March 17, 2025 • 16 mins
On the debut episode of "Mixed and Mastered," Jeffrey Sledge sits down with A&R visionary Sean Barron to uncover the untold stories behind modern music’s biggest stars. From discovering Drake on MySpace to shaping hits at Atlantic Records, Barron shares how instinct, hustle, and timing propelled him from Buffalo to the industry’s inner circle. With behind-the-scenes insights on working with talents like Miguel, Frank Ocean, and Bruno Mars, this episode offers a rare look at the art—and heart—of making music that lasts.
Subscribe and listen to the full episode at https://mixedandmasteredpod.buzzsprout.com/
Unglossy will be back later this week with playwright, poet, actor, director, and producer, Keenan Scott II.
"Unglossy: Decoding Brand in Culture," is produced and distributed by Merrick Studio and hosted by Merrick Chief Creative Officer, Tom Frank, hip hop artist and founder of Pendulum Ink, Mickey Factz, and music industry veteran, Jeffrey Sledge. Tune in to hear this thought-provoking discussion on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you catch your podcasts. Follow us on Instagram @UnglossyPod to join the conversation and support the show at https://unglossypod.buzzsprout.com/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Unglossy listeners.
Last week, we gave you theofficial trailer for a new
podcast from Merrick Studioscalled Mixed and Mastered, with
host Jeffrey Sledge, and nowhere's a sneak peek of episode
one of Mixed and Mastered withspecial guest Sean Barron, an
A&R mastermind.
Enjoy.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Welcome to Mixed and Mastered, the podcast where the
stories of the music industrycome to life.
I'm Jeffrey Sledge, bringingyou real conversations with the
people who have shaped the soundof music.
We're pulling back the curtainon what it takes to make it in
the music business.
These are the stories you won'thear anywhere else, told by the
people who live them.
This is Mixed and Mastered.
(00:43):
Okay, we're here at Mixed andMastered.
One of my favorite people, seanBarry from Buffalo, new York,
buffalo's finest, appreciate it.
Thanks for having me.
Yeah, man, thank you forappearing, man, I'm looking
forward to this interview.
It's going to be good man.
So like I said you grew up inBuffalo, new York.
(01:04):
You know York, with Westside,gunn and Benny and all those
guys.
Yes, sir, home of Rick James.
Yes, sir, wait, do y'all count?
Is it Niagara Falls?
That's not you.
Is that Buffalo?
I mean, that's close enough,it's close enough, right, close
enough.
It's like 20 minutes away,exactly.
I remember years ago, man, whenI did promotions before I did
(01:27):
A&R, and one of my stations wasWBLK, okay, yeah, in Buffalo.
I remember going up there andthe guy, the program director,
the music director at the time,a guy named Roger, came up to me
and said he's a good dude.
He took me to the place wherehe said they invented buffalo
wings At the Anchor Bar.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
That's probably it, yeah, some restaurant.
Speaker 2 (01:46):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, but those are not the best wings.
No, they wasn't really five,but I was like these ain't
really that good.
I mean, I respect you bringingme here, but these ain't really
like lit.
It's other spots way better,way I figured, yeah, yeah, so
tell me a little bit aboutgrowing up in Buffalo.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
No, it was good.
I had a cool childhood, washeavy going outside every day
with my friends, was playingbasketball almost every day.
That was like my thing.
Yeah, just had a cool childhoodJust riding my bike around the
neighborhood.
Regular kid stuff.
Yeah, regular kid stuff Outsideevery day.
(02:23):
The computer didn't come tilllike later on.
I think I got a computer when Iwas like in eighth or ninth
grade.
So, uh, that's when that thatcame along and then I was more
so on the computer and doing allthat stuff.
But, yeah, just regularchildhood, regular.
Just, how'd you tap into themusic?
Yeah, I mean, I think my momhad a part to play in that.
(02:44):
She was always playing musicaround the house.
My cousin was a dj and he stillis a dj.
