By: R. City

Hitmaker Theron “Uptown” Thomas is one half of the brother duo R. City, who is responsible for some of Pop music’s biggest records to date. Having worked with the likes of Rihanna, Lizzo, Jennifer Hudson, Adam Levine, The Pussy Cat Dolls and Akon to name a few, this living legend plans to impact the careers of many more hotshots in the new year.

I had the pleasure of catching up with this hotshot for a candid interview to discuss finding longevity, creating music with his brother and working with some of Pop music’s most notable acts. Check it out below.

Theron Thomas Interview 

Respect: How did you get your start in the music business?

Theron: I officially started in the business in 2007. My brother and I were in a big group in the Caribbean especially the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands. We got famous over there and then moved to the states in 2000 to try to make it. It took us 7 years to finally get in. We got in as songwriters but we were trying to make it as artists. A song we wrote in the 7th grade called “The Rain” got us that foot in the door. We didn’t even know that people wrote songs for other people.

So my best friend who was and is still Akon’s DJ let me know that Akon was working on his next album. So he played a few songs for me, and me being young and arrogant I said I can write a better song than the ones he had played. He then asked me to play the song I had in mind. I played “The Rain” and he loved it. My friend called me and told me Akon wanted the song but I was like “why would he sing a song we wrote?”

He then said people write songs for people over here in the states and Akon bought our song for $5000. That was the most money we had ever received at that time. I had a daughter catching the bus so for me I could not believe people paid that much money for a song. After working with Akon people started hitting us up asking us if we wrote songs and it just went on from there.

Respect: What is it like creating music with your brother and how R. City came about?

Theron: Making music with my brother is fun. We both respect each other’s talent and allow each other to lead in the areas that we are experts at. The good part is that sometimes we clash and the music is better because of that. Sometimes I want to do this and he wants to do something else and that friction creates this unique sound.

How we got our name R. City is because we are from St. Thomas, which is known as “Rock City”. We couldn’t legally release music under the moniker “Rock City” so we dropped the Rock and called ourselves R. City, which stands for Rock City.

Respect: When did you catch your big break? 

Theron: I would say linking with Akon is when I caught my big break for sure because it opened up a door that never closed. It was a small opening and once it opened we kicked the door down and bum-rushed our way in. The door never closed on us after that point.

Respect: Can you describe the relationship between R. City & Adam Levine of Maroon 5?

Theron: It is good! Adam Levine embraced us and Maroon 5 took us on tour with them. They are the nicest guys. I feel like I am in their debt for life if you ask me. He did not have to do a song with us, he did not have to take us on tour, nor did the band have to agree with him to allow us to come along. Our relationship is good and will remain that way.

Respect: How did working with the Pussy Cat Dolls on their “I Want To Grow Up” release come about and how did it impact you career?

Theron: That was our first hit record. We did it with Rodney Jerkins and it was originally for Britney Spears but it did not fit the space she was in musically at that time. We were signed to Interscope and my A&R at the time Erica Grayson knew we wrote songs so we sent it to her and she loved it. She sent it to Jimmy Lovine and the rest is history. We had a hit “When I Grow Up” and that was the first time people gave us our respect for charting. That led to us getting more big opportunities, so that was a big deal for us. 

Respect: As you have worked with some of pop music’s biggest stars, who are some artist’s career you have heavily influenced?

Theron: I would say people who we have worked with since the beginning of their careers such as Jennifer Hudson who’s This Isn’t Love Album we worked on. It was a Grammy-winning album. Ne-Yo did “Spotlight” and we did “This Isn’t Love “ the single. Lizzo I would have to say as well. I worked on her current album that is out. She was nominated for 8 Grammy Awards.

Out of the 8, she walked away with 3 awards. She is amazing and a really good person. I knew she was special and a star from the day I met her. At the time I was working with Rihanna on her new album, flying back and forth to Paris and London for 2 and a half years not working on anything else. But at the same time, I knew I wanted to work with her because she was so dope and did.

Respect: How has being from the Virgin Islands influenced your music career and taste in music?

Theron: We do not have segregated radio in the islands. Like in America you all have urban radio, pop radio, rhythmic radio meaning that you all have separate genres. In the Virgin Islands, we don’t. If there is a Bob Marley, Aerosmith or Little Keed song they all play on the same radio station. Growing up as kids we never really saw genres because the lines were blurry. It influenced us in a way where we would put hip hop, r&b, soul, pop and rock all in one like gumbo.

