We recently sat down with one of the leaders of the Organic & Progressive sounds for a friendly chat.
It’s always a pleasure to welcome the highest level of artistry to this space. In the last year we’ve had countless interviews with some of the best acts in the world of Dance music. And today is no exception. We had the opportunity to have a profound talk with a guy who’s been soundtracking our afternoons for a long time now (proof here). His name? Wassu.
With a career spanning well over a decade, Wassu has positioned himself atop the New York House scene year after year. And with his first-ever release on Beatport, the Fabiani EP, being published by no other than the prestigious Where The Heart Is, you know his tunes have equalled quality from very early on. Subsequent — and frequent — appearances on labels such as Anjunadeep, The Soundgarden, Silk, and DAYS like NIGHTS, can only further confirm that statement.
In fact, his latest release, ‘Star Safari‘ alongside HAUMS, was carefully selected by Lee Burridge as track seven of the recent Spring Sampler compilation of his All Day I Dream imprint. Painted in his signature shade of groove, Wassu’s contribution to the album is one of its standout tunes. And this is only one of a handful of bombs he’s unveiled lately.
So, all of this to say, an interview was well overdue. And we made it come true. So, if you’re looking to read about Wassu’s ways when producing, how he got to where he currently is, his take on social media as marketing, and much, much more, don’t take your eyes off the page, for we bring you our latest chat with the one and only Wassu.
The Interview
(Please note, the bolded text represents a question, while the paragraph(s) following it represent Wassu’s answers.)
Firstly, huge congrats on the release of Star Safari!
Thanks!
Would you mind sharing a bit of a story with us as to how the track came about?
Sure. So, Brandon (HAUMS) actually sent me an idea, I think this was two to three years ago at this point. He sent me the idea of the track with honestly a lot of the main parts filled out, but I think it was just a 16-bar or 32-bar loop or something.
And once I heard it, the first label that I immediately thought of was All Day I Dream. It had the synthy elements, the big climax at the drop and the big synth stab that you hear. He asked me to collaborate on it, and it was a no-brainer for me because I knew exactly where I wanted to take the record and what destination I had in mind specifically for the song.
So I think that was 2023. And then I finished and arranged it pretty quickly and sent it to Lee at the end of that year. Again, Brandon (HAUMS) already had the sauce in his idea, and it was just a matter of putting the pieces of the puzzle together, adding some ear candy, and arranging it out to make a hit.
I see. Well, this happened a while ago, but if you still recall things about its production, were there any unconventional or straight up weird production techniques used while making this track?
Nothing in particular, I don’t think. Although I have started going into parallel compression again with my drums, I think that was the first track where, instead of using Gullfoss on my master chain, I was using the Gullfoss master plugin on my master chain. So I think that made a difference as well.
But no, not in particular. I’d say just parallel compression. And the break, I think the break is really interesting because it’s just so long and there’s so much tension in there, leading into the drop, all the little things in terms of automation, gain staging and everything, is just really important and what makes the track take off right when the drop hits.
Now more of a general question, are there any artists you would credit that influenced your sound up to this point? It could also be non-Electronic, by the way.
Oh, yeah, definitely. Guy J for one, for sure. He’s probably my favorite producer and DJ at the moment. Also love what Tim Green’s doing on the Organic side of things. In terms of stuff outside of the genre, John Mayer is somebody that I really, really love. Looking forward to seeing him again sometime soon.
I actually saw him with my parents in the fall of 2023, and that forever changed my perspective on music. Nils Frahm is another one that I saw in May of 2023 for the first time. I’m actually going with my girlfriend to the same venue to see him again two years later — in a couple of weeks, the second week of May.
Obviously, Lee’s done such a great thing with the label and he’s always been one of my favorites (for over the last decade). Those are my main influences right now, I would say. I don’t think you’re surprised by any of that.
