Bigg T Reflections of Self through Audio

         

Images provided via Bigg T

 I’ve always been fascination by music production in hiphop.  When my favorite artist releases a new album the first question that comes to mind is who he/she got to craft the beats.  From time to time I used social media to find if any of my favorite artists are linking up to make magic in the studio.  The art of making music is a God given talent so anytime I have an opportunity get knowledge on the subject I’m all ears. 

            I got a chance to link up with a friend from high school who happens to be a producer.  What’s so great about knowing this guy is the fact that I got to see some of his beginnings and his come up.  I know I mention high school a lot in everything I write on this blog, but that’s where it all started for me.  All my life I’ve been surrounded by hiphop, but I didn’t really embrace it until I was in my teens.  During this time me and my friends listened to a lot of the greats and criticized their albums and some made their own work.  Among this group was a guy named Bigg T.  He was known as one of the producers for the guys who in turn rapped at the time. Fast forward about a decade later and you witness the progression of an artist who has honed his craft and become a professional in the music game.  What I find personally intriguing about Bigg T is his undeniable work ethic.  I can’t tell you how many times I read Facebook statuses about him coming home from work exhausted but still managing to hop on the boards and create.  I admired that level of fortitude which is why I spent years following him and now I have an outlet to share his knowledge with the world.  I recently got a chance to talk with Bigg T and ask him a few questions about what he’s currently doing.  My plans were to write an editorial with the intel he gave me, but his answers to my questions were so riveting, I felt that paraphrasing them would shortchange the interview.  So without further babbling here it is:

       Me: When did you realize you wanted to make music?

Bigg T: Music has always been something that I have been passionate about and I always wanted to create music of my own until I was finally introduced to composing and production around the age of 15. I started making beats as a hobby because I enjoyed music and being about to finally create something of my own.

Me: What or who is your biggest influence?

Bigg T: My biggest musical influence is my own life. My music is a reflection of the events that occur in my life and the people in it. My biggest influence from the industry would have to be Timbaland because I was always a fan of his creativity and unique sounding music.

Me: Who all have you worked with?

Bigg T: I have worked with various artists anywhere from the local Birmingham, AL level to artists in other countries. I have recently produced singles for a few local artists including Reginald’s aka “Groove” “Everything” and have made placements on a few mixtapes and albums. I have also worked with a few artists during my visits to Los Angeles including Cali Swag District, Ray J, and Ben J from the New Boyz. I am currently working on a few independent projects and helping other artist develop themselves.

Me: Who do you plan to work with?

Bigg T: I plan to continue to network with others from all over to broaden my horizons and I plan to continue to build on the connections I’ve already made to work with industry artists and land a few placements. I think it would be a great experience to be able to work with different people who have already established themselves and it would definitely be a great opportunity to further my knowledge of the music industry in addition to the things I have already learned and witnessed.

Me: What is your philosophy on music?

Bigg T: My philosophy is that music is a part of everyone and it is a part of all of our lives. It gives us the ability to not only translate feelings into art but to be able to allow others to feel certain emotions as well. For me music has always been a way to express thoughts, feelings, or emotions and people have always told me that my music has a way of making them feel whatever inspired a particular track. Overall, I believe that music is very important to everyone and has been a part of us for a long time.

Me: What kind of hardware and software are your weapons of choice?

Bigg T: I would have to definitely say that I will always go to my Yamaha Motif and FL Studio for my production needs only because I have become very comfortable using them; however, I use many different methods of production. Sometimes I will use Ableton Live, Reason, MPC, and even Pro Tools for my production depending on the needs of whatever project I’m working on at the time. This is how I keep ideas fresh by trying different ways of making music and I am now starting to use more software based means of production instead of hardware simply because programs have become more fluent and user friendly.

Me: What advice would you have for future producers as they come of  age?

Bigg T: My advice to future producers is to never stop improving and to always make sure that they enjoy what they do. There are many opportunities open to any producer that is really passionate about it and work hard enough to make it. Also, no matter what I would encourage them to always be true to themselves and remember that their music is a reflection of themselves.

Me: Wow I really like that philosophy while we're on the subject of the future, are managing the artists you are mentoring?

Bigg T: I would not really consider myself as managing the artists I mentor but I would say that I help them be able to find the style that best defines them. I also offer advice from situations that I have been trough in my dealings with music that would help them get to wherever they want to go. I believe it is only right as others have always looked out for me as I matured as a producer.

Me: Also what are you doing with your independent project or is that under wraps?

Bigg T: A few things but right now I’m not really releasing too many details about it quite yet until it is time to reveal them, but it will definitely be worth listening to.

Me: And lastly, I saw that you cover a lot of genres. I've always known you as a hiphop producer. When did you decide to crossover?

Bigg T: A combination of wanting to try new things, expand my horizons, and working with many different groups of people that specialize in different genres. I really enjoy being able to incorporate my own style into other styles of music and in a way crossover but still have my own original touch in it.

            There you have it, here’s a link to Bigg T’s soundcloud, https://soundcloud.com/biggtproductions if you want to hear some fresh sounds. And if you're looking to further that music careeer with some high quality merchandise, you can hit him up at https://www.facebook.com/biggtim07  Make sure you check out “Oops”, it’s bananas! Peace