Obviously, people thought it was weird at first but then they realized that is what makes R. City unique. One time we were writing a song for Gwen Stefani and she told me that she loved the R&B melody. I didn’t even know that it was an R&B melody. I just liked it because it sounded cool.

Respect: How important is it as an artist and songwriter to have creative freedom? 

Theron: It is very important because with your art you want to make sure people see your vision. I write songs for other artists that I won’t sing so my vision is important. I might write the most gangster hood song for DJ Khaled’s album and then for my album take a completely different direction because that is simply just not who I am. Feel like in the music I want to make sure people are getting to know me as much as I can as well as my brother. We just want people to see what we stand for and what we are into and rock with it.

Respect: What Advice would you give any creative looking to break into the industry as a songwriter?

Theron: Practice makes perfect. Keep on writing and learn how to accept advice. But do not let the advice control you because everybody’s story is different. Like no one no matter what will have my story I don’t care how they try. Nobody is going to move from the Islands with $35 in their pocket. No matter what advice I give you, you have to walk your path. As cliché as it sounds, the best advice anyone can tell you is to never give up. The only people that actually who lose are the people that quit and that is for real.

Respect: What are you currently working on? 

Theron: A kid named 11:11, my good friend Dr. Luke, Mario, Usher, Lordes, A1 LaFlare (singer/songwriter) and I’m currently in the studio with Saweetie. So much love for her and her drive and work ethic. I have a different level of respect for her being in the studio with her seeing her create.

I am also working with Doja Cat on her new album. I did her records “Rules” and “Like It” Feat. Gucci Mane. I am in a space where I want to work with new people and be responsible for ushering in a new wave of talent. Kim Petras is one of the best pop voices in the world. I am super excited about her. That is where I am mentally. It is all about working with new artists.

My son Sumo and I did a kid’s album that we will release this year. He is 7 years old and I am truly excited about that. It’s called Sumo World. I am just in a great space. When I first started music I did it because I had a daughter, I was broke and wanted to take care of her my way. Now money is not an issue, and I’m making music that I love and that I want to hear.

I am ecstatic to also announce that new R. City music is coming soon!! 2020 will be a crazy year!!! 

 Be sure to follow Theron on IG @therontheron_ as he continues his reign over the music business. .

The post Theron “Uptown” Thomas: Pop Hitmaker You Need To Know appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

On September 16, the new music video was released for Mario’s song “I Need More”. The song, released via MTV, was the first music video to be released by the singer in three years and is the first music video to be released on his independent label, New Citizen.

The music video itself runs like a short film, taking place in what seems to be a sort of tyrannical/apocalyptic setting, where Mario is captured and put into a compound with others who were presumably also captured. While he is in there, between flashing lights, nicely choreographed dance breaks, and checking out the beautiful women, Mario takes the time to raise a revolution with his girl at his side. The final scene in the music video is the captives and the faceless captors facing off before the screen goes black.

The song “I Need More” acts as the intro for Mario’s fifth studio album, Paradise Cove which will be released later this fall. The darker style in “I Need More” will be continued in the album, but not all of them will be that aggressive, Mario mentioned this in recent interview with Fuse TV. Fans are no doubt eagerly awaiting to see what his new album will be like after this music video.

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The post Mario Releases Music Video For “I Need More” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Due to label problems, we’ve been in a draught when it comes to material from Mario. Thankfully, it seems as if the green light has been given so he will be releasing his single “Forever” featuring Rick Ross on August 28th. He previewed the song in July while in Florida, you can peep the video below. Furthermore, his album Never 2 Late -very fitting btw- will be released November 27th. In his past releases, he has proven that he knows how to make R&B smashes ( CC: “Let Me Love You”, “How Do I Breathe”, “Break Up”) as well as provide quality music overall, so we’re excited to hear that his fifth album will be dropping soon.

The post Mario Announces Comeback Album “Never 2 Late” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Young Fyre cares too much.  Despite working within an industry that rarely values  its hardest workers and frequently discourages innovation, Young Fyre just can’t bring himself to risk tarnishing his hard-earned resume. Some might call it vanity, but as our conversation reveals, the trait driving this concern and this fear of complacency is actually integrity. Read below to learn where this integrity comes from as well as how Young Fyre has developed as a producer. While his story isn’t particularly eventful in terms of life-changing moments , it is nevertheless rich in that it shows what an artist is capable of when the music is more important than the money.

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RESPECT: My first question is what are you currently working on?

