Interview: Depakote2
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Next up to plate is Depakote. Depakote is a beat maker from California. Being in his late-twenties, he was heavily influenced by the golden era of hip hop. In his high school years, he began writing rhymes, and not long after graduating, his life changed forever. He was hospitalized and diagnosed with Bi-Polar disorder. Seeing the brighter side of life, he went back to college and started recording hip hop music as a hobby. It evolved into something more than that, thanks to his friend Paul Kim, who introduced him to Fruity Loops and Reason. And from that point on, he’s been pushing out those hip hop beats. I first heard of him through the “Adventure On The Sun: The Music of Sun Ra” mix, and then I stumbled onto the “Isaac Hayes Tribute” instrumental album mixed by him and re:source. After that, I kept my eye on this guy… and now here we are doing an interview with him.
Depakote‘s latest album, “Gummo“, was dropped this year as a tribute to Harmony Korine’s 1997 movie of the same title. Download link can be found at the bottom of this interview, as well as the link to find his other projects.
Tiffology: Who is Depakote? And why did you choose that name?
Depakote: Well, I chose the name Depakote to make fun of something that was a hard point in my life and still is. I live with a bi-polar disorder. Depakote is a medication that helps control your mood. Depakote is a Bi-polar medication. I feel like it is a comedic relief to make fun of situations that are hard to deal with in life, so naming myself Depakote was like a “fuck you” to my mental disorder. I try to look at life in a positive view because dwelling on the negative will kill you inside.
Tiffology:How’d you get into hip hop?
Depakote: Hip-Hop was always a part of my life. I was in 6th-7th grade when Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic” came out. Hip-Hop was at the golden era then 1993-1994. I was blessed to be kid/teen when all that was out. In junior high, a bunch of us started getting into Beat Street the movie. Ah man. It was horrible how I used to rewind that movie so much to copy the pop lock moves. I thought I was a breaker. LOL. As I grew into high school, I caught an episode of Yo MTV Raps at my uncle’s. We were to broke for cable. I fell in love with the song from The Roots “What they do”. I went to the Wherehouse and bought The Roots album. I also bought Nas “It Was Written” cause of the song “If I Ruled the World” with Lauryn Hill. Then it went underground as soon as I heard of Sway and Tech’s The Wake Up Show. I used to take my dad’s old tapes, fill them up with papers at the ends so I could record the wake up show. My dad got so mad when he use to find his tapes with Hip-Hop recorded over them.
Tiffology: RANDOM – I want to know a guilty pleasure of yours, whether it be a television show, a music artist you enjoy, a hobby, or whatever.
Depakote: Ahh no. Ok this is a guilty pleasure of mine. Ahh haha. I like to listen to music at night before I sleep and create music videos in my head. I like to make myself sad. I make a mix of a bunch of sad songs and make sad music videos in my head.
Tiffology: Being that you grew up in the golden era of hip hop, who were some of your favorite groups or artists?
Depakote: Nas, Wu-Tang, Mobb Deep, Goodie Mob, The Roots, Gangstarr, Common, Outkast, etc.
Tiffology: Equipment (and software) check! What do you use?
Depakote: 95 percent of the time it is FL Studio 9 and samples. Reason 3.0, Recycle 2.0, 02 oxygen midi controller, cool edit pro to chop samples, vinyls and the net for sample. I only use ableton live 7 for beat sets.
Tiffology: What inspires you?
Depakote: The fun of making music. The emotions I can share with people with my music. The learning of new things. The emotions I feel, then letting it out in my music and knowing what I felt when I made it and someone else can experience it.
Failing inspires me. I failed so much in my life and knowing I can get up move forward and keep doing it fuels my ambition. When I first got sick and I overcame a big part of my mental disorder, I saw the beauty of small things in life. I don’t take things for granted anymore, I cherish every little part of my life. My family, friends, my girl… I love them all. I want to do things for them and me. Damn, I sound like an emo kid now. Hahahaha.
Tiffology: RANDOM – What was the last album or record you BOUGHT in tangible form?
Depakote: It was in Tempe AZ. My lady got me an old Dramatics Lp. I left it at her crib though. Go get it for me Tiff. You stay in AZ.
Tiffology: I read that you used to write rhymes. What made you gravitate towards beat making?
