Read the Shmittee Interview below and share it on social media.
Please tell our readers who you are and what you do?
My name is Matt and I'm a Producer and DJ based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I started producing right before I got into college, which the music kind of got put on the backburner at that point to focus on school. As I played with different sounds in my free time I realized I'm kind of good at this… But I wanted to play shows, so I remember rolling up to a frat house at Penn State, packed house.. and literally telling them "I'll do it better and I'll do it for free.." over the next few years I was getting booked at local clubs at Penn State and Frat houses for hundreds and sometimes thousands of people, it was pretty cool to be able to play in such a laidback environment. Towards the end of college, I'd played a few clubs, but I wasn't really focused on music, I was focused on my relationship at the time, so I kind of lost my touch.. I gave up music to an extent to take my relationship more seriously which was a terrible decision. So I moved to Philadelphia from the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania for a job I took to be closer to my then girlfriend, which the relationship lasted maybe a month.. So I was in a slump for awhile and I turned to music. So I really spent all of my free time the next few months just playing around on my laptop, sitting on the couch with my dog haha. Granted I hadn't played a show in probably a year, sold all of my music equipment to be able to afford to move, so I pretty much really regret that now. But I noticed my sound really evolved over time and I had the free time to perfect that. Once my current lease was up I got my own apartment, which really was the best thing that ever happened to me. It allowed me to focus all of my time on music with no distractions. With that, moving to Philadelphia, I've been able to network and bounce a lot of ideas of other producers that I originally met online and am just now meeting in person which is amazing. The Philadelphia music scene has really began to mold me into what I currently am in regards to music. It's all about the people that you surround yourself with and you can really vibe off the environment you're in.
How would you describe your influences and how have they changed over the years?
I remember getting into this kind of music when I heard Tiesto's "Club Life: Miami" such an amazing album.. "Walls" had me instantly hooked, it was literally the only song I listened to for a good 2-3 weeks. So i started messing around, I started "trying" to produce big room 2013ish, I actually made a couple cool tracks but I missed that Big Room bubble by a good year, so it was out of the picture and not too popular. So i decided to start making what I loved, which was more progressive and melodic house. My first tune I was proud of was my Elton John – Your Song remix, but I kind of took a break after that. I made a cool trappy tune with an online friend, RonaldoReagan, which was released on EatMeWithYourEars, which was my first successful song I would say. Then music took a backseat so I could focus on my relationship at the time. Once I had the time to focus on myself and what I wanted, I realized how amazing the future bass genre was, It's a real crowd pleaser, and it was something that would take me out of my element. So once I started playing around and watching youtube videos (YES THEY WORK) I taught myself how to produce future bass and trap. Granted, I'm not technical at all so I really learn by watching others and remembering. So i think the producers that have incluenced everything to this point are JoyRyde, Sweet Teeth, KXA and Tmass. From talking to a few of them, to just admiring and trying to imitate similar sounds, it's really pushed me a little further.
What´s new right now?
I have a couple cool releases coming this year, I'm trying really hard to have one release a month for the year of 2018, so i've been working through the night every night to make sure I can live up to that expectation for myself. I'm finally playing a show at Soundcheck in Washington DC the 18th of January. It's been a dream of mine since I got into this to play a Club Glow show, they run Echostage which is easily the best venue in the world, I don't care what anyone else thinks about that statement. I plan on releasing a radio show/mix series in the near future so look out for that.
Follow me on my socials
Twitter.com/Shmittee
Instagram.com/Shmittee
Soundcloud.com/Shmittee
I'd love to talk shop and get to know anyone who wants to reach out.
Catch ya later!
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Are you a superfan of anyone? How did you become a superfan? Do you remember how you become a fan and what turned you into super fan? Have you ever thought about why you´re such a fan?
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What was the biggest mistake you made when you started making music and what would be the number one tip you could give to a newcomer musician?
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How do you get gigs? Can you share any tips?
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Do you have good promotion tips for other musicians?
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Do you have insights on how to grow your audience on soundcloud that you want to share with our audience?
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What has been your biggest challenge right now? Have you been able to overcome that challenge? If so, how?
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How do you personally discover new music?
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Once you discovered new music, do you tell others about the new music/artist you discovered? If yes, how exactly?
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What is your number one tip to improve your music production or songwriting skills?
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What is your best tip for those who struggle with finishing their tracks?
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We meet again in one year. What has changed?
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http://www.soundcloud.com/Shmittee
http://www.facebook.com/Shmitteemusic
http://www.twitter.com/Shmittee
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Enter your questions to the artist in the facebook comment section below.
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