Young Fyre: Right now I’m working with Mario a lot and Tank and with Chris Brown, on a record called “Stay” that’s amazing. And those are the main projects I’m working on right now, with a bunch of other stuff that’s in the works.

It’s interesting that all those artists you’ve mentioned are R&B artists because you’ve previously said that your R&B beats are your best work. What makes you feel that way?

I just have stronger connection to the R&B music. I think it’s one of those categories that died off for a minute because the rap got so tough and so heavy on the radio. But they’re coming off of that now. TGT is coming out with their album and Miguel and people like him are bringing R&B back and it’s a great thing. For me it’s just a chance for me to showcase  the other side of me as a producer, the more musical side versus some of the other stuff that I have out. [It was] very creative, but not as musical, so I’m just happy that some of that stuff gets to get seen now.

Right. When you say “musical” do you mean “melodic?”

Yeah, more melodic and more chord progressions instead of just a simple melody and more intricate patterns.

I see. So that actually ties into my question about how you feel about the state of R&B. I personally feel like it’s been kind of stagnant for the past six or seven years.

Yeah, it’s been stagnant for a long time and I think that people like Miguel coming in have made it cool to be an R&B dude again. For awhile it got lame to be singing about your feelings. Even Drake doing his thing has helped bring R&B back in a way. And now you have people like TGT bringing the real real R&B back. I think it’s doing well right now. With TGT doing well – they had good first week sales – I think we’re going to see a lot of new R&B acts coming out.

You’ve mentioned that you’ve used FL studio a lot in the past. Is that still your primary software?

Forever and always.

What’s its appeal?

I’ve been using it for 10 years, over 10 years, so it’s just one of those things where I feel like everybody picks their thing and it doesn’t matter what you use to make it, if you know that software or that hardware inside and out , that’s the greatest thing for you. So for me, my process is just FL and I love my maneuverability inside FL and everything about the program, so for me it just works.

How did it get first introduced to you?

Honestly, I think I started out with MTV music generator when I first started making beats, which was on the PS1 at first and then they came out with it on the computer and I started doing it on the computer. And I started looking on to other things that I could make beats on and I just found Frooty Loops one day. One of my friends was like yo, “Try FruityLoops!” At that point FruityLoops was super amateur. I think it was FL 3, so it had just broken as semi-respectable, but now it’s an incredible software.

Switching gears, I’m interested in the sessions from your work on the new Goodie Mob album. You worked on the lead single, which features Janelle Monae. That’s an interesting collision of artists.

I don’t know if everybody’s aware but Janelle Monae is apart of the Dungeon Family. The actual song came about not even through an actual session. It was through a good friend of mine named MJ at Blackground and I was just playing him beats and he’s really good friends with Cee-Lo and I was just playing beats and he said yo, “This would be really good for Cee-Lo” and at the time I was like, “What? Cee-Lo? This doesn’t sound like a Cee-Lo beat at all!” And he was like just trust me with this so I gave him the beat and 9 months later, he sends me a rough draft of the song and I was like “Yo this shit is crazy” and I had no idea they were even having a comeback thing at all. As the album developed, they just decided that that was going to be the single and we just moved forward from there. And I think that that’s pretty much the only way you can get Janelle Monae on your resume, which is through a feature, because she ain’t messing with nobody that’s not in her team. So I’m happy I got to add her to my resume via this song.

She does a lot of production herself, doesn’t she?

Yeah, she does a lot of stuff herself and with her own team, so she’s kind of self-contained. I’m just glad I got to work with her because I’m a huge fan of Janelle Monae, so that was just awesome.

Have you had a chance to listen to the Goodie Mob album? It’s a really different direction for them.

Of course. It’s definitely different and you can tell that it’s Cee-Lo driven; it’s a little more eclectic than their past albums, but that’s cool. I’m also just glad to be apart of anything that has substance. I love the album.

I read an interview in which someone had asked you does it bother you that sometimes production gets overlooked and you said that if somebody cares about beats, then they’ll look into it and see who produced it. I thought it was really interesting that you as a producer said that because a lot of producers seem very aware of being overlooked all the time. How did you get to that state where it’s just about the song being good and the reception not mattering?

