Overall I am happy with the outcome of the project and the recording sessions and collaborations were rewarding and have really inspired me to continue to make music. Hansel Mac, Dodz and RODEL were all people I have known and wanted to work with for quite some time and I’m sure that the work we’ve done together will lead to more collaboration in the future. It was a shame that quite a few of the collaborations I had lined up fell through for various reasons, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, I know this has made I hard for a lot of people, and I am just happy that so far I and my family are okay, my uncle had it but recovered, and even though my girlfriend, and her mum are both key workers, they are healthy and safe. 

Although I didn't get as many collaborations involved with the project as I originally set out to, I think the people that did give their artistic input into ‘The Tape’ really elevated the project. A massive shout out to them all Dodz, Mimi, Hansel, Callum and Laurence. I am also happy with the reaction I have got from my posts on social media, hundreds of likes on instagram with an increase in followers on insta and Facebook; hundreds of plays on SoundCloud and hundreds of views on YouTube its just the beginning but I am happy with the numbers so far. Hopefully they will just increase as I continue to do more press and promotion around the project and try and push it further. Throughout the process I have released singles and promoted the content on my social media channels to create a buzz around the project, this can work effectively at getting things noticed (Rodgers, 2013).

It was also a shame not to be able to release a physical run of cassettes but I decided against this for monetary reasons. I didn't get a chance to include some of the topics that were initially going to be explored. Such as the more political and conscious themes but both Hansel and Dodz did great jobs on the lyrical content and I think they really understood the ideas behind the concepts on The Tape and captured exactly what I was looking for, covering a lot of ground. As did RODEL with her lyrics about love and unfulfilled relationships.

I really liked the idea of a project constantly in flux, Kanye did it with The Life of Pablo. Described the work as “a living breathing changing creative expression.” (Bengtson, 2016). It was finished yet unfinished, a project in flux. It was finally finished four months after the initial release. It is one of the most powerful and introspective of West’s projects to date. (Damico, 2016). Easy The Tape went through many iterations and changes, and unforeseen circumstances did result in lots of tracks having to be cut or rethought. But these tracks will see the light of day and my idea is after the initial release on Bandcamp to keep updating the project for a while - both Bandcamp and SoundCloud allow you to edit releases after the initial drop (Bandcamp, 2020) - so doing this will keep interest in the project and when I'm happy with the track list I will drop the beat tape on Spotify.

My time management hasn't been fantastic with the project, the gantt chart I created at the start of the project completely went out the window. I will be honest and say with some of the things that have been going on this year, it has been very hard to focus and think introspectively about anything and even make music and stay creative, because at times I have wanted to crawl into a dark hole and stay there; Stephen, a dear family friend and father figure, dying and having to see my mum breakdown was not on my bucket list; my girlfriend suddenly turning into a front line key worker, was worrying and still worries me; having to once again move as much as I could back to London after I got stuck living here during Lockdown has all impacted on my mental health and made it difficult to see through the project to the level I would have liked but I am glad I pushed through and handed in the work.

Update: It was cool to get a few of the tracks from The Tape featured on 1020 radio, cheers Joe!

You can now access EA$Y THE TAPE by clicking this link: https://easygreen.bandcamp.com/album/ea-y-the-tape

References:

Rogers, J. (2013). The Death and life of the music industry in the digital age. New York, NY: Bloomsbury Publications.

Bengtson, R. (2016). “The Life of Pablo” and the Death of the Traditional Album. Retrieved October 2019, from Complex website: https://www.complex.com/music/2016/06/kanye-west-life-of-pablo-death-of-traditional-album/

Damico, P. (2019). Kanye West: Understanding The Life of Pablo [YouTube Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7ktpDCTvm4/

During each session I uploaded Instagram stories to create some buzz and mystery around the project which I still haven't officially announced yet. When the project is nearing completion I will post on both Instagram, Tumblr (my website) and Facebook officially announcing the project.

