Hip-hop ain't dead. It lives in the South, which is why producer Numonics' beats find their way onto albums by MCs from the North, the West, and especially from his home base of Fort Lauderdale.
Between recording, mixing, mastering, videos, and multiple releases this year, he found time to talk about his process, how he's made his name, and what he's got coming up.
Wassup, man? You got a minute for an interview?
Yeah, I'm just in the studio right now, but...
Who you got in there?
I'm working with a part of Blessed Nation just doing an EP.
Is that an everyday thing for you, working in the studio?
I'm doing music daily, that's for sure.
What else you got on deck?
New albums with Sin, Brown Bag Allstars, Planet Asia, Reks, and some other instrumental projects.
Putting in work...
I try to stay consistent. I know that's the key.
You recently released a new album with Saheed; what was your role?
I did all the production, mixed, and mastered it.
How long you been working with him?
Since Being Cool Don't Pay the Bills.
What was that about?
It's like, you can get accolades, but that don't necessarily convert to monetary gain. The people that are really winning right now should be better artists.
Where does that put you?
I'm straight, always progressing. I can't complain. From where I started to now, I'm very satisfied.
What was the process like for this new Saheed album?
We came up with all the songs together. He didn't just hear some beats on a CD and write to 'em. I made the beat for "Not For Nothing" with him on the spot in about half an hour, including drums, guitar, and bass, and then he did the lyrics. A lot of it was done that way, and you can hear it in that cohesive sound.
Do you have a signature style?
As far as what's been released and what people know me for, it's samples with instrumentation, but I didn't start out with the ability to play guitar, bass, and keys. That took time.
You work quite a bit with artists outside of South Florida. How'd that come about?
Yeah Reks from Massachusettes, Coss from LA, Freddie Gibbs from Indiana, Planet Asia from Fresno, Rass Kass from California. I work a lot with people in L.A., New York, D.C., Chicago. Everything is personal relationships. I'll do one record with someone and it's just word of mouth. I've also worked with Crooks n Castles, and IMKING, so having connections in that clothing field helps.
So, just meeting and working with different people?
Yeah, it's really just my from one to the next on the musical journey. I haven't had to whore myself out to try to get situations. I've been blessed that people tend to like my work and it just snowballs form there.
You put out a solo instrumental album this year too right?
Yeah, with DJ Booth in January. That was a collection of dope beats that were loose ideas at the time that didn't make it to any album. I didn't realize that it would do the things it's done for me. I gave away $1,000 in a video contest that 25 people entered and a director from Spain ended up winning.
What do you think about hip-hop today, and some of that more traditional sound breaking back through to the mainstream?
If you look at hip-hop in a historical context, it's roughly 45 years old, give or take a few years. Compared to rock, I feel like we're in the hair metal, cheesy phase of the late '80s, that sort of led to the rebirth. We're on the cusp of that more traditional hip-hip sound breaking through.
What about locally?
Well there's Mayday, Wrekonize. Will Brennan with Dim Mak doing great things. I work with a lot of guys down here for a reason, not cause they're close, but because they make great music, and we don't have a shortage of that. Saheed's a great example, Phresh James, Sin, there's a long list of great South Florida artists.
How'd you get your name?
I had some really terrible names originally, but my names is John so my friends in school used to call me Johnny Mnemonic, so it developed off that. Sort of a stupid fuckin' name, but I figured I'd at least change the letters and make it easier to spell. I wish it was a cooler story, but it stuck, so I use it.
Any shout-outs?
Shout out the New Times. I appreciate any and all support. Anybody that fucks with me knows that. Check out my website at thenuworldorder.com as well as Twitter and facebooks Numonics. New album with Sin coming soon, Hoffa too, and new video for Kings directed by Garcia who is also a very talented rapper and does great work on video.
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