Congratulations on completing your first EP “Unfinished Robot”. How did you land on that name for the EP?
Well my name TroNic is really digital and futuristic sounding, so people tend to think of computers, synth sounds and robots, that type a thing. The thing about Robots are that they are perfect creations, they do what humans can do, plus more and more efficient. You cant work harder than a Robot. Now "Unfinished" means that I wasn't complete, so I cant be perfect, but I do have the traits of a robot itself. I work harder than everyone, i stay more efficient, but I'll make mistakes, because I'm still human. That's ones of the reasons behind the name. Also how Robots work for the people, so i always felt i work for my fans always been here to help, but i don't need help haha.
Your family moved from Toronto back to Jamaica when you were still a kid. How long did you live in Jamaica for? Do you think that the move influenced your music style?
I moved there when I was 11 and I lived there up until I was 17-18ish so I think it was 6 or 7 yrs in total pretty much but I'm always back and forth. When this goes up I'll be there. The move definitely influenced my music - I got a stronger love for it and the atmosphere there is amazing. So inspiring.
What kind of music and artists did you grow up listening to? Are they still an influence on your music or would you say your inspirations have changed these days?
I grew up listening to a lot of The Clipse, Jay-Z, Wayne, Lauryn Hill on the hip hop side, but a lot of reggae music also. The list goes on from Gregory Issacs to Bob Marley to Vybz Kartel. Pretty much most of what I listened to growing up, I still listen to now. If Lauryn still was making music I'd probably still be listening to her religiously.
Agreed, Lauryn is greatly missed these days, she needs to do a Jordan and have a proper comeback! You have produced beats for Jamaican big names Mavado and Vybz Kartel. Were you in Kingston when things got heated between them?
Yeah I was and it was so entertaining but dangerous at the same time. But there's nothing else like it. Some people took it too far though, which is why people got hurt and the government had to intervene & ask the two to shake hands and make it seem like everything was cool. That just shows how much of an impact music has over here.
You have the Kanye double threat (without the crazy). Did you always rap over your beats knowing you wanted to be an emcee too? Or was there a shift in your focus and what you wanted to achieve?
Haha, don't speak too soon about the crazy... Well yeah if it wasn't my beats it was most likely gonna be industry beats, unless I was on someone's feature. I actually can't remember which I wanted to be first - the two kinda happened cohesively, I do think I'm more gifted in writing rhymes though. I feel like I have to catch up on production and try and beat my writing skills. My process is kinda weird, I don't understand why I like some beats and not others when I make them. I'll build 5 beats and I'm lucky if I get one where I say "Shit I need to write to this"!
When you're on a beat you like, do the beat and lyrics come together in your head at the same time - or do you work on a track in separate steps?
No it's funny, cos it's kinda like if someone sat me down and said "Yo listen to these beats". I'll have an idea in my head (which usually completely changes by the end of the song) and I'll try and build a beat to go along with the though process. Sometimes I'll just make beats and be like, "Whoa hold up this is ill". Sometimes I'll go back to beats that I've made in the past and it will just spark something, when I might have thought the beat was shit previously. It's so confusing haha! It always has to feel natural though, i don't force myself or at least try not too. Sometimes a hot beat just isn't for you - that's where the true talent comes in, knowing what's best for you.
My favourite track from the EP is “Make it to the Top” with Amanda Diva, who now partners with Marsha Ambrosisus as part of the new Floetry look. How did you get introduced to Diva?
I actually contacted her over twitter. I spoke with her and got a close friend of mine to do a reference for her, I wrote the hook myself, sent it to her and she got it back to me. She is extremely talented. The first version she did was all it took.
Her voice is amazing! What is your favourite track from “Unfinished Robot” and why?
My favorite would have to be "Walk With Me" just because I love telling stories and there were hours and hours of work put into that one song. The EP is short, but so much time went into these songs, fine tuning the simplest things. If you heard the original version of this song you would be shocked. From the live instruments, to Shawn's (my engineer) mixes and ideas, to Emma (my videographer) acting out the role of the girl, i got so much help from my team on that song. It has a story line but the hook could be used for so many situations & different meanings. My team really Walked With Me through that song.
You're only 21 years of age, who would be your top 5 artists (producers or emcees) that you'd wanna work with in the next 10 years?
Jay-Z, Kanye West, Coldplay, Pharrell Williams & J. Cole.
TroNic's EP "Unfinished Robot" is now on Itunes, click here if you want to check it out.
Peace and love!
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