During my week back in London I also completed a session with rapper Hansel Mac. Hansel is an old mate of mine and he was open to talking about lyrical content I gave him some of the themes behind the tape and he created a sweet rap about the trials and tribulations of being a 20 something guy living and growing up in London. I have known Hansel since I was 18, we met through a mutual friend during a stint doing videography for a night that he went to in London. The session was really rewarding and again I learnt valuable lessons, specifically to do with speed, workflow, and quick vocal processing. Hansel came prepared to the session with a rap he’d written for the single The Judge (which I will release via Soundcloud and Spotify in April). This was great for the energy and speed of the session. In particular, his energy was great and he had nice words about the beats I’d sent to him. We had ‘The Judge’ done in four takes and honestly wasn't expecting to get much more done than the single, but once he was happy with the takes and it was arranged I started playing him more beats until we found something that caught his ear. (The mind map for The Judge pictured below)

A beat I had called Dragons Triangle caught his attention and he started reeling off a fast rap with a fairly dark tone, but it instantly fit the sinister feel of the beat. So, we decided to lay down vocals and arrange that. This one took a few more takes but was rewarding and I understood that he wanted the best performance and energy to translate on the record. I didn't have time to mix and master it for The Tape but will put it out at a later date as a single.

Areas to improve on would be there were a few times where maybe focus wandered and we started talking about music and artists that we liked introducing each other to new tracks. However this was also rewarding and helped to break the ice and create a relaxed atmosphere to the session. His positive energy and easy conversation was really helpful and we got along well as well which probably factored into to the chatting. 

Hansel actually texted me after the session to say how inspired he was by the collaboration which was really positive and he gave me some feedback which read: ‘as a producer you’re good at creating a positive and encouraging environment’ and he said that this was important for getting the best out of artists and that he was looking forward to making more music! This was good feedback to hear as it’s important when collaborating, “that everyone is encouraged to speak their minds” (Brown, 2019) and feel comfortable and encouraged, in my experience this is the best way to get positive results.

Collaborative processes can enrich not just art but our own human lives (Booth & Bacharach, 2016) it’s important to note that the session had a resoundingly positive affect on both of us and I think that contributed to the aesthetic of The Judge, I’m really proud of what we produced. Overall we got two tracks completely laid down and arranged, more than I thought would be achieved in a  session.

I also decided on the final artwork (below) for the Judge and sent it off to Distrokid to be the second single released off The Tape!

Update: The single got accepted on some Spotify playlists that I submitted to which was fantastic and Hansel was really happy about that. This was great promotion at this early stage.

References:

Booth, J., & Bacharach, S. (2016). Collaborative Art in the Twenty-First Century. New York, NY: Routledge.

For the past two weeks, there have been a number of tasks that have been planned out and some small goals have been reached. Goals were focusing on planning, organising time and reaching out to collaborators in particular Hansel, Dodz and STXV. After sending beats to Dodz he responded with a phone call which was positive, he told me he liked what he heard and was on board with the project. He is currently writing lyrics to one of my beats. I created a Spotify playlist full of references and samples relating to the style and direction of the project, this playlist was based around some of my earliest musical influences including Classic Rock like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and The Doors, The Kinks and Aerosmith; Reggae and two tone revival like Cedric IM Brooks, Jackie Mittoo, Junior Murvin and Madness; early Downtempo influences like Mr Scruff, Luke Vibert, Kyoto Jazz Massive, Incognito and Minus 8; and Hip-Hop artists like J Dilla, Madlib, Ugly Duckling and A Tribe Called Quest. I have been constantly listening to and reviewing the playlist and recording some samples and breaks to use from both Spotify and YouTube. I Created this Tumblr blog for the project report and posted a link to this on my own website (see picture below). I have also been fleshing out ideas that had already been worked on over the Christmas break. Currently, the first beat production phase was where I had planned to be by this point and happily, I’ve met this goal, I currently have around 20 unfinished ideas to pick from and will continue to refine in the coming weeks. In addition, I conceptualised the artwork and made a mood board for inspiration. As a matter of urgency, I need to get in touch with singers to try and tie down another collaboration, start on some visuals, and keep brainstorming, and editing.