Downsilence thank you for coming on Nefarious Supply! To get this interview started tell us about yourself, what made you want to become a producer, and how has your experience been so far?
To start off, my name is Dre, I go by Downsilence as everyone knows, & what made me want to become a producer is that I come from musical filled family, from my siblings, to parents, grandparents & ancestors down the line, we were all into music some way, shape or form so it’s a generational thing that i’ll eventually pass on to my kids one day. The experience has been amazing, i’ve met many people, built myself a handpicked team of like minded, young and independent visionaries & this is really just the start of my journey, the start of who Downsilence is now, and eventually who Downsilence will eventually be recognized as in the coming future.
Where are you based out of, how has this area influenced you and your music, and what’s this area like for underground and emerging artists?
I’m based out of a small neighborhood in East Houston & nobody here really makes music, I’m the only one in this area that’s really pushing the boundaries set in place & hopefully, that’ll inspire others to do the same exact thing, just in their own individual ways
How long have you been a producer, what are some of your favorite aspects of this career, and who or what has had a heavy influence on you and your production style?
I’ve been produced since early-mid 2017, my favorite aspect is the music creation process & the outcome of that process, being able to create sounds from scratch, have an artist sing over it, share it on streaming platforms and have 50 countries listen to your music even though you made it in a bedroom is such a beautiful feeling. And I would say Partynextdoor, Kali Uchis, and SZA because of their unique individuality in music, there’s nothing like seeing them perform their music because it’s so great & it can’t be replicated.
Tell us about your creative process from beginning to end, how you know when you have a beat you want to share with a specific artist, and what’s your go to DAW?
Well, each artist I work with has their own type of vibe to them, so depending on which artist I work with in a particular session, I create the entire song around what fits them the most. Like for instance, me & Omari made Nasty & at first it was just a concept beat. I wasn’t even thinking about sending it out, I was making it to see how far i’ve progressed with music production, it just so happened that he was looking for beats at that specific time so whenever I sent a pack to him, nasty was the first one he chose, and everything is history. My go to DAW is FL Studio 20, the DAW is so easy to use & it makes my production process so easy for me to create whatever type of sounds I want to make.
As a producer pursuing a career in music the industry as well as the career path is extremely uncertain so how do you keep yourself motivated during low times, what are some of your long term goals, and for new producers looking to start what is some advice you would give?
My biggest motivation is my girlfriend/future wife & kids & also knowing that my purpose, journey, and destiny are so bigger than me. Also the universe put me here as a spirit guide, conduit and guardian angel to help others out with their lives. I always believed that if I can be of service to others and help make the world a better place. I would feel great about what i’m doing you know, everything I do is from a pure soul and heart and I don’t do things for recognition, nor do I expect anything in return or do I need a pat on the back. I’m doing it because this is who I am and being a helpful person was just a trait that I was born with so I just made sure I follow those morals and principles throughout my entire life and the universe has responded in so many beautiful ways to my great deeds for humanity, so i’ll always & forever be this way just because this is how I was created.
In addition to new producers what is some advice you would give your younger self about choosing this career path?
To just stay focused, don’t give up on yourself during hard times, find a team and surround yourself with positive, goal oriented people, and always keep god, the universe or whatever high power you believe in first because they know your destiny & they’re here to help you & guide you on it.
Dude so you have worked with Artie J, Roseryhills, Kai Baez, Love September, Cameron Rose, Omari Night, Juice the Riddler, & Joey North. What’s your secret to networking and how did you end up pairing your production with these artists?
I really don’t have any secrets but in 2016, I was working at a cooking event as a chef & the event held over 15,000-20,000 people, most were successful millionaires, billionaires, executives, ceo’s investors etc. They gave me some tips and pointers on being able to network and connect. It’s all about knowing who you want to connect with, what the purpose of you networking with them, representing yourself as a business/brand, and just knowing how to communicate with others. I’ve used all of that knowledge and passed it on into music and just knowing who I wanted to reach out to, what was I going to say to them and then the outcome of me reaching out to them. You have to be respectful and polite first before any business is conducted or else people won’t take you serious and they’ll think you’re just using them as a stepping stone or opportunity you know.
Who is your favirote artist that you have worked with so far, and what artist is your dream collaboration?
To be honest, every single artist i’ve worked with so far has their own uniqueness and individual process to them so I can’t choose between none of them. I have respect & love for each and every one of them &and they’ve all provided me with different individual but awesome experiences. My dream collab would be to sit in the studio with Kali Uchis, Partynextdoor, SZA, Jhenè Aiko, Kehlani, Ty Dolla $ign, Blxst and some other incredible RnB artistsa and just make music but other than the music, I would just love to create a friendship with them & build on that.
In terms of next step what are some things you are trying to accomplish by the end of 2020?
As far as my next steps in music, not only do I want to grow and expand myself but I want to expand my horizons and build a collective of young, independent, hardworking and talented creatives all over the world regardless of race, sexual preference, or religion. I want to eliminate those boundaries set on young individuals such as myself to achieve a goal bigger than myself and the nationwide collective of my team, and also teach and become a public speaker/spiritual advisor such as Jay Shetty, Sadghuru, Deepak Chopra by using my platform to the best of my abilities & help guide others who are in need of that.
Who should we interview next on Nefarious Supply?
I think you should interview a newer artist i’ve been working with, his name is Elijah Thrill. He’s a very talented artist/producer/singer/songwriter from New Zealand & we’re currently working on some music together that we both would love to share to the world.
Any last words?
To anyone out there who wants to do more and be more, just do it, don’t think, don’t wait, don’t procrastinate, just put one foot forward and keep going. Also understand that your purpose will always be bigger than you, your journey will always be bigger than you and your purpose will always be bigger than you because what you all do in this generation. The future and newer generations will do just as you did in their ways, as I’ve said before, the most beautiful & magical act in the world is to inspire and motivate others, to be of service to others, to help and guide people, teach them the things in their time and lives when it comes time for us to pass on our legacies, life is just a long, beautiful, and blessing of a journey so make every day count. Putt a smile on the faces of others and be a beacon of light to others because we’re all just trying to do the best and make it in life the best way we can until those days coming. Thanks to Nefarious Supply for letting me be apart of this amazing experience & I can’t wait to show the world what’s next.
Big shout out to Downsilence for interviewing with Nefarious Supply. If you enjoyed this interview and want to stay up to date with him be sure to follow him on Instagram as well as Twitter and check out his SoundCloud. If you want to stay up to date with news and content coming from Nefarious Supply you can find us on Instagram, Twitter, and for our weekly news letter you can sign up below.