Okay, shout out a tech, he's adj down here in atlanta right
now.
Okay, he was at the radiostation at 10 b10.
Okay, yeah, so shout out to him.
Shit, sorry about that.
No, that's all good.
Yeah, so shout out to him.
(03:04):
He was a dj that, no, that'sall good.
Yeah, so shout out to him.
He was a DJ.
He put me on to a lot of stuff.
I remember hearing early Nas,early, you know, big L all that
stuff from him, so shout out tohim.
And then I just think that,yeah, I just loved music, I was
always into it.
I was always looking for thenewest songs.
Loved music, I was always intoit, I was always looking for the
(03:24):
newest songs, I was alwayslooking for the new artists.
Yeah, just being outside too,like in here, having cars go by
and just playing all the newstuff.
I remember hearing Nori for thefirst time N-O-R-E Nori I had
somebody inspire for the firsttime and I was like what's that?
Yeah, just all stuff like thatbeing in it.
See, I was like what's that?
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, just all stuff like that.
Just being in it, being in it,yeah, being in it.
So you said you played ball.
You still play, man, I haven'tplayed ball in forever.
You gave it up.
You let it go.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I got to get back out there, though.
No, I want to get back outthere, I just haven't.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
I haven't played in forever.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Yeah, you playing every day, hours and hours a day
.
Yeah, when I went to highschool I ended up playing
varsity, started for three years.
I got some accomplishments.
First team all catholic becauseI went to a catholic school,
okay.
So yeah, I was a hooper cool,cool, cool.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
And I know, I know the hooping took you to college.
You played in seton hall yep,yep, I didn't play.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
So I made the team, but I ended up not playing.
Okay, the coach was like, sinceI was a walkon, it really
wasn't a spot for me.
He was like you'll make theteam, you'll practice with the
team, you'll travel, but you'renot going to play in any games.
And that sort of discouraged me.
But I should have just keptgoing because I was good.
I would have probably ended upplaying, but I just let those
(04:41):
words discourage me and then waslooking for my next outlet, and
that's when music came into thespotlight.
So tell us about that.
How?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
did that happen?
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yeah, my homie A-Butter.
He was a rapper and he was likeyo, you should manage me.
And I didn't know what to do.
So I went and got an internshipand I ended up interning at
Republic Records, the buildingon 57th and Broadway.
I was going there three times aweek and just learning a bunch
of stuff.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
It was cool.
Who'd you work for over at theRepublic.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
It was this dude named Jordan Walker, and so I
interned in new media, which islike digital marketing, now
slash A&R, and at that timesorry about that At that time it
was MySpace.
That was like the big thing.
So he was searching for artistson MySpace and he like taught me
like how to go through thethree columns and search for all
(05:35):
the artists you could likepinpoint, cities, countries.
It was crazy.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, he taught mehow to do that and the first
artist who I came up on doingthat was Drake, and that sort of
like led to, you know, that'scrazy.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
That's crazy.
So I know you said you reachedout to Drake and had a
conversation with him.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
So I reached out to.
So after my internship Istarted working at Koch.
So this was the time when JimJones was over there he had just
dropped ball and DJ Khaled wasover there.
Ray J was over there when hedid Sexy Can.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
I Younger, it was a real machine at that time.
Speaker 3 (06:18):
So, yeah, I hit Drake up like months before I even
started working at Koch.
I hit him.
I hit Drake up like monthsbefore I even started working at
Koch.
I hit him.
He hit me back, he sent me hisinfo and he just so happened to
be in New York for a Degrassithing.
So I remember he was like yocome meet with me the day before
the meeting.
So we went to his hotel.
He was staying at the TimeHotel.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Yeah, yeah, the Time Hotel.
He was staying there with meand my homie, danny, went there.
We chopped it up with him andthe next day we brought him in
for a meeting with Allen.
What was the vibe like?
Speaker 2 (06:50):
back then.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
He was super cool.
He just wanted to work.
