Hello Diisnox ! How are you? Thanks for taking the time to talk to us!

We are here, you know! You're welcome, there's no worries.

How old are you and how long have you been making beats ?

I'm 26 years old and I've been making beats for... 6 years, wait, 8 years.

How do you manage to live with your beatmaking ?

We live more through it than with it ! 

Do you find jobs that are close to it, like sound engineers?

Actually not at all. I have a job on the side, which has no link, to have a salary that falls every month. It's a "phony" job that allows me to do 6am-1pm, so that all afternoon I have time to make sound. Some people are serious sound engineers and stuff, but I don't like that, recording people and stuff is too much work. I like to do beats in my corner or with them. Or even when I'm in a seminar with the rappers directly. But sound engineering not at all. Afterwards, from time to time, there are guys who come and buy my tracks when they see that I've placed so-and-so: obviously that brings people in and from time to time it makes sales. It's a plus on the salary. After that, it depends on who you are, but when you're really famous, it's a no-brainer !

When and how did you start to make beats ?

When I was little my father was already doing sound, my grandfather too, so I went to the conservatory. After the conservatory I stopped, of course it's boring, it's too scholastic and they are too stuck in the classical stuff you know.

Did you play an instrument ?

Yeah, the double bass. After that I learned drums, bass and stuff like that. Then I didn't do music for a while. And then, I don't know, one day I was at a friend's house who was doing some prods and he showed me and I said "wow, this is a real treat! And I started to do that. I've always loved music, playing drums, just for me. It's still a lot of work. Then, as soon as I can, if there's a buddy who can make me some guitar loops or something like that, it's off!

What's your process for recording organic sounds? Do you turn on a Dictaphone in the evening or is it done in the studio?

Well, sometimes I'll listen to sounds that will give me inspiration, but usually I'll say "go ahead if you have some guitar stuff to do" and let the inspiration do the rest. You see, even I don't really like to be directed in what I do, so I prefer to let people's inspiration speak too. But if not, he has to come to the studio and we plug in the sound card and record it.

Do you create according to your desires or do you put yourself in a "productive planning" perspective?

At first I had a schedule and then I stopped. Because I told myself that it was useless, sometimes I was forcing myself to do some prods and the result was not great. So now I just let it go, if I don't make a production for three days, then so be it; until the inspiration comes back and I really want to; even if I have to make 4, 5 or more in the same day at that time.

But I don't try to be as over productive as I used to be, because you put less soul into what you do. You end up seeing it more as a job: like in the morning when I get up to go to work.

You lose some of the magic of the thing and the passion in the end?

Yeah, crazy.

How do you define this over productivity you had before?

I used to tell myself that I had to make at least one production a day. In the end I stopped quickly, because I realized that it was useless.

How was the feedback regarding the work you did?

Some people were taking my productions. In fact, you can never really know, sometimes I'll find a really slammed production and the guy will say "oh damn, what a dope beat".

You said above that you don't like to be too much supervised in the artistic direction. How do you work with an artist, by letting his creativity speak and by making it stick with your inspirations ?

Well, in reality, whenever I was working, they let me have a lot of freedom in what I did. Like giving me the rhythmic: like a 2step thing, or a dance thing. For example, I'll play the notes that come to my mind on the keyboard, and they'll tell me "I like this, I don't like that so much" until we find something that suits both of us.

Do you prefer to work alone at home or in a studio with other people, that is to say you only do custom work, or do you still sometimes send your packs ?

At home I always do some, I love music too much so I do it when I feel like it. Afterwards, when some guys ask me for some production, recently EnfantdePauvre asked me for some beats. I sent him what I have already prepared, then I came to the stud with my prods already ready. But in the end we never use them, I prefer to make the beat directly with the artist to have the alchemy on the sound.

I saw that you are signed in Publishing at PLVCE, what does it change for you ?

In fact it's a crazy story! In fact it's a friend who created this publishing house, and we started to make sounds together 5 years ago. We met at the beginning by making beats together. He went to business school, but he was already into music. He worked with a lot of artists : lately he's on the last album of SoSo Maness. So he created his own publishing company and he proposed me to sign there. And since he knows a lot of artists, he's in Marseille now. Basically we have a WhatsApp group with all the guys of the company and it's him who will tell us "so-and-so is looking for a production, for this or that date, I'm in studio with so-and-so he's looking for a production like that". And in fact, he allows us to have placements.