I think that’s because a lot of people’s motives for doing music are backwards. I’m not Young Fyre the superstar. I’d rather just have great music out. If people care enough about the song that they want to research and find out who produced it then that’s great, but I’m not trying to be a superstar. I’ll do whatever I have to do to build my brand, but that’s not at the forefront of my agenda. It’s more important for me to just make incredible music. If you look at my resume, there’s no weak records, even if they weren’t necessarily hit records, you won’t hear anyone say, “What the hell was that beat that Fyre just put out?!” I’m very particular about that and I’ve turned down records and done a lot of things because I didn’t want that on my record and I think that sense of integrity is what will keep me around for a long time. All the greats tried their best to not have weak songs come out. They tried to make them all strong. That’s the kind of integrity that I’m trying to keep with my brand.

A lot of people who listen to hip-hop tend to pay more attention to words than to beats. As a producer, what are your listening habits when you listen to songs?

It’s always beat first. Even before I was producer, as a kid, I’ve always had this weird thing where, when I listen to a song, my brain is almost like a Pro Tools session; I will break down an entire beat in my head. I don’t even try, but it’s like I can hear every single subtle nuance without even trying, which also helps me be a better producer because I notice things that a lot of other people don’t. But that’s just me personally.

And you’ve always listened to music that way?

Yeah, always. Even before I even knew I was going to do anything with music… I never thought as a kid that I was going to be a producer. I was fascinated by it, but it wasn’t a passion or anything. I just kind of stumbled into it.

Yeah, I read that you originally started making beats because you were a songwriter and you couldn’t find what you wanted so you just decided to do it yourself.

Yeah, I was born and raised in Iowa and there’s just no one out there doing music professionally. So it was like you either go out and steal professional beats, which was really stupid to me, or you just make your own music. I’m really just a doer. I’m not the kind of person that talks and has these conversations about things. I’d just rather do things. Instead of waiting around for somebody to make beats – because there were a couple – I was just like I’m going to figure this out and I figured out that I loved making beats way more than being a [vocal] artist. And I also didn’t want to be famous. And now that I’ve been around so many famous people, I know that that was the perfect decision. [laughs] Because their lives are not something that I want. That whole “I can’t do what I want to do when I want to do it” thing, I can’t get with that. So I’m glad that I’m a producer and I’m going to stay there.

So you think as a producer you get to live a relatively normal life?

Yeah, absolutely. There are some producers of course like the Pharells and the Timbalands that still have that celebrity type thing, but for the most part, there are so many millionaire producers that you would have no clue who they were and they can live an extremely great life without even having to sacrifice the whole “I can’t do anything in public” thing. And that for me is true happiness. Sometimes I want to be antisocial and sometimes not. I don’t want to have that burden of always being on the job. So this is perfect for me.

That seems like what MF DOOM was going for by having the mask on.

I totally get that. Even from his perspective I get it. As a creator you want your art to be out there, you want to express your story, but it’s tough because the backlash is that you’ve got to deal with the celebrity of it, so I totally understand his perspective. And if I had to do some [vocal] artist thing, if it killed me so bad that I had to put this music out, it would be something like [DOOM] or the Gorillaz where nobody knows who I am.

The whole system of selling artists beats can sometimes get a little muddled because of the politics and all that. I read that you use an “exclusive lease” system and I’m wondering what exactly are the details and why that works for you?

That’s just something that I kind of created. I never was into the whole leasing of beats. I felt like it was almost like whoring yourself out as a producer. Going away and giving the same beat for fifty bucks or ten bucks or whatever never appealed to me. So I thought, well why don’t we come up with a thing where one person has the beat and they understand that if a major artist comes along, they will lose the rights to this beat. It just offered me a way to be in between where independent artists could afford me, but I didn’t have to give up a beat that was crazy and then Jay-Z comes along and I’m like “Damn, I sold that to Joe Blow.” So with my lawyer, I came up with this contract that was beneficial and it gave [independents] a certain number of units that they could sell and the amount of rights that they could have with the record, but allowed me to retain the rights in case something comes along that’s bigger than for my career.

That’s really farsighted. You never know where your work is going to go.

And at the time when I created that I had just started picking up some momentum with Tech [N9ne] and I’m like yo I can’t sell these dudes these beats and I’ll be super pissed if there’s a weak ass song out. I just had to find a solution, so that was my solution.

Do you name your beats before you give them away?

Yes. The most random names ever. Sometimes there will be something on my desk, like a red vase and there will be a beat called “Red Vase.” I have beats that are just random as hell.

Have you ever seen an artist kind of form their song around the name that you gave it?

Oh yeah, tons of times. Pain (T-Pain), especially. He’s done that a bunch of times. And a lot of songwriters will do that because it’s not always random. Sometimes the titles are coming from a special place, so the title is intriguing and they’ll take that and make it into the concept for the song.

