PARIS HILTON BFF
BRITTANY FLICKENGER
THE FUNKY TECKNICIAN
NILANTI
X.O
BEASTED CLOTHING
The Funky Tecknician Interview
The Boy Hollywood
CHAMP: What’s on and poppin' Funky Tecknician. What are you up to at the current moment?
The Funky Tecknician: Surviving, man. Shit, just getting over a cold!
CHAMP: How's the whether poppin' in Van City 'cause were gettin' hit heavy right now?
The Funky Tecknician: Ain't it ever. I live 4 hours outside of Vancouver in this city called Vernon, which is a little out of the way, and we've got damn near blizzard conditions. Sometimes I wonder what the hell they're talking about with all this Global Warming shit! It's ice-cold outside and I'm shaking like a Polaroid picture.
CHAMP: Now a lot of people reading this may be like who the hell is the Funky Tecknician, but you're the brain child behind the banger T.O 2 O.T. How'd you guys hook up?
The Funky Tecknician: The internet is a powerful thing, ain't it? I basically don't even know how I started suppin' with Point Blank. I think I added Imperial to my MSN list one day and thought "what the hell, I'll reach out", despite hearing from many cats that Point Blank are, shall we say, selective about who they decide to work with. Despite being busy, Imperial was always willing to take in any of my work that I happened to be messing with at that moment. One day I hit him with the T.O. 2 O.T. joint and it was talking to him. Imperial got back at me about a week later and told me they were gonna do a single to it.
CHAMP:How long have you been producing for?
The Funky Tecknician: I started producing back in high school. A good friend of mine, Cody, would hit me with tapes of shit he produced and it blew me away. He was doing it with a computer, too, rather than hardware such as an MPC or ASR. I had a computer as well, so I got the programs he was using and decided to see what was up. I still have some of the shit I did back then and man is it funny to listen to now.
CHAMP: Are there any other notable joints you produced that a few Cancon heads might know about?
The Funky Tecknician: I've been off the radar for a few years so it's hard to know what's still in circulation. Just recently I did two joints for Empire's latest album. I also worked quite steadily with Ayah for about a year, and we put out some filthy hot shit, but I don't know what of that she's used or where things are moving with that. Production for me was basically a hobby until about midway through 2008 where I decided to turn it up and become more professional.
CHAMP: Now for my real hip hop heads, Funky Technician was an album that Lord Finesse first dropped. Was he the inspiration for your name or is there a deeper meaning than that?
The Funky Tecknician: Lord Finesse is definitely a big influence on my work. As for the Funky Technician joint, yeah, I'd have to say that record influenced my early vision as a hip hop producer and therefore I decided to use that name. When I think of legends such as Lord Finesse, Pete Rock, DJ Premier, Dre, etc., I think of a "funky technician", a brother who's ill behind the boards but still has crazy attitude like James Brown.
CHAMP: What artists are you currently workin' with?
The Funky Tecknician: Actually, at the moment, I'm focusing on making samples. Don't get me wrong though, I'm still working with other artists, just not so much rappers and singers. Instead, I'm working with a few different producers. I hit 'em with a sample, then they work their magic on it. I gotta say my favorite producers to work with have been Jake One, DJ Cas (check him out on the latest Cube album), Buckwild, Bluntologist (look out for his shit with Freeway) Boi-1da and Sid Roams (Joey Chavez and Bravo). Those fellas are capable of adding a whole new dimension to my samples; they turn a simple loop into a real song.
CHAMP: Have you been getting any looks since the Point Blank album dropped?
The Funky Tecknician: No doubt. Many people have come at me saying "I saw the jam on TV!" Unfortunately since I live outta the way I probably haven't gotten the response that I COULD get if I was in Toronto or NY, at least from other artists. Like I said earlier, the 'net is just about my only contact with the world at the moment until I make a move to a larger city.
CHAMP: What tools can we catch The Funky Technician using in the lab?
The Funky Tecknician: Just the computer. I occasionally get attitude from older generation producers who swear by hardware such as the MPC or the ASR, but computer suits me just fine. It's the name of the programs that I got a problem with. "Fruity Loops?" Nobody takes you seriously when you say that shit! I gotta mumble it under my breath or change the subject really quick. I gotta say that I'm more confident now when I say I produce with "Fruity Loops", as big producers such as 9th Wonder or Boi-1da use it as well.
CHAMP: Now other than Point Blank which other artists in Canada do you got on your radar, think is hot, and would like to work with?
The Funky Tecknician: Damn, that'd be a long list. Kardinal Offishall for sure. Jully Black would be somethin' else, too. I think it's no secret that Drake is about to blow up. I've had the opportunity to speak with him in person before and he definitely knows what's going on. He's making all the right moves and his album will be big. I'd like to contribute to that if I get the chance. I know I'd also love to work with Ayah again, her and my style really talk to each other.
CHAMP: The T.O 2 O.T masterpiece has a mean sample which is crazy!Would you say a lot of the beats you make are sample driven or original based?
The Funky Tecknician: Thanks man. Actually, nearly all of the shit I do now is entirely original based. That's the thing though, because the shit I make is supposed to sound like it was sampled, but it's original. These days I spend just about all my time trying to make brand-new music, but that sounds like it's old and taken off a Stax record or something. The idea is to even fool the producers I work with, even before the joint is published. If a producer with a trained ear who's been digging for 10-20 years can't tell the difference, then, the way I see it, the listener won't either. The beauty behind this is that, first; no royalties have to be paid to any record label, since I made the sample from scratch. The other benefit is that I'm able to bring brand-new shit onto the court that has the "feel" producers are looking for without having to sample shit that's probably already been touched. I can create anything from a Motown/Funk Brothers type sample to some musical backing from a Sade track.
CHAMP: It's the first quarter of '09. What else can we expect from The Funky Technician man?
The Funky Tecknician: Still a big question mark. I gotta get motivated since I'm always distracted by some other bullshit. Once I get some time to work on my own projects I'd like to put out some material with my Thirsty Music family (E-Dot and Darp Malone). Darp Malone is an incredible producer and I'm fortunate enough to have a production duo with him: "The Greater Good".
T.0 2 O.T (PRODUCED BY THE FUNKY TECKNICIAN)
