http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR4EtaKkOMI

Interesting breakdown of a major label recording contract, spotted at TSS. The estimate of $20 per CD is high, but the rest of the equations seem spot on.

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2. St. Joe Louis: 30,000 Ft High & Rising
3. warrenJae: Million Dollar Team [Music Video]

In promotion for his new single released today on HiPNOTT Records, Pete Marriott sat down with acclaimed hip hop journalist John Book for a 5 part interview series which we are running exclusively here at KevinNottingham.com. Here is the final piece, Part 5. The following words are written by John Book…

Pete Marriott is a record producer, DJ, and artist that you may not have heard about, but may be familiar with some of his contributions to music you may be familiar with in the last 20 years. Like those who are fortunate to watch the inner workings of the recording process, Marriott became a studio rat as a kid when watching sessions with his uncle. When the uncle was working with his reggae band, Marriott observed what was going on. Leave a kid in a room with toys of interest, and you’re not going to stare and drool. Instead you’re going to move closer, touch, and feel. Many observations later, and Marriott became the man behind the boards for a number of recording sessions. At a time when the name was becoming a bigger brand than the music being created, Marriott would become a part of a production team and was often uncredited for his work, something that was fairly common not only in hip-hop, but other genres of music. It would take deep record collectors and music geeks to seek the information and express those discoveries later. In fact, it was said that British fans of Motown knew who the producers, engineers, tape operators, and the musicians on all the early records long before most American fans knew or cared. It was a keen sense to know more. With Marriott, sometimes if the learning process has been halted, you have to serve as the teacher.

With you and your music, is it easier to market yourself in one category, or can you play the game and cover a wide range of styles?

I’m not a one trick pony who can only do one style and make the same record over and over again. To me that is boring as fuck and I personally don’t respect those who do it. I have the skills to make any kind of record I’m interested in doing. I can do old school soul just as well as I do nusoul, Same with 70’ s jazz funk fusion as I can do nujazz and broken beat. I can do dub style reggae and dubstep and I can even do the rap music they play on the radio today but I rather not get involved with that style so I don’t do it. Everyone who works with me knows I have a wide range of styles and skills but I do what is appropriate for the artist, so I market myself accordingly.

Along with new music from you, you also have a box set in the works. What will this box set consist of?

There’s a pair of videos on YouTube about it. I say to people to watch the videos, I said all that needs to be said about it there. (NOTE: For a look at the videos about his forthcoming box set and other clips of interest, check out.)

What are you feelings of artists controlling their own music, and how it is released?

Let me put it to you like this. I greatly pity all the fools who are running around chasing the major labels for 360 deals. It’s like begging a rapist to rape you. I license my music so I own all my shit! I’m never signing over my rights to anyone. Fuck that!

There’s always horror stories of older artists not having any control of their own legacy, or sometimes there’s complete lack of interest, in fear that a battle with labels and publishers will lead to more harm than good. What would be your suggestion to artists who may want to have a piece of their own pie?

I fought Universal and Warner Bros for all my masters and I got complete ownership of my entire musical catalog. Fuck them shady motherfuckers! I got my shit and I’m releasing them when they are properly prepared and I can legally make sure all the artists on these songs are covered. I said everything that needs to be said on the YouTube videos discussing the box set. Like I said before, watch my videos on YouTube.

You’ve been in this game for a long time, seeing many trends come and go, but what is the one thing that still remains consistent over the years?

The major labels are still bunch of shady untrustworthy motherfuckers. Ain’t nothing changed about that and nothing will change about that. They will continue to fuck the artists and consumers alike because people are just ignorant to the fact that we don’t need them motherfuckers anymore.

All that needs to happen is artists could stop going to them and consumers should stop buying major label product. That’s all you got to do kill them where they stand and things in music will improve for the better. Support only indie artists and labels, fuck the majors, fuck’em up the ass! I’m probably gonna get blacklisted by a few of these majors after this interview but I don’t give a fuck, I can eat of the indie scene just fine. Fuck’em.

How does one continue to create without being a need to give up, or is that all a part of the creative process?

John, as you know a campaign was was once waged against me as an attempt to shut me up. These people actually had people posting online to claim I had no musical history and that my music is wack and that I have no right at my age to still make records. But you know what? Come to my studio and you’ll see vinyls and CD’s I produced hanging on my wall. They are not gold or paltinum records, but some of those records I produced sell for over $100.00 on Discogs by serious music collectors from Germany, the U.K. and France, why? because they are collectors items. My records are collectors items John, there is no denying that.

I have people who discover my music through YouTube that hit me up there or at Facebook or Twitter. I’m like some kind of mystery to them. It’s awesome how they are coming to me little by little and I appreciate each and every one of these people for reaching out to me and making that connection. It says to me that I should never give up no matter what.

Never give up John, Never give Up!

What do you think is the biggest misconception about Pete Marriott?

That I don’t work hard enough in the studio because I’m not putting out a bunch of fast food beats that no one is going to remember years from now and that I’m pulling a Dr. Dre and D’Angelo so I’m never dropping the album. The Pete Marriott album is in fact coming folks, it just has to feel right. Can I go now John? I got work to do in the studio and I think I spent a good 60 minutes chatting with you so far. I need to get back to work on this record.

I think we have enough for an article. Thank you.

No prob and thank you John, I’m hungry anyway, gonna order some Italian food and get back to work on this record…

Pete Marriott’s new single,  “The Champ Is Here” is available today. Check it out and hit Pete up on Twitter and tell him what you think!