Depakote: I started writing rhymes in High School. The years were 1997 to 1999. I didn’t know what an Mpc was or sp 1200. I was just a fan of Hip-Hop. Later around 2000 to 2003, I met some friends that did music. I joined a crew called Welfare Recipients. One of the friends I met was and still is a close friend. His name is Paul Kim. He told me about Fruity Loops and Reason. I would sit behind him and study what he did. I soon got my own copy of the music software. I would sit and rattle my brains for hours to see how it would work. I found a new passion. Making beats excited me more. I still write rhymes though. I’ma come out an album where I rap in the future.
Tiffology: I first heard of you through the collaboration albums, “The Isaac Hayes Tribute” and “Adventures on The Sun…” Out of all the collabos, which was your favorite to be a part of?
Depakote: I did one with some friends of mine called, “The Scottie Pippen Project”. It was based on 90′s basketball players and 90′s basketball. All the people on it where super cool. Coincidence, Co.fee, Mike B, Dj Equip. I had so much fun with them because we would bring up oddball basketball players like Sam Bowie, Otis Thorpe, Joe Dumars. We would battle and see who could come out with the most weirdest players name.
Tiffology:You recently dropped “The Gummo Album”, what made you make an album revolving around that Harmony Korine movie?
Depakote: I first heard of the “Gummo” movie cause a scene of Gummo was played in the Hype Williams movie “Belly”. When I saw that rabbit scene, I flipped! I was like I need to watch this movie. When I saw it I couldn’t stop laughing at the scenes, cause they didn’t make sense. I like the randomness in it. It just had this feel that I loved and can’t describe. I made people watch the movie. Some loved it. One friend told me, “I just wasted 2 hours of my life”. I was talking to a friend and said I wanna make an album dedicated to Gummo. Take the peoples names and use clips of the movie. She was like that would be dope. So did I it. I like movies that cannot be explained. Life cannot be explained.
Tiffology: I know you’re big on evoking emotions out of your listener and making them feel something. What do you want them to feel with this album?
Depakote: I want them to trip out. I put alot of different styles into this album. Some songs will make you feel sad like the song “Gummo”. I put this part in my song “Fingerpolish” where this kid on youtube was tripping out on Pcp and starts yelling, hahaha. I wanted it to be like the movie… not really making sense. The song “Painful Bells” got that hard Boom Bap sound. The soul sample I used for that one sounds sad as hell. I got some up-tempo, head-knodding songs. I just wanted the listener to go through all types of moods. The last song fate or outro, I enjoy a lot because I feel like sometimes everyone in their life felt like giving up.
Tiffology: How long did it take you to produce “The Gummo Album”?
Depakote: About 6 months or shorter. I honestly don’t remember.
Tiffology: RANDOM – This might be a little hard, but if you can, describe your sound as if it were a scenery. Basically, give us a mental picture to put to the overall sound.
Depakote: Damn. I don’t Know. I don’t want to sound pretentious, hahaha. It’s like the moon making love to the sun. I seen people try to be artsy fartsy like that, lol. I don’t know. Whatever moment the person has in their head.
Tiffology: Out of all the albums you have dropped or have been featured on, do you have any favorite standout tracks that were particularly fun to work on?
Depakote: “Paint on the wall” with Tone Liv. I love what he wrote on my beat. It had his pain and emotion. I can’t wait to work with him and my homie Meatman from Jersey! I have a homie Ezzie from North Carolina that wrote to some of my beats too. Ahh there so many emcees I wanna work with.
Tiffology: You have released all of your music for free download. I know that you’re trying to build up a fanbase and prove your skill, but at what point will YOU know it’s time to sell your work?
Depakote: I want to build trust with the listener. I want to them to take a chance on me, I will give you my heart my soul in my music. I want to show them I take this serious. I don’t want a quick buck. In return, in the future, when things go right they will support my music because I proved to them that I worked hard and sacrificed my time and energy. I am grateful when people even download my stuff for free. Hopefully I can sell the next album. I will just go with the flow. I don’t want to fight it. When the time is right and I see people are willing to buy, I will sell it. I don’t want to be the guy with flames on my background site and say hot beats 5,000,000 dollars. I do this from the heart and when you do it from the heart you look at things in a different perspective. Being able just to do the music is all you need.
Tiffology: I know on bandcamp you can setup a “name your price” option for the person downloading, so they could pay you the amount they choose or download for free (or whatever minimum chosen). Have you ever thought of trying that?
Depakote: Umm right now, I’m not concentrating on selling my music. I’m trying to push my last.fm account and have people download my music for free and just trying to get my name out and do shows and get a good indie label to back me up.
