Today we’d like to introduce you to Pooky Bandana.
Pooky, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I grew up listening to all kinds of music I listened to rock, pop, rap, hiphop, edm, r&b, & other genres! I love all music but in middle school, rap became my favorite kind of music! I was amazed by listening to rap music because of how the vocals & beats sound! At 17, I wanted to learn how to make rap beats. So I started messing around with a computer software called fl studio.
The software was confusing but I made a couple of beats that were horrible, haha! I found out about another computer software used to make music called Ableton! I started using Ableton instead of Fl Studio because I like the workflow of Ableton more than Fl Studio! Ableton is less confusing to me & easier to use but Ableton can still be confusing, haha! In 2011 when I started, there were not a lot of good tutorials on YouTube teaching people how to make beats.
I was still in high school & my school did not have a class teaching how to make beats so I had to figure out a lot of stuff on my own. I did not know music theory so my beats were not in key, haha. Sometimes I would stay up all night making beats until the sun came up! I talked to rappers, fellow producers, & fans on social media. I emailed rappers beats & got a couple of underground placements!
But my beats were not mixed & mastered correctly & were not in key, haha! Slowly over the years, my beats got better. I learned a little more about mixing, mastering, & music theory! In 2019, I attended & graduated a cutting edge online music school called The Hyperbits Masterclass! I learned a lot more about music theory, mixing, mastering, & a lot of other things! That school changed my life!
Has it been a smooth road?
NNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! haha
Not having a good teacher/mentor to teach me about music!
At 17, I ended up in a psychiatric hospital & I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder! I think growing up on adderall, doing drugs, eating unhealthy food, not exercising, & being under a lot of stress caused me to be bipolar! I was put on psychiatric drugs they made me feel horrible the side effects were horrible they slowed down my creativity! It’s such a blessing not to be on any psychiatric drugs anymore! It took me years to finally successfully wean off of psychiatric drugs!
Its been a couple of years I’m happier & healthier than I’ve ever been in my life! I eat healthy, exercise, get 8 hours of sleep, & take supplements! Its the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life I did what my own doctors & parents said I could never do!
Can you give our readers some background on your music?
I am a rapper, music producer, & audio engineer!
I make rap, hiphop, pop, & r&b beats!
The way my beats sound sets me apart from other producers! The way my snare rolls transition, the way my bass hits, the way my melodies are written, the way I make chords with hi hats, is very different! haha
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I LOVE the scenery, the music, the different cultures, & the food! I HATE that there are so many crackheads hooked on drugs. It makes me SAD but that’s the life they chose! Drug dealers should use their sales skills to transition into ethical entrepreneurship to lift the community up instead of destroying it!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://pookyholdings.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pookybandana
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pookybandana
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/pookybandana
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