No, but I am pleased to know about Guy J because, well, for one, he’s a bit of my reference as well, but also because he’s my best friend Rama’s number one DJ too. Back to the song, what does it feel like to work with All Day I Dream? We’re aware this is not your first song released with them.
I think Lee is very inclusive. I think the staff are also very inclusive as well. It’s kind of corny of me to say this, but it’s just one big family. It’s not that big of a community, I think, whereas you have other labels that have just so many artists on their roster, it’s somewhat hard to have that family-community-like feeling amongst one another.
But I think the biggest thing that you have to realize with All Day I Dream, specifically, if you do want to end up working with them, is that you really need to be patient sometimes. Lee’s doing everything. He’s managing a very busy tour schedule, and he’s also running the label, and he’s also A&Ring for the label as well. Sometimes it could be the case where he says he wants to sign something, and you might have to wait a year or two before it even comes out. He’s a man of his word. He releases really good music, and I think he values people who prefer to be exclusive with him and trust him with his music, if that makes sense. Patience is key. I don’t think you’re surprised by that either.
No, it’s kind of the standard process with a bunch of labels today, but I love to know ADID inside is just how ADID feels from the outside: a tightly-knit label. On to another question: what would you say is a signature element that is a must in every single track of yours? Maybe something evident, like some snare or something, or maybe something abstract, but what makes a track a proper Wassu track?
That’s tough, because I try to do things differently with each project. I do have a sound, I think. I think the arrangements are all very similar. That’s one thing that’s somewhat consistent, but I always like to try and do different things with each project. I would say the drums all sound pretty similar.
I like to include a lot of loops, but in addition to that, I like to include a drum rack on top of it, where it’s a matter of anywhere from six, seven, eight percussion hits that I arrange and sequence out over the course of either four or eight bars that repeat throughout the project. I don’t know if there’s one specific thing. I try to include a lot of hooks in something that’s memorable, so people hit that replay button on the record, but I don’t think there’s one specific… I mean, that might be a question for you!
Oh, we’re switching roles then! [laughs] I would say the percussion. Probably the drums. The percussion and the groove that you have are pretty unique. I wouldn’t be able to pinpoint what, but the combination of everything sounds very good. I think it’s the mix.
Could be that my mixdowns are pretty much the same across every track too.
Yeah, that could be because whenever I’m listening in the car and I play Spotify on shuffle mode, I know when a track is yours when it pops up. I guess the percussion is the giveaway. What’s your approach to making music? What’s your process when you sit down in the studio and just decide to start a song from scratch?
It depends, but usually I like to start with some sort of chord progression or atmosphere or melody. I usually start with everything melodic first. I think a chord progression is a really good place to start, even if you’re not using it throughout the project, because then from there you can take the root note of each chord, model your bassline after that, and come up with a rhythm on your bassline.
Obviously, you can’t just throw loops on top of one another and call it a groovy record. Everything has to work. Think of a band. When you have a band, you have a trumpet playing certain notes, and maybe there’s some call and response with them playing when the pianist plays or when the xylophone plays. Everything has to work in sync and work off one another. Based on the rhythm that you select for your bassline and your piano chords, you can then build your drums and your groove around the rhythm of those atmospheric and musical elements as well.
I think more often than not, I start with just a basic chord progression, iterate off of that chord progression, whether that’s sevenths, ninths, suspended fourths, inverting the chords to make them more interesting. Then from there, building the bassline around that and then the groove. I guess I do start my tracks all pretty similarly these days.
I get it. Do you often use — or do you ever use — these premade loops that packs come with?
I definitely do. Yeah, I’m not saying I don’t, but it’s just you have to be careful sometimes because you can chop them up or you can transient shape them so that they fit the groove a little better. That’s why it’s good to work with rolling basslines, which are just 16th note bass lines that are continuous, because pretty much any groove can fit within them. But if you have something that’s more rhythmic or syncopated, then you have to be more careful in terms of how you place your percussion hits and whatnot, because it might just start sounding a bit too cluttered if you just end up using too many loops.
