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Today we are back with a Spotlight and song premiere on a FIRE upcoming producer by the name of Raaket! I first came across Raaket by way of his Voicemail track which is a creative low-frequency journey through the innards of a voicemail. Raaket has a unique drippy sound and credits the spectacular trio of Bassnectar, Tipper and Liquid Stranger as his primary influences. Going back in his discography he has a slew of fire tracks including a remix of the classic Notorious BIG song Who Shot Ya. Raaket twists and turns Puff Daddy and Biggies hypnotic vocals through a waterfall of wet bass. Another amazing track My Name Is serves as a great introduction to Raaket’s unique drippy sound. The track has a ridiculous flow to it and along with an incredible style and final drop as well. Hunter Crowder is the man behind the beats and he comes from the Southern state of Alabama.
Hunter is premiering a brand new track just for us titled “Revolution.” Revolution begins slowly before building into a powerful speech by the late Malcom X and plunging into an inspirationally groovy bass filled drop that will have bassheads everywhere riding out into the streets. We are very happy to premiere this impactful song and stand with every person of color in the fight against systemic racism and police brutality. We linked up with Hunter to talk more about the inspiration behind Revolution, his musical journey, the fight for change, production flows, and what’s next for the Raaket project! Check out the new track and more below and give Raaket a follow here!
Where are you from and how did you get into music?
First of all, thank you so much for having me! So I was born in Jacksonville, Florida but was raised in a small town called Ozark in Alabama. Ozark from the show on Netflix you ask? No, but It was a quiet small southern town out in the sticks where most kids were probably listening to country rather than EDM. That being said, I’ve always enjoyed listening to all genres of music but my journey with Electronic music started when I was senior in high school in 2013. I already was into music from artists like Deadmau5, The Glitch Mob, and Flux Pavilion growing up, but I saw a documentary about EDC Vegas and was convinced that this was what I wanted to do with my life. I saw the pure happiness and positivity that was a byproduct of people seeing these artists perform and it really inspired to become a DJ and one day play a music festival like that. So fast forward a few months and I’ve acquired enough equipment to DJ my high school’s homecoming! (Thanks mom) Everything about that night felt so perfect and cinematic, it was pure awesomeness. After having that unforgettable experience, I was committed to the dream of becoming a DJ. It wasn’t until a few years later in 2016 when I thought about making my own music. I was halfway through college going for a bachelor’s in business MGT when I began to have second thoughts. As I got more into DJing and the electronic music culture, I looked into music production schools here and abroad to learn how to make music. After searching I ended up finding a school across the pond in London, UK called S.A.E. Institute and took a 6-month course on Advanced Electronic Music Production in 2017. London was a super cool city to live in and I hope to return soon Ever since then I’ve been trying to make music. My first electronic show ever was actually a curated Bassnectar event. I attended his NYE 360 event in 2015 going into 2016 and I was blown away to say the least, haha. Bassnectar, Liquid Stranger, and Tipper are all big motivations in my music production.
We are premiering your brand new track Revolution today. Can you talk about the inspiration behind this track and how it came together?
We’ve all seen the news about the nationwide protests over police brutality and racism. Like in most places, the protests here in Birmingham turned peaceful to violent, and the mayor instituted a curfew, further forcing us to quarantine. That’s exactly when I started this project. I was in a mindset of fuck the system and there needs to be big changes in society. This track was the byproduct of that mindset. I even used sounds from riots across the nation and included speeches from Malcolm X. For me, this track is about standing up for what you believe in and fighting for what’s right, and I hope my listeners feel that vibe I tried to push.
How have the recent social movements affected or inspired you and what do you say to the people on the streets fighting for change?
It’s really inspiring to see all these people coming together to stand up to our oppressors. The system is broken and needs to be fixed, and the more people stand up and speak up the more we are heard and the more change takes place. This really feels like a great awakening across the globe and everyone has their role in it, especially artists. Our music and opinions inspire people more than we know and we have to use that power the right way. I don’t want this track to inspire burning the world down, but I want people to feel empowered that they can make a difference if they band together with one another and fight for a just cause.
Tell us about the Raaket project, I noticed you just uploaded the first original song 7 months ago. Were you working on perfecting the projects sound before that?
