Last week I had the chance to sit down with MOTi to talk about what he's been up to recently. What was originally intended to be a short conversation about his latest releases turned into a long and stimulating interview about all things music. Not only did we go into his recent work and production but also went into a lot of other areas that are increasingly apparent in the dance music scene today. I really enjoyed talking with MOTi, he's a great producer and a genuine person that you can definitely see puts his all into his music and the dance music community as a whole.
-What's your favorite part of NYC?
‘To be honest I am not sure. I've been here so many times but whenever I'm here it's really only for one or two days. This is the first time we stayed for 5 or 6 days, and the things that I usually see are the clubs like marquee, lavo or webster hall. I've never even seen central park or anything like that.'
After the introductions and getting his take on the city that never sleeps, I started to ask him some of the more in depth music questions that I am sure everyone is curious about.
-Tell me about this new track and all the other new music you have coming out?
‘This is a kind of new direction I'm going right now. I'm really doing this kind of music on the side, I'm still working on my EDM and big room stuff, but this new track ‘SAY!' is sort of a funky, disco style. I'm trying to take a step back from EDM and get more involved with live instruments and the integrity of the music.'
He then went into depth on how he likes working with real instruments versus just working on a Laptop, and how the process of working on a song like ‘SAY!' is much different compared to working on the average EDM track.
‘I first wrote down all the melodies and then got together with some session musicians. It's a really fun and different way to work. It also helps me get better and to progress at producing. Making this kind of music helps me to grow as an artist and it also is cool to try new and different things when it comes to producing music.'
-I've noticed though that over the past couple years you haven't really been trying to put yourself in the forefront of the dance music scene as much as you have at the start of your career. Is there a reason for that?
‘For me it's important to find the right way I want to put myself out there and now I think I finally found it. Music has been changing so much over the past couple years. Last year big room was still pretty relevant and now it's really all about bass music, and I don't want to be just another guy who jumps on the hype. I'm trying to find something that fits and I want to make the next trend. This is what I'm trying to do with my music.'
-How long has the new track been in the making?
‘It takes long man. It's a lot different from electronic music. With a normal EDM track I can just export it and test it out in my sets, tweak it a bit depending on how the crowd reacts and that's it. With this song I had to make a first draft, then talk to the song writers who are going to do the vocals for it, then we had to find the right singer. There was also a lot of re-recording involved also, and after all those drafts I finally had a demo but then needed to listen to it on different sound systems to see how it feels. So many people were involved in the project and there are so many different components that go into the track.'
His new track ‘SAY!' went through 4 months of preparation, but I think it's safe to say that all the hard work definitely paid off.
‘I'm very happy with the result.'
We then went into how he's dividing up his musical goals and more into the work he's been doing off of his latest release.
‘My singles right now are more funk, disco driven, R & B, but I'm also still working on the EDM side of things. I'm still making club music. I started the MOTi massive series and I will have a 6 to 7 track EP coming out in about a month.'
-What about working with Yton? You seem to like making music with him?
‘Yeah, he did a lot of tracks with Umet Ozcan, and is now starting a new project. He doesn't really want to be in the forefront but would like to become more than just a songwriter. I really enjoyed working with him and he's very talented.'
-Who would you most like to work with at the moment?
‘For electronic artists I am not really sure right now cause everyone is in such a weird spot. Nobody really knows where they're going. The weirdest part of it is that at festivals everyone is still primarily playing EDM tracks. People are trying to make so many different things right now and everything is kind of all over the place. Bass music has its place but all the other genres are kind of out there. It’s a good thing that everyone is trying to find their way, but I feel like they're waiting for the guy to lift and push things forward more in this music scene. Going away from EDM though, I think I would really like to work with Tame Impala.'
(for those of you who don't know Tame Impala is an indy rock band)
Going off of that he mentioned how he would love to work with one of my personal favorite producers.
‘Skrillex would be amazing to work with, he’s one of the greatest producers of our time and I really enjoy the music he makes. Skrillex works like me where he renders everything to audio. I feel like I could learn a lot from him especially when it comes to that way of producing. I render everything to audio, and if you work with midi and synths you can get more creative with audio. You can do anything with it and just be more unique.'
After the interview was over, MOTi and I talked a little bit more. I have to say out of all the artists I've met he is by far one of the good ones. He is a talented producer/dj and a cool dude. I am looking forward to seeing where his new musical path will take him.
Make sure to check out MOTi's new track ‘SAY!' below!
