INTERVIEW: GET BLUNTED WITH LOUD LORD
Inside the artistic echo chamber that is Soundcloud, it’s more possible than ever to click a few names and stumble upon something great. The platform is a hub for collaboration, and it’s facilitated the creation of super groups and the careers of countless bedroom producers turned hit-makers. This could very well be the path taken by Loud Lord and his group Swisherboyz. The Illinois producer and his collaborators have recently made something of a name for themselves carving out a nook in cyberspace with their woozy mix of trap-inspired beats and video game nostalgia. We chopped it up with Loud Lord about his beginnings, his group, and his place in the internet.
Who is Loud Lord?
“My real name is Seth. I’m 22 years old and I live in a town just south of Chicago called Lansing. I’ve pretty much lived here my whole life. It’s just your average town; nothing too crazy going on. I spent most of my childhood playing sports and video games, but I’ve always been interested in music.”
How long have you been producing, and how’d you get your start?
“I think it was sometime around the beginning of 2013, so it’s been like 2 or 3 years now. I didn’t start messing around with producing ’til after high school.
One of my friends showed me a beat he made in FL (Studio) and I downloaded the demo. I spent a lot of time messing around on it and watching YouTube tutorials on trying to figure out what I was doing. I became friends with this other dude that used FL, and one night I went to his house and he showed me a bunch of stuff. After that night, I made a Soundcloud and started throwing my beats on there.”
What do you do when you sit down to make a beat? What DAW, and what VST’s do you like to use?
“I usually start by rolling up a blunt and then trying to make a VST melody, or sample. I do a 4-bar pattern, and after I find my melody, I’ll start doing the drums. Once I have the main pattern done, I’ll mix everything and start breaking it down into an intro and verses and all that shit. Most of the time I don’t finish a beat all at once because it starts to get too repetitive listening to it over and over again. I’ll usually finish half of it then go back and work on a different beat I had started.
I’ve always used FL Studio 11. There’s a bunch of VST’s I like, but I’d say my favorites are FM8, Electra X, Gladiator, Nexus, Sylenth, and a few of the nicer stock FL VST’s.”
What type of mood do you hope to create with your music?
“My music is all about going hard and grinding. I wanna turn people up and give them energy with my sound. Darker “trap” sounds just get me in my zone, so I like to make that kind of music.”
Which 3 songs of yours would you say best describe you as an artist?
“Man I’ve made so many different tracks at this point… it’s really hard to say. I think “LEGGO” is one of my personal favorites, for sure. The joints I did with araabMUZIK are up there too.”
https://soundcloud.com/loudlordbitch/loud-lord-leggo
Speaking of aarabMuzick, how’d you first link up with him, and what was it like working with him?
“It was really a blessing to have had the opportunity to work with araab. He’s a legend and someone I’ve been listening to since way before I even started producing. Basically, he heard my stuff on Soundcloud and wanted to work. We did it all through emails. I made some melodies and he killed ’em (the drums) and sent them back right away. It was crazy.”
How has the internet helped your career?
“I probably wouldn’t even have a career without the internet. I met almost all the people I’ve worked with through Twitter or Soundcloud. I rarely ever work with someone face to face in a studio; it’s always sending emails back and forth to someone. You can make a beat with a dude from Alaska while you’re sitting at home on the couch. The internet is everything for me, really. Every time I sell a beat, I use Paypal.
There was only one time I sold a beat to someone in person. I gave him a CD and he gave me cash. That was pretty weird since I’m so used to doing business online.”
How did your group Swisherboyz get started? Who are the other members, and how’d you all link up?
I first met TDeezy in 2013. I met him through a rapper we both produced for named “Gueringer the 13th.” He said we’d make some dope shit together so we started doing collabs through emails and twitter, sending files back and forth. One day, we made a 8 track instrumental tape called Porn N Cereal. We started calling it “Swisherboyz” whenever we would team up.
Then we met Myrror through Soundcloud and we decided to make the team official and keep using the name Swisherboyz. We made our first collab tape last year, Swisherboyz Vol. 1.
Since then, we’ve released a bunch of other work within the group, as well as multiple solo projects. TDeezy and I are currently working on a mixtape called Heavy Hustle that will drop this year.”
Two months ago you put out the third entry in your Kush Krazy series, Kush Krazy 3. How would you describe this record? What went into making it?
“I put a lot of time into K.K.3 because I wanted to take my production to a new level. I tried to challenge myself and try new things. I feel like it represents how I was feeling at the time. I kinda went with a mafia/mobster theme with the Sopranos and Scarface samples.”
Do you think your music has changed since you released your first tape?
“It’s changed a lot. I tried a lot of different styles before I finally found my own lane. Back then, I was influenced a lot by DJ Smokey and had a similar vibe going. But, I’ve been making heavy trap since I first started; it’s not like I just started making this type of music out of nowhere. It just took me some time to realize that was my favorite style. Now I’m just trying to push the limits and do new things with it.”
Your solo projects are exclusively instrumental. Is there a reason why you don’t feature artists on these releases?
“I’ve always wanted to rap, and I still might in the future, but I’ll always appreciate instrumental music because it conveys a mood/vibe without the help of words. Sometimes music just sounds better without anyone rapping or singing over it. Sometimes I make music for people to rap on, other times I let the music speak for itself. It really depends on what I’m feeling.”
Your song “8 Bit-Ch” sounds heavily inspired by retro video game soundtracks. How did you originally go about blending video game sounds and rap beats?
“I’ve just always liked that kind of sound. I found this one VST that uses all 8-Bit synths and it sounded cool to me, so I made 8 Bit-ch. I played a lot of video games growing up and that influence definitely shows in my music.”
Your album artwork draws inspiration from classic Nintendo box art. What are some of your favorite Nintendo video games?
“I think the first games on Super Nintendo that I really got busy with were the Donkey Kong Country joints, all 3 of them, and this game Mario All-Stars that had all the Mario games in 1 cartridge. My favorites from Super Nintendo though would have to be Zombies Ate My Neighbors and Super Mario RPG. They’re not that popular, but both of them are really solid games. For N64 I’d go with Smash Bros, both Zeldas, Mario Kart, and Donkey Kong 64. “
What artists do you want to collaborate with the most?
“It would be tight to get Lil Herb on one of my beats. I’ve always wanted to work with him because he’s around the same age as me and from Chicago. I’ve got hella respect for his flow. I also really like Young Dolph; he’s bringing that real trap shit back. There’s a bunch of artists I’d love to work with, but those two just come to mind because I’ve been listening to their stuff lately. I feel like my style fits their’s.
As far as producers, I’d like to work with MetroBoomin, Mike Will, Sonny Digital, WillAFool, TM88, Southside… basically all the guys I looked up to when I first got my start. There’s definitely a bunch more, but there’s too many to name lol.”
If someone wants to work, where should they hit you up?
“LoudLordBeats@gmail.com, or just message me on twitter or soundcloud…But I prefer to do business through the email address.”
Twitter: @Loud_Lord
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