Adam Beyer’s Truesoul has long been a breeding ground for next wave talent. Artists including Cirez D, Hot Since 82 and Patrick Topping all released on Drumcode’s little brother label, long before they were the headliners we know today. Next up for the imprint is rising US artist Dark Heart, a former Hollywood talent agent, who has his label debut ‘XYZ’ out now, featuring contributions from LA vocalist Amarha and John Cala, a Columbian, Barcelona-based musician/producer with Latin influences.
For those unfamiliar, please introduce yourself.
Oooo hi my name is David but I go by Dark Heart. I used to be a talent agent for actors & actresses in Hollywood but I quit to make music and somehow ended up becoming a DJ (it’s a long story). I currently live in LA and spend most of my time making music.
Your new EP XYZ on Truesoul featuring Amarha and John Cala is out this week. Share a bit about the creative process and how the record came to fruition.
Each song truly has its own story. For ‘XYZ’, Amarha and I wrote that when she was sick and had a bit of a raspier voice. She was worried her vocals wouldn’t sound good but it ended up being perfect. I think happy accidents are one of the most fun things about making music so I’m glad that one came about how it did. For Damn Good, I wanted to juxtapose the “happy” vocal (“I feel so damn good right now”) with a darker beat that hits hard. I wasn’t sure if it would work, so I played out an early version at one of my shows and it absolutely slammed. I was so thrilled with the reaction and immediately finished it in my hotel later that night (or early morning I guess). It’s a massive highlight in my sets and I love how it builds. Cigarette was a wild idea that Amarha and I started with her vocal. We wanted something a bit unhinged and different from what you hear in a lot of dance songs today so we tried to go as weird as possible both with the instrumental and the vocal. At this point John and I had been talking about working on something and we thought this would be a perfect time to put our sounds together. He’s an absolute wizard at production and I think everything he does sounds expensive and tasteful. We kicked it back and forth a bit and finally got it to a point where we absolutely loved it.
Tell us how the link up with Adam Beyer’s Truesoul happened.
Adam has always been a huge inspiration for me, a few years back he had been supporting a record of mine and I think that’s how we initially connected. I’ve always loved Truesoul as a label, creatively fearless and always pushing the boundaries. As an artist that’s really encouraging because you don’t feel like you have to fit inside of a box. I have always wanted to be a part of the label and I spent a lot of time discerning which of my records could make sense. Needless to say I can’t imagine a better home for these records and I’m thrilled to be making my debut on Truesoul with this EP.
Any advice for those looking to gain the attention of a Tier 1 label like Truesoul?
I think you just have to make what you love and what’s authentic to you. Don’t worry about the outcome. If you’re being authentic to who you are as an artist, labels and other artists will take notice and want to help you build your vision.
Share three Truesoul releases that have inspired you on your musical journey.
This is going to be hard because there’s a lot more than three haha.
Adam Beyer – Ignition Key – I think I have to go all the way back to the Ignition Key album that I believe launched Truesoul. My favorite song on the album is probably Flamethower but the composition as a whole is just incredible. You can listen to the whole thing front to back and it takes you on a journey. This was inspiring to me as I hope to do something that ambitious and robust in my career at some point.
Cristoph – Sleepless Nights – this one came out just before the pandemic hit and I remember listening to it over and over and over during that tough time. It’s one of those records that just takes you on a journey and I think unintentionally captured a vibe that helped me get through that year. It’s quite dark but also has so much emotion in it and that can be hard to achieve without a vocal
Roberto Capuano – Move It Man – this record has stuck with me since I first heard it and I couldn’t figure out why until I listened with a more critical ear. I love the acoustic-sounding drums (particularly the snare) and the way the vocal contrasts with the lead synth. This song inspired me to use more acoustic drums in my own records.
Before you got into music you were a Hollywood talent agent. Did you always have music bubbling away in the background? Tell us a bit about your background and progression into working on music full time.
I definitely always had music bubbling in the background. I used to promote shows at my college and I tried my hand at production back then but didn’t quite go for it all the way. I loved being a talent agent, but I’ve always known that I am a creator at heart. I am from a small midwest town where there isn’t any entertainment presence to speak of, but I had always had artistic inclinations. I studied business in college and I always thought I would do something on the executive side in entertainment. When I graduated college I moved to LA with the sole intention to become a talent agent and when I achieved that, I eventually came to the realization that I needed to create to feel fulfilled. You can’t really have time-consuming hobbies as an agent (which is understandable, it’s a very important job and you need to give your full effort to it) and I realized that I either had to take a shot at music or just put that dream to rest forever. I chose to give it a shot, so I quit my job and got to work in the studio. It took a while to get good, but it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made and I couldn’t be happier with the outcome.
You’ve produced for Dizzee Rascal and Martin Garrix no less. How did those projects come about?
I never thought I would be a DJ, my initial intention was to produce for other artists in hip hop and pop. So, a lot of my early production background was focused on that side of things. The Dizzee Rascal one came about because he and Ocean Wisdom had a vocal that they needed a new production on so I built that out from scratch for them. I actually found it quite easy to produce because I already had the main component (the vocal) and I wanted to accent that and find sounds that would compliment their work. The Martin Garrix one is a much longer story, initially that was going to be a collab between myself and another artist, but as any artist reading this will know, sometimes songs take on a life of their own and make sense for someone else. I was very proud to be a part of that record on the production side and it’s still one of my favorite things I’ve worked on.
Release and gig-wise, how are the next months looking for you?
I actually can’t announce anything right now haha I’m sorry. But I’ve got a big show coming in Los Angeles this summer which I will be announcing soon so stay tuned for that. Next release is looking like May and I think that’s going to be another big one. I also have a ton of new records that I will be going out with in the near future, right now I’m focused on creating things and sharing this EP with the world. Stay tuned on all fronts, I’ll be announcing a lot soon so consider this me announcing my announcements (BIG THINGS COMING hahah).
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