Endorphin
Bath & Todd E. Jones presents...
Interview: Floyd The Locsmif
“Opening The Divine Doors Of Hip-hop With Floyd The Locsmif.”
An Interview with FLOYD THE LOCSMIF
( April 2006)
Interview
by Todd E. Jones aka The New Jeru Poet
toddejones@yahoo.com
Music
is a divine force. Only the rhythmically privileged hold the keys to
harness and create this force. One creation is hip-hop, a consistent
power that has connected cultures, races, sexes, countries, styles, and
genres. Hip-hop music has opened doors of opportunities for a myriad of
artists, fans, and entrepreneurs. These doors lead to financial,
emotional, creative, and physical opportunities. The emcee may be in
the spotlight because he/she helps to unlock these doors, but the
producer is the one who forms and shapes the keys. Behind the emcee’s
vocals and lyrics, the producer is the true key master. Floyd The
Locsmif is one of the key masters of the new hip-hop generation.
Locsmif has earned a myriad of respected
accomplishments in a relatively short period of time. Hailing from
Georgia, Floyd The Locsmif has produced music for some of the most
respected emcees in underground & independent hip-hop. His resume
includes OC, J-Live, Cyne, Cee-Lo, and 4ize. His work on O.C.’s
“Starchild” album earned critical acclaim. His remixing talents were
the catalyst for the creation of “Outskirts: The Unofficial Lost
OutKast Remixes”. Recently, he created a remix for 50 Cent (for the
soundtrack of “Get Rich Or Die Tryin’”). He set up his own
entertainment company and recently released his solo album, “Divine
Dezignz #1.2: Re-Discovered”. With lush melodies and thick rhythms, the
album flows with an urban grace. Guests include Lil Sci (from Scienz Of
Life and Sol Uprising), Stahhr (from MF Doom / King Geedorah’s “Take Me
To Your Leader” LP), and others. Recently, he has been commissioned to
create music for advertisements by Coca-Cola & Nestea.
Hip-hop producers create metaphorical keys to the
doors of artistry. These doors lead into the house of opportunity.
Locsmif has been creating, shaping, cutting, and molding rhythms &
melodies. In 2006, Floyd The Locsmif has joined the ranks of a revered
locksmith in the divine line of hip-hop key masters.
T.JONES:
“What goes on?”
LOCSMIF: “Checking emails.”
T.JONES: “Tell us about your debut solo album ‘Divine Dezignz #1.2: Re-Discovered’.”
LOCSMIF: “The album is basically a modified beat CD I put together
about a year and a half ago. It allowed me to promote myself as a
producer on a different level, rather than just shopping
beats.”
T.JONES: “Do you have a favorite song on ‘Divine Dezignz #1.2: Re-Discovered’?”
LOCSMIF: “‘Still Luv Huh’ because ‘I Used To Love Her’ was always one
of my favorite joints and ‘One 4 The Fam’ because all the pieces,
drums, chords, et cetera are from different records. It all came
together nicely I think. So it's a tie.”
T.JONES: “What song took the longest to complete?”
LOCSMIF: “Probably, ‘Koolout Kafe’. I went back and added to / took away from a bunch. Took a long night, man.”
T.JONES: “Since ‘Divine Dezignz #1.2: Re-Discovered’ is mainly an
instrumental album, do you think your approach was different as opposed
to an LP with more vocals?”
LOCSMIF: “Yeah definitely. With vocal songs, I have to hear a certain
person on it first, in my head, or have a style in mind that I would
want to hear over the beat. With instrumentals, it is basically my
personal opinion of the mood.”
T.JONES: “When creating a track, do you have a set theme or idea first or the music first?”
LOCSMIF: “50/50. I'm always beat-boxing to myself and things develop from that.”
T.JONES: “What’s the meaning behind the title, ‘Divine Dezignz #1.2: Re-Discovered’?”
LOCSMIF: “‘Divine Dezignz’ is the feeling I get from hip-hop as the
music forms. It is definitely something spiritual in its design. It is
also the title of the series I plan to continue up to at least #5. The
first, #1 was called ‘Discovery’. It was the mix-tape version and
‘Re-Discovered’ is the official release.”