I remember him mentioning Kanyeand Pharrell at that time,
which is funny where stuffhappened.
Yeah, he was super cool, superhumble.
I mean he still seems the sameway to this day.
I haven't spoken to him inforever, but he still seems like
(07:12):
a humble guy.
Still seems like a humble guy,yeah, but uh, yeah, we brought
him up there.
They unfortunately passed onhim and then I just started
telling other people about himand that's how I met mike karen.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Okay, okay, so tell me about that.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
Well, mike mike, mike the scientist, yeah so, uh,
it's funny, me and my homiedanny, we was doing like
unsigned artist showcases in NewYork Okay.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Where did you do those showcases oh?
Speaker 3 (07:41):
man, we did them at two different places.
I forgot which places they were.
The first one we had MickeyFacts.
We had Currency.
We had Nipsey Wow.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Yeah, it was crazy, the people you had eventually
got signed yeah, got eventuallygot signed, yeah, yeah we was
definitely on to something, souh we had made a flyer and we
just emailed the fly.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
We got a list of industry contacts and we just
emailed it to everybody and mikecaron hit me back.
He was like yo, this is dope.
He's like send me whateverartists and producers that you
think I should be looking at.
So I sent him drake and I senthim a bunch of other stuff that
I was looking at at the time andwe stayed in contact and right
after so, 2009 came around andwe all got laid off at kotch.
(08:28):
Um, it was the recession and itwas just those times.
So, uh, I was like what am Igonna do next?
So I found this artist onmyspace.
His name was amir obey.
At that time he's going byfresh, he does it and I sent it
to mike and mike was like yo,this is crazy.
He flew us out to la literallythe next week and then he signed
(08:49):
him and gave me a job atatlanta.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
So amir obey, that's not the kid, uh.
Portland.
Speaker 3 (08:55):
No, no, he's from well, he's from Detroit and
Brooklyn.
He's from both, but I think hewas signed to Def Jam after he
got off Atlantic.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
Okay, okay, okay, cool.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
So you got him signed over, so I got him signed to
Atlantic and, yeah, he gave mean A&R job and literally got
thrown into the fire.
I didn't know what I was doing.
I was doing, I was just upthere.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
I knew music.
Of course, you were in theprocess of doing A&R how to make
records.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
I was just doing A&R.
I didn't really know what I wasdoing but, I, was in the fire
and I learned quickly.
He definitely taught me theprocess of song making and
making hit songs and all thatstuff and I just took it and I
soaked it in and I just added itto you know, because I go for
feeling, I added the process ofmaking a hit record to the
(09:43):
feeling and it's history eversince.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, I think I hate to sound like the old dude you
know what I'm saying Back in myday, but I think that a lot of
what you said that feeling thing, is missing more now.
There are records that havefeeling it's not like nobody's
doing it.
There are plenty of peopledoing it Drake, kendrick, future
, whatever we could keep namingthem but there are a lot of
(10:08):
people that don't understandthat feeling part.
No, for sure, I agree.
I mean, I think that's whythere's a lot of older records
that still you know the MichaelJacksons or Teddy Pendergrass,
whatever they still 40, 50 yearslater.
It's because of how they feel,for sure.
(10:29):
Those records come out today andstill hit the same way,
absolutely, because, again,they're great songs, you know
they're written properly, allthat stuff.
You just hear something thatjust feels inside your body as
it pauses, instead of just likethis is a great record, but it
doesn't make you feel any kindof way, you know?
Sure, so, without giving awayall my secrets, tell us a little
(10:49):
bit about what you learnedabout the process of actually
making records from him.
Definitely, yeah.
Bit about what you learnedabout the process of actually
making records with himdefinitely yeah, so we was in
the studio.
Speaker 3 (10:57):
I was in the studio for my first, like two, three
years non-stop, like we.
At first we were up atparamount and then we were there
for a year and then he ended upbuying that building on coanga
we were.
We were in that building.
