I Can’t Go Back To Singing Again –Pbanks

Pbanks, an up and coming music producer, speaks with Saturday Beats about his career

How long have you been producing music?

I started as an artiste but that was a long time ago, I doubt if it can ever happen again. I have been producing since 2004 though I have been singing since I was very young. When I grew up, I felt music wasn’t for me. I learnt music production by myself; I was never in a band and I didn’t have a background in the choir. My mentor, Ryan Leslie, motivated me, so I went online and I read the necessary tips.  I can proudly say I taught myself everything I know today and I kept improving as time went on.

I will never be a singer. It’s okay to be truthful to yourself so I just told myself the truth that I would never go back to singing. Sometimes when I sing, people say that I am good but I will never go back to it.So you don’t see yourself becoming a singer?

But singing is more lucrative than being a producer?

It is a lie. If you are business-conscious as a producer, you should be able to make a living with music production. My dream is very big and my prayer is that when I walk into any studio and look at their speakers, studio monitors and other equipment, it should have Pbanks written on it. Something like what Dr. Dre did with Beats by Dre. I want to be like Dr. Dre. That is where my direction is.  I could write a song or act as a backup singer for an artiste but singing is a no no for me. I am not interested in becoming a musician.

Can you tell us the circumstances behind the making of ‘Wait’?

Producing ‘Wait’ beat was like making any other beat I have produced. When I made the beat for ‘Wait,’ I called Solidstar because one of my instrumentalists told me that the beat was destined for him. I played it to him through the phone and he said it was nice. When he came to the studio, I played the beat again and the next thing that came out of his mouth was ‘Wait’. It didn’t take him more than 30 minutes to get that nice hook for the song. That was how the song became what it is today.

Have you worked with Solidstar before now?

We’ve been friends for a while. We’ve done some songs together, but none is out yet. I often go to his house to make music; I have a mobile studio so it is easy for me to move around. I just feel that day was a special one for ‘Wait.’

Have you worked with any other artiste?

Yes, I have worked with other artistes like Flavour, Diamond from Tanzania, Patoranking, Tiwa Savage and a host of others, most of the songs are not out yet.

What are your plans at the moment?

I just want to remain positive. We just shot the video of a song I produced for Charazz and I liked the whole atmosphere and everybody said that they loved the sound of the song. When I am making a sound, I try to market it. Basically I am into rubber dub sounds infused with calypso and dancehall. I am trying to push that sound into the market.

Source: Punch