I used to do that all the time. I used to only do loops, and now I’m gravitating towards using fewer loops and using my own drum sequencing because I have just a little bit more control over where things go, if that makes sense.
Yeah, it definitely makes sense. That’s one of my mistakes as well when producing. I start with percussion and then I try to fill the space with loops, but often I overfill the space.
I think that’s a big thing with new producers, they just use loops, and they think the more loops, the better. When I first started in 2016, 2017, my tracks were as many as 90 to 95 different channels. Now I think this one was no more than 50.
Cool. Do you remember a time in your career when you first had a feeling while producing, that you had something truly magical in your hands, that you were making in that moment?
Yes. ‘Messages’. When I wrote the song ‘Messages’ in 2018. It was either that or ‘Within Me’ with Mimi Page. It’s a good sign when you have an 8-bar, 16-bar loop and you’re just singing. It’s kind of a blessing and a curse because you keep playing it over in your head. You keep playing it on the computer because it just sounds so good. You have to finish it, right? You have to execute it and arrange it out. But I think that’s a good sign of when you have something special.
Those two songs are the first ones that I felt that thing you describe, and ‘Like You’ too. The three of those were all written right around the same time, summer and fall of 2018, where for each individual track, ‘Like You’, ‘Within Me’, ‘Messages’, I definitely felt that I had something special in the making.
Woah, that was a quick answer. I’ve never had someone answer so quickly.
‘Messages’ is what sticks out to me. Also, when I wrote the lead for ‘Like You’ as well, that little plucky lead, obviously Tom sang the vocals on top of it, but I knew right then and there that that was something special that we had. We’re coming up on seven years since we wrote that song, which is just insane.
That’s crazy! Now, out of everything that has come to you via your music career, what’s one thing you didn’t expect would happen and surprised you for the good?
COVID. That’s a good question. I would say COVID, man, because that’s how my relationship with Tony [McGuinness] developed, because he started supporting my music during the pandemic streams, and then I was able to get his contact information through Tom [Marsh]. I started sending music to him directly, and I don’t think that would have been the case if COVID had never happened. Same with Dave Dresden. Tim Green, too. That’s another one, because I started doing some sessions with him, too, during COVID. I just think it slowed the world down a little bit and gave me that opportunity to reach across the line and connect with some of these bigger artists.
Let’s be real. If things were just normal throughout those, call it three or four years, I don’t think I would have had the opportunity to really meet them, let alone develop a relationship with them. I mean, it sucked. It definitely sucked not going out and doing anything, but I think it gave me opportunities that I wouldn’t have had otherwise. I also had to overcome a few things, but it’s weird.
It is an interesting time to look back upon. I know this is a tough one, but if you had to pick your favourite track or tracks from your discography, which ones would it be?
I’d pick ‘Ben & Caroline’ because that one’s named after my deceased cousin. She passed away four years ago to ovarian cancer. She fought it for about three or so years, with her widow, Ben Olsen. I wrote it when she was still very much alive and fighting the good fight. And it’s just such an emotional piece, and I really put everything into it. And there’s actually a sample from her voice in the breakdown there as well. And it’s still something that I play to this day. It’s a fond memory that I have of her that I will cherish for the rest of my life. So I’d probably go with that one.
Which is also a really beautiful job that you did, because that outlives her now. That’s the beauty of music.
Yeah, it’s just crazy that it was four years ago now, you know, just wild time crazy.
COVID made time fly so much faster, I guess. I’m so sorry to hear that, man.
She fought for three entire years. It was a tough time, but she was a real fighter.
If I could give you a hug, but we’re… we’re a couple miles away.
It’s all good man, all good.
Well, we’re aware that music is not your only job, unlike many of the artists we often talk to. What do you do outside the Dance world? How have you been able to juggle both lives?
