Inspiration, Production & Personal Taste w/ King Art

Author: Erika Netzer

Out of AEMMP Records’ Hip-Hop Division, music producer King Art answers questions about his personal music taste, music industry advice and production inspiration.

I have heard you are a fan of Master P. Who else would you say shaped your sense of 90’s music and taste?
I wouldn't say Master P shaped my taste in the 90s, but his song Make ‘em Say Ugh was one of the first songs I heard that introduced me to rap music in like 3rd grade. Then I was introduced to groups like Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and Wu-Tang Clan. I got a hold of 2Pac’s album All Eyez On Me and instantly fell in love with hip hop. His song Nothing Like the Old School introduced me to earlier within the 90's: De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Rakim, and Pete Rock. My 90's taste was very vast, I first was into R&B with groups like SWV, Blackstreet, Boyz II Men, and artists like Ginuwine, Usher and Keith Sweat.

If there is one thing you could tell your younger self, what would it be?
Don't wait until your older to try new things, be expressive and don't be so timid.

Do you have advice to anyone trying to start in music?

Music is a tool of expression, it is therapy, and it is life. Go out there and find your identity, be efficient in the way you create, and don't be scared to fail. The more you keep going and learning new techniques and tricks, the faster the process will be and you'll be knocking out songs in no time. Don't overthink things. 2Pac has an abundance of songs because he didn't waste time in the studio he would write one song in an hour or so, record it, then go on to the next. Music is a numbers game. Eventually you'll come up with something special after many tries and the cool thing is you can have many versions of essentially the same song and just pick the best version and release that one.

How has your family and the birth of your daughter changed your drive and hunger for creating?

It has made me even hungrier. I know music is the best vehicle for me to provide for my family and it's my best for if expression. It's a blessing to be able to pursue something you love and provide for your family with that passion.

I may be wrong but I feel you possess a talent where you can see the process in reverse or are so in tune to how it will be experienced. Is this true?

I think possessing skills in multiple fields or practices keeps me on my toes, and it allows me to find the relativity in different forms of expressions and I think it keeps me in tune. Also having multiple things to turn allows me to refresh my creative mind and start fresh.

Do you have an ultimate vision for personal your brand?

Yes, I love what Metro Boomin and Murda Beatz are doing with their career. They are really at the forefront of hip hop and are making there in albums with a bunch of dope artists. I can see myself in their position but with my own sound.

Interviewee: King Art

Interviewer: Erika Netzer