Roland, a pleasure to have you with us today! How are things going and where are you chatting to us from right now?
In a town called Waldorf, about 20 minutes east of Washington DC
We’re pleased to have you here to chat about your forthcoming ‘Dance Or Die’ release on Nightsteppaz Vibe Me To The Moon. What can our readers expect from this one?
A smooth hypnotic hook and a slamming track
It’s a fitting release to mark the re-launch of the Vibe Me To The Moon label! How did the track come to find its home on the imprint?
I’ve worked with those guys on some previous releases and when I finished Dance Or Die, they were one of the obvious label I approached about the release.
The track has a characteristic raw and warm vibe to it. Can you give us a quick run through of the creative process behind this one?
I wanted to try to recreate the type of chorus rhythm I did on a previous tune I did remixed by FatboySlim entitled What Da Fuck.. I think I nailed it.
You’ve remained a prolific producer for over 30 years, an incredible feat. What would be your most valuable tip that you wish you knew when you started out producing?
Promote, Promote, Promote
Although you first built your name within house music, as an artist your work reaches far beyond just one genre. Has there been a style of music that you’ve enjoyed producing the most throughout your career?
Oh most def, I write and produce R&B as well as alternative acoustic, soul, techno, tech house, basically whatever comes to me that day.
Are there any styles or genres that you haven’t attempted yet but would like to?
Not really, if I haven’t attempted it, it only means I’m not interested in even trying… Put it this way, I have tons of unfinished tunes on my hard drive waiting for someone to help me bring it home, but the people I need to help me finish are all Grammy Award winning producers, so it would be weird to just show up at their doorstep.
Does your approach to creating music differ from genre to genre?
I try not to do this but I write from whatever emotion I’m feeling at the time and sometimes I get sidetracked, Like I’d be meaning to write a dance record and out comes a sappy ballad.
Your discography includes famed collaborations over the years with the likes of Fatboy Slim, Todd Terry, Mark Knight and many more. Are there any artists that you’d love to collab with but haven’t?
Oh def, Bon Iver for one, Ferrell Williams, Jorja Smith, too many to list here.
Roland, thanks again for chatting with us today. To round things off, is there anything else upcoming from yourself that you’d like to share with us?
Just that I am considering doing an album for myself and not trying to base it on the market, but hopefully the market will like it enough to send me to the Grammys.
