NYC Hip-Hop’s Next Wave: Brooklyn’s DotDaGenius on Kid Cudi, HeadBanga Muzik, and Genre-Bending Production

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN: New York City hip-hop is no longer dominated by the mixtape artist / major label dichotomy. Flourishing in that space between the artist selling tapes out of his trunk and the international corporate superstar are rising multi-hyphenate artists like Brooklyn native DotDaGenius.

A classically trained pianist and obsessive beat-maker with a thirst for new sounds, Dot personifies the industry-wide shift away from the traditional label model. While most well known for his imaginative production on Kid Cudi’s “Day ‘N’ Nite,” to confine Dot to a label such as ‘producer’ would be to severely undermine his impact.

Ranging from television scoring on hit series such as HBO’s Entourage or MTV programming, to the creation of his own label and production company, HeadBanga Muzik, Dot has been able to take advantage of these recent changes. “I feel like the business model is changing in the music industry period,” Dot stated in a recent interview at The Brewery Studio in Williamsburg. “A lot of people won’t really need to go through a major label to do certain things anymore. People can do it by themselves, maybe not on a level that a major label can, but eventually, it’s going to get to that level.”

When an artist walks into The Brewery — the full-service studio Dot owns with engineer/producer Andrew Krivonos, and HeadBanga HQ — the environment is collaborative and consistent as far as production talent and support. The goal is to create the most effective environment in which artists will thrive.

Dot’s partnership with Kid Cudi serves as the consummate example of how a consistent relationship helps breed success. Instead of sending out demo tracks to low-level A&Rs and trying to hustle together some local momentum, Dot and Cudi worked together in Dot’s home studio while he attended NYU Polytechnic.

Rather than distribute the track to some label (whereat an executive might assign producers to craft more ‘hit’ tracks) in hopes of eventually receiving a release date for physical album sales, Dot and Headbanga provide a more updated approach. In the case of Cudi and “Day ‘N’ Nite,” after two years spent perfecting the track, the two worked together to share their vision online, through Myspace and other social media outlets, allowing the music to speak for itself.

“The internet plays a huge part,” Dot allows. “Literally, without anybody behind us pushing the music, we were putting songs up on Myspace and getting immediate feedback from people all over the world.”

It’s this multi-dimensional approach that Dot sees as the future of the industry: “I feel like, creatively everybody has their direction, and once a couple people create a synergy together where they are in sync creatively, that’s where the best music is made.”

INTER-NETWORKING & TALENT SCOUTING

With the rise of the internet age, artists and producers like Dot, Cudi, Freddie Gibbs, and Drake have been able to utilize online resources to their advantage, pushing their newest work on Myspace and genre-specific blogs in 2DopeBoyz and NahRight.

As Dot explains: “It’s going to get to that point where just through the internet and networking online, you can set up opportunities to tour and link up with other established artists.”

As a result of his web networking, Dot has been able to expand his artist and producer rolodex: “I linked up with [producer] Benny Blanco, he reached out over the internet. I linked up with the Clipse in Hawaii. Even with producers, on a day to day basis I get hit up by producers that, say, ‘Oh you inspired my music, can you check me out?’”

From a business standpoint, this attention to personal relationships is a stark contrast from the model that some major labels have followed, where producers are often chosen for efficiency or name-recognition over quality. Rather than purchase contracts of established artists with an already developed sound, HeadBanga is looking to the greater community for young, raw talent.

Between local showcases and quality internet mixtape artists, Dot and his crew are constantly on the lookout for potential: “I have an A&R team, we’re fully stacked like most labels have, but we’re young. We’re looking for whatever we like, not so much the industry standard.”

GENIUS LOVES COMPANY: HEADBANGA & BLURRING GENRES AND PRODUCTION STYLES

Dot sees HeadBanga’s defining characteristic in its versatility, from both a sonic and business standpoint — serving as more than just a production studio or hip-hop record label. Stocked with photographers, directors, and a public relations team, HeadBanga is essentially able to handle any need relative to entertainment, beyond music production and scoring.

“We are also a media company: we do film, photography, event marketing and promotions,” he points out. “It just doesn’t stop at the music; we’re definitely trying to take over most aspects regarding the entertainment industry. I feel like we need that in order to be the entity that stands out from everybody else.”

Dot also brings this versatility to his sound production, exhibited in the minimal-electro production on “Day ‘N’ Nite.”

Asked about this sound, Dot relays: “If you listen to Cudi’s album, it’s definitely not like most hip-hop albums; I think it’s more musical. Being classically trained, and having the knowledge of theory and music contributes to it. The other producers that we work with all have their different levels of musical knowledge that blend, and there’s no area [of music] that’s not covered.”

Arranging music that lends itself to other genres has quickly become the trend in hip-hop, with rappers like Kid Cudi and Kanye West, as well as hybrid DJs like A-Trak blurring the lines between hip-hop and other genres, especially electronic music. Dot’s ability to produce an eclectic sound can be equally attributed to his classical training as well as the use of feedback mechanisms.

