Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Andrews.
Hi Brian, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Sheesh, I need a movie for this, lol, but I mean, to be honest, I grew up in a musically inclined family on both sides, my mom used to rap and sing with her friend Christine in the ’90s but when she got pregnant with me she stopped, my uncle Derrick can sing and play the piano but when I say like play I mean like he play in front of thousands of people in churches and he’s well known for it,I could remember My Dad(being from the Midwest) always had some jay z or some music that I wasn’t used to playing as a lil one, my uncle Jerry always put me on a lot of old school shit to that man a human jukebox my uncle Jerome too so I kinda took everything I was hearing from them and what I heard on my own growing up cause I and my homies always stayed on the new music. my bro Devo who from Wisconsin introduced me to the detroit music tht everybody love now to us way back in like middle school so all that turned into me making beats like the summer of my senior year of high school , I was at my homie dj crib I had got my homie dee red computer monitor and laptop and just start messing around with fruity loops but then I went to the military and had a lot of free time on my hands so eventually I start making beats forreal forreal when I got to Japan that’s when I dropped my first few projects and I had the homie Ttbby reach out to me on some music shit cause at the that time he was transitioning out the army and he was like one of first people that I knew that could rap rap and was interested in gettin on my beats then after that my bro Landoh reached out and wanted to start rappin so I kinda doin my own thing with him and of course other rappers from back home reached out and started gettin beats from me when I finally went public about it cause for like 2 years I didn’t want people to hear my beats until like I felt I was good enough lol so boom now it’s like 2016 and I’m back in Beaumont so me and tt link up and that’s when I was introduced to the CVKE which consisted of all types of talented mfs like Ttbby,teezo touchdown , Big Jade , Ace Money , etc etc and I’m just producing and collaborating with these artist and this is kinda when I came into my own cause That’s where I learned to create my own sound cause everybody there had their own thing going and you gota be able to stand out so by the time tee dropped his project “first place” we was the hottest mfs in the area and I got hella recognition for the songs I produced and then I end up moving to Minnesota with my pops and I just made beats on my own out there and I really ain’t know nobody from Minnesota that was on the music shit like me so I just would network any way I could and keep in touch with people back home I think I stayed out there for like 2 years and moved Houston at the end of 2019 so now I’m back in texas and I’m ready to really make something happen musically and I wanted my own crew so that’s when I reached out to Landoh and my dawg Dinero and we ended up linking with Derryk Rhodes The ceo of BlackLabel recording Studio and Now we rockin out as Diamond District which consist of myself , Dinero Sinatra , LandoH and Desiree lejeune..
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Man, of course not. I have been at this music stuff since 17 and I’m 27, it’s a grind filled with highs and lows, especially if you don’t really have the funds or connections to put you in the spots you need to be in cause talent can only get you so far. Then I had my first child, Nova in 2020 so man, it’s kinda like I got hit with starting my own crew/brand, my daughter came and I got my family in ear my asking what ima do now do its pressure from all angles but I mean I can’t give up now I’m too close to becoming what I always wanted to be
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a producer and that’s what I’m known for but it’s like I’m tapping into artist side cause now it’s like I see where music going and I been here long enough to know what people wanna hear, what beats people like it’s about how you look and sound and what can you do to be different.
What I’m most proud of is I’m literally the definition of self-taught, self motivated, shid, self everything no co-sign needed and I never gave up. I’ve been in rooms and studio sessions with famous artists I grew up listening to and artist that’s hot right now and it’s like now I know that I belong.
The thing that sets me apart from others is my ability to sample and hear stuff differently from the original producer I can’t tell you how many times I let people hear beats and their blown away like “how did you do that”? That feeling is priceless man.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Man to be honest I would just say stay consistent and know that nothing is gone come overnight and if it does happen that way, you better be ready to work your butt off, also realize that nobody is obligated to support you no matter if it’s family, lifelong friends, it doesn’t matter bro you gotta make these people have a reason to support you. Put your 10,000 hours in!
The only thing I wish I knew was how to play the piano but I mean I’m trying to get my uncle to teach me he just keeps blowing me off lol it’s cool though playing stuff by ear got me all the way to this point so I’ll be ok.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @Bdrewondabeat
- Twitter: @bdrewondabeat
- SoundCloud: Bdrewondabeat
