On Some TMZ shit a few months ago, Mannie Fresh posted a video in his Houston studio with none other than Kid Kamillion. In the video we see veteran producer Mannie going in on the legendary SP 1200 while Kid Kamillion hits the pads on his go to MPD Controller, which he also uses when performing live. After his performance at the Hip Hop Awards with 2 Chainz and the Cash Money team there is no doubt that Fresh is still heavy in the music game and seeing him team up with fellow New Orleans native Kid Kamillion is nothing less than dangerous.
With the quick rise of the “trap music” genre to festival stages, a lot of electronic producers leaped out of their comfort zones to put their style on top of the 808s, high hats, and claps. But for producers like Mannie Fresh and Kid Kamillion this style of “Southern Bass” production is anything but uncomfortable.
We sat down with KK and Mannie fresh to talk about the state of these genres, what they both have planned for the future, and how it was working together in the studio. We’ve also got the full stream and download for the exclusive Kid Kamillion – No Sleep Mix, jam packed with exclusives and one of the Mannie fresh KK collabs #22 in the mix,”Twerk Team” (mix is at the bottom of the interview).
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Exclusive Interview with Kid Kamillion
RTT: What are your thoughts on “Trap Music”?
KK: “The production of southern hip hop has finally been classified. “ “From ATL-to-Memphis-to-Houston and of course down to the Port of New Orleans. “Trap” was born using a simple Fruity Loops drum pattern on hot Dell computer blasting through some basic computer speakers. Little did anyone know that low budget sound went on to make millions. It got into the hands of street hustlers who took their hustle mentality from the streets and applied it to music. ‘It Just happened organically” and I think to most producers this is why it is so interesting; it’s so raw.”
RTT: What are your thoughts on “Twerk Music”?
KK: “First time I heard ‘Twerk’ was on an album by this bounce artist Cheeky Blakk, I think it was called “Twerk something”. It was a bootleg ass record made for the streets. (I later found out that Mannie Fresh produced that record.) Twerking was dancing, a really sexually explicit way of dancing, and it still is.
RTT: Did this influence you as an artist?
KK: “Being a white kid fom the suburbs hip hop music was crack to kids like us that didn’t know anything about that lifestyle. To us it just looked liked fun. We’ve just been exposed to it for a long time down in the south, as well as electronic dance music. People from the generation before ours didn’t pay attention to electronic dance music, it was like rock n roll to your parents. There was a mystic gap there and I feel like some of the hip hop people were not aware of it at all; meanwhile, these white kids were taking it in their own way and mixing that sound and subject matter with this electronic dance music to create a new movement. And we just happened to be in the middle of it.”
RTT: Do you credit this style of music to influencing your style of production?
KK: “Definitely. I knew that if you could make people dance then you had their attention.”
RTT: Touch on what its like working with Mannie Flight School/vice versa
KK: “Working with Mannie now is awesome because your hearing all these sounds you grew up on, and now the guy who made it is handing me jump drives with the DNA of his records and telling me to mix it with the DNA of my records and let’s see what happens. And it just makes sense . he’s from new Orleans, I’m from new Orleans. He grew up a DJ in New Orleans, I grew up a DJ in New Orleans. But more importantly than working with him, he’s really taken on a mentor role for me. He’s done it all. He’s already succeeded and now he helps me avoid some of the piles of shit that he nearly stepped in, or did for that matter. It’s been really cool. He’s very open minded and optimistic. He’s willing to explore and maximize everything about sound and culture. There’s not many producers his age with his status that do that. He’s done a lot for pop culture. And I think it’s because he is so open to these new ways of thinking. You’ve got to understand it first before you can put it down.
Mannie Fresh and Flight School is interesting because it’s now a home for all the beats and instrumentals that I’ve been sitting on for years. Which will sound good released with an artist instead of as a stand- alone record. All these beats that are fused with dance funk rock soul, stuff you wont hear on a major festival stage…yet.
RTT: Can you briefly touch on some future projects?
KK: Im not worried about whats going on in the EDM scene and following trends of other DJs and producers, I wish I could. Right now I’m more focused on creating new things with EDM and hip hop. So I’ve reached out to a lot of artists that I looked up to growing up; I asked them if they wanted to do some work and they liked my music and were down.
Right now some projects that are in motion are an EP with Spankrock and Amanda Blank that’s being released on BNR and through that it has allowed me to collaborate and work on some new projects with Boys Noize himself. On the other side, I have a few projects pending with Diplo and many creative outlets.
Exclusive Interview with Mannie Fresh
RTT: What’s it been like working with Kid Kamillion?
Mannie: We really about to take over the world. I was just waiting for good people that work at the same pace I work at and hes one of them people whos truly loves music and is passionate about it. He will take hours to get his songs right even if just that his kick’s not right.
He is that passionate about it and his outcome of the song is even more nuts so I really feel like he’s one of them young kids that I’ve been waiting forever for to come along just always cool to be around him because he fills me will all kind of hope and creativeness. I still feel competition, but that’s the cool thing when its friendly competition within your camp. He keeps me on my game and he will make me get it right and that’s one of the many things I like about him. Im not apologizing about nobody else anymore that’s family and what were doing right now, we want to smash the game.
RTT: How do you feel about EDM and how it is crossing over with the Hip Hop industry much more these days?
Mannie: Dude that’s my background, you know its just taken a new name. My music to me has always kind of been electro fused or whatever you want to call it. I grew up on old house beats and all of it has those old elements. Right now EDM is just a new name for some creative shit, its energy. EDM is just energy, its music you party to. Its just a new age of what party music is. I’m just going at it a little bigger and a little better. Theres a few cats that say “I don’t want to hear mannie do EDM” but fuck it I am EDM! Always have been!
Look out for what we got coming out! I know its going to be crazy. Im so ready for this year. I really feel like this is the year for big things to happen.
Kid Kamillion – Never Sleep Mixtape | Free Download
Tracklist:
![thefaded. – Fuck Boys [RTT Premiere]](https://runthetrap.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/thefaded-fuck-boys-150x150.jpg)
![Free Drinkz – All Summer Mix [RTT Premiere]](https://runthetrap.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Free-Drinkz-ALL-SUMMER-FIN-150x150.jpg)
This is gold. RAW