As evidenced by his approach with Cudi, the expanding social media market is an extremely useful tool in reaching out to large, young audiences, many of whom are willing critics: “People from Paris, people from Germany just responding [on Myspace] saying, ‘I really like your song, is there anywhere I can download it?’ That immediately told us that were on to something.”

Due in large part to his willingness to look to the internet for commentary and inspiration, Dot developed “Day ‘N’ Nite” into a track that can be appreciated by fans of all types of music, from all over the world. The amount of international remixes of “Day ‘N’ Nite”, spanning a number of genres, is ultimately what propelled it to its chart-topping position. This merging of genres has resulted in an influx of new sounds, with hip-hop at the forefront of the experimentation.

As a result, the other members of the Headbanga staff also infuse myriad styles into their work, making it difficult to define a distinctive feature in their sound, other than simply its quality.

“I pride myself and my team on being able to tackle all genres, not just hip-hop,” Dot shares. “Most people would just expect me to come out with a hip-hop artist or an R&B artist, but honestly if I come across a good alternative group or rock group, I‘m with it, because I appreciate all that music and it’s definitely something I want to tackle more of.”

Dot’s business partner, Brewery co-owner Andrew Krivonos, voiced a similar sentiment about their ability to diversify the sound of their work, which ranges from rappers like JoJo Pelligrino and Raekwon, to pop singer/songwriter Brian Hong and Latin band Junior Rivera: “We are all kind of young dudes who are very much in it, so we are able to service a broad range of needs. That’s why I think we get so much variety in our clientele.” This unique ability to cloud the lines between genres has been a huge factor in both the Headbanga group and Dot’s personal success.

With his current work on the upcoming Kid Cudi sophomore album, Man on the Moon: The Legend of Mr. Rager (tentatively due out October 26), Dot has yet again found a way to work with an artist on developing a new sound, rather than settling for the status quo:

“The album is different from Man on the Moon, the music is really going to speak for itself. I feel like Cudi has really stepped it up himself; as an MC, he’s always working, always trying to make something better. When you have somebody who doesn’t settle for ‘let’s just rock with this,’ it’s better for the music. The process is tedious, sometimes it can get a little hectic, but it’s always rewarding when the music comes out, and the music is sounding great.”

From his first hit with “Day ‘N’ Nite” to his scoring for television and advertising to the upcoming Kid Cudi follow-up release, we can continue to look forward to the one constant in Dot’s work: unique and quality sound production.

“I pride myself in trying to diversify,” he explains. “If I have a beat CD with ten tracks, I want somebody to listen to it and think all ten tracks came from somebody different, but with the same quality. I think with the influences of New York and the other genres of music, I’m just trying to implement it and make it my own.”

– Alex Edelstein

Hip-Hop Hits Brewing Out In Williamsburg

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN: The Brewery is in a new class of NYC recording studios owned by young, ambitious engineer/producers who experienced the big commercial studio business as interns and assistants. And then they moved on…

A one-room facility with a log-cabin room-within-a-room design and enormous rooftop expanse off a sharp lounge, The Brewery is home to engineer/producer Andrew Krivonos and producer Dot Da Genius who joined forces in the Spring of ’09 to open the studio in its current location.

Located off the L train just a couple blocks into the industrial sprawl of Grand Street, The Brewery is, as Krivonos places it, “five minutes across the border to Queens, 10 minutes to the city and in one of the more bustling neighborhoods in Brooklyn.”

This locale is key to the studio’s mix of hip-hop and R&B, pop and full-band projects, which Krivonos classifies as “about 70% independent musicians and 30% record label work” that includes “a lot of Brooklyn talent and a lot of Queens talent.”

The guys behind the studio may be young, but they’ve been at this awhile with some huge spikes of success along the way. “The story of the studio dates back awhile now,” Krivonos explains. “In 2004, I was working at Abercrombie & Fitch with Kid Cudi and this dude, Riliwan, who was working with Dot as a producer. And we all started fucking around musically. Dot had a home studio and I’d started making the moves to open my own commercial studio.

“I’d been interning and working at studios like Avatar and Legacy since I was 17, and by the time I was 19, I was taking out business loans to get my own studio going,” Krivonos shares. “So me and Dot had parallel studios for awhile — I was in Park Slope and then in another space on Meserole Street — and then we merged into this new space last year.”

The Brewery is more than just a recording studio. It’s home to Dot Da Genius’ Headbanga Muzik, his production company featuring writer/producers OlaTheProducer and Woodrow Skillson, and also home to engineer/producer Nick Brandes and his Writing Room team.

Krivonos’ work with the Wu-Tang Clan, particularly Raekwon and Method Man, drives a steady stream of mixtape sessions, including recent Wu-Tang progeny like Ceazar (signed to Raekwon’s Ice H20 Records) and fellow Staten Island native, Jo Jo Pelligrino. NYC’s DJ Whoo Kid and Styles P have also been Brewery-produced.