Related posts:

1. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 4
2. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 2
3. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 3

In promotion for his upcoming single release on HiPNOTT Records, Pete Marriott sat down with acclaimed hip hop journalist John Book for a 5 part interview series which we are running exclusively here at KevinNottingham.com. Here is Part 4. The following words are written by John Book…

Pete Marriott is a record producer, DJ, and artist that you may not have heard about, but may be familiar with some of his contributions to music you may be familiar with in the last 20 years. Like those who are fortunate to watch the inner workings of the recording process, Marriott became a studio rat as a kid when watching sessions with his uncle. When the uncle was working with his reggae band, Marriott observed what was going on. Leave a kid in a room with toys of interest, and you’re not going to stare and drool. Instead you’re going to move closer, touch, and feel. Many observations later, and Marriott became the man behind the boards for a number of recording sessions. At a time when the name was becoming a bigger brand than the music being created, Marriott would become a part of a production team and was often uncredited for his work, something that was fairly common not only in hip-hop, but other genres of music. It would take deep record collectors and music geeks to seek the information and express those discoveries later. In fact, it was said that British fans of Motown knew who the producers, engineers, tape operators, and the musicians on all the early records long before most American fans knew or cared. It was a keen sense to know more. With Marriott, sometimes if the learning process has been halted, you have to serve as the teacher.

It’s obvious you have a full picture of what you’re doing and what you want to do.

As an artist I’m proactive about my shit. I don’t fucking dick around man. I recently lost my voice for a few days because I recorded 59 drops for all the Mix Show DJs who are spinning “The Champ Is Here” on the radio. I appreciate these DJs and the fact that they are spinning my music so I put in that work.

I’m also shooting and co-directing the forthcoming music video for that single with legendary DJ Grindle. I’m also doing a mixtape for my labelmate Junclassic to help promote his new album with Jazzspastics. and I’m also doing a limited amount of press and I’m partaking in several private video conferences on Skype with artists who have reached out to me over the past few weeks.

I don’t dick around man, this music is some most serious shit to me, this is what I do for a living so I don’t have time to dick around.

What are the pros and cons of being a self-contained artist?

The pros is I’m doing something I genuinely love and care about. The cons is I only get 3 to 4 hours sleep a day doing it. Thank goodness I have a great woman in my life that says to me that it’s ok to unwind and take a break. I love golf, it helps me solve a lot of my creative problems in the morning because when you’re a self contained artist you’re expected to do everything and in the studio I pretty much do it all.

Because of the demand from artists who wants to work with me, I’m entertaining the idea of forming a production team so I can meet that demand. I haven’t decided if I’m going to do it or not, but I have more than enough friends and family members who are musicians to pull it off. But for now it’s all being done by me and I’m somehow managing the workload. It could be all the caffeine I’m drinking.

will.i.am said in an interview recently that technology ignites creativity. What is your view on that?

I agree with that. How can I not? I use my bass and guitars alongside my hardware samplers in conjunction with my software synths and DAWs which I run through my analog mixing console and my analog tape machines everyday. Now if I didn’t have so many tools and options, I couldn’t be as creative as I truly wanted to be because without having access to such tools I couldn’t realize the tones I’m creating within my music.

Going back to the social media we covered earlier, I remember a time when the only artists you’d see on the Usenet or bulletin boards were young kids willing to drop 16′s on any and all beats that producers were willing to send them. Now you see not only major label artists posting and welcoming people into their community, but also a lot of interaction between them and fans. Going back to that will.i.am interview, he said when it comes to promotion, “sometimes you can market so much that you mess up communities. So I prefer to say ‘communiting’. There’s a commonality between everyone: people are all gravitating towards an idea.” As someone who has done your share of self-promotion, what are your views on that? Can marketing yourself go too far?

It can if you don’t take control of it. In the past I trusted certain people to do things for me online and they pretty much fucked me over because they created a false characterization of me that is far from who I am as human being, so then this hate came in an abundance but in a very strange way it very much worked out for me. People became curious as to why so many people were hating on Pete Marriott and they listened to my music and they reached out to me on Facebook where I actually post alongside my social media manger Tiffany So. She posts the more business based items like where I’m performing or when I’m going on the air and what have you, while I chime in my thoughts using my Blackberry. So there is personal touch from me and a awareness by her that’s being created between the both of us.

Even with all of the interaction that goes on, or is perceived, there seems to be an incredible amount of hate from bloggers and fans who feel that music is getting worse. If artists are willing to go online and interact with fans, it seems they’re not really reading the commentary about their work. It almost makes those artists out as spammers of their own crap. Should artists take a few hints from naysayers?

I can’t say because I don’t partake in such activity. What I do on Facebook is simply post my music, videos, notes and music that I actually enjoy from other artists and then converse with my fans about it. It’s a nice distraction from my work, but for the most part it goes no further than twice a day.

For the past 3 months these conversations have been mostly non-music related. We discuss my obsession with golf, cycling, rock climbing, bowling and my personal struggles with my weight gain. I’m 267 pounds now I used to be a fit 165 pounds but I got fat and out of shape. So we talk about these things because I’m slowly working on them by being more active and eating better.

The idea of talking and exchanging ideas and information goes back to the original means of being social, and how it reflects to us as users of the media today. I recently read a term which classifies those of us who have been online for a long time: “digital immigrants”. There is a belief that the internet communities are one for all and all for one, and yet in the 21st century, I’ve noticed an increase in ageism and the separation of “youth culture” and the elders, or at least as an older generation better understands how the internet works, it seems it wants to define it,which leads to a bit of pigeonholing. Why are people quick to fit communities, music, and artists into one and only one specific category?

I think it has to do with the fact that as brilliant as we are as the human race, we’re also stupid. I have friends from Brooklyn who have no idea that indie hip hop music is a thriving scene and they’re shocked to find out the artists they love is still alive on the scene because their kids are listening to the newest De La Soul, Special Ed, Chip Fu joints on their iPhones while they have no idea how to find music blogs like KevinNottingham.com. Why? Because they’re still caught up on Radio and BET and they don’t like what they are seeing and hearing, but then their sons and daughters are fucking them up in the head putting them to new music because they listen to real hip hop just as much as they check for the fluffy stuff that dominates the radio today.