How is the publishing contract quantified?

He lets me do what I want, I don't have to give anything back to him. But if you get your placement, they take a small percentage of the SACEM.

I have the impression that even though there is a decentralization of the musical actors, more and more groups of artists (rappers, beatmakers and reals) emerge while being rather sectorized by city. Doesn't the fact that you're from Lille limit your opportunities?

No, not really! You see, I'm from Lille, and already from Lille there are very few people with whom I work. Most of them are in Paris, like Zidi, who has become a real friend. Every month I go down to Paris, and he comes.

And I think it doesn't. As soon as you manage to get noticed, and guys like your music. Then guys will want to keep working with you no matter where you are.

When you are self-taught, what are the sources of learning besides experience and mistakes? What skills are you working on right now?

I'm learning from YouTube tutorials which is good at first. After that I got bored quickly because you know, you want to learn quickly so you advance the video a bit, you watch half of it.

Otherwise there are serious books that are interesting for the mix. After that, the best thing is to work with other people, to make live collabs, so you see how other people work and you say to yourself "damn, I wouldn't have thought of doing that" and maybe he explains how he does it; and maybe I can include him in my productions and vice versa. You're going to teach him things that he might not have done and that's cool.

The real-life collaborations are where you learn the most.

That's the advantage of the seminars?

Hell yeah!

Are there any disadvantages to seminars?

No, I don’t feel that way, but it depends on the person. But I find that if you go for a week, for a week you'll be very busy. You’re productive, because it's a change from your environment. Afterwards, you have to know how to take breaks when you need them. But since it's a serious break from your environment, you revisit it a bit: it inspires you like crazy

You have a music theory training that others don't have, do you learn from them and vice versa ?

In the end I don't use music theory too much, I do everything by ear. On the other hand I see it today, many work with the mouse because it is much more accessible. Today, compared to eight years ago, there weren't so many people doing it.

Now you see there are beatmakers who appear like that on twitter, they blow up, there are many who work with the mouse.

But I do everything on the keyboard, even the drums I play them on the keyboard in time. There are some who don't know: friends, they come from time to time, we make some prods; if I make them play the drums on the keyboard they don't know how to do it and they're not in time.

It's a question of ease to work with the mouse, but since I've always had a keyboard in my hands, I'm more at ease with that.

What would you say that music theory has taught you more?

Rhythm and being able to make chords easily, at the ear level it taught me a lot of things. 

Today you told me that you're not in an optics of a lot of placements, is that right ?

Yeah, that's right. In fact, I do it for fun, I'm not necessarily looking to place so and so.

Even if there are people who are looking for productions, I know that what I'm doing is not necessarily going to be in their style, I'm not going to force myself to make a production in their style absolutely to send them.

Like I let the thing come and then if I see something that can correspond to such and such an artist I send it, that's all. But I do it more by passion, I don't tell myself that I absolutely have to place.

You have to vibe with the artistic message or the person to compose with them?

It really depends. There are some artists that will seriously correspond to me, but in reality it's more about listening. I'll listen to something and say to myself "ah that's really hot, I've got some stuff in that vein".

But afterwards when you are in direct contact with the person it's better, that's why I never bring back ready-made prods, to have a feeling, to know the person a little and see what he likes.

With which artist would you like to place and why ?

Actually I would like to place Kerkra! Versatile and he brought back the "UK" vibe years ago.

After that I must admit that if not the really French rap stuff like Ninho Soso... I listen to it because I have to keep up with the times and see what's going on. But in reality it's not what I listen to anymore, it's not my thing anymore.

You listen to the music to see what's going on ?

Yeah I think you have to stay in the mood and still do stuff that can be in that style from time to time; to make one or two placements. If I can get one or two things in even though I don't necessarily want to 

If I unintentionally make a production that is a little bit in that style because at some point I listened to it, well, just go ahead.

