{Operants} Pt. I

As we wake where have we gone? There in a flash, most times, without leaving your place of rest. The future moves forth inexorably on its way to us at lightning speed. Unable to discern its orient we oftentimes find that our destination falls short of each path we take; as the famous saying goes. We tell ourselves that it’s absurd to value where you are or will be over the steps that've brought you there. Yet, we can forget that our mannerisms change with time. Minds change, people don't. This is an idea I had for a song title to a track I produced in high school, maybe 11th grade if memory serves.

This track is one I'm well known for, it was a very high performing instrumental that got a ton of attention relative to the lion share of my works. For this I am overjoyed, I made a social observation and was able to see that idea bloom. Art is naturally a form of expression however, it is simultaneously a mode of exploration. Our way of assessing and relating to the world around us in a more harmonious manner, it adds depth to our experience if nothing else. Some find meaning in art, others, liberation, and a myriad of feelings, thoughts, emotions, moods, and more are affected, connected, and understood through, art. Literature is an art that I hold in especially high esteem. When I began my career as a music producer my compositions were just as much about their titles as they were of the music. I would express my thoughts and could provoke mediation on certain ideas just by sharing the sounds I would hear in my mind.

As I developed, expanding my proficiency & refining my technique I found that there was so much that I wanted to explore. I made it my mission then to dedicate my life to my craft. I wasn’t simply a producer, I was an artist, a writer, one who was able to distill the experience of the human condition into a form that someone with no knowledge of who I was, could better understand themselves. I'm enthralled by all manner of things, from the insignificant and minute to the grandiose and beyond. I'm sure most of us are in fact whether this is readily apparent or not is another issue entirely unto itself; too expansive to extrapolate on presently.

With this preamble, I found that when I was able to reach a certain level of comprehension and expertise, the tools I needed to succeed were well within reach. What did that mean though? When I was younger I aspired to secure a $5 million record deal. That was my "ultamate" goal, the moment I told myself at that time that I would feel I made it. At that point most artists would set to work establishing relationships and expanding their network through doing shows, attending events, and working their way into the entertainment industry. I did, I absolutely did, yet not to the same extent as many of my contemporaries. Instead I elected to construct a content library of art, specifically my own, but of other artists as well. Initially I was inspired by the radical experience of this new world I'd finally demystified for myself.

{An aside, ever since elementary school, probably around age 6-8 I was fascinated by music more than nearly everything else. For context, I was the kid reading about ancient Egypt in academic literature and textbooks}

My interests ranged wildly from Quantum Mechanics, (which I study to this day) to space travel, chemistry, the internet, and the explosion of technological innovation all around me. Growing up only remembering the early 2000s as for the final 3 years of the 20th century I was a toddler is a gift and a curse. I'm grateful to be born into such a dynamic and interesting age, but I tend to long for simplicity at times; these being two of the aforementioned gift and curse's effects. Ironically my interest in music and my journey to understand it follows a similar route. Beginning with a simple question, "Mommy, how do people make music?" I grew up in a black household in Baltimore, MD in the early 2000s, *for our non-native audience, insert wire reference here* that meant life was nothing close to easy. To the point that I vividly remember my parents paying $5+ a gallon for gas, many people of my generation have no clue that was even a thing occurred.

Needless to say, the music stayed on in our house. Outkast, Blackstreet, Beyonce, Tribe, The Roots, Jill Scott, I mean these are the final years of Mtv and VH1, their heydays at least; the sounds were incredible and innumerable still. Imagine my exuberance when I burned my first CD. For my first Rap EP 'Lately' I'd created CD inserts and burned, printed up, and packaged a ton of CDs to promote the project; one of my most successful to date. Funny enough, I even had the chance to meet Anderson .Paak and gave him a copy of the tape that I'd dropped on the same day. 8+ years later I've had so many of these experiences that its truly surprising. I have had the opportunity to meet so many amazing and incredible individuals, not only in the music industry, but in the other communities & industries that I engage with as well.