Part 5. the finale. tomorrow

Related posts:

1. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 2
2. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 3
3. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 1

In promotion for his upcoming single release on HiPNOTT Records, Pete Marriott sat down with acclaimed hip hop journalist John Book for a 5 part interview series which we are running exclusively here at KevinNottingham.com. Here is Part 3. The following words are written by John Book…

Pete Marriott is a record producer, DJ, and artist that you may not have heard about, but may be familiar with some of his contributions to music you may be familiar with in the last 20 years. Like those who are fortunate to watch the inner workings of the recording process, Marriott became a studio rat as a kid when watching sessions with his uncle. When the uncle was working with his reggae band, Marriott observed what was going on. Leave a kid in a room with toys of interest, and you’re not going to stare and drool. Instead you’re going to move closer, touch, and feel. Many observations later, and Marriott became the man behind the boards for a number of recording sessions. At a time when the name was becoming a bigger brand than the music being created, Marriott would become a part of a production team and was often uncredited for his work, something that was fairly common not only in hip-hop, but other genres of music. It would take deep record collectors and music geeks to seek the information and express those discoveries later. In fact, it was said that British fans of Motown knew who the producers, engineers, tape operators, and the musicians on all the early records long before most American fans knew or cared. It was a keen sense to know more. With Marriott, sometimes if the learning process has been halted, you have to serve as the teacher.

You’re also working with Jazz of the group Whistle. Will this be a hip-hop album, R&B, or a mixture of both?

Jazz is a certified soul singer and songwriter who’ve proven himself in this industry doing hits within the hip hop and R&B genres as a member of Whistle, but the album we’re working on together is a straight up soul album.

There’s a side of him that many people never had the chance to hear and we’re very fortunate to have to have him on Lou Ashby Records. I’m composing and playing some very heavy feel good shit for him. That’s my dude from way back so it’s important to me that I hit a homer for him each time I step up to the plate.

Jazz and me are going to drop a free EP in the winter but the complete album won’t be ready until Summer of 2012. We want it to be a great record and we’re both veterans so we know greatness takes time.

Diano Garcia is an artist from Seattle that will be of interest to many, as he will be bringing in an Afrobeat vibe that isn’t generally something people think of it when it comes to music from the city. What is it about him and his work that made you want to work with him?

My former manager Eelco Van Ruth was doing international promotions for Diano’s Manager and somehow a conversation came up about me working with him. Diano’s last album which was produced by Geoff Stansfield has a great collection of songs and Diano wanted me to remix the entire album for him. So I took it on with the attitude of not wanting to be disrespectful to Geoff’s version.

As many in Seattle’s music community knows, Diano is the most awesome percussionist in the Northwest so he’s playing on a lot of records and doing lots of shows be it his music or with another artist or band. Diano has a charisma and stage presence that very much works in his favor. So I wanted to capture that energy and playing skill on my remixes and we tracked his new percussion tracks at Mark Fauver’s studio and he nailed each recorded take.

Diano also has a very strong following here in the North West as well as a few countries in Europe. So it’s important to me that this remix album is great because I don’t want to be the guy who under or over produced his remix album so at some point, I didn’t like what I was doing with it anymore because I was subconsciously playing it too safe. At some point I felt like I was doing a disservice to the entire project by playing it so safe, I don’t want to fuck it up, so I discussed it over with Diano and we shelved that version so I can go back in my studio and do it the way I really want to hear it on the radio and what I’m doing with it now is fucking awesome!

I’m sampling, playing the keys, bass, guitars and the drums in ways I never imagined I could so I really can’t wait for people to hear it. It’s feeling so right to me that I don’t want to say too much about how it sounds now. I can’t wait until I take it to the mastering stage with Barry Corliss at Master Works after I finish the final mix.

I also learned a great deal from this experience and I’m having a great time working on the remix album. Diano has shown great confidence in me and thankfully Geoff has been very supportive as well so I’m now very confident about this project. The last time I spoke to Diano we discussed me touring this album with him so I’m looking forward to it when the time comes.

One of your labelmates is a singer from the Bay Area named Dasha, who comes off as a renaissance woman who knows that people are or should be ready to hear her sing.

Oh Man John! Dasha is the First Lady of HiPNOTT Records and she cat’s pajamas man! And does she has some lungs on her man and I’m very excited about our project. When I was doing Generation Next last year, Kevin introduced her music to me and I spun it like crazy on my turntables night after night. I think I knew I was going to be working with her from there. Her voice makes a good fit for my musical ideas because she just got this incredible amount of soul. I’m working on getting her and Jazz together for a pair of songs. Yo if we get that going, that shit is going to be crazy! We’ve only started working on that album so I can’t say when it will drop but I can foresee everyone on the indie scene going nuts when it’s done. Dude I’m so in the zone right now it’s not a game!

Earlier you briefly talked about your role or roles in the studio. When you’re in with an artist, are you able to work solely as the producer, or do you have to play the role of a music fan that helps the artist create the music you feel you’d like and, for their guidelines, to sell?

When I’m producing any record I have three specific things in mind. The DJs, the typical music fan and myself as a music fan. I’m not only a musician, but I’m also a DJ. I think I told you this before, but DJs are the very best producers, why? because we are the biggest fans of music. We collect records and spin them on our turntables so much that we have personal relationships with our vinyl. I’m a turntablist so you know my relationship with music is very strong. Artists who I work with knows this about me and they know that I’m obsessed with artistry and care very much about the music we’re working on so they trust me to make those musical decisions in the studio especially in the final mix. They know I’m not trying to make them sound bad because I want them to give it their very best.

When I record an artist I encourage them to push themselves by experimenting. I had to tell an artist the other day that they need to loosen the fuck up and find their inner weirdo and it worked for that particular song we’re working on. I’m more than the guy who made the music, I’m a coach or a director or some kind of influence on their creativity. My job is to inspire the artists to put in a great performance and I’m very good at that for whatever reason. I think it’s because I used to be an MC myself so I can relate to their process.