You were saying earlier than you are pretty DIY. Do you mix and engineer?

I do everything myself. Right now I have this artist that I just signed out of Sweden and I’m working on – I wrote and produced this entire thing and it’s so eclectic. It’s something that no one will see coming from me. My marketing strategy and everything that’s around this is very, very detailed and I’m doing everything from mixing to producing to writing to vocal producing. And I’m even getting in touch with the creative side of the videos. But that’s just me. I care about my music to the point that I have to be involved with every step of the process.

There’s an interview – it’s actually in multiple interviews – where you say that you want to work with people who you wouldn’t be expected to work with and you just said that earlier. Why is that important to you?

I think it’s important because most producers get content with a certain sound. It’s like a box and I’ve never really liked boxes. I can’t be just one thing and I’ve always felt like if I can do it, then why not? So I have always pushed myself to do things that people wouldn’t expect of me and that has given me a lot of respect in the industry because I’ve always been that guy who will do something that you never see coming.

You’ve previously said that you’ve made country and rock songs before?

I’ve done country songs. None of them have been released. The closest I’ve done to a rock song is this song by Kutt Calhoun called “Bunk Rock Bitch” and it’s a rock beat with hip-hop elements to it. But when I spoke about it in another interview, it was just about me doing production. None of it has actually been placed as of yet, but I’ve written and produced country songs but they just haven’t been out in the public yet.

Do you work with live musicians?

Yeah, every now and then I do. I have a team. The name of my company is Kasai LLC and I have a couple of producers that also play instruments, so I keep it inside of the team. Every now and then I’ll go out and hire a musician if I need a particular thing that I need to sit over a musician with and make sure that they do it right. Also, I play enough to get a lot of things out of my head, so it’s cool.

What do you play?

Just piano, nothing else. [laughs]. I’m working on trying to get this guitar thing, but that is a tough instrument that I think people need to have more respect for. It’s a really hard instrument to pick up, especially coming from piano, which is totally different. I want to do everything, but time is time and you have to manage your time knowing what’s important; learning an instrument right now is not my priority.

How long did it take you to learn keys? A lot of people just start off with software, but they don’t know anything else. Was that your case?

No. I played the keys when I was a kid and I’ve always dibbled and dabbled in it since I was a kid. My process for when I’m doing something that’s musical is chord by chord. I’m not the guy that’s going to sit there and play you a Mozart piece, but I have an incredible ear as far as progressions are concerned and what should be there, so I may play a chord, then add another chord, then add another chord, then go back and change or add stuff in between. So I will make it sound like I’m the greatest musician ever to live, but it’s just because my ear for music is good.

How long does it typically take you to make a song?

It just depends. Now that I’m getting more back into the writing side of things, it’s more organic. Before this year, it would never take me more than four or five hours. I’m a serial completion person. I have to finish things: I cannot leave things unfinished. So it will never be more than four or five hours. Through songwriting, I’ve learned that it’s not necessarily about completion, it’s about the end product. So now I’m in a different process where as soon as feel that I’m about to force something, I stop. As soon as I feel like I’m pushing something that doesn’t need to be there or just filling a sound in, it’s time to stop. I’ll come back later and have completely new ideas. I think that’s very important and that people should get on that path of realizing that it’s not about quantity, it’s about quality and just stepping back and letting it breathe. It’s always about the energy that you’re trying to put into a song.

You said earlier that just to preserve the integrity of your brand, if you send someone a beat and you didn’t like what they did, you would take it back?

Absolutely [laughs]. That’s happened.

Under what circumstances would you do that?

Usually what’ll happen is that it’s more of a conversation. You’ll say, “Hey look, I like the song, but can we do a better verse?” And nine times out of ten, they’re going to rewrite it or move some things around. I haven’t had to pull too many records as in saying this is trash, but most of the time it’s just a conversation, saying, “Yo I just want the most out of the song and I know you probably have a lot of yes-men around around you, so I’m gonna tell you how I feel about this. And that’s actually how I’ve gotten respect from a lot of artists. Because a lot of them are around people that are going to say it’s hot no matter what, but they’re just in fear of losing whatever position they have around the artist. Me, I’m just like “No, that’s wack!” [laughs]. And a lot of producers don’t do that. And that’s why there’s a lot of wack music out because they’re like, “I got a check, I got this guy on my beat and that’s cool.” I’m just not that guy. I care too much about it.

The post “I Care Too Much,” An Interview with Producer Young Fyre appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.