So I was literally in thestudio from 11 am until whenever
(11:20):
I left, every day, and we werehaving every major songwriter,
every major producer in the gamecoming up, you know, early
Miguel, early Frank Ocean early.
Ty Dolla, $ign early, jeremiahearly whoever you could think of
(11:42):
was coming up there writingsongs for us and producing for
us.
So it was just an amazing timeup there.
He had a rule book in everyroom with several rules of
songwriting and I mean they,they work.
So one of the rules was likerepetition.
Another one was like when youspell something like boozy, did
(12:03):
I, n, d, e, it's like thatalways works asking a question
like it was just a whole bunchof different things that you
implement to the song to, likeyou know, make sure it was the
hit and I don't know again Idon't.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
You know I hate to sound like the you know the back
of my day guy, but I and causeI don't know how it goes now,
but what you said about allthose people coming through the
studio, it really you reallylike, you really learn a lot by
like watching how people work.
For sure I'm sure Frank and Tydon't work the same.
I'm sure Frank and Ty don'twork the same, even though they
both are phenomenal, but theyhave different approaches.
(12:37):
So you kind of learn things.
That's how, when I worked atJive, the studio was called
Battery Studios.
We were on 10, and Battery wasthe same building.
It was on 7.
So we'd always go downstairsand I learned so much about
sitting in the studio andwatching people work and how
they use this and how they makebeats and how they.
You know they really kind ofsoak up a lot of information.
(12:58):
Besides, don't have thatexperience.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
Yeah, no, I mean even more.
I mean Bruno used to be inthere before.
He had a record that went crazy.
So yeah, just sitting in thereseeing these people's processes
and how they make songs, I justsoaked it all up.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
Is anybody in particular that's there, I mean,
besides time, we'll get tolater but anybody else in
particular that stood out to youas far as their processes and
how they work?
Speaker 3 (13:21):
yeah, um, I mean a lot of people pop.
Ron zell was another one whowas early, yes, yes seeing him
work was amazing, man.
I mean, it was so literally wehad like the pick of the pick
when we was working, so it wasjust everybody who was in there.
It was just a great time.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
That's incredible man .
So wait, you worked with JohnnyShipes for a minute as well,
correct I did?
Speaker 3 (13:45):
So after I got let go from Koch then I worked with
Shipes for like three or fourmonths.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
Oh, it was quick.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Yeah, it was real quick but it was still impactful
.
I still learned a lot overthere.
I remember he had me take likeeight boxes of mixtapes.
It was Nipsey Bullets, ain'tgot no name, I forgot which
volume it was, but he had metake like eight boxes on this
cart to the mail, to UPS.
It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Walking down the street.
Speaker 3 (14:14):
Yeah, walking down the street with eight big boxes
of mixtapes to kick them out.
It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
Had he signed Joy Badass by that point, or was it
before you?
Speaker 3 (14:22):
No, it was just Nipsey, and I think he had Smoke
Dizzy and I'm trying to thinkdid he have anybody else?
Nipsey was like the main focusat that time.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
Yeah grinding it out.
That's cool.
So you worked with Mike, yousigned your guy and so after
that you worked several times.
Speaker 3 (14:42):
So after I got Fresh signed then technically that
wasn't my signing, that wasMike's signing.
He signed our artist.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah .
My first signing was DiggySimmons, so I brought him up
there and this was Now Did youconnect with Diggy via kind of
watching at that time thereality show Run's House, or you
just no.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
He had put out a freestyle where he was rapping
on the rooftop.
And everybody had started to seeit and it was going viral at
that time and I was like man,this kid is crazy.
Through my homie brad, I knewone of diggy's friends and I
reached out to him and heconnected us on the phone and uh
, yeah, then we started choppingit up.
I met with rev and the wholeteam, perry and chris lighty
(15:28):
yeah, yeah, rest in peace, butyeah, no, I sat with them and
then we brought him up and weended up doing a deal and then,
right after we did the deal, hedid another freestyle.