But I’m also a comedian, I’m too serious right now so I’m not allowing myself to be funny but if pay attention to my Facebook updates then you know I’m funny guy and I bring that fun to the studio so although we’re working hard I also make it a fun experience for the artist. You gotta have fun if you don’t something is fucking wrong with you.

I’ve often said that too, that music is about fun, and not just something people will dance to, but in hearing it as well as creating it. It shows that you are a fan but can being a music fan in this situation be harmful, or can there be a balance between the roles of a producer?

It’s one thing to be a fan and a fan boy. I see so many newcomers in this game kiss so many artists asses so they can get on, that it’s embarrassingly shameful. I don’t play the ego game with any artist and I don’t coddle theirs either. For me it’s all about making the song the star of the show. Not me and not them, but the fucking song. Give the audience a great song and they will become your fan. It’s not about you or me it’s about the fucking song. That’s your balance right there.

Let’s turn that back around to you, as an artist. I’m someone who has also played the role of arist, producer, and fan, and at times it’s a struggle. Do you find any part of this process that leads to obstacles, or are you able to balance things in an easy manner?

I’ve come to realize that for me to have smooth sailing and an easier time as an artist, that I don’t need to be on a major label. Major Labels are bloated clusterfuck systems that don’t work well for me because too many people in those environments don’t care about music.

All they care about is sales so their attitude is pretty much like “Fuck your musical integrity Pete Marriott! I need to secure my $250,000 with bonuses a year job. Now bring me something sounds like Lady Gaga or Justin Beiber you artistic fuck! Fuck your Real Hip Hop music Pete! We here at Universal don’t give a fuck about Real Hip Hop! Just give us the Bubblegum SodaPop we asked you for you artistic fuck!”

Now with a indie label like HiPNOTT it’s all about “Hey Pete I like The Champ Is Here, let’s release that as a single and see what happens. If it doesn’t work we’ll try another record, ok?” See the difference in attitude? One environment is super positive and the other is extremely negative.

Huge difference. So let me ask this: outside of seeing things as positive or negative, what makes that outlook one that works, not only for you but for music across the board?

I think my negative experiences in the music industry has made a stronger artist. A few assholes shitted on Soultronica back in the days but now everyone is doing it today and they are now calling it Wonky. I get it, those assholes don’t want to give props where it’s due because I fathered that scene and they hate me so they then turned around and gave the credit to over people who sound a whole iot like how I used to sound. But I’m not mad at that. I don’t care for this trance stuff cats are rhyme over today so I guess we’re even. I’m on a new path musically, I’m doing shit the way I see fit and my music is getting airplay, not many of my haters can say that about their music. They still over there in haterville doing what they do best in life, hating. I’m living.

Part 4. tomorrow

Related posts:

1. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 2
2. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 1
3. Pete Marriott: Next Generation DJ

In promotion for his upcoming single release on HiPNOTT Records, Pete Marriott sat down with acclaimed hip hop journalist John Book for a 5 part interview series which we are running exclusively here at KevinNottingham.com. Here is Part 2. The following words are written by John Book…

Pete Marriott is a record producer, DJ, and artist that you may not have heard about, but may be familiar with some of his contributions to music you may be familiar with in the last 20 years. Like those who are fortunate to watch the inner workings of the recording process, Marriott became a studio rat as a kid when watching sessions with his uncle. When the uncle was working with his reggae band, Marriott observed what was going on. Leave a kid in a room with toys of interest, and you’re not going to stare and drool. Instead you’re going to move closer, touch, and feel. Many observations later, and Marriott became the man behind the boards for a number of recording sessions. At a time when the name was becoming a bigger brand than the music being created, Marriott would become a part of a production team and was often uncredited for his work, something that was fairly common not only in hip-hop, but other genres of music. It would take deep record collectors and music geeks to seek the information and express those discoveries later. In fact, it was said that British fans of Motown knew who the producers, engineers, tape operators, and the musicians on all the early records long before most American fans knew or cared. It was a keen sense to know more. With Marriott, sometimes if the learning process has been halted, you have to serve as the teacher.

Recently you uploaded some of your current works on your Facebook music page, and you did a Bilal remix. You’re also working on a project with Deborah Jordan, so things have been quite busy for you. What has been the reaction to what you’ve released so far?

I’d have to say very positive, I’ve managed to have built a steady core following through that music. I’m very humbled by how many of my favorite artists, producers and beatmakers have reached out to me over the past year on Facebook. I’m grateful for them all, especially in a age where music radio is devoid of quality music and the internet has lost it’s steam. You have no idea how humbled I am by having this following. I’m paying so much attention to my music’s fans and their tastes versus the industry’s tastes right now, it’s an incredible learning experience to me. So much first hand information has been gained over the past year just from my personally discussing music with my music’s fans on Facebook.

One of the benefits of social media has been seeing a song of yours doing well on the charts. For the time being, the world hasn’t made Pete Marriott a household name. You hinted at the interaction between you and fans, what kind of feedback are you getting from the single “The Champ Is Here”, which is receiving nationwide airplay?

Yeah, my current single “The Champ Is Here” featuring Full Time Grind is doing pretty good on the radio mix shows. According to the radio charts we’re in the top ten on a good share of mix shows and I’ve actually had a few DJs thank me for making the record which kinda fucked me up in the head a bit. At first I didn’t understand why DJs were thanking me for my single when I’m the one who is very grateful that they are spinning it on their shows in the first place, but then my dude J.Figz from Open Season Media made sense of it all for me.

He pointed out that I made a “feel good” real hip hop record that didn’t have the typical backpacker sound, but yet it was real hip hop. What he told me is I basically made a record that sounds like me, a Pete Marriott record, not a cookie cutter facsimile of the holy hip hop production trinity. Everything he said to me is true, I stuck to what I strongly believe in and it worked for the record. I learned a valuable lesson there, don’t pay any of the haters no mind and listen to your initial instincts, fuck everyone and everything else! Listen to your gut.

What do you have planned for the immediate future? Are you also working or reworking older material as well?

