MsTrisMusic.Com

I woke up this morning determined to make some good ol Fried chicken later for dinner.(all chefs feel free to leave some fried chicken recipes :-)…. Outside of several genres of art, I’m finding I love to cook . I did an interview a few years ago on NPR where I explain beat making to be similar to cooking ..

….but …I haven’t gotten chicken to a “MsTris put her twist on that” standard. I remember seeing a story on New Orleans famous fried chicken from ” Willie Mae’s Scotch House”. Hmnn… I’m thinking “that’s the kind of chicken I wanna make!” I googled the recipe and came up with nothing. Seems Mrs. Seaton has kept her recipe secret for over 30 years. Her resteraunt was destroyed in the hurricane. People loved her and her fried chicken so much , they helped rebuild the landmark. She’s 89 and has passed the apron to her great grand daughter, but the chicken is still the best from what I’ve read. Check out this clip about her and her famous cooking.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uVUNpkvAiA[/youtube]
How this relates to music?
She truly has a passion for cooking and sharing her art with people. She’s obviously come up with something unique, even though it’s a popular dish. She put’s in the right mixture and creates her own masterpiece. This reminds me to continue to strive and do the same with music..
So the chicken is marinating, next I’m off to prepare the ingredients and cook up a musical feast. I’ll make sure my kicks are knockin, the snares eq’d, and my instruments are leveled before I make the beat. If I decide to use a sample, I’ll mix and eq that before adding it into the sampler. The sounds that you put into the beat is the recipe..the ingredients. Start with quality sounds for your beat. If you use muffled, muddy sounds, you’ll surely get a distorted beat. Once you get a solid “production recipe”, stick to it as the foundation and evolve your sound around that…. Great sounds in,your great style of “cooking up a beat”, and a great mix , may equal great beats.
I’m at a place in my production where I want to add ingerdients that make my ” ear candy” unique….Like Mrs. Willie Mae..I can’t give all my secrets, but I can get you thinking in new directions to give your music something different. I usually try to come up with new sounds to incorporate into the mix. I mangle some loops, or hum a tune in, or add effects. When you think about it,…..the possibilities are endless. Never be afraid to experiment with your music, just as chef experiments to make a new dish. Aighty I’m off to fire up the equipment..and cook up some new heat for the streets!

Pz Til Later
Happy Beat Making