T.JONES: “What is the main difference between the official release and the unofficial ones?”
LOCSMIF: “The unofficial ‘#1’ has 17 tracks. 9 of which made it to the
official release, with the addition of 3 new joints. The single,
‘Alwayz Bless’ featuring John Robinson, ‘Suite 2207 (The Hideout)’, and
‘Speechless’. Plus, there is a different intro and outro.”
T.JONES: "What will future volumes be like?"
LOCSMIF: “They will all have similar upbeat vibes but will grow
musically as I grow musically over time. I don't plan to rush them out
every chance I get, but whenever I make something that gives me that
‘Divine Dezign'ness’ feeling, I just throw it in the files and pick
from there once it gets kind of full.”
T.JONES: “Tell us about In The Loop and High Wire Music.”
LOCSMIF: “In The Loop Entertainment is my company / label. Big up to
Tim Jinx and Fab Leys! I have a joint venture with High Wire Music. Big
up Tom, Ron, Chelsea, and Kwame! High Wire has distribution with
Fontana.”
T.JONES: “What was the main hurdle in setting up the company?”
LOCSMIF: “Just making sure I can do what I want and own the Masters in
the end, which wasn't a real hurdle but an important factor.”
T.JONES: “How did you hook up with John Robinson (Lil Sci from Scienz Of Life)? What was he like?”
LOCSMIF: “I met Sci in 2000 and we've been cool ever since. He's one of
my favorite emcees and is pretty fast in the booth. He layed his vocals
for ‘Alwayz Bless’ in L.A. and sent them to ATL where I mixed it.”
T.JONES: “How is Lil Sci different than other emcees you have worked with?”
LOCSMIF: “He's just real creative and lyrical. His work ethic is crazy.”
T.JONES: “Are you working with MF Doom?”
LOCSMIF: “Nah, I wish. Maybe in 2006, I can catch him.”
T.JONES: “Who are some of the other artists who you recently produced songs for?”
LOCSMIF: “OC, J-Live, 50 Cent, Cyne, Cee-Lo. Look out for some stuff from 4ize, TD, and K. Banger.”
T.JONES: “'Starchild' is an incredible album by OC. How did you hook up with OC?”
LOCSMIF: “Thank you sir! Grim from Grit Records reached out to me about
doing some remixes on there and O heard the beat for ‘Evaridae’ and
jumped on it. I was saying the first verse of ‘Times Up’ all day, when
I found out he was spitting on the track.”
T.JONES: “Was the ‘Starchild’ LP recorded with you and OC together in the studio?”
LOCSMIF: “Nah, I didn't meet him until months later. We agreed to work on more joints this year so I'm excited.”
T.JONES: “How is working with OC different than other artists?”
LOCSMIF: “He's OC, so you expect to hear that flow and style. You think
about the history of D.I.T.C. and that era he came from.”
T.JONES: “OC told me that ‘Starchild’ is not a finished album. Is that true? Why? What work do you think the LP needs?”
LOCSMIF: “Yeah, the album was rushed for whatever reason and didn't get
mixed properly. My joints are straight mp3 2-tracks of the demos that I
sent for him to write to.”
T.JONES: “What song are you most proud of?”
LOCSMIF: “Damn! ‘Evaridae’, ‘Sometimes’ by Cee-Lo, and the 50 Cent
joint stand out the most in my mind, but anything I do that gets
released is equally appreciated.”
T.JONES: “Favorite drum machine / sampler?”
LOCSMIF: “MPC 2000.”
T.JONES: “Take us through your creative process. Where do you do
pre-production? How long does it usually take to finish a beat?”
LOCSMIF: “I do everything at the crib. I'll throw on some records or
start playing the keyboard over some drums. I like to start with drum
sounds first because that’s the most important thing to me. It has got
to be banging with just the drums. I always come back to beats and
finish them later, but to get a foundation, it takes anywhere from 5
minutes to 5 hours. This is depending on the distractions and mood.”
T.JONES: “You are also did work for 50 Cent. Tell us about that.”
LOCSMIF: “I did a track for his video game Bulletproof called, ‘Maybe
We Crazy’. It’s a remix. He's done that joint on a previous mix-tape
but re-spit it for the game.”