I’m going to release a few of the songs that were enjoyable to make from the shelved version of the album as singles just to feed the people until the album I really want the world to hear is ready. That’s the way it used to be done when I was growing up in this business back the day. We drop our singles until the album was ready and then drop singles from the album. The way people are doing shit now is ass backwards and fucking stupid.

I’m not trying to flood an already over-saturated market, let them other cats do that shit. I want my joints to be memorable and to make something that is of true quality, something that is really good takes time. It’s about making good smart choices in the studio and that’s what I do best.

We already have the 3rd Pete Marriott single for HiPNOTT planned out. The beat I created is actually from my 2003 sessions, but I made revisions to it and now it’s where it needs to be. It’s so fucking killer that it will totally fade “The Champ Is Here” out of existence and make a awesome follow up to “The Way That I Rock” which is the 2nd single that we’re preparing and I predict the 2nd single will totally eclipse “The Champ Is Here”. I’m calling it right now, the people who like “The Champ Is Here” will totally forget that it ever existed when “The Way That I Rock” drops in the Fall.

It’s like this man, I’m on a great young indie label that’s owned by an award winning Superblogger that has my back and they don’t play any of the bullshit games I endured with my last deal at Universal. I’m so happy with HiPNOTT Records and the way they are doing things because they are giving it an honest go. I have the artistic freedom to make my records as I see fit and we work together behind the scenes to make sure everyone is comfortable with whatever decisions are being made about these records.

This is the very first time I’ve ever had fun working with a label. As an artist I didn’t have any fun with Warlock, or Capitol, or Virgin, and especially with Warner Bros. and Universal. Those two systems were the fucking worst man. From the assholes in their A&R departments to their fucking disgusting publicists, just a bunch of fucking untrustworthy people I’ve come to strongly dislike. I’m sickened just remembering these people and all the fuckery I endured with them.

But there were also good people in those systems too who I still remain friends with to this day, so not all major label staffers are evil, just the ones I had the misfortune of working with that tried to change who I am as a creative soul. Don’t tamper with my soul you soulless douchebag fucks and their won’t be any issues between us. Corporate people for some reason don’t seem to get that with me.

As an artist it never works out for me with a major label, so I don’t want nothing to with them anymore as an artist. But don’t get it twisted! As a producer, sound designer and remixer I still do business with them, but the people I still fucks with in that regard are the very few good guys I mentioned earlier. The rest of them are full of shit and need to stay the fuck away from me. If you see me at an event don’t even fucking talk to me, just keep it moving. I don’t like you!

The last time I interviewed you, there was a bit of talk about what you planned on doing with your own label, Lou Ashby Records. First off, what is a Lou Ashby?

Lou Ashby is that dude! That’s all I need to say.

Is the label a boutique label for you, or is there a plan to release music from outside artists?

The label is designed to help other artists and producers who I’m a fan of to get their music heard. I have a lot of friends who are very talented people but they have no outlet to release their music. It’s really hard to do it on your own so since I’m a trusted musical brand and advocate of good music that people who do know of me respect, it makes perfect sense for me to do this now.

I hope when we launch the label next year people will fall in love with the artists we present as much as I have. I’m very passionate about these artists and want people to hear them. I don’t know how far these artists will go in their careers, but if I can be apart of that launchpad for them in some way, then I’m satisfied. I’m not trying to be no fucking Jay-Z, 50, Kanye, Diddy or no mogul type of cat. That’s some serious L7 shit right there. This label is going to be something different, it’s all about real music baby, none of that corny shit. It’s a place where artists can come and go as they like and make the kind of music that want to make so they can get heard by an open minded audience. Some really great projects are coming down the pipeline, so we’ll see what happens.

One project involves Mister Man from Da Bush Babees, which came as a surprise to me. How did you two hook up for his project?

We used to be label mates at Warner Bros. back in the day and we’re from the same area in Brooklyn so there’s this natural chemistry between us. Mr. Man DJ’s under the name Breukelen Hi-Fi and I DJ and we both rhyme and we are both record producers.

We formed a new group called Breukelen Marriott and we already started working on our album and let me be the very first to tell you right now, it’s going to be satisfying from beginning to end because we’re going for the kill shot with this one. When the album is done and we’re ready to do press for it, I’ll take the back seat and let him do all the talking. Our group was his idea, so I think it’s only right to let him talk to the hip hop media about it. I just want to focus on doing a great job on the production end, that’s my job in the group. He’s the MC and I’m the DJ, ya’dig?

Part 3. tomorrow.

Related posts:

1. Pete Marriott Interview by John Book Part 1
2. Pete Marriott: Next Generation DJ
3. Pete Marriott: A Shot Across the Bow

In promotion for his upcoming single release on HiPNOTT Records, Pete Marriott sat down with acclaimed hip hop journalist John Book for a 5 part interview series which we will be running exclusively here at KevinNottingham.com. You’ll definitely want to check this one out as the 20+ year hip hop veteran drops some knowledge AND some bombs! Props to John Book for giving us the exclusive. The following words are written by John Book…

Pete Marriott is a record producer, DJ, and artist that you may not have heard about, but may be familiar with some of his contributions to music you may be familiar with in the last 20 years. Like those who are fortunate to watch the inner workings of the recording process, Marriott became a studio rat as a kid when watching sessions with his uncle. When the uncle was working with his reggae band, Marriott observed what was going on. Leave a kid in a room with toys of interest, and you’re not going to stare and drool. Instead you’re going to move closer, touch, and feel. Many observations later, and Marriott became the man behind the boards for a number of recording sessions. At a time when the name was becoming a bigger brand than the music being created, Marriott would become a part of a production team and was often uncredited for his work, something that was fairly common not only in hip-hop, but other genres of music. It would take deep record collectors and music geeks to seek the information and express those discoveries later. In fact, it was said that British fans of Motown knew who the producers, engineers, tape operators, and the musicians on all the early records long before most American fans knew or cared. It was a keen sense to know more. With Marriott, sometimes if the learning process has been halted, you have to serve as the teacher.