Then Kanye had this thingcalled Kanye University where he
was just posting.
I remember that, yeah, and weended up posting Diggy and then
it just like Exploded Boom.
(15:49):
It was like crazy.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
That was a special sneak peek of episode one of
Mixed and Mastered.
To hear the full episode,search and subscribe to Mixed
and Mastered on Apple, spotify,youtube or wherever you catch
your podcasts and if you likewhat you heard, please give the
show a review.
We'll be back later this weekwith an all new episode of
Unglossy.
This week's guest is playwright, poet, actor, director and
producer, kenan Scott II.
Unglossy listeners.
Last week, we gave you theofficial trailer for a new
podcast from Merrick Studioscalled Mixed and Mastered, with
host Jeffrey Sledge, and nowhere's a sneak peek of episode
one of Mixed and Mastered withspecial guest Sean Barron, an
A&R mastermind.
Enjoy.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Welcome to Mixed and Mastered, the podcast where the
stories of the music industrycome to life.
I'm Jeffrey Sledge, bringingyou real conversations with the
people who have shaped the soundof music.
We're pulling back the curtainon what it takes to make it in
the music business.
These are the stories you won'thear anywhere else, told by the
people who live them.
This is Mixed and Mastered.
(00:43):
Okay, we're here at Mixed andMastered.
One of my favorite people, seanBarry from Buffalo, new York,
buffalo's finest, appreciate it.
Thanks for having me.
Yeah, man, thank you forappearing, man, I'm looking
forward to this interview.
It's going to be good man.
So like I said you grew up inBuffalo, new York.
(01:04):
You know York, with Westside,gunn and Benny and all those
guys.
Yes, sir, home of Rick James.
Yes, sir, wait, do y'all count?
Is it Niagara Falls?
That's not you.
Is that Buffalo?
I mean, that's close enough,it's close enough, right, close
enough.
It's like 20 minutes away,exactly.
I remember years ago, man, whenI did promotions before I did
(01:27):
A&R, and one of my stations wasWBLK, okay, yeah, in Buffalo.
I remember going up there andthe guy, the program director,
the music director at the time,a guy named Roger, came up to me
and said he's a good dude.
He took me to the place wherehe said they invented buffalo
wings At the Anchor Bar.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
That's probably it, yeah, some restaurant.
Speaker 2 (01:46):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, but those are not the best wings.
No, they wasn't really five,but I was like these ain't
really that good.
I mean, I respect you bringingme here, but these ain't really
like lit.
It's other spots way better,way I figured, yeah, yeah, so
tell me a little bit aboutgrowing up in Buffalo.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
No, it was good.
I had a cool childhood, washeavy going outside every day
with my friends, was playingbasketball almost every day.
That was like my thing.
Yeah, just had a cool childhoodJust riding my bike around the
neighborhood.
Regular kid stuff.
Yeah, regular kid stuff Outsideevery day.
(02:23):
The computer didn't come tilllike later on.
I think I got a computer when Iwas like in eighth or ninth
grade.
So, uh, that's when that thatcame along and then I was more
so on the computer and doing allthat stuff.
But, yeah, just regularchildhood, regular.
Just, how'd you tap into themusic?
Yeah, I mean, I think my momhad a part to play in that.
(02:44):
She was always playing musicaround the house.
My cousin was a dj and he stillis a dj.
Okay, shout out a tech, he's adj down here in atlanta right
now.
Okay, he was at the radiostation at 10 b10.
Okay, yeah, so shout out to him.
Shit, sorry about that.
No, that's all good.
Yeah, so shout out to him.
(03:04):
He was a dj that, no, that'sall good.
Yeah, so shout out to him.
He was a DJ.
He put me on to a lot of stuff.
I remember hearing early Nas,early, you know, big L all that
stuff from him, so shout out tohim.
And then I just think that,yeah, I just loved music, I was
always into it.
I was always looking for thenewest songs.
