Meet The Producer: In-Conversation with cbakl
We’ve had the pleasure of catching up with one of Irelands finest beatmakers and producers cbakl. The talented beatsmith is an alternative Hip Hop producer who creates eclectic, masterful, groundbreaking beats; drawing influence from Hip Hop, RnB, Soul, House and Jazz. cbakl began his musical journey by gaining an organic following on Soundcloud. He has since become one of Ireland’s most in-demand beatmakers, successfully transitioning from SoundCloud to Spotify & Apple Music where he has accumulated over 10 million plays across both streaming platforms. Anyway, we don’t want to give to much away, so let’s get into this:
Introduce Yourself?
“Hi, I’m cbakl a hip-hop producer from Portrush on the north coast of Ireland. I’ve produced for some sick rappers in the Irish & UK Hip Hop scenes like looms. Obijuan, GavinDaVinci, Nealo… As previously stated, I’ve hit over 10 million streams across platforms on my solo music recently too, and I try to do a lot of solo work along with the collaborative projects I make.”
Why and when did you start making music?
“I’ve always been hugely into music, growing up my dad listened to a lot of great house tracks & had decks in the house so I was surrounded by music growing up. I started making music myself around 2013/14. I’d always been a huge fan of Hip Hop & after getting into Capital Steez and the beats he used I decided to give it a go myself.”
Greg: Yeah, Capital Steez was definitely a generational talent. One of Hip Hop’s biggest losses for sure and his legacy will live on for many years to come!
Aside from Capital Steez, who are your biggest musical influences?
“I sample a lot of soul music so I’d say the funk/soul sound as a whole has had a huge influence on me. Some individual influences would be Capital STEEZ, Kanye West, RZA, Chet Baker, Mac Miller & Wu-Tang Clan.”
Following your latest release “Ali In His Prime”, how would you describe the influence that Mohammed Ali has had on you as a person and artist?
“He’s had a huge influence on my mentality towards life. Ali’s whole persona was centred around being the best & letting everyone know how great you are. As he said, “To be a great champion you must believe you’re the best.”.
I believe that I’m the best hip hop producer in Ireland & watching how Ali conducts himself gave me the confidence to say that openly and mean it. If I don’t believe that I’m the best producer for rappers in the scene to come to then why should anyone else believe it?
Ali was the greatest boxer of all time but also, in my opinion, one of the greatest men of all time. He gave up everything he had worked so hard for in boxing to stand up for his beliefs & not go to war, I think no matter who you are you can take huge inspiration from his actions and beliefs throughout his life.”
Generally speaking, how would you describe the music you make?
“Soulful, hard-hitting Hip-Hop beats. I also make other genres, like house music, but Hip-Hop is where my heart is. I started out making boom bap & LoFi beats which is where I developed a following but I’ve sort of moved away from that LoFi sound in recent years.”
What is your typical beat making process?
“I’ve used FL Studio since I first started making music & have stuck with it throughout my career. I’ll usually begin with finding and flipping a sample then adding some bouncy drums & whatever else I think will suit the vibe of the track.
I go through phases where I’ll make 5 beats a day for a couple of weeks then go through other patches where I won’t make anything for like a month, just focusing all my efforts on marketing myself and networking. As long as I’m always improving on various aspects of my music I’m happy.”
Describe a day in the studio with cbakl?
“I try not to use my phone or go on any social media when I’m creating in the studio, I’m all about the concept of ‘deep work’ and feel like those external factors hinder a lot of the progress. If I’m constantly checking my Instagram feed instead of focusing all my attention on the music being made, how can I be sure that it’s the best it can be?
I don’t really enjoy social media as a whole, to be honest, but I try not to let it be a distraction especially when I’m trying to create great music.”
What’s your biggest/proudest music-based moment up until now?
“Hitting 10 million streams on Spotify was pretty special. I think my main one though is releasing a song with looms. as I’ve been a huge fan of him for years so it was sick to be able to work with him on some music.
I have a number of goals I’m trying to hit in the next few years so I’m sure there’ll be plenty more proud moments soon.”
Greg: yeah man, I’m a big fan of looms. so, I can relate to that. Out of Innards and languid oceans are two incredible projects.
What are your interests aside from music?
“Football is definitely one. I’m a big Everton fan which hadn’t been too enjoyable for the first 21 years that I have been alive, but we’re finally starting to get it together it seems.”
Greg: Yeah I can relate to that! Football is one of my biggest interests outside of music; Manchester United fan over here though!
Who are your top 5 producers of all time?
“9th Wonder
Kanye West
Apollo Brown
J Dilla
RZA”
Greg: solid top 5! J Dilla would certainly be in my top 5 (goes without saying), and the rest would probably make it into my top 15 producers minimum!
If you had to give your fans/listeners one piece of advice what would it be?
“For those who also make music, don’t focus too much on the numbers. Just create your music and learn how to market yourself, the rest will all come with time.
For everyone else, find your purpose in life and stick with it, even on really difficult days.”
What’s next for you? Any future releases?
“I have some really exciting projects coming with Irish & UK artists in the coming months so keep an eye out for those announcements.
I’ve also got a run of singles coming for the rest of the year & can hopefully start doing shows in some capacity again before the year’s over.”
Greg: You will have to come to Bristol for a show eventually bro. Would be dope!
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