Tiffology: The beat generation has been sky-rocketing in the last couple of years. I probably listen to more beat heads than emcees lately. With that said, what beat makers are you listening to now? Or, what upcoming albums are you anticipating the most?
Depakote: I don’t really listen to new stuff. I listen to old soul records and Psych, Prog rock. When I do listen to beat stuff. It’s the homie Dibiase he is bad!! I like Samiyam, Madlib, My Homie Juj is dope. My close friend Co.fee is a beast. Mf doom. I don’t really listen to the beat scene stuff. I’m waiting for my homie Co.fee’s easy listening album, my homie Juj album, Dibiase’s “Machines Hate Me”, also Samiyam’s new one.
Tiffology: RANDOM – What’s the wallpaper on your desktop?
Depakote: : My lil cousin Roman.
Tiffology: Let me get a little political for a second. Being that you roll through Arizona frequently, what are your thoughts on SB1070?
Depakote: It’s a ploy. It’s bullshit. Order over chaos. The elite wants to keep the poor people divided. If they really wanted to end the border shit, they have enough money to line up a shitload of guards on the border. The media makes a big deal about it. Keeping people in fear. Blaming a race for certain problems. The government wants open borders. Look how much hate and confusion it causes within the citizens. It keeps us distracted from the real problem. How much the powerful elite controls us and our well being.
Tiffology: If you could make a beat album for any one artist, or group, who would it/they be? And why?
Depakote: Mf Doom. I love his flow. It is ill and he has funny rhymes. He sometimes has moments where he gets emotional and puts his words in such a weird way but it makes sense. I love it.
Tiffology: Do you have any favorite places that you like to dig for albums at?
Depakote Youtube. I can did for 5 hours on there. It’s faster and easier.
Tiffology: RANDOM – Most prized posession?
Depakote: My existence.
Tiffology: Is there anything that you’re working on now that you’d like us to know about?
Depakote: I’m working on a new album called “Suicide Watch”. It’s gonna be a 12 track album, mostly very sad and emotionally songs. It’s an ode to musicians that have mental disorders. I think found a label for it as well. It should come out late next year. I also have an album with my homie Meatman from Jersey.
I’m gonna come out on some stuff on Huh What and Where Records. I’m also gonna have album there as well.
I wanna do an album with Tone liv. I got some other emcees using my beats Moonblazers, Ezzie, Ratio. Um, I will always be doing music so keep contact.
Tiffology: Shoutouts, last words, advice?
Depakote: Thank you Crayon Beats and you Tiffany. I owe you a bomb meal in AZ when I come out.
Shoutout to my friends and family and my lady Lily that I love with all my heart. Peace to Pat, Chico, Co.fee, Jon, Max, Samurai, Paul, Ratio, Cristina, Yvette, my sisters, Ian, Andrew, Dave, Anthony, fuck too many people I should stop. To blogs and DJ’s that support me. Sorry i forgot a lot of people. To all the people who listen to my music, I love you.
Advice: Never stop from pursuing your dream. The only thing that is gonna stop you is you.
Tiffology: RANDOM – Lastly, here’s a few top 5s and fill-in-the-blanks. Finish off the sentences.
Top 5 places to eat – Dino burgers, Roscoe’s chicken and waffles, Paul’s place, Mom’s, Apollo burgers
Top 5 movies – Jacobs Ladder, Gummo, Rocky, Rocky Balboa, Class of Nuke’em High
Top 5 producers of all time – Madlib, 9th wonder, Organized Noize, Dj Premier, Rza
Favorite non-hip hop album – Pink Floyd – Dark side of the moon, Marvin Gaye – Here my Dear, The Isley Bros – Voyage to Atlantis, Mary J Blige – What’s the 411, The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds
I can… eat 2 whoppers in one sitting.
I won’t… get big headed
If I could be a woman, I would be a hoodrat.
My biggest fear in life is… My loved ones being in harm
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DOWNLOAD:
Depakote – “Gummo” (or buy it at Boomkat)
And get the rest of his albums at his Last.fm page for free.
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Great interview Tiff, I’m happy to see my West Coast friend doing great things like interviews and featured spots on the BBC. I only regret that I did’nt meet Erik earlier when I lived in San Diego…he was just fresh. Before I left CA I gave him one of my turntables and he gave me some vinyl..Erik and all his friends are great people.
True, he makes great music, and on the plus side… he’s a really cool guy. He’s very friendly and easy to talk to.
So an interview with him was an honor. Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment! Much appreciated.