I work in software sales and finance specifically. I’m in the office two to three days a week in the city. It sometimes can be quite a lot because, you know, I’ll end up going to bed really late because I really only have the opportunity to work on music from the hours of, like, 6:30 PM to, 12, or 1 AM.
And then on top of that, I have a very serious running hobby. So, you know, that takes up at least an hour to an hour and a half of my time every single day. So I think it’s just about balance. I run outside without my phone. Sometimes I don’t even listen to music at all, where I can just decompress and let my mind roam for those 60 to 90 minutes, I think it’s helpful.
Running really keeps my sanity in balancing both because honestly, sometimes I do feel really burnt out. When I go home to Richmond, my childhood place, it’s just so quiet and so slow that you can actually hear yourself think and allow yourself to unplug and fully relax.
It’s really hard to do that in New York these days. So I have to find a way to make that happen. Running is certainly helpful, and having Liberty State Park right outside my doorstep is a good way to unplug.
Thank you. Now, have you ever regretted living life the hard way? I mean, most people just survive off of the nine-to-five and call it a day, but you keep pushing after the office to pursue a further goal. Have you ever had doubts about that decision?
Yeah, definitely. I think everyone has, right? Life is just not necessarily a straight line, whether it’s pursuits in corporate America or music or any sort of performing arts. More often than not, you’re taking three steps forward and sometimes four steps back or two steps forward and one step back. Success is not a straight line from point A to point B. There’s ups and downs, as is with anything in life. So, yeah, those doubts definitely creep into my head.
And I think you just got to take a step back. I’m not doing this to be famous or to be a public figure. I’m doing this because I think writing music and being in front of my laptop with this view is so therapeutic, as is being on a dancefloor and playing my music and testing it to hundreds, if not thousands of people. It’s a very therapeutic thing and it’s something that not every person has the opportunity to do. So I think you have to cherish those moments, take the small wins when you can and just keep moving forward.
Well, it’s a cold world out there in the music industry.
It’s so brutal. You have to weed out the genuine people out from the ones that are only trying to benefit from you. And I think having a healthy balance between your network of music professionals that you’re close with versus, you know, your regular folks that have known you from the get-go, when you first started getting into this. Having that balance is important.
Would you say there’s a magical formula to getting your music heard by the right people? Is there a way to “cut the line”, to get professional sounding music and also sign to labels?
Yes, I think the power of the record label is not as strong as it is now as it was, call it 10, 15 years ago. And I think the big reason for that is social media. There was a survey that came out. I forget who published it, but basically, if you look 10, 15 years ago, people were discovering new music via guest mixes or SoundCloud or free downloads, that channel. And now, the most popular way in which people are identifying and discovering new unreleased music is via TikTok. I think that’s why you have the boom of influencers these days, because the Instagram algorithm or the TikTok algorithm favors them to become a public figure.
So I’d say, use that to your advantage. Obviously, focus on the music. If the music isn’t good, it’s not necessarily going to take off on socials, but you’re seeing a lot more independent artists now because they realize that the best way to promote their music is on social media, and they have free autonomy to push and promote the release as they see fit.
I don’t think it’s a shortcut per se, but if you’re consistent on social media and you keep pushing your music and you keep focusing on making good quality music, then the rest will kind of take care of itself. It’s a long journey. For some people it’s shorter than for others, but usually it’s quite a long journey. Again, social media is super important nowadays. You could create a dummy TikTok account, make a really good song, build the right hype around it, and it could take off out of nowhere basically.
It’s a blessing and a curse. Social media is. But having that tool disposable at your fingertips is something that we didn’t have back in the 2000s or the 90s, you had to go out, you had to network, you had to play, you had to be professional, you had to get your music heard live and in person versus, you know, I could just record a TikTok in my freaking living room here and there could be a chance that tens of thousands of people could hear it or watch that video.
Sometimes all it takes is a raccoon spinning in circles. [Laughs] Second to last question. If you could go back in time, say 10 years, five years, any amount of years you’d find interesting, and meet your past self, what would you tell your younger self? Were you worrying about something that wasn’t really necessary?