T.JONES:
“On the song, ‘Money, Power & Influence’ from Guru’s ‘The Street
Scriptures’ album, Talib Kweli mentions that Pro-Tools made producers
lazy. Do you agree?”
LOCSMIF: “(Laughs). In a way. It's like going from oven to microwave.
Instead of taking 20 minutes to heat something, it is now 20 seconds.
It is easy to take for granted. If you take advantage, your music can
turn into that next level ish. Whenever I use it, I try to take
advantage. But nothing is more real than hitting that 2-inch tape,
Pro-Tools can almost come close with the HD’s, but its still not quite
as solid.”
T.JONES: “What was it like growing up in Georgia?”
LOCSMIF: “Fitzgerald, Georgia is about 3 hours south of ATL. It’s a
small town, but diverse. If you're a crate digger, you'll find the good
stuff around that area. It’s a cool place to grow up because you get
just enough corruption to prepare you for city life but, if you have
aspirations to become something serious, you have to leave.”
T.JONES: “Which artists or musicians would you like to collaborate with in the future?”
LOCSMIF: “Busta Rhymes, Ghostface, Pharrell, Amerie, J Dilla, and MF Doom. Just any left field creative artists.”
T.JONES: “What LPs have you been listening to lately?”
LOCSMIF: “Gilles Peterson's ‘Brownswood Basement’ joint, the Muggs and
Rza joint. I go back to the Madvillain joint from time to time.”
T.JONES: “What is your favorite part of your live show or DJ set?”
LOCSMIF: “I'm about to get back on it February 1st in New Brunswick, so
it’s been a while since I've been on stage. I know the familiar rush
will come from the nodding heads and swaying bodies in the crowd.”
T.JONES: “Where were you during September 11th 2001? How did you handle it?”
LOCSMIF: “I was own my way to class in Orlando, Bryan Gumble had just
said that a plane crashed into one of the towers. I was like, ‘Damn!’
and not thinking of whether it was an attack or not. So, I just kept
listening. By the time I got to the parking lot, the other plane
crashed and then, I knew something was fishy. I really was shocked and
in disbelief of the fact that people had gone to such great lengths to
cause destruction on that level.”
T.JONES: "What was the last incident of racism you experienced?”
LOCSMIF: “Funny you ask that, but just yesterday, a white man and woman
were walking together. They appeared to be co-workers and not a couple.
What happened was, the young lady spoke to me and smiled. As I spoke
back to her, the guy, who was maybe late 30’s or early 40’s, gave me
this look that had the ‘N’ word all over it. I was like, ‘Damn!’ If he
had said something crazy, it would have been on.”
T.JONES: “Word association. When I say the name, you say the first word
that pops into your head. So, if I said, ‘Flava Flav’, you may say
‘Clock’ or ‘Crack’. Okay?”
T.JONES: “Little Brother.”
LOCSMIF: “Dope.”
T.JONES: “Slum Village.”
LOCSMIF: “J Dilla.”
T.JONES: “DJ Premier.”
LOCSMIF: “My hero.”
T.JONES: “Phife Dawg.”
LOCSMIF: “Seen him in a club.”
T.JONES: “Organized Konfusion.”
LOCSMIF: “Stress!”
T.JONES: “Atmosphere.”
LOCSMIF: “See them in mags a lot.”
T.JONES: “Eminem.”
LOCSMIF: “One of the illest.”
T.JONES: “Wu-Tang Clan.”
LOCSMIF: “Forever!”
T.JONES: “George Bush.”
LOCSMIF: “Boo!”
T.JONES: “What are some future collaborations fans should look out for?”
LOCSMIF: “4ize, OC, J-Live, T Damn D, and hopefully, M.O.P.”
T.JONES: “What is next?”
LOCSMIF: “I’m working on an album called, ‘Conversation Piece's’ and a
mix-tape, which should be done by the time this is printed.”
T.JONES: “Final words?”
LOCSMIF: “Album in stores and online! It is called ‘Divine Dezignz
#1.2: Re-Discovered’. If your local record store doesn’t have it, tell
them to order it from Fontana! And, thanks to everyone who has
supported thus far! And, thanks to you, Todd for the time! Stay In The
Loop!”