We were hyped when we found out we were going to interview IV, an up and coming producer.  Jamie Fallon, AKA IV, may be new to the game but his beats and unique tracks make him sound like a seasoned vet.  JayTee (HHL) got a chance to interview the talented artist as he is set to release his first album titled Never Sleep.

HHL:  IV thanks for chillin with HHL, what’s good with you?

What’s good J, thanks for having me!  I’m just coolin’ man, putting the final touches on Never Sleep & working on some new material for the next project.

HHL: Give the people a little background on what type of beats you create.

My main weapons are the MPC 1000 & a room full of wax.  Every once in a while, I’ll play some guitar or piano for a joint, but it’s a pretty basic setup.  I find that less is more when making music.  You don’t need 1,000 different types of reverbs & compressors to make a dope beat.  I think people are so excited by all the new technology out there that they are trying to do too much. I prefer a raw organic sound over a lot of the synthesized beats that are popular today.

HHL: All the major producers have influences, who are yours?

Man, I gotta start with the classics… Pete Rock, Premo, RZA, Hav, & Dilla are all guys that have inspired me when I first started making beats, but lately I’ve been having to really search for new music that inspires me.  I’ve been spinning the Y Society “Travel at Your Own Pace” LP a lot over the past year.  Damu is an incredible producer man & Insight is one of my favorite emcees.

I also take inspiration from things that are non-musical & that is the biggest influence for me.  Just waking up in the morning, being thankful for another day of life man, u know!?  Walking thru the city & seeing all the different types of people just doing their thing.  That’s the type of energy that I feed off of.

HHL: Your beats are unique, you seem to tap into that old school sound, why is that?

I hear that a lot man & I guess it’s because of the drums.  I like them raw as hell.  I don’t like things sounding too clean.

HHL: Your debut album is dropping soon, give us all the details and what it was like to produce.

Yo man when I first got my MPC, I stayed up for 7 days straight trying to figure out how to master it.  Every time I would lay down and try go to sleep it would just be sitting there looking at me.  That experience sparked a habit of stayin up all night making beats.

That’s why the album is called NEVER SLEEP, because all of the beats were made between the hours of 10pm & 6AM.  It’s basically a collection of some of my favorite beats from the past few months.  I did all of the instros, all of the cuts & even played some guitar on the “Walkin’ Around” beat.  Also, rumor has it that Junclassic is gonna make a special appearance on one of the tracks!

I’m offering it as a free digital download & It’s gonna be available on the 4^th of July @ theonlyiv.blogspot.com so make sure ya come thru & grab it!

HHL:  Every producer has a go to artist when they create that really hot track, who is yours?

To tell ya the truth J, I haven’t found that “go-to” emcee yet.  I’m extremely picky when it comes to who’s over my beats.  I’ve got some tracks out to a few cats I really like right now, waiting to see what they do.  Sometimes it’s better to wait u know?

One thing I do know is that I’m a huge fan of cohesion.  I miss the days when albums were one emcee & one producer (Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Gangstarr, Mobb Deep, etc.).  That was the best!  I don’t wanna be doing albums with a whole bunch of different artists on it.  It’s not the same to me.

HHL:  It’s just the beginning for you and the game is tough. How will you set yourself apart from all the others?

Two things J:  First, you gotta be innovative & not afraid to be experiment.  If you look at how music has progressed over the years, you’ll see that the best were able to do that.  Jimi Hendrix was left-handed & he played a right-handed guitar upside down.

Second, man, those who truly love what they’re doing are always gonna outlast those who don’t.  When I wake up in the morning, I’m thinkin’ about music.  All day long, I’m listening to music & all night long I’m making it.  Thanks to my mom, I started playing piano when I was 4 years old & then picked up drums and guitar when I was 10.  Music is all I know man so I’m not going anywhere.  Longevity baby!

HHL:  You are definitely a hard working cat, where do you get your drive from?

When I was a lil’ man, my dad sat me down & said I could do anything in life if I wanted it bad enough.  He taught me the importance of hard work & most importantly setting goals.  So that’s what I do, set big goals and then bust my ass til they are accomplished, then set some more.  You gotta make sacrifices u know?

Lotsa cats have excuses for everything u know, but I’m not trying to hear that.  Stevie Wonder was blind, man & look what he did.

HHL:  Thanks for taking some time with us fam, give us your shout outs and keep grindin!

No doubt J good looks on the interview!  Shout out to Jwho – thanks for everything man!  Shout to Carson for the craziest freestyles.  Olu’s Bliss for the artwork & inspiration.  Jondis for the knowledge, inspiration & the 430$ I needed to get the MPC!  Sean for the inspiration – the meanest guitar player of all time.  KJ my ‘friend’ for listening to my shit when no one else would.  Junclassic, Joe Dunn from Grassway, Dirty D, Spiral Scratch, Record Theatre, & Bobby with the 1100 stack.

Make sure you drop by theonlyiv.blogspot.com July 4^th to cop NEVER SLEEP for free – peace!

(Hit up www.myspace.com/theonlyiv for more track samples)

Jaytee’s favorite track- Walkin Around