The Raaket project began in early 2019, I had spent a long time searching for my name up until that point but when the idea came to me it stuck. I think we can all agree that some Electronic music sounds pretty crazy and ridiculous, right? This unique attribute to the genre has always been what fascinated me most. How crazy can you get? To those who don’t like or get this genre of music, they think it’s stupid and just a bunch of racket. Well, I decided I wanted to embrace the idea of making crazy bass music by branding myself as Raaket, so if you listened to my music and liked it or not, you still understood why my name was Raaket. Thanks for the kind remarks, yes I’m big on designing my own basses and having a unique sound in my songs. Taking old rap acapellas and putting them on fresh beats and sounds gives them a new life and energy while giving a sense of familiarity for the listener. My first track, Who Shot Ya Flip, was really fun using that intro acapella to give a lot of hype and throwback vibes. I actually made that track on Ableton Lite so it was very minimal, but I took a lot of time and work before I was comfortable releasing it and starting Raaket.
Your tunes operate at a siick low wet frequency. What DAW do you use and do you have a certain goto format when you sit down and create
Thanks for noticing man! I love to make wet and drippy basses for sure. I started out using Logic in the beginning, but I use Ableton Suite now and love it. I usually start my projects by making a simple beat or melody, then building the song from intro to end. A lot of my producer friends start working from the drop first, but I have to create the energy from the build-up before I know how my drop bass should sound. I make all of my sounds in Serum and typically use basic shapes with automation on different filter and fxs. I also use lots of multi-band compressors like OTT and Amp to helps bring out those wet frequencies you mentioned. I definitely recommend Ableton for anyone just starting out, I made my first track on the free version and you can too! One thing I’m finally getting better at with production I can recommend, dance around your projects when you work on them so you don’t get stuck on one thing. If you’re not feeling whatever part you’re working on, work on a different element!
How has COVID impacted you, how are things where you are now? Have you been able to be creative/inspired during this lockdown? Any tips for others struggling to feel inspired during these times?
Covid made a pretty big splash in my life. I was routinely DJing every weekend around the state and lost all of my spring gigs after March unfortunately. I was either terminated or furloughed from my other jobs too so I’ve had a lot of free time on my hands. I live in Birmingham, Alabama, and the lockdown is still currently happening here, but we’ve been doing lots of streams to keep the vibes alive. It’s been a roller coaster honestly of having inspiration and feeling depleted. I try to go outside and keep seeing friends to stay sane in the quarantine. I feel like perception is reality, and if your perception of this free time is good, then that will help your attitude with creativity. I try to live like its a vacation instead of a quarantine haha.
What producers are pushing the boundaries at the moment inspire you the most?
I’m very inspired by artists from the Wakaan label and Spicy Bois. Mize is a producer friend of mine from Alabama who has really come up in the game, playing at Wakaan Festival last year and releasing big tunes through them. Smoakland is making some of the craziest basses I’ve ever heard, huge fan of that dude. Honestly, a lot of producers out in Denver are making some serious noise right now. I also really love LSDream’s very trippy vibes and journey-like music. He’s a big inspiration when I make my music.
Any fellow upcoming producers we should know about?
Absolutely! We’ve got a decent underground scene here in the southeast with other talented artists that are definitely worth checking out! My roommate, Lykwid, is constantly pumping out some fresh deep dubplates and co-runs the Upside Down Collective here in Birmingham. Malbis makes some super rad experimental bass tracks and is now dabbling in new style of music he calls “Acoustic Hypnotica.” P4ge Up is making some gas trap/bass music with nasty acapella edits up in Atlanta. Creighfish down in Mobile is slaying the half-time game. And I can’t forget my homie Buski out in Denver making some sick bass tunes as well. These guys are all making splashes in the scene, but if you check out The Upside Down Collective on Soundcloud or Facebook there’s lots of underground talent to be discovered there.
What’s next for Raaket? Any upcoming releases/collabs/live streams?
I’ve got a new original and 3 collabs with the homies Lywkid, Rogie, and Buski coming out next month that I’m excited about. I’ve set a goal for myself to release an EP in the fall as well so keep an eye out for that! I am routinely doing streams through the Upside Down Collective Twitch channel. I feel very early in my career as a producer so I hope to continue to grow and make even better music and find my signature sound soon. I’m open to collaborating with more artists who are similar to my style so I can expand my network and interact with more talented artists in the scene. So if you wanna collab hit me up!
Thanks for your time Hunter!
Thank you as well really appreciate what you having me on!
