Interview With Hoss

Hoss Feat. Reddibo - DAT: Hoss teams up with Jamaica's Reddibo to deliver a sizzling anthem on the dance floor. DAT has all the cool beat and raga vocals to make the crowd jump and feel good.

We have had the pleasure of speaking with Hoss, and this has been the result.

What was the first thing that attracted you to the world of

electronic music?

In the 90s electronic music was still quite underground. Growing

up in Canada and Listening to rare radio shows such as Chris

Sheppard’s Pirate Radio gave me such motivation that led me to

spend plenty of time at record shops, discovering and learning

about electronic music. Eventually, I hosted my own radio shows

on campus radio stations in Ottawa, Canada and started to DJ at

various gigs.

Do you remember any record or event that changed everything?

Got you hooked?

Absolutely! It was a photo of Paul Oakenfold playing for a huge

crowd at The Old Wembley Stadium in London in 1999. Such a

phenomenon photo! Gave me goosebump. This is when it all

began for me...

How is the music scene living in your city with this murky

pandemic situation?

Montreal is still pretty hype. Events pop up here and there and

some such as Piknic Electronik kept up with their summer events

strongly.

What are your favorite places to play?

I prefer small intimate places. I find the energy is more felt and

more personal. It’s easier to make eye contact with the crowd and

see if your set is really working :)

Have you had time to focus on making music during the pandemic

or were you spending time with your family, or planning future

projects?

At the being of pandemic things were slow. I mean no one knew

what’s coming next or when things will open again. Since the first

day of 2021 I went full swing with production and compositions. A

number of tracks and remixes have been released in 2021. Ain’t

nothing stoppin’ us!

How was your last project born?

My last project, B Lovers, is a collaboration with MC Mario

featuring the vocals of Maria Masucci. We did the vocal takes

prior to pandemic and we wrapped up the final mix with PAYSON

in summer 2021. It’s a different feel from my usual style but I

definitely enjoyed creating this track.

What do you want to convey with your work? What is the concept

behind your latest release?

B Lovers, is more on the commercial side of the electronic music.

It is a fun and energetic track. It is currently playing on a couple of

stations in Canada and this was the point. It is still a challenge to

convince the top 40 radio music program directors to play

electronic music.

How do you go about the creative process?

There’s really no formula. It’s all in the moment. Creativity stems

from inspiration. Of course, as my career has evolved, some

projects require pre-planning; finding the vocalist, hiring session

musicians (if needed), assigning remix artists, etc.. but for the

most part I still let inspiration lead the way.

As for your studio, what is your setup currently made of?

I work mainly in the box. I run Cubase with my trusty Universal

Audio Apollo. Over the years, I have invested in quite a bit of

VSTs and plugins. I do love and enjoy recording synths and

guitars direct from hardware. But time is of the essence and

working in the box saves me much time.

What's the one piece of kit or software you'll never get rid of, no

matter what?

I love my Cubase. I have used Cubase since 1997 and I am quite

comfortable with it. Of course, nowadays there are plenty of

DAWs out there. But for me Cubase works and gets my job done.

What was the last record store you visited and what did you buy?

Man! 2011... I actually sold them some of old records :)

What's next for you?

My agenda is full for the remainder of the year. I have a show mid

September at Galerie MX, a prestigious art gallery in Montreal.

This will be a one-of-a-kind show which will stream globally in

early October. I am wrapping up a track with Reddibo (she’s a

wicked artist). It’s a dancehall track... watch out for this one! I am

also working with PAYSON and MAEDAE on 3 new tracks. I will

be producing and guiding artists on my label, Funktasy, with their

production as well.

Artist Social Links:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/hossfx/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/hossfx/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Hossfx/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hossfx/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/Hossfx

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6Z727NmOM8qx8f8nZ0kUJ8?si=O6YlLtHJTeWYAGf5Iab2EQ&dl_branch=1

Website: https://www.hossmusic.com/

Label Social Links:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/FunktasyRecords/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/funktasy

Twitter: https://twitter.com/funktasy

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/funktasy/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/funktasytv

Website: https://www.funktasy.com/