He was a DJ in New York City on WNWK 105.9 FM that lead people to hearing about him for the first time.  He also did DJ gigs at clubs at a number of events throughout NYC before deciding to take himself and his work elsewhere. Just as he was curious about the recording studio as a kid, he would continue this throughout his time in the studio not only with artists he worked with, but as he became an artist in his own right. All of these roles helped him create a well defined mission on what he wanted to do, and by the time it was a done deal, he found himself in Seattle, Washington. In the Emerald City where music has been a passion for millions of people since the days of The Sonics, Jimi Hendrix, and Heart, Marriott has found a place to develop and create musical ideas that are now helping to bring him out from the liner note basements and into the public eye for all to see and hear.

Like most artists and musicians, he may have had a few stumbling blocks along the way but the one thing that has remained constant is perseverance. He recently released the single “The Champ Is Here” and like a prized fighter, Marriott has walked towards the ring with an improved sense of a mission that started even long before he got his hands on a mixing board. “The Champ Is Here” is now climbing the Rap Attack Lives and Record Breakers charts, and it was then I decided it was time to talk with him again and catch up with what he’s doing, where he’s headed, and get his views on some of the things happening in music today. At times the conversation almost seemed combative, but one can argue that in order to protect your music, you have to fight for the art of your art. You can also say you have to be artful in that fight.

There is a perception that if you are a music producer, you are constantly being bombarded with project after project on a regular basis, taking anything and everything that comes. But what many may not realize is that the producer does have some level of quality control, especially when the producer is also the artist Where do you think that perception comes from?

It’s the fast food mentality of a very spoiled hip hop community. As music production technology became more advanced and accessible, more beats got placed on the market at an exponential rate. I could go deeper into it but let someone else tell it like it is, I’m not going to be that guy. Not today John.

Sure.  Now, you decided to…

Wait…You know what? Fuck it, I’ll be that guy today John. Fuck it! I’ll be that cat to litter in their box. Somebody gotta do it so let it be me. Fuck it!

There’s something I really need to get off my chest. There needs to be new accreditation’s for this music shit, because I’m sick and tired of the bullshit! When People read the credits for their favorite songs they should know who did exactly what on that record. The facade of the superproducer needs to be redefined. Truthfully, the biggest industry lie about production needs to die.

Create new credits that’s truly fair to the people who work on these records! You know something like this:

Produced by Superproducer XYZ
Beat Made by Beatmaker 123
Sound Design and Additional Production by Sound Designer 7

This way people will know who did exactly what! You know what John, I’ve said enough about how I feel, let’s move the on, next question please. Sorry to be curt but we’ll end up being here all fucking day and I have a record to produce, so I need to get through this interview as soon as possible. I have a deadline to meet. Ya’ dig?

Yes, but let me ask this.  I think amongst producers and engineers, everyone wants a credit.  It’s partially to show who did what, and it’s good in terms of a “resume” in that they can say “look, I did legitimate work here, and I was also involved in this, I have proof.”  Of course, production credits had also been important when it comes to getting work in a mainstream setting, and can be if one wants something like a Grammy award.  Recently, the Grammy committee made some changes in what will be nominated.  Do you think that a production credit will remain important for the Grammy committee, to celebrate and honor those who did the hard work, or will it be more about star power and what sells a “product”?

The thing is these committees are controlled by people who mostly work within and with the major label systems and there are some people who don’t want the particulars behind these records to be of public record for their own business agendas.

They could be the owner of a production company or the manager of a beatmaker.  I think guys like me make their lives harder because of our fees and our more mature business savvy. They can’t get away with certain things like getting us to sign over our publishing rights. So the new con game these shady motherfuckers are running is to get these Soundclick cats that are desperate to get in the door. You know the young cats that are super ignorant, broke and hungry who don’t really know shit about this business.

Think about it John, guys like me are the most realist thing when it comes to this music. We do everything on a record from top to bottom, but these new cats coming in the game don’t know fucking shit about putting a record together. All they know about is making a fucking beat and that’s it! They don’t know shit about securing and managing budgets because they don’t even value the music they are creating. These are the same guys that downloaded a cracked copy of Reason or FL Studio. The same lazy cats that download those Neptunes, Swizz Beats and Timbaland construction kits cats be selling on ebay. They never invested their time in learning the craft or paid for their production tools. They don’t value or respect the craft of making music. It’s really hard to respect these Soundclick motherfuckers because most of them are bunch of frauds.

You can put me in the studio with any artist. I don’t really need an engineer because I am an engineer. I come from the days where we cut tape with a razor blade on a cutting block and I still have scars on my fingers from the mid 80’s to prove it. These new cats don’t know shit about that, that’s why the labels hire guys like me to clean up their mess and get the record done. We’re the real producers, those cats are beatmakers and there is nothing wrong with being a beatmaker if that’s what you do and you’re great at writing a beat.

What’s wrong and what I take serious umbrage with, is that they are being given the distinction of a producer. You’re no fucking producer! I’m a record producer! My dudes Marley Swing, Bobby Rude Bones Pikasso and Uncle Jam are record producers! You’re a fucking beatmaker, sit your fucking ass down and clock some serious hours in the studio and learn how to actually work in the studio from someone like us before you make yourself look stupid on YouTube talking shit about how you’re a producer when you wasn’t even there when the record was made in the very first place! It’s a bad look on the entire production community when these fake cats are getting away such bullshit.

I say we need to start fighting for a new credit structure by having it placed in our contracts. When I’m hired to clean up a beatmaker’s mess I want the credits to read according to the proper situation at hand. Otherwise don’t fucking try to recruit me or hire me. Fuck off!

