booth, a feat he
takes great pride in. Is there ever a fear in a producer’s mind that when
two lyrical giants like that come aboard, the production gets pushed to
the back burner and may even risk getting “outdone?”
M: Not really, I mean El and Royce are sick, but they are also artists,
and I feel like they make “songs”, if they think they should be super
lyrical and it won’t jeopardize the track then they will do that, or if
they think they need to tone down on the high tech lyrical stuff they will
do that, it doesn't mean they are watering down anything I think it just
shows that they are great artists. I honestly think Royce’s verse isn’t
his best lyrically but it fits like a glove to that beat and I think he
intended that.
SD: It doesn’t get much more lyrical than Pharaohe Monch. Your rise has
led you to the upcoming Pharaohe Monch album, W.A.R. First off,
congratulations. It’s not everyday that a producer from Australia gets to
say that they’ve worked with one of the greatest rappers to pick up the
microphone. But, Pharaohe in an interview said that you challenged him.
What is it about your music that you think challenged him?
M: [Laughs] I have no idea! Pharaohe is a complex dude, not so much when you
talk to him or anything, more so when you see him listening to a track and
he likes it, he goes into his own head and starts brainstorming/rhyming,
thinking. I remember playing him a track he picked for the first time,
and he was just silent with his eye’s closed, I started to worry and asked
his manager Guy, “Yo, I don’t think he likes it I’ll skip it” and Guy was
like “NAAAH!!! He is rapping to it right now!!” [laughs}. I guess the
melodies and vibe of my beats might be something different for him, I am
known to overproduce a lot and add a few too many layers to my tracks, some
rappers shy away from that shit but I guess Monch likes that stuff. Maybe
that’s the challenging part.
SD: I think one of the most surprising things about you is your
geographical location, Australia. Being from Oz, did you feel limited in
your approach and inclusion into Hip Hop? Similar to how your beats
challenged Monch, certainly the “American style” of music would challenge
you too, no?
M: I’ve never tried to follow the “American style” of music, but I just
mimicked my favorite producers from the Bomb Squad, to Prince Paul to Pete
Rock, Dilla, Premo etc, and because I grew up in a place that was
literally secluded from all forms of hip-hop pretty much, I didn’t have
any peers to bounce off creatively. It was a challenge to get heard
though, but the internet played a huge role in helping with that. Sites
like ungergroundhiphop.com and beatsociety.com were very helpful in
getting my music out there. I’ve always felt like more could be done with
my career if I lived stateside, and I am in the process of moving there,
Visa’s and immigration and so forth, but it’s yet to be seen whether it
will help my career or not, I believe it will though!
SD: Are you influenced by your Australian heritage at all when you are
producing?
M: I am now, I live in Melbourne now, and it’s basically the music capital
of Australia so I am in the thick of it. There are so many talented
(and not so talented) musicians here it’s hard not to be influenced by
your fellow Aussies. But Australia is a rock country, its music has
always been rock and roll, so I find I like a lot of rock guitars and live
bass in my tracks, not sure if that’s the Aussie influence but it’s what I
grew up on a as a little kid so maybe!
SD: How important is a community like Beat Society to producers both
established and up and coming? You mentioned in one of your M(-Phazes)TV
pieces that you listen to every beat CD you get from other producers. I
think people forget that producers have their own fraternity as well. What
does being around other producers do for you and your beat making?
M: It’s great! I find with producers, the ego’s get left out, even if
someone I meet who produces is wearing sunglasses inside and 8 gold
chains, they are generally a lot less cocky then rappers. I do listen to
every beat CD. I love music, I love hearing other peoples ideas and it’s
inspiring to me! I remember hearing beat’s from people I would have never
even heard of if I just brushed them off on some arrogant bullshit, people
like F Major from Cali, Vohnbeats (who is 11 years old!!!) to guys in
Australia like Daphi and Squared. And I tell new producers, don’t just
focus of sending your tracks to artists, send them to producers, because
most of the time they are working with a group of up and coming artists
and will shop beats they like to their people. Like 9th Wonder gave one
of my beats to his new dude Big Remo, and the track is sick! So don’t
sleep on connecting with other producers!
SD: I mentioned the MTV blog you have got going on. Has that helped you
promote your self and get the M-Phazes name out there a bit more? The
beat-making videos seem really popular these days, are you a fan of those?
Similar to the last question, isn’t it almost like educating other
potentially great producers?
M: Yeah my YouTube game is getting fierce! [laughs]. Nah, I mean it’s helping
people get to know me a bit, as far as answering questions left on my
blogs, people can see me and interact rather than just hear a beat and see
my name in the credits. Though it’s not crazy important, it’s just
something easy to do; to post a YouTube video. I’m not trying to pull an
88 keys or a Kanye and be a superstar. I like beat making video’s, new
producers, if they are persistent, will learn shit somehow, and no one can
sound like me, no matter how hard they try, and I can’t sound like S1 or Illmind by watching their video’s. I like to help people and if they want
to see me making a track I’m going to show them.
SD: We’ll wrap up the interview right here. Thanks for your time M, we
really appreciate all the great music you deliver and all the time you
contribute to your fans and students. Any last words? What’s next? What
can we expect?
M: Thanks to Beat Society! I speak for a lot of producers when I say your
services are appreciated. And I want to be in a Beat Society showcase
soon!! Next up I’m trying to get to the states in September, hopefully
have a show in LA then hit NY for a while. Hit up the blog
www.mphazes.com and get at me with any questions or general comments! Love
is love love love is love love! [laughs]
peace!