Loved music, I was always intoit, I was always looking for the
(03:24):
newest songs, I was alwayslooking for the new artists.
Yeah, just being outside too,like in here, having cars go by
and just playing all the newstuff.
I remember hearing Nori for thefirst time N-O-R-E Nori I had
somebody inspire for the firsttime and I was like what's that?
Yeah, just all stuff like thatbeing in it.
See, I was like what's that?
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, just all stuff like that.
Just being in it, being in it,yeah, being in it.
So you said you played ball.
You still play, man, I haven'tplayed ball in forever.
You gave it up.
You let it go.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
I got to get back out there, though.
No, I want to get back outthere, I just haven't.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
I haven't played in forever.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Yeah, you playing every day, hours and hours a day
.
Yeah, when I went to highschool I ended up playing
varsity, started for three years.
I got some accomplishments.
First team all catholic becauseI went to a catholic school,
okay.
So yeah, I was a hooper cool,cool, cool.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
And I know, I know the hooping took you to college.
You played in seton hall yep,yep, I didn't play.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
So I made the team, but I ended up not playing.
Okay, the coach was like, sinceI was a walkon, it really
wasn't a spot for me.
He was like you'll make theteam, you'll practice with the
team, you'll travel, but you'renot going to play in any games.
And that sort of discouraged me.
But I should have just keptgoing because I was good.
I would have probably ended upplaying, but I just let those
(04:41):
words discourage me and then waslooking for my next outlet, and
that's when music came into thespotlight.
So tell us about that.
How?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
did that happen?
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yeah, my homie A-Butter.
He was a rapper and he was likeyo, you should manage me.
And I didn't know what to do.
So I went and got an internshipand I ended up interning at
Republic Records, the buildingon 57th and Broadway.
I was going there three times aweek and just learning a bunch
of stuff.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
It was cool.
Who'd you work for over at theRepublic.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
It was this dude named Jordan Walker, and so I
interned in new media, which islike digital marketing, now
slash A&R, and at that timesorry about that At that time it
was MySpace.
That was like the big thing.
So he was searching for artistson MySpace and he like taught me
like how to go through thethree columns and search for all
(05:35):
the artists you could likepinpoint, cities, countries.
It was crazy.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, he taught mehow to do that and the first
artist who I came up on doingthat was Drake, and that sort of
like led to, you know, that'scrazy.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
That's crazy.
So I know you said you reachedout to Drake and had a
conversation with him.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
So I reached out to.
So after my internship Istarted working at Koch.
So this was the time when JimJones was over there he had just
dropped ball and DJ Khaled wasover there.
Ray J was over there when hedid Sexy Can.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
I Younger, it was a real machine at that time.
Speaker 3 (06:18):
So, yeah, I hit Drake up like months before I even
started working at Koch.
I hit him.
I hit Drake up like monthsbefore I even started working at
Koch.
I hit him.
He hit me back, he sent me hisinfo and he just so happened to
be in New York for a Degrassithing.
So I remember he was like yocome meet with me the day before
the meeting.
So we went to his hotel.
He was staying at the TimeHotel.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Yeah, yeah, the Time Hotel.
He was staying there with meand my homie, danny, went there.
We chopped it up with him andthe next day we brought him in
for a meeting with Allen.
What was the vibe like?
Speaker 2 (06:50):
back then.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
He was super cool.
He just wanted to work.
I remember him mentioning Kanyeand Pharrell at that time,
which is funny where stuffhappened.
Yeah, he was super cool, superhumble.
I mean he still seems the sameway to this day.
I haven't spoken to him inforever, but he still seems like
(07:12):
a humble guy.
Still seems like a humble guy,yeah, but uh, yeah, we brought
him up there.
They unfortunately passed onhim and then I just started
telling other people about himand that's how I met mike karen.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Okay, okay, so tell me about that.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
Well, mike mike, mike the scientist, yeah so, uh,
it's funny, me and my homiedanny, we was doing like
unsigned artist showcases in NewYork Okay.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Where did you do those showcases oh?