The studio itself — designed and built by Krivonos and crew — encompasses a large control room based around Pro Tools HD, a Control 24 work-surface and an API, Avalon, Neve, SSL and Universal Audio-filled producer’s desk, and a mid-sized live room with adjacent vocal booth. Roomy reception, lounge and the awesome outdoor space round out the facility as top-notch for a single booking. And these, they get in abundance.

“We’re not the kind of place where people book out full days at a time,” Krivonos points out. “People tend to book The Brewery for 4-5 hours at a time, and we’ll have three or four (or five) of those sessions a day.

“We’re really good at being extremely efficient,” Krivonos adds. “We’re always buying and selling gear. And all of our engineers are very fast. They’re all up with the keyboard shortcuts in Pro Tools. We have everything wired and setup so that things can be easily adjusted and we always have assistants on hand so we’re able to do a lot of sessions.”

HUSTLE & HEART: BUILDING THE BREWERY

Popping our heads into the studio during our visit to the Brewery, we catch a minute of a slammin track by Young G, playing back over the studio’s Equator Q15 monitors. Sunlight streams in through a large skylight, and the room — though filled with equipment, keyboards and tape machine — feels open and full of possibility. The artist gets up and moves around the room, soaking in the sounds.

This is Krivonos’ third studio build-out. The Brewery takes its name from its former location at the Danbro Studios (now a DIY venue) on Meserole Street in East Williamsburg once known as “Brewer’s Row” when Brooklyn was home to over a dozen major breweries at the turn of the century.

“The previous studio was on a smaller scale,” says Krivonos. “This current space was a big open, raw space and we had to do everything from the AC to the electrical. We built everything. And we did it on a very tight budget and schedule. We banged the whole thing out in four and a half weeks. But it was like the worst four weeks of my life! We were running sessions over at the previous location and then coming here and doing construction the rest of the day and night.”

This hustle is what’s building the Brewery, figuratively, as well. “It’s been a very fast growth and we’re getting really good business,” Krivonos notes.

“It went from being my side studio, where I was working with clients who couldn’t afford to work with me at Legacy, to being a facility that gets booked out every single day. We have to keep moving because we need more and more. We’re in a five-year-lease here, but I’m already thinking about what’s next. How are we going to expand when the time comes?”

The summer’s been typically light, says Krivonos. But this gauge is based on completely solid bookings the rest of the year.

Between Krivonos, Brandes, Dot and his engineer Jay Powell, HeadBanga and two other house engineers — Nick D’Alessandro and Bryan Lampe — running The Brewery is as Krivonos describes, “a total balancing act.” But for right here, right now, they seem to be striking the right balance.

Recent clients at The Brewery include pop singer/songwriter Brian Hong with producer/engineer Rated PG, Shemspeed artists Y-Love and DeScribe with producer Diwon and rock band Do You See the Dark. Visit The Brewery at www.thebreweryrecordingstudio.com.

On Tap At The Brewery: Raekwon, Chester Gregory, JoJo Pelligrino, Headbanga Muzik

The Brewery — a recording facility owned by producer/engineer Andrew Krivonos and producer Dot Da Genius (Kid Cudi, Kanye West) — has become a hotbed of hip-hop and pop production in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Here’s a bit of what’s been going on:

Krivonos recently recorded and mixed songs for R&B/soul singer and Broadway star Chester Gregory‘s (Dream Girls) upcoming album. He’s also been recording material for Raekwon‘s upcoming mixtape, working closely with Brooklyn producer BT (Wu Tang, the X-ecutioners, J Live, DJ Thoro, Cassidy, DJ Haze).

Krivonos has also recorded and mixed mixtapes for artists Mic Galper, Chase Bracey, Bobby Bandit, Mac Millz, and Louisiana’s Fantasy Boiz. He’s now wrapping up album work with Latin band Junior Rivera, working on rap veteran JoJo Pelligrino‘s album, and starting up a project with Flo (The Bad Girls Club).

Meanwhile, Dot Da Genius brought home two ASCAP awards for his work on “Day ‘N Nite” (Kid Cudi). He’s been working on material for Kanye West‘s and Kid Cudi’s upcoming projects out of Hawaii and L.A. and he’s been at the Brewery working on new records with his Headbanga Muzik team including material for Chip Tha Ripper and Clipse.

Producer Woodro Skillson landed the official remix for Melanie Fiona‘s “It Kills Me.” He’s now finishing up work on the remix for Shontelle‘s “Impossible” single at The Brewery.

Engineer/producer Rated PG recently finished work on singer/songwriter Brian Hong‘s new single.

The Brewery also recently added two engineers — Bryan Lample and Nick D’Alessandro — to its roster. They’re currently working on R&B artist Tony Collins‘ debut album. And they now have a new/improved outdoor rooftop patio. With a BBQ, seating for ten, beach chairs, and plenty of sun, clients are loving the space to get unwind between takes.

For more information, visit www.TheBreweryRecordingStudio.com.