The Letter "C"

The Letter "C" is a Rochester, New York native. The baby-faced up and coming producer claims to have listened to music since he came out of the womb. He Remembers that he was always surrounded by music. Wether it be his mother listening to her old school record collection, riding around with his pops blasting reggae out the speakers. or his eldest sister jamming to her 80's hits, he was always around sounds.

His sister is also the one he blames for being introduced to Hip Hop. She would record episodes of yo! MTV raps that he would watch after getting home from school. His mother would purchase albums from his favorite artists he watched such as Run DMC and Whodini. At the young age of 4, he would take his favorite songs and make his own mixtapes on his mother's 8 track/turntable/casette recorder.

Throughout elementary and middle school he took piano lessons and drum lessons 2 years each. It was long enough to learn the basics, but not long enough to really master either instrument. Not advancing his skills on both instruments, is something that he hugely regrets since getting into music production. It wasn't until the 11th grade that he actually started to create his own music. After reading a magazine that advertised a video game that allowed users to actually create their own melodies, he purchased it immediately.

It wasn't until he attended Hampton University that he was introduced to computer software such as Reason and Pro Tools. Whenever he wasn't in class, he would use his time to learn Reason and other studio equipment. His music engineering degree's curriculum consisted of a bunch of music theory classes. "Those classes were some of the most important things that I learned" he mentions. "C" left Hampton after 2 years to attain his B.A. in music industry at SUNY Oneonta. Here his curriculum was based on the business of music, rather than just the creative side.

Before he could receive his degree, he would have to complete an internship for college credit. This landed him in the promotions department at Def Jam. He finished his term after a few months, but returned about 5 months later after relocating to brooklyn. Being at the office allowed him to gain a different perspective on the music industry, and allowed him to network. This would also lead to more internships at Sony Urban and Richcraft/Atlantic Records.

With this new state of the music industry, "C" felt that it was now or never to try to accomplish his goal to become a music producer. He has produced a bunch of music for MTV's diary of Diddy and Jay-Z. The trailer for Jay-Z's episode was actually played for the United Nations. Interning took up most of his time whenever he wasn't working his restaurant job, so he was forced to stop so that he could devote more time to making music. Although he knows the industry is going through a transformation, he is having a hard time figuring out where it is truly going. Nevertheless He says "Even if they shut it down today, I would still create dope heartfelt music. I don't just do it for money, but if I could live off my art, then it would be a dream come true."



Beast of the Beats II Champion The Letter "C"