Producer-rapper Mr. Brady, best known as a member of hip-hop group Deep Rooted, has been a mainstay in the local music scene since the early '90s. He recently released a new EP, Welcome To The City, along with fellow producer AbJo. Mr. Brady, who is at the Kava Lounge Friday, took some time out to field some questions about the project and his career via email.
Quan Vu: What makes this EP stand out from the rest of your projects?
Mr. Brady: From the first song we recorded, it just felt special. I kind of got that tingling feeling, you know, like we we're tapping into something special here. The first time I heard AbJo, I wanted to work with him. This EP came together real easy, fast and effortless. Nothing felt forced, as it shouldn't.
QV: Did you handle any production duties for this project or was it all on AbJo?
Brady: Nah, I didn't touch the boards at all on this project. I recorded myself, that's it. But AbJo handled all the beats for this one. I like rhyming to other cats' beats though. It always gives me a different feel than rhyming to my own beats. Brings something new out of me, you know.
QV: What's it like working with AbJo?
Brady: Haha, we didn't record any of these songs in the same studio at the same time but the chemistry was like we were in the lab together for every joint. I recently moved out of Diego so he just emailed me beats and I just sent the songs back to him to mix and whatnot. I do a lot of projects like that nowadays with cats all over the world. That's the beauty of technology. We're already talking about doing another one this year but with both of us in the lab together.
QV: You're working on two projects with dudes from San Diego, AbJo and Piff. Was that a conscious decision to stay active in the SD scene or something?
SoundDiego
Music. Community. Culture.
Brady: I love to stay active with my Diego peeps. It's just good when you find people that you click with musically that you can build with effortlessly. Just like Deep Rooted, if it's right, I'm with it.
QV: What motivates you to keep making music? Has that changed since you first started in the ‘90s?
Brady: I just love making music every day. It keeps me sane pretty much. I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I didn't do music. I can't just sit up and watch TV, I like to work everyday. Also I'm a fast worker so it's hard for some cats to keep up with me when I'm working on projects with other cats, haha. Life motivates me. The good and the bad. I put my life into it so where I'm at in life is where my music goes. My drive is probably even stronger now because I know what I want now.
QV: Can you walk us through a relatively typical day in your life?
Brady: I'm a night owl (I'm doing this interview at like 4am). I know, it's a problem, haha. I get my best work done after 12am though. After I get up and do what I have to do, I'm usually making music. I usually pick out a stack of records for the day to chop if I'm making beats or toss a beat on and write a song then lay it. I got my equipment and all at the pad so I always work. Sometimes I'll go out at night to get motivated but, for the most part, I'm home making music. Wake, shower, handle biz and work.
QV: What has been the hardest struggle you've encountered in your career so far?
Brady: The easy part is the music. The hard part is staying relevant after you been in the game for a minute. You gotta know how to reinvent yourself without changing who you are or what you do and stay true to yourself and your fans. That's why I put out so much music every year. Well, I love what I'm doing so I do that anyways. But nowadays, after about a month of putting out your album or whatever, cats are on the next already. That's why you gotta consistently hit the peoples with music, stay relevant, keep rocking shows. Touring and whatnot. That's why I already got about six projects ready to go for 2012 and it's only January.
QV: Have there been any times when you had thought about quitting music? If so, what made you want to quit?
Brady: I can't lie. It's been times I said, Man I'm done with this! It gets hard at times. Sometimes you think, Is it worth it? This game is a trip, to say the least. You get frustrated at times. It's a lot of things about the game that turns me off but it's the music that keeps me doing it. If I wasn't doing music though, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. There's plenty of days that I don't leave the house and that's all I do. So to not do music would be a life-altering change for me. I told somebody the other day, even if I did stop putting out music, I would never stop doing music, just for my own peace of mind. Plus I just love making music always.
Both Brady and AbJo are set to perform Friday at Kava Lounge along with DJ Pound, eLan, and Knxwledge. If you order a pre-sale package for the show at Kill Quanti, you will receive a handful of goodies including a limited-run cassette of Welcome To The City and a DJ Pound/eLan split 10" vinyl record.
Quan Vu Quan Vu is the founder and editor of local music blog SD Raps.com. He has also written about local and national hip-hop acts for San Diego CityBeat and the San Diego Reader. You can nerd out on rap trivia by becoming BFF's on Facebook or e-mailing him directly.
