Todaysindividual: Maja 7th, what’s happenin’ man, I’ve been meaning to sit down with you for a moment. For the viewers who don’t know you, tell them a little about yourself; What you do, and where you’re from. You know, all the good stuff.
Maja 7th: Appreciate the look my man. I’m a Hip-Hop Producer/Hopeless Romantic (lol). I’m originally from Anderson, Indiana but have lived in Chicago for a while. I consider it my second home.
Todaysindividual: I remember back one-time years ago when I was over at your house with my older brother Jarred, and you played this one beat off of your keyboard, and I was just like wow… No way you made that kind of beat off of that keyboard. Wow… Where did this talent come from?
Maja 7th: I’ve always been a fan of music. I was in band in school so I kind of picked up on it and went from there. Once I understood the musical and technical part of it I applied it to my love for hip-hop.
Todaysindividual: I suppose I’m a slight Maja 7th fan, I mean, I remember the Spectrum album, The Children by Mane and Ken (by the way I need that song), Killah Priest, Skyzoo, and you’re most recent big name project The Breakout. You started there, but where are you now? What is Maja 7th working on?
Maja 7th: I’m just working on my craft. I’m trying to continue to recreate myself. I’m trying to stay fresh and consistent with the beats. There is a certain popular sound right now and I want to go the opposite direction. I want to continue to refine my own sound. I have a few things I’m working on but I have to make sure they are confirmed before I start talking about them.
Todaysindividual: Which artists were the most interesting/fun/hard to work with?
Maja 7th: Mic Terror was fun to work with. That guy is hilarious in the studio. Freddie Gibbs and Mikkey Halsted were cool to work with as well…they were very focused in the studio. I really haven’t run into an issue recording. My guys Pete Sayke, Papi Jamon and ILL BROWN are hilarious as well.
Todaysindividual: When you make music, where do you draw from? How will the viewers know Maja 7th produced this? And out of curiosity, what kind of music do you listen too?
Maja 7th: It depends on if I’m sampling or if I am creating something from scratch. I usually draw from the sample. The chords in the sample and the feel of the sample let me know what direction I need to take the beat. It’s pretty simple after that. When creating from scratch I always start with the drums. The drums dictate the vibe and the melody or chords I want to place into the track. Once I get that shell…I build around that. With me you will hear a loud “MAJA 7th“ in the beginning and you’ll know from there. And pay close attention to the baselines…I love them.
Todaysindividual: I see you got a love interest now! You know I was going to go there ha-ha. Tell us about your queen. As well, tell us a little bit about your family and how Maja 7th was crafted from them.
Maja 7th: Hahaha….WOW! My “love interest” as you so eloquently called her is a young lady named Safiya. She is a future lawyer and she WILL be a beast at it. She has definitely brought some stability, companionship and true friendship into to my life and for that I am grateful. My mother is her biggest fan so it kind of works ha-ha!! I came from a blue collar family. My parents got up every day and worked. Their work ethic is instilled in me to this day.
Todaysindividual: What were some big hurdles you had to overcome, and what are your most gratifying moments and or achievements thus far in your life?
Maja 7th: Loosing my father is the single most painful experience in my life to date. He was everything to me and taught me so much. So much of me is him and I think about him daily. As for accomplishments…I feel like having one of my records actually on MTV JAMS and me being in the video was a huge achievement. (Freddie Gibbs feat Mikkey Halsted- ON MY OWN….shameless plug). | Read More
