Essentially, there have been many top chart hits hailing
from the south as of late and Miami
has grown in abundance of talented producers just waiting to dominate the game
by force. One producer is stepping forward from behind the music to let ya’ll
know who the mastermind behind the keys are. Deep within the recesses of the
pivotal Poe Boy movement, a musical
monster is about to be let loose for the world to finally feel his wrath. He has
been making a major name for himself, not only in Miami, but all across the industry. He has
worked with such artists as Rick Ross,
Brisco, Flo Rida, Carol City Cartel,
Playaz Circle, and just recently, Trina. He is the genius behind many of
the hits we are beginning to catch wind of, past and present. Let me formally
introduce you to the Monster, mega producer J Rock.

On an early Saturday morning, I had the opportunity to
interview the infamous Rock Monsta in a secluded industrial area of Miami that houses Poe Boy
Studios.  J Rock took the time out of his
busy production schedule to provide 24hourhiphop.com
with this exclusive interview that you will only see here.

24: First off,
what’s good with you lately?

J Rock: A lot of
good things, man, a lot of good things. You know, I got that new Trina single. I
stay grindin’, stay in the studio working. So yeah, everything’s good with me.

24: Let’s get
into the history of J Rock; can you describe your history from the beginning
right to your first professionally produced track?

J Rock: That was
a long time ago. As far as the history of J Rock, I started doing this since
like ’97, started out in a friend’s bedroom. He taught me mostly how to use all
the programs, how to sequence, how to put the beats together. Then I ended up going
over to Strictly Business Records, ya’ll heard of them. At the time when I was
there, it was Epidemic and Dela. I ended up being with them for a
couple of years. Then I had to go to New York,
met up with my man Ty Cobb, worked in New
York for about six months and when I came back down,
that’s when I joined Poe Boy that
was like in 2003. I guess like my first professional track was called “Amen”
and it was by Do Wrong, that’s what
got him his deal with Def Jam. So that’s pretty much what I do, I kind of break
artists, I get artists’ deals. Up and coming artists come to me and we’ll get
your single on the radio and that’s it, it just works from there.

24: So you’re a deal
broker basically?

J Rock: Pretty much, I get them buzz records out.

24: What inspired
you to get into music production, how did this whole ensemble come about?

J Rock: By
accident, but honestly, by accident. I was always into music, I just didn’t
know I could do music and somebody just invited me to the studio, I was just
sitting back listening and I was like let me try to do this. And like I told
you, I was at my boy’s crib, I sat down and I was like, “Let me get a kick, let
me get a snare, let me get a piano.” He was just shooting me the sounds, I was
just going with it and I thought that was it. I made a beat and I thought it
was hot, I didn’t think anyone else thought it was hot. So I went home about a
week later and I get a call, he said, listen come work for me, you know I’ll
teach you the ropes, I’ll teach you everything you need to know and that’s how
I got started.

24: What major
artists have you worked with so far and can we check out any published work?

J Rock: A lot of
people don’t know this, but I’ve worked with Playaz Circle.
I had the first single, as a matter fact, I had the original “Duffle Bag Boy”;
it was called “Gucci Duffle Bag” and that was in 2003/04 and that was Playaz Circle
featuring Shawna and it came out,
but I don’t know what happened, there was a problem with Universal and I never heard anything about it. But the other day I
got a call and it’s going to make the album now. You know, Brisco’s “Might Be The Police”, I did that and the remix with Pitbull, I did that also. I also did
that Rick Ross, “Push It” remix, I
did the “Pots and Pans” and “Prayer” on Rick
Ross’ ‘Port of Miami’
album. And that goes the same for Triple
C. I did a couple of their tracks also. As far as right now, I’m working
with Flo Rida, I got the new Trina single, ‘Single Again’, it
suppose to be the biggest thing out of her career, so it’s a good look.

24: Are you
signed or plan to sign directly to a recording contract or are your choices to
remain independent?

J Rock: Well
right now, my loyalty is to Poe Boy. You know it’s always going to be that, E-Class is my manager; He’s always done
me right and we’re making money together. The business is right, everybody’s
happy, there’s no sense in doing anything different. We do have a couple of
publishing deals on the table right now, but I’m trying to hold off so I can
get more singles so it can be more beneficial to me.

24: With that
contract, there’s no stipulations right? You can work with basically anybody?

J Rock: Yeah, I’m
free to work with anybody. It’s kind of different as a producer. Producers are
non-bias. If so and so has beef with so and so, that has nothing to do with me.
I’m the producer, I’m not the rapper. I’m sorry if I did the track that he spit
on, that diss song, but I wasn’t there when he wrote it and I couldn’t have
stopped it, I may have heard it after and it was too late to do anything about
it. So that’s pretty much it. Producers are non-bias, we work with
anybody.   

24: This question
is thrown out of nowhere. since your loyalty is to Poe Boy and DJ Khaled and Poe Boy work very closely
together, let’s say 50 Cent and G-Unit came to you and wanted a track,
would you work with them?

