Born
and raised in Aetna, one of the many rough communities in the gang filled
streets of Gary, Indiana, Syllabus, born Daniel McMullan, found his
way out of what most residents would call inevitable--early death
or imprisonment. Syllabus always had a love for music but could
not afford any “real” instruments so he would make his own.
He credits his brother David for showing him how to tap out different
rhythms different ways on different objects to get different sounds.
“I remember my mom yelling
at us [Dave and me] for always beating on the doors and walls of the
house. Those were our drums” says the young producer with a smile.
It wasn't until after his mom saw a
special on Stevie Wonder that she realized it wasn't noise, but rather,
it was music that the two young brothers were making.
Syllabus
is one of 8 children born into a musical family. “My Pops played
the congas, keyboard, and guitar. I watched him write a song for
my first born sister in which I still remember. My mom would always
sing to us. She made a lot of songs that stimulated our cognitive
development. She taught us our early childhood curriculum through
music.” Although Syllabus succeeded as an honor student during
elementary and early middle school, he grew concerned as to where this
road would lead. He became distant and detached from his school
work and environment. It was his last year at Emerson, a performing
arts high school for the gifted and talented, that he concluded Visual
Art, his Major, wasn't his love. He had a musical calling that
he discovered while skipping History class and hiding out in the school's
auditorium.
“I would break the lock
off of the grand piano in the auditorium and
just play until it sounded good. This was the only time I didn't
feel guilty about ditching class. It just felt right” remembers
Syllabus.
Syllabus and his family moved out of Gary and into a higher income-class
city where he attended a high school with more resources. He honed
his musical skills and learned how to digitally record, sequence, and
hook up sound studios. It was there where he decided to continue
his education at a similar school in Orlando, Florida.
In
February of 2001 while only 18 years of age, $200 in the bank, and 3
trash bags filled with clothes, Syllabus and his brother David took
the Greyhound Express to start a new life in Orlando, Florida. Syllabus
quickly adjusted to the music scene and met up with several of Orlando's
hottest artists such as Traffic Mayne (ALL PRO RECORDS), and Atiba (Formerly
of DarkChild Records).
Finally, with enough money to get his
own equipment and studio, Syllabus built up his music library and began
to nickel and dime his beats. While at a local music store purchasing
more gear, Syllabus met a young producer by the name of Laygo.
Laygo,
born Renaud Marc in Avon Park, Florida, is an 80's baby much like Syllabus
who was inspired by the likes of Timbaland, Beats by the Pound, Mannie
Fresh, and other top producers in the Hip-Hop music scene at the time.
Getting somewhat discouraged by local mediocre rappers, Laygo proved
his devotion to Syllabus and joined forces with him helping formulate
Track Addict Music LLC in April of 2007.
“I'm the student, he's
the Master” says Laygo humbly. “He's shown me the difference
between a real 'producer' and a 'beat-maker'” further explains Laygo.
Syllabus interjects; “Laygo adds
another dimension to the music created [here] at Track Addict Music”
Syllabus says proudly in an excited tone “Laygo has a lot of potential
and will be able to stand alone if he one day chooses to. Regardless,
we will always be addicted to music.
We are Track Addicts.”--Kiki McMurphy
interview ©2007 Track Addict Magazine
