Welcome to GDE, Immaculate Styles! How’s everything in Hollywood right now?
Things in Hollywood are HOT right now and I mean that literally and figuratively! We just entered a massive heat wave out here but Hollywood the area does also seem to have a new lease on life these days. Some super dope places have opened up over the last year or two. I go to a place called Golddiggers in East Hollywood.
Congrats on your new single ‘I Wanna Let You Know’ – how long was the record in production?
Thank you! I started writing and producing the basic tracks at the beginning of 2018, then Lisa came out and lived at my place in Laurel Canyon which is also where my studio is.
She came out for a month and we co-wrote and cut 4 tracks. I’d be downstairs writing or editing or something and she’d be upstairs in my kitchen making jerk chicken! We really got into the Laurel-Canyon-‘70s-recording-artist vibe during the writing and recording. Mick Guzauski mixed in a few weeks in the Fall. So start to finish, a year.
Tell us a little more on how you came to collaborate with Lisa Shaw?
I met Lisa in ’95 in New York City. We were playing in the same bands together, me as a bass player and she of course as a singer. We became good friends and discovered we had a mutual love for not just Prince and Chic but also Pat Benetar and The Cars.
We met the very first time playing in Itaal Shur’s band. Itaal is this monster, Grammy-award winning songwriter – Lisa and I were always in the the idea of songs, real songwriting. She asked me to play bass in her first NYC band, then she and I started writing songs together. We have a song-writing chemistry between us that is very rare. Plus, we are still very close friends! I spend time plenty of time in Miami these days, a lot so she and I can work more together.
If you could describe your sound in one word, what would it be?
IMMACULATE-STYLES (I know that’s cheating)
What’s been a standout moment for you artistically, to date?
I met legendary engineer Andy Wallace at a studio in the South of France and played him our tracks. He had some really nice things to say and asked me “Where were you when I was mixing club records?” I grew up on his mixes and DJ’d with them when I was just starting out – it was a cool thing to hear in that situation 🙂
What’s the music scene like in California, right now?
California has such a diverse music scene, I love it. In LA we have everything, the indie rock scene here is super vibrant, and then we have producers like Dam Funk and Brian Ellis, we have amazing post-modern hip hop and then of course there is a really strong dance music community out here too. House music, deep house, soulful house, you can hear some of the best producers in those genres out here.
San Fran is like ground zero for all of that. Also the dance music/house music scene in San Diego is super strong.
How did you come to sign ‘I Wanna Let You Know’ to Two+ Twenty Records, are you involved in the label?
I’ve known the label founder Christopher Smyk for several years. He’s got a vision for a certain type of thing, and he’s committed to quality and A&R and great songs for the dance floor. When he was starting the label I knew I wanted to be on it. He worked in the fashion industry a long time ago so he still has this sense for style and presentation too. How could I not want to be a part of that??
If you could offer a piece of advise, to other aspiring artists – what would it be & why?
Listen to your instincts. They will always be right. The question is, will you listen?
And finally, what’s next for Immaculate Styles across 2019?
Things are super busy this year! I’m DJing in NYC once a month this summer.
There is a remix of “I Wanna Let You Know” by Sebb Junior coming out mid-summer, then the 2nd single that Lisa and I are releasing called “Inside” will drop in early Fall. Some more remixes I’m sure – there are two producers in particular I’d love to have remix “Inside”, let’s see what they say 🙂 Finally, a third single is set for release this winter – so the rest of 2019 is stacked which is just how we like it!
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