Hmm. I would say start the production journey earlier. Like, “Why not start now?”. And maybe, I feel like everyone says this, but slow down on the partying. I was in my early to mid twenties at that time. But I think I could have slowed down the partying a little bit and focused more on my career, whether that’s my corporate career or music. I don’t think I really, really started dabbling in making music until 2016. So nine years ago now. I did have interest in starting when I was in college around 2012 and 2013, but I just continued DJing, I never actually sat down and downloaded a copy of Logic until 2016. So I probably would have shifted my priorities a little. But hey, we’re only young once.
Oh, and the other thing I would mention is, don’t worry about labels so much. I used to even do that right before COVID, call it 2018, 2019. But now I just think that’s kind of stupid. I think you should just focus on writing really good music, developing relationships, putting yourself out there, meeting people, networking, and the rest will take care of itself rather than the mentality of “I need to sign on this label by this time, and I need to do X, Y, and Z”. Looking back, I think that’s just silly. You should focus on writing good quality music and you should just focus on being the best possible version of yourself.
Especially with social media, as I mentioned before, you don’t necessarily need a label nowadays. I mean, look at Rinzen with his Nelly Furtado bootleg, right? He just made it on a whim. He was just bullshitting around, and posted it as a free download. And then he made it happen as an official label release. It just goes to show the power of the internet.
It does. I mentioned the ‘Pedro’ thing a while ago and yeah, that actually turned official too. And Raffaella Carra is the greatest Italian pop singer of all time. And she passed away in 2018, if I remember correctly. And so the ‘Pedro’ case is super powerful, because she was not even alive to approve it. It was her surviving team. Well, final question then. How do you see yourself in a few years? What do you wish will be your legacy as Wassu? What do you want people to remember you by?
Oh, that’s hard. Just as a down to Earth, corporate America working DJ and producer, just trying to live his life through his passion project and pursue his dream of playing his music to dance floors worldwide, which I’ve had the opportunity of doing so in China, India, Mexico, the States, obviously Canada, Europe, and Amsterdam, among other places. So just like continuing to live that dream and while balancing a busy personal life and a busy corporate career as well.
I think you don’t necessarily have to live this glorified Instagram, social-media-pushed career as a DJ, the lifestyle shoved in your face at all times of the day. It’s not always perfect and beautiful like that. There’s plenty of artists out there that are juggling both music and something more ordinary. And I just want to reiterate to people that it’s OK to be doing both. And, you know, it allows you to use your corporate career to finance and pursue the life that you want. I think that’s how I want to be remembered.
Well, that’s beautiful. That’s unconventional as well. Thank you so much. Although I lied. I have one last question. What can we, and the world, expect from Wassu in the coming months? What’s starting to appear over the horizon?
Well, I’ll keep my lips shut for the most part for that surprise factor, but I’ll be playing all over the States soon, starting with New York, San Francisco and San Diego. Some weeks ago I played Tulum, too, so maybe, just maybe, I’ll be back again later in the season. And regarding releases, I have close to 15 tracks lined up, coming on major record labels. The first one is coming sooner than you think!
15?! That’s phenomenal. Also impressive. We’ll definitely keep our eyes peeled. Well, that’s a wrap!
-End of interview-
Final Words
Well, that was fun. Thank you so much Wassu for the warm chat. I love it when, during calls like this, the conversation gets to a point where it doesn’t feel like an interview anymore, and it’s instead just an exchange, a deep dive into endless topics but with an angle that doesn’t really put pressure on the situation.
Hopefully the time comes soon when I’ll see this lad somewhere around the world and catch up again. Genuinely such a cool laid-back dude. And for all of you looking to build a career in the music industry, I think we can learn a thing or two about Wassu’s approach to balancing a dayjob with production. Re-read this piece a couple of times whenever you’re feeling a bit under, see if it helps. It’s surely helped me.
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