Speaker 3 (07:41):
man, we did them at two different places.
I forgot which places they were.
The first one we had MickeyFacts.
We had Currency.
We had Nipsey Wow.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Yeah, it was crazy, the people you had eventually
got signed yeah, got eventuallygot signed, yeah, yeah we was
definitely on to something, souh we had made a flyer and we
just emailed the fly.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
We got a list of industry contacts and we just
emailed it to everybody and mikecaron hit me back.
He was like yo, this is dope.
He's like send me whateverartists and producers that you
think I should be looking at.
So I sent him drake and I senthim a bunch of other stuff that
I was looking at at the time andwe stayed in contact and right
after so, 2009 came around andwe all got laid off at kotch.
(08:28):
Um, it was the recession and itwas just those times.
So, uh, I was like what am Igonna do next?
So I found this artist onmyspace.
His name was amir obey.
At that time he's going byfresh, he does it and I sent it
to mike and mike was like yo,this is crazy.
He flew us out to la literallythe next week and then he signed
(08:49):
him and gave me a job atatlanta.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
So amir obey, that's not the kid, uh.
Portland.
Speaker 3 (08:55):
No, no, he's from well, he's from Detroit and
Brooklyn.
He's from both, but I think hewas signed to Def Jam after he
got off Atlantic.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
Okay, okay, okay, cool.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
So you got him signed over, so I got him signed to
Atlantic and, yeah, he gave mean A&R job and literally got
thrown into the fire.
I didn't know what I was doing.
I was doing, I was just upthere.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
I knew music.
Of course, you were in theprocess of doing A&R how to make
records.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
I was just doing A&R.
I didn't really know what I wasdoing but, I, was in the fire
and I learned quickly.
He definitely taught me theprocess of song making and
making hit songs and all thatstuff and I just took it and I
soaked it in and I just added itto you know, because I go for
feeling, I added the process ofmaking a hit record to the
(09:43):
feeling and it's history eversince.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, I think I hate to sound like the old dude you
know what I'm saying Back in myday, but I think that a lot of
what you said that feeling thing, is missing more now.
There are records that havefeeling it's not like nobody's
doing it.
There are plenty of peopledoing it Drake, kendrick, future
, whatever we could keep namingthem but there are a lot of
(10:08):
people that don't understandthat feeling part.
No, for sure, I agree.
I mean, I think that's whythere's a lot of older records
that still you know the MichaelJacksons or Teddy Pendergrass,
whatever they still 40, 50 yearslater.
It's because of how they feel,for sure.
(10:29):
Those records come out today andstill hit the same way,
absolutely, because, again,they're great songs, you know
they're written properly, allthat stuff.
You just hear something thatjust feels inside your body as
it pauses, instead of just likethis is a great record, but it
doesn't make you feel any kindof way, you know?
Sure, so, without giving awayall my secrets, tell us a little
(10:49):
bit about what you learnedabout the process of actually
making records from him.
Definitely, yeah.
Bit about what you learnedabout the process of actually
making records with himdefinitely yeah, so we was in
the studio.
Speaker 3 (10:57):
I was in the studio for my first, like two, three
years non-stop, like we.
At first we were up atparamount and then we were there
for a year and then he ended upbuying that building on coanga
we were.
We were in that building.
So I was literally in thestudio from 11 am until whenever
(11:20):
I left, every day, and we werehaving every major songwriter,
every major producer in the gamecoming up, you know, early
Miguel, early Frank Ocean early.
Ty Dolla, $ign early, jeremiahearly whoever you could think of
(11:42):
was coming up there writingsongs for us and producing for
us.
So it was just an amazing timeup there.
He had a rule book in everyroom with several rules of
songwriting and I mean they,they work.
So one of the rules was likerepetition.
