The Making of The “ICONiC” EP
“I think I’m gonna make an EP.” That’s what I told Sav on the phone, soon as I found out I was accepted in the “America’s Next Top Hitmaker” Competition. If it wasn’t for this competition, I probably wouldn’t have made this shit - but I’m glad I did. The competition was fugazi in my opinion, even if I would’ve won, I don’t think it would’ve felt gratifying mostly due to the voting system. I made sure to have the EP completed so by the first day of the competition, I would have something to promote.
Technically the very first song i wrote for the tape was “PLAYA SHiT”. But if we want to specify the earliest song that was written for the tape was “The PPL’s CHAMPiON”. Which was written on 12/06/2022 for my upcoming album “DiARY OF A BLK MAN”. Followed by “GOAT ≠ SHEEP” written on 08/08/2022 again for DOABM. Everything else was written within a month from Jan-Feb.
this is when i got the microphone set up for the first time. slow grind lol. tv still on the floor, but i was proud.
I’m always trying to think of the grand plan to showcase my work. At least that’s what it feels like it deserves. So many people rap nowadays, and promote their work in a similar fashion. Even if we follow the “viral" or “organic reach” formula, with a little niche it still doesn’t make you standout unless your artwork is loud and abstract, and/or your promotional tactics are different from most. Long story short, Sav was the one who encouraged me to go ahead and put out a single. He said to go ahead and drop a song - which is why PLAYA SHiT was the single.
Crazy thing about this was that, Sav really liked that song so much that nigga wanted to hop on it. He doesn’t really get moved like that from too many people, especially considering he’s balancing a lot of different roles. But soon as he heard my hook, he knew that it was “hitmaker quality”. I did a quick sketch of the cover art, took it to Adobe, added some AI, and boom. We had us a single.
“D Smith is forever. Eternity I’m outchea’ forever.”
“TIME IS NOW” was a concept I knew I wanted to write about mostly because my goal is to create an ecosystem of my brand. Everything is integrated. So for instance, I designed a clock for a short film I directed a couple years ago exclusively for instagram. This clock was designed to read “NOW” all around the clock instead of the traditional numerical design. The goal was to promote a product for my clothing brand “The PPL.™ CLOTHING”. As of this writing, I have yet to put it out - still trying to do the grand slam of marketing lol. But i figured as I writing for this tape, I need to have a story that can be attached to something tangible. It kind of reminds me of Walt Disney. When you watch any Disney show, you can experience that in reality by going to one of their magical experiences, such as Disneyland. Not only that, you can shop for t shirts, stuffed animals, mugs, edibles, etc. It’s a brilliant experience. I want to take those tactics and implement it in my brand. So for those who enjoy this song, there’s something that can be attached to it. It’s also a product that can create conversation, so for someone who may have never heard of me, the owner of the clock can tell them who I am and what that clock is attached to.
this is probably one of my favorite things i’ve created. it will be dropping soon. extremely limited. with my signature write over where you see my name.
“GET DOWN” was one of the first beats released under Sav’s “Summer Jam Sav II” series. I knew as soon as I heard it, that I wanted to write to it. I was actually kind of stuck on how I wanted to approach the music, I believe Sav has told me to rewrite it a couple more times, more so the hook. I loved that beat so much, I just know that somebody will hear it, and feel moved if not even more moved just from the way it makes you feel, feel seen. That was a little fun to mix as well because I had Sav mess around with the beat a little by taking away the snares, and hi-hats so the drums and bass can ride out at the end.. It’s one of my favorite beats that I’ve written to.
“MR SMITH II” recording session on Logic Pro X.
MR SMITH II was probably one of my favorite songs to write to. I was extremely pleased to find that beat in Sav’s store because he normally doesn’t produce those type of sounds. The hook came to my mind instantaneously - I knew I was writing a sequel to the original MR SMITH that has received some positive reviews over time. Crazy enough, is that I actually had a second part to that beat but it was scrapped due to Sav saying that it doesn’t fit. Sometimes I allow him to assist with the crafting of my project, and he even said that it was his least favorite track, he almost suggested scrapping the entire thing off the tape. It grew on him over time though. I kinda felt that way with “SAY AYE” which surprisingly, is a common favorite. Either or, I’m grateful I followed my gut. Maybe I’ll do some alternative version with a switch up and put it out through here or something.