What can the audience do to participate in the recognition of the producers' work? For example having a spotify access per beatmaker? Because working in the shadow so that other artists can be in the light is not complicated at times?

I don't find it necessarily disturbing to stay in the shadow as long as I'm credited, because anyway, I'm a nice guy in my stud, I'm a little shy so it suits me perfectly.

But I mean in the way we consume music nowadays, we don't give enough credit, I think. People who listen to rap music here and there barely recognize the tag so they're even less likely to recognize the beatmaker by his style.

Yeah crazy, but I think it's also the fault of the rap media that doesn't do enough work on it really. Now a bit more : like the "booska une h", but then it's the same, they always put the same guys in the spotlight too. While there are guys who don't have certifications but who are very hot. That's kind of the problem too: that comes from the media

There are some type-beats rappers but not many producers. Is it because beatmakers are very versatile or do we still not have the keys to understand their universe?

Well, I don't make beat types, in the end, it's copying the work of another beatmaker. You don't put your own paste in it. Type beats don't have much soul

I know that there are a lot of people who do it just to make beats. And there are some who only know how to make type-beats, so you don't have any soul, you don't have any personality about you, what you do.

And in the end, you copy the beatmaker more than the rapper, but they're called after the rapper.

It comes back to the problem you said before, that people don't know enough about beatmakers. If you put a Skuna boy type beat, there are a lot of people who will know but a lot of others will be in "who is it" mode.

The same goes for Drumkit, it only targets a niche of beatmaker listeners.

Crazy! But in the end it works well for them, there are many who appear overnight.

I don't know, I just like to make productions just for that aspect. After all the aspect that there is around like the mix and everything I'm interested in it because you have to know how to mix a minimum of prods. But even I don't bother too much, I just send the production and it goes.

SCH said in an interview with Yard that he "perceives other rappers as colleagues", while others perceive it as competition. What do you think about it?

As colleagues! Anyone I'm ready to do collabs with, just to make music together, I don't think I have to place so-and-so.

What's the advantage of co-prods ?

You don't have any inspiration, the guy will do something that will inspire you and vice versa, and you have more or less the inspiration until the end. At least until both have no more inspiration, at least you share something.

I saw that you were working with electric guitars, spreading a new wave on twitter with Zidi. What are you looking to do?

We have some rock sounds on the side!

And the inspiration comes from when we were younger. I went through everything from rap, rock, I listened to everything. That means since I was a kid! Since we have the same inspirations in rock and others. I don't know, one day I really had no inspiration, I started listening to all the rock and punk rock from the year 2000 and I thought "damn, I have to do this!

All of a sudden I started to do this, I put a story on Insta and he told me "but we have to do this for real!” And I don't know, we went into it... and let's go! We did some stuff, but I don't think it's going to come out right away... We have some stuff to release first.

In France it's not accepted yet : the guys who make top sales are Soso, SCH, strong street stuff. But in the States, it's really accepted for guys who do stuff like that. But in France the mentality hasn’t been unblocked yet.

It's a shame because we were almost at the stage of consecration of trap and pop punk/alternative music with the feat between Lil Peep and Fall Out Boy.

Yeah crazy! Even the trippie project, or Machine Gun Kelly's project, releasing a rock project between rap projects.

In your opinion, is it the sounds or the lyrics that are not yet accepted enough to be marketed?

Both! Again the lyrics are starting to get better, you know, because even the sounds where people used to say "fragile stuff" are streamed now. I think it's going to be accepted, you have to find your community.

But in the end I think it's a question of time too, because even Zumba a few years ago everyone was saying things about it, and now it's popular.It's a habit of sounds and then it will end up "selling".

In the end it's like everything else, it's always criticized at the beginning. And then it ends up being accepted.

Trap is the same at the beginning when it happened, people were talking about "it's all about shotguns" and so on, and in the end that's all you have today. I think it's a matter of time.

The last sounds with Zidi were VST or organic sounds?

Both. Then when I really wanted to, sometimes I didn't have my buddy who played guitar, and I really wanted a real guitar sound. Sometimes you can fuck his mother: it takes a little loop, you touch up, you add some melodies. Well, I'm not stuck on that, but there's everything in real life; as long as it opens up the creative thing, as long as it gives inspiration, that he likes it and I like it, that's all.