Another one was like when youspell something like boozy, did
(12:03):
I, n, d, e, it's like thatalways works asking a question
like it was just a whole bunchof different things that you
implement to the song to, likeyou know, make sure it was the
hit and I don't know again Idon't.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
You know I hate to sound like the you know the back
of my day guy, but I and causeI don't know how it goes now,
but what you said about allthose people coming through the
studio, it really you reallylike, you really learn a lot by
like watching how people work.
For sure I'm sure Frank and Tydon't work the same.
I'm sure Frank and Ty don'twork the same, even though they
both are phenomenal, but theyhave different approaches.
(12:37):
So you kind of learn things.
That's how, when I worked atJive, the studio was called
Battery Studios.
We were on 10, and Battery wasthe same building.
It was on 7.
So we'd always go downstairsand I learned so much about
sitting in the studio andwatching people work and how
they use this and how they makebeats and how they.
You know they really kind ofsoak up a lot of information.
(12:58):
Besides, don't have thatexperience.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
Yeah, no, I mean even more.
I mean Bruno used to be inthere before.
He had a record that went crazy.
So yeah, just sitting in thereseeing these people's processes
and how they make songs, I justsoaked it all up.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
Is anybody in particular that's there, I mean,
besides time, we'll get tolater but anybody else in
particular that stood out to youas far as their processes and
how they work?
Speaker 3 (13:21):
yeah, um, I mean a lot of people pop.
Ron zell was another one whowas early, yes, yes seeing him
work was amazing, man.
I mean, it was so literally wehad like the pick of the pick
when we was working, so it wasjust everybody who was in there.
It was just a great time.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
That's incredible man .
So wait, you worked with JohnnyShipes for a minute as well,
correct I did?
Speaker 3 (13:45):
So after I got let go from Koch then I worked with
Shipes for like three or fourmonths.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
Oh, it was quick.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Yeah, it was real quick but it was still impactful
.
I still learned a lot overthere.
I remember he had me take likeeight boxes of mixtapes.
It was Nipsey Bullets, ain'tgot no name, I forgot which
volume it was, but he had metake like eight boxes on this
cart to the mail, to UPS.
It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Walking down the street.
Speaker 3 (14:14):
Yeah, walking down the street with eight big boxes
of mixtapes to kick them out.
It was crazy.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
Had he signed Joy Badass by that point, or was it
before you?
Speaker 3 (14:22):
No, it was just Nipsey, and I think he had Smoke
Dizzy and I'm trying to thinkdid he have anybody else?
Nipsey was like the main focusat that time.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
Yeah grinding it out.
That's cool.
So you worked with Mike, yousigned your guy and so after
that you worked several times.
Speaker 3 (14:42):
So after I got Fresh signed then technically that
wasn't my signing, that wasMike's signing.
He signed our artist.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah .
My first signing was DiggySimmons, so I brought him up
there and this was Now Did youconnect with Diggy via kind of
watching at that time thereality show Run's House, or you
just no.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
He had put out a freestyle where he was rapping
on the rooftop.
And everybody had started to seeit and it was going viral at
that time and I was like man,this kid is crazy.
Through my homie brad, I knewone of diggy's friends and I
reached out to him and heconnected us on the phone and uh
, yeah, then we started choppingit up.
I met with rev and the wholeteam, perry and chris lighty
(15:28):
yeah, yeah, rest in peace, butyeah, no, I sat with them and
then we brought him up and weended up doing a deal and then,
right after we did the deal, hedid another freestyle.
Then Kanye had this thingcalled Kanye University where he
was just posting.
I remember that, yeah, and weended up posting Diggy and then
it just like Exploded Boom.
(15:49):
It was like crazy.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
That was a special sneak peek of episode one of
Mixed and Mastered.
To hear the full episode,search and subscribe to Mixed
and Mastered on Apple, spotify,youtube or wherever you catch
your podcasts and if you likewhat you heard, please give the
show a review.
We'll be back later this weekwith an all new episode of
Unglossy.
This week's guest is playwright, poet, actor, director and
producer, kenan Scott II.
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