Today we’d like to introduce you to James Williams.
Thanks for sharing your story with us James. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I’ve been around music my whole life. My brother, who went by “Chillini” used to rap in an underground Houston rap group called the Ballisticians, and I would always go to the studio with him and his shows/video shoots as a kid. Growing up, he was always my favorite rapper, and I got to see firsthand what all went into making music from a behind-the-scenes point of view. I’ve always played the piano by ear, and to this day still can’t read music. My father had an old Yamaha keyboard that he gave to me when I was a child, but I didn’t start really playing the piano until I was ten after seeing the movie “Ray.” I thought “if this blind man can play the piano, so can I.” So I watched the intro scene which was the song “What’d I Say” over and over in my room, matching what I heard and what notes I was able to see Jamie Foxx press on the movie until I was able to play it on the piano myself. After learning to play that song, I had a newfound love for making music and began messing around with the keyboard and creating my own melodies that I was able to save in the keyboard with a drum loop playing over it. I kept doing that until I was in middle school when my brother told me I should look into being a producer after hearing one of the melodies I had created.
I eventually linked up with Desmin Reshaud, GoHustle $ale and 713 Jumpman from Missouri City and South Acres/Sunnyside and we made a rap group called the “Young Killaz Gang” and began producing and recording in my brother’s closet and at my grandmother’s house in 2010. We later renamed the group to “Top One Percent.” I don’t really rap anymore but released a mixtape in 2012 (Sumthin’ Good) and 2013 (Nothin’ Good). My senior year of high school I met my girlfriend Royál, who also sings and raps. I went to MediaTech Institute on the west side of town for audio engineering and graduated there in 2015. When not in the studio, I do live sound work. I’ve been the head audio engineer on several events for companies including Google, Exxon Mobile, NASA, and Comicpalooza. I currently work at Freshsonic Studios as an audio engineer and as a founding member of our in-house production team called “Suicide Squad,” with other members Lil’ Cob, No Limit Shawn, Boi Dru, Javier Hearne, Adrian Mares and Snxxz3, pronounced “snooze.”. I’m looking forward to working with more artists and building a legacy that will forever be a part of Houston culture.
Has it been a smooth road?
No, not at all! I had financial difficulties when starting out, and wasn’t able to afford to pay a graphic designer, audio engineer, videographer, or website developer, which led to me having to learn how to do everything myself. I’m thankful for the struggles, as it gave me a skillset that sets me apart from other producers.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
The thing that I am most proud of is that I’m able to do everything from music production, audio engineering, and graphic design. This sets me apart from other producers because I’m a one-stop shop where you can get a beat made, the song recorded and professionally mixed and mastered, then have a cover art made and ready to be released.
I also take pride in my “Chef Nova” persona, which I have a few videos of me making beats with fruits and vegetables in my kitchen. I’ve produced and/or engineered songs featuring local artists such as Yung Martez, GT Garza, Yung Ro, Propain, OMB Bloodbath & D-Bando.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I feel like it is a double-edged sword. On one end, Houston is home to a ton of amazing and talented individuals. The Houston culture and energy is absolutely amazing and I love my city. But on the other end, the Houston music scene I feel is not too welcoming to anyone who doesn’t already have a big name. People aren’t willing to give you a chance unless you’ve already done something major, and we aren’t as willing to work together as other major cities are (e.g., Atlanta). But there’s hope, as I’ve seen lately that people are starting to wake up and get out of that old way of thinking. People are starting to realize that it doesn’t hurt your movement to show support to another movement, there’s enough room for everyone.
Pricing:
- $25-$75 – Beat Leases
- $50-65/hr – Recording at Freshsonic Studio
- $50-100 – Logo/Mixtape Cover Art
- $300-400/day – Audio Engineer (A1) rate for live events
Contact Info:
- Website: jrnovabeats.com
- Email: jrnovaofficial@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/jrnova
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