There is no way of working that is more optimal than another, it must correspond to the moment.

What do you think the music industry and the beatmaking scene are missing the most?

Well beatmaking, obviously more exposure. And the music industry, basically it links the two: stop releasing albums, in the end a bit " type beat". The same sounds, especially in French rap. You only see the "scummy stuff", the same bpms, melodies, you know? It’s slacking a bit.

There is no real risk-taking? 

Yeah, but that's also the "public's fault" because they're content with that, and don't do anything to change it either. At the same time, there is a flood of Friday releases, while the project has a three-day life span.

Well, I'm not lying to you, for the last few years there are very few albums that I listen to over several years. Whereas before you could see it happening a lot. The last album of the stuff I've been streaming lately, well the stuff I've been really bleeding since the last releases, is : JOSMAN SPLIT. It's already getting old you know and then what is it? I couldn't even tell you.

This is Nemir's EP. I'll be bleeding him for a long time for sure. Trinity also made an impression on me.

But you see, there are few things, whereas before an album you listened to it for, sometimes, 2 years. Now there are too many releases.

What did you talk about in these three albums ?

Well, Laylow, I've been listening to him since "haute culture", and this album was the consecration of everything he released before, and I really liked the sound of it.

And Josman, it's really the same because he took a risk. That's why the album didn't appeal to me, it sounded much more American, much more autotuned.

But it's the same, you know when you always do the same thing they'll say "you always do the same thing" and you'll change once, people will say "oh, you've changed a lot in what you do! French people...

But I think that Thahomey manages to change and do "new wave" stuff but at the same time his public is not disappointed, he is happy to experiment.

He's happy to experiment. Yeah, because he has a public, maybe more open, you know, an engaged public more open. Whereas Josman absolutely has to kick, to release some old school sounds from time to time.

And like on SPLIT there was not too much, it was a lot of autotune, bass that bounces well... I think that's it too. Thahomey he must have a much more open audience. Even the people I follow on twitter who really like Thahomey are people who will listen to Youv Dee's rock stuff, so I think they are more open minded too.

Youv Dee's album and its various influences has appealed to a large audience that is not necessarily aware of it, it shows that the economy and people are starting to get used to the new codes?

It's a pleasure, it's not yet a majority but it's cool !

The production of "L'homme ta vie" with Lowonstage is you and your inspirations who spoke or the DA of the album? 

Well in the end the sound is maybe the most "basic" sound of the album.

Yeah but there are simple things that can be revolutionary?

Yeah, in the end we did some production at my place, we had a party and made some prods.

Then as Youv Dee is a friend of Zidi's. So I was at Zidi's for a week, as I often do every month, and in the end there was a party and there was Youv Dee, who I knew since then! Wait, he hadn't even released Nitro yet, we were talking on Facebook the old fashion way! Just to say!

And finally he said to me "yeah, there's a party coming up, let's go" and it was at NJ. In the end we spoke during one hour and half, two hours and he gave me his personal email.

I went back home, waited two or three days and sent a production. He took it directly and made the sound L'homme de Ta Vie, on the album. Like it was improbable! Just moving around, meeting people and making your connections. I think finally when you see the human directly it changes for both. And now I can send him tracks more easily and I know he'll listen to them you know.

I feel like we lost the human connection in music, or was everything mechanized?

Crazy and that's why I don't like to send packs of tracks. When the publishing house asks, I do it from time to time, but I hate it. I prefer to be directly with people.

In fact I prefer to place people who are not known at all and that we are together and that we really do a human thing rather than just sending an email, the guy listens to the production, sends the track and it's over. 

And so during the confinement you didn't feel more restrained on all these points?

Yes, it was a real pain in the ass! I had to work only by e-mail. With Zidi we called each other in FaceTime and we did the production together, but it's not crazy.

For close friends you can afford FaceTime but developing contacts is more complicated?

Yeah, so I had to send emails, it was a bit of a pain in the ass.