Interesting.  You bring up a point that I’d like to ask, on an issue that has come to my attention just now.  There was news that MySpace was sold and purchased for a price 10 percent lower than what it was purchased before.  The issue is not the price, but the person who was involved in the purchase: Justin Timberlake.  Music insider Bob Lefsetz looked at this purchase and wondered if that alone is of any value at all, if his name alone can be a factor in seeing that brand bloom into something bigger again.  Here’s the point: Lefsetz said about this transaction that “he (Timberlake) cannot go back to music because he just hasn’t got it. He’s good-looking and famous and even smart, but musically talented? It’s all about JT’s collaborators.”  If you think about it, one important factor in Timberland’s music is who he has worked with, specifically The Neptunes and Timbaland.  That has given him a level of recognition (and arguably accessibility) that had not happened when he was with N*SYNC.  I put this into the conversation because you just spoke about proper producer recognition when it comes to credits.  It seems very much that while producers have always been something fellow producers used to “talk shop” about, it’s very much more than that.

I don’t know Scott Storch, but I remember his complaints about Timbaland and Timbalake and as someone who’s been in that position more times than I care to remember, I automatically felt his plight, but he was also lucky to have a manager that stood up and fought for him and Scott appears to me truly as a stand up guy who fights for his, I greatly respect him for that, so for me that was a heroic moment when he vowed to never allow people to take advantage of him again because the difference is, he was there in the studio, working alongside them in the studio.

My gripe earlier are about these cats who are nowhere to be found in the studio that want production credit just because they made the original beat the record is based on. All they done is emailed that beat into the studio where cats like us worked on the actual record.

Making a record is a team effort. Not everyone can be like me a DJ, Musician, Beatmaker, Remixer, Sound Designer, Engineer, Producer, Editor, Production Supervisior all wrapped up in one package and in truth no one should really want to aspire to that at all, because it can and will burn you out physically at some point.

My thing is these discount 99 cents a track beatmakers who’re selling themselves short to these labels need to have their own distinction in the final credits so it’s clear who did exactly what, because it’s not fair when these fucking assholes who didn’t do that much, get the fucking statue on their mantle while the real producers are reduced to accepting the lofty yet glorified hush money. I’m quite sure someone is reading this and saying “Uh oh, Pete Marriott is letting the cat out the bag”, but fuck them cats, this is the truth and it needs to be said. I’m not worried about no type of blacklisting either because I’m very good in my situation. I don’t give a fuck, they can’t stop or hurt me or my business. I’ll always work in this game because I’m one of those very few cats who can actually do what I do in the studio. There’s a value to my talents and skills that will keep me working forever. This is indisputable fact.

True, so let’s talk about the business at hand.  You’ve been doing a lot of music in the last few years, and you had announced that you were working on an album of all new material. Then it seemed the process stopped. Is that a bit of quality control on your part, a bit of impatience, or a bit of retooling on your part?

Last year I was struck by a hit and run driver while driving. I also lost my Grandmother, I was very sadden by that, but I take comfort I got see her before she left us. I flew out to NYC to say goodbye to her, held her hand and broke down in tears and then I flew back to Seattle only to drive down to Oregon coast where my Sister called me to tell me that she passed away. That was a very hard moment for me, the woman that raised me is no longer here. But she’s still here because I carry her genes, my creativity comes from her so I take comfort in that, especially now because I’m on fire with the music I’m cranking out.

I also lost my good friend and musical collaborator Ari Up of The Slits who also passed away while I was working on the album. These things were unhappy moments for me, but I’m in a very good place in life right now and my music should be an extension of my current personality and I strongly believe that’s what my album should reflect that. For the first time in years, I’m having fun doing music again so I’m doing the album completely over to reflect all of this positive energy around me.

If certain people in Brooklyn want to be mad at me for this, then that’s on them. I don’t give a fuck, I live in a most beautiful city called Seattle and I play golf in the morning before I go in my studio and sit behind my mixing console. I hang out at night and I’m DJing on the radio and in the clubs again.

My life is really good right now. I’m very happy and in love with an awesome woman who inspires me everyday. I have friends and family who love me, I wake up with a fucking smile everyday John, every fucking day I smile, I couldn’t do that before, living in Brooklyn, running around from studio to studio working on other peoples records. When the Pete Marriott album I want the world to hear is ready, I’ll turn it in to HiPNOTT Records and we’ll take it from there. The fans are just gonna have to love my singles until then.

Before I move on with the next question, I’d like to know a little more about the work you did with Ari Up. Her passing was of course a shock to anyone who knew of her and her work with the Slits.  How did the two of you decide to work together?

It’s a complicated story but I’ll give you crib notes. Myself, Marley Swing and Bobby Rude was signed to Full Force’s production company and Warner Bros. Records. As Producers we were working on EX-Girlfriend, 7669, Bada Bing and Cheryl “Pepsi” Riley’s albums. Bobby Rude and myself were a group called March 3rd and we working on our album for Warner He was the DJ and I was the MC in the group.

Around that same time my cousin David “De’1” Ebanks was managing Ari and he brought me in to work with her. Ari and me hit it off instantly. I took her to my friend’s Eric Roache’s studio The Roache Motel and all three of us had a creative chemistry that was awesome! We did an entire album creating all the tracks at Eric’s and then tracked them over at Power Play with Yanni Papadopoulos as our engineer.

We shopped Ari’s album to all the majors and a bidding war broke out because at that time the entire Dancehall Hip Hop craze was popping and “Informer” by Snow was at the top of the then new Billboard Rap Charts so being that Ari was white, all these black A&R guys we were meeting with had no idea who she was. They didn’t know she was a punk legend. All they saw was a tall white chick with dreads and they wanted to market her based on that.

I was also in film school during that time studying at NYU so Ari suggested that I direct her in a music video and I was of course excited about it so I got a Cannon Super 8 from the 70’s and hired a videographer with a BetaSPCam and we shot the video for “Me Done” and myself and my then personal assistant Owen Carter took it to a editing studio and we knocked it out. Owen was a champ and Ari loved him dearly they would always trade barbs and poke fun at me and David. Then Dwight came into the fold and it was just all of us working on music and whatever business at hand.