J Rock: Listen,
I’m going to answer that the best that I can and I think Flo has a song that
sums that up perfectly, “In my hood, everybody gotta eat.” And that’s it,
that’s all I gotta say about that.

24: Now let’s get
into the process of producing the beat. What thoughts arise when you sit down
to begin production on a beat?

J Rock: The funny
thing is, when I first started, I was known to make a beat in like two to three
minutes, I can knock out a beat five minutes tops, but nowadays, everyone in
the industry is doing this now. So it’s not just sitting down and just
bullshitting through it, you really got to sit down and think and my main
process is like, it works differently and I’m not in control of what comes out.
I don’t know what’s going to come out and I’m like you know what, I’m gonna go
to the studio and make a hard street record, but in my mind I might be in the
mood to do R&B. So if I keep trying to make that street record, it’s not
going to happen, I just gotta go with my mind. I’m in an R&B mood today, so
we’re just gonna go with R&B and maybe tomorrow I’ll do that street record.
It’s crazy.

24: So when it
comes down to production, do the artist come to you and want a certain mystique
or do you come up with the beat you let them hear it and they usually say, its
fire?

J Rock: Well,
usually the artists that I work with are all the Poe Boy artists’, Rick Ross
and Trina and I pretty much study and do my homework before. I know what Brisco
likes, I know what Flo Rida likes, and I know what Trina likes and I know what
Ross likes. Every track is based around a specific artist, like a track I have
for Brisco I’m not going to show it to Ross because it doesn’t fit him. A track
that I have for Flo Rida I’m not going to show to Brisco because that may not
fit him. The industry is so wide open that everybody’s trying everything and
that’s a great thing now. Everyone’s trying to do a crossover record,
everyone’s open to doing crossover records. As far as before, everyone wanted
to stay street, like “Nah that’s not us.”

24: So you’re
saying that history has changed that they’re more open to musical quality,
whereas with instruments? I mean they’re using a lot more guitar now, when
before it wasn’t as much. They’re getting into the whole rock scene a lot more
now.

J Rock: Well, the
thing with that, the down south mixed with Rock n Roll, don’t get me wrong I
like it, “Party Like a Rock Star” was a hit. But I’m scared of those records
and it’s not that I don’t want to do it; I’m just scared because that fad might
be gone tomorrow. People might wake up one day and be like, “What were we
thinking?” As far as regular Down South, regular New York, regular West Coast, the basis is
always going to be there.

24: I had a
chance to listen to some of your recorded tracks already given to certain artist,
there is a certain flare to all of them, what instrument do you favor most?

J Rock: My baby
is the Motif, the Yamaha Motif. If
you don’t have it, go get it. It has the best sound, like the horns are just
real, it just feels real and the way you can tweak the sounds are ridiculous.
As a matter of fact there are 3 different kinds of Motif, but I’ve always stuck
with the original, every now and then I venture into new gadgets, new sounds,
but I always end up going back to my Motif. If that were to go wrong, forget
it, no more me.

24: So besides
the horns, I mean what else, synthesizers, trumpets, what do you favor as tones
and sounds on the Motif?

J Rock: With the
Motif, its heavy orchestra, the whole package to the strings to the horns and
the synthesizers are ridiculous. Certain tracks call for certain things. It’s
not every track I’m going to use a horn on; it’s not every track I’m going to
use synthesizers on. And far as in the settings, I do a variety of tracks, as
far as you come to me and be like “J Rock I need something that sounds like West Coast.” and I got it. I don’t stick to one, I don’t
just do down south, or E-Class will call me and be like “I need that track for
this dude in New York.”  No problem I got you. Everybody has a
different groove, different patterns that they like, different sounds,
different types of beat.

24: So you prefer
the Yamaha Motif over the Korg Triton?

J Rock: I have
the Triton, let’s just say that my MPC presets, the Motif is number 1 and the
Triton is number 3. You know, I like the Triton, but the sound’s just not good
as the Motif.

24: I just have
to ask, how did that whole Dwyane Wade,
Rick Ross, “We All In: Converse Project”
come about?

J Rock: E-Class,
the machine. I get a call, it was like 12 at night. I get a call and I was on
my way home, E was like “I need you to buckle down, Ross got to do a commercial
and we need a beat.” So I was like, “What kind of commercial?” E was like,
“Converse commercial, just think converse.” And no lie, I was so excited I went
home, straight to the studio at the house, banged it out, called him back and I
said listen. They went crazy over it, so I was like alright.

24: So Ross came
in, heard the track, and finished it right there?

J Rock: Yep, done
deal.  

24: Besides
“Single Again” off the next Trina album, can you name any other songs you
produced on that anticipated album?

J Rock: We’re
working on a couple of new songs. We got one called “Crash My Party.” And
another one called “Killin’ Em.” But as far as right now, the only one making
the album is “Single Again.” But I’m not sure about the other two.

24: Does she have
control over her album or does Touch