Even if everyone is in the same situation and tries to humanize the relationship, are you happy with what you were able to do during the confinement? Didn't you feel too blocked or restricted?

Well, at the beginning you're happy, you're full of inspiration and everything. But after a while, since you stay in the same environment, you're less motivated at the end, a bit lazy. No parties... you can only go out to do your shopping... it's not crazy for inspiration renewal.

Can you introduce the 347 gang?

Woah! It's with some childhood friends. We had our own band, but it's over like crazy, it was the old days where I really started recording people. That's how I started and I'm still with them, we know each other since kindergarten and we're still buddies

Jaboy makes sound maybe more for his own pleasure, but they're there, they've always supported me, it's just that.

Can you tell us about your connection with Haristone? I was really surprised to see that you were behind a lot of his sounds.

Not many people know about it in real life haha and when they realize it they are surprised He released a sound on YouTube and the same on Facebook, I sent him a message, he told me yeah go ahead i’m down, we sent each other some beats.

And finally he taught me how to structure my beats because they stunk. After that he didn't take any beats for his first project, telling me "yeah don't worry, on the second project we'll work together". He taught me how to structure and make better prods. I sent him a lot of prods and I ended up with 99% of the prods on his project. At that time I was doing a lot of beats like 80 per month so I was sending him a lot of beats. And that's how it happened: in the end he really liked all the beats, and we did that. In the end I waited maybe 1 and a half or 2 years for him to take some tracks and it worked, and that's what made me known. That's where everyone came and where I met a lot of people that I know today. And we always missed each other, we still didn't see each other, but we often talked.

How did you connect with the people in Paris?

Well, I was doing some stuff with Haristone and Ashwin (BLSPRD),a friend of Zidi. He came to talk to me and told me that he had a friend who was making sounds "I'll send you some tracks". That's how I met Zidi, and in the end we matched each other crazy: and he really had a serious human thing. It's really the blood now. He's the one who introduced me to Sirap, who got me some prods for his first project. Then he introduced me to Thahomey, Youv Dee, Assy.

Do you have any talented colleagues that you could recommend to the readers ?

Low big time ! Tom OB the creator of the publishing house.

Do you have international ambitions?

Yeah, I think more with the Italians, the guitars and everything... not necessarily any name in particular but the Italians, like their little guitar sounds are really cool.

To bounce back on what you said before, I have the impression that we are witnessing a democratization of rap and its barriers within Europe. While we often assimilate the English with the Americans, the English seem more receptive to what is done in Europe, and therefore in France.

I think it's because maybe the beats are a little bit better. Because in the US, they are really bangers, they are sometimes less melodious than us I think. Because they see it more like: I put a loop from the beginning to the end and it's the rapper who does the work really hard on it.

You're going by the trends like you're adapting to the statistics of the year (Bpm, genre, etc.)

No, I like to work at 140 bpm after it depends on the inspiration. But I'm often at 140 minimum. It's not even about what's coming out or anything, it's a preference.

Do you compose for aesthetics or emotion ?

Emotional I think... totally crazy. Then I think that when you do melodic and simple it's because you're looking for a place. Whereas I like to add sometimes maybe too many guitars on a solo, at the end a variation, but sometimes there are too many variations for people.

Which beatmakers inspire you the most ?

In American I think more of Nick Mira who produced for Juice Wrld. Names like that, like the guitar vibe is crazy. Then in France I'm not really interested in beatmakers, I'm never looking at them, I'm not really interested.

But in the end it's a big contradiction because I say that the media is not that interested, but even I'm not interested haha. I think it's also because I'm in it, it's like rappers you don't really look at what's going on next door. 

I don't have a beatmaker of preference, if I really like the production I'll look at the guy who made it and say "oh yeah, hot damn".

We look without looking, without wanting to, when we listen to rappers and you'll necessarily listen to the beatmaker too, but you won't necessarily pay attention to the work.

What is the production you are the most proud of?

It's something that hasn't been released between Zidi and Assy!

Well, we'll be on the look out for it ! Thanks a lot for your time and this great discussion! Strength to you for the next step and I can't wait to hear prods with big bass and big guitars. 

Don't worry! We'll be coming with Zidi soon with some dingueries !