Sincere Thompson from Mercury Records who was one of the A&R guys who wanted to sign Ari, suggested I remixed the song for the video and a song I rhymed on called “Keep it Street” so me and Owen went to Firehouse studio and I knocked it out. The deal was already to go and then the hammer came down.

Chris Blackwell called Ed Eckstein who was sincere’s boss. He wanted to find out if it was true that Mercury was trying to sign one of his artists. Apparently Ari was still under her contract with Island and our deal with Mercury fell through. We had no idea Ari was still signed to Island and then a few phone calls were made and Full Force caught wind of the situation and then the hammer came down again. This time it was on me. Certain people was not happy, not happy at all.

I somehow violated conditions of my contract. So when we forged ahead and put the record out ourselves and it was done under my alter ego Andres Spriggnali an inside joke within our camp, one I will never reveal to this day. It was one huge messy affair that caused tension for all of us in the end. It even led to all of us not speaking to each other for a very long time, but years later Ari and me patched up our differences. I still have the 2 inch masters and all the DATs from our album and now Eric Roache, David Ebanks, Owen Carter, Dwight Chapman and myself are trying to decide on if we should work on putting out this unreleased material as apart of my box set or an album for her.

For me personally it’s too soon to pursue such a project because I personally took her death really hard as well. She was my friend and I don’t want to fuck this up. If I can bring myself to doing it, I want for this project to be something that is what I think Ari would enjoy. She was highly critical musically, unpredictable as a person and funny as hell and had a very kind soul. If we do such an album project for her I want it to reflect that. I already decided that if we do this, everything will done properly to make sure all things are in order. I want her 3 sons Peadro, Pablo and Wilton to be Co-Executive Producers but first I need to talk to Ari’s Mother Nora before I speak to anyone else on the matter.

Part 2. tomorrow.

Related posts:

1. Pete Marriott: Next Generation DJ
2. Pete Marriott: A Shot Across the Bow
3. Pete Marriott: Quickies #0001 +The Love+

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqmYAYD2m1o

Donny Goines‘ new album, The Breakfast Club, will finally be here tomorrow morning. To finish up our Making of The Breakfast Club series, Donny and Ariel preview a few more tracks from the album and bring along a few guests. Check out Emilio Rojas‘ verse on one of my favorite cuts from the album and Skyzoo stops in to record his verse minutes after he wrote it!

Thanks to Donny and Ariel for giving us the exclusive on this series. Ariel should be back with his Industry Insider series giving you more secrets and know hows of a record engineer.

Related posts:

1. Donny Goines + Ariel Borujow: Making of The Breakfast Club Part 1
2. Donny Goines + Ariel Borujow: Making of The Breakfast Club Part 2
3. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGJme3ieCoc

Ariel and Donny check in again to give us an exclusive sneak peak at the making of Donny Goines’ upcoming album, The Breakfast Club. Donny brings on a bunch of guests in this segment and we get to preview a handful of tracks. The album will officially be available May 19th and we should get one more video from the guys before then. Thanks to Donny and Ariel and everyone involved in making this behind the scenes feature possible. Oh, and I see you Poison Pen… send me some stuff… that verse was sick!

Related posts:

1. Donny Goines + Ariel Borujow: Making of The Breakfast Club Part 1
2. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer #3
3. Ariel Borujow Checks In With The Site

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzpHFnvxKU8

Ariel Borujow has been doing his Industry Insider series for us on KevinNottingham.com and now he’s got something special exclusively for us! Check out Ariel in the studio with Donny Goines putting together Donny’s new album The Breakfast Club. They’ll be sending us videos up until they complete the album. Shouts to Donny and Ariel for hooking this up! Part 2 coming soon!

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1. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer #3
2. Ariel Borujow Checks In With The Site
3. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer #2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkXZzMrnRtU

For those of you that have been checking up on our Industry Insider video blogs with Ariel Borujow, do we have a special treat coming up for you. Ariel hit me up with this idea he had for the vlogs the other day and well, I’m not gonna spoil the news… I’ll let him tell you. Check the video!

Related posts:

1. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer #3
2. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer
3. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer #2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPia6-e212E

Ariel Borujow hits us up with a brand new Industry Insider vlog. This one just shows how big this guy really is, as Ariel gives us a tour of Stadium Red Studios, his home away from home. This is where all the magic happens. Check the Grammys, check the Memphis Bleek and T.I. awards. Yo Ariel, I’m gonna hit you up next time I visit NYC!

After the tour, Ariel shows us a little teaser of his moves as he mixes a little bit of Outasight‘s debut LP. Donny Goines is in the house as well, keepin’ it real… lol. Anyway, check the vid and hit Ariel up with any questions you got in the comments!

Related posts:

1. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer #2
2. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer
3. Jay-Z: Secrets For Personal Success

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Db2gWSXS0jo

Record engineer and mixer, Ariel Borujow, comes back for part 2 in our Industry Insider series.  A lot of people can take some tips from Ariel, as he’s been in the game quite a few years now. There were a lot of questions from you all last time around and Ariel takes the time to answer them here. Keep the questions coming!

Related posts:

1. Ariel Borujow: Secrets of a Record Engineer
2. This Is Hip Hop Remix Contest: Week 10 Entries
3. Remix Contest: Win a Trip to Record with E-40!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWwDIsJ0w-Y

This is the first in an exclusive new series that we plan on running here at KevinNottingham.com. Ariel Borujow, world renowned engineer and mixer, has agreed to step in and and give us a few words about what it is that he does and why his job is important in the music industry.. He has been in the business for 14 years and has worked with tons of artists to make their shit sound good. This first video, or should we call it vlog, is just a quick introduction from Ariel and about his profession. Feel free to leave any questions in the comments and we’ll get Ariel to answer them in the next segment!

Related posts:

1. Remix Contest: Win a Trip to Record with E-40!
2. Illmatic Beat Contest Week 3: The Entries
3. Illmatic Beat Contest Week 1: The Entries