NFX: Please tell us a little about yourself. Where are you from? How young are you? etc.

RJ: First of all, thanks a lot for the interview.  I've looked through your site and watched your videos and I really like what you are doing for your community of upcoming producers.   Its places like this where I learned a whole lot of technical information so I'm happy to "give back" for what that's worth.  I am 27 years too old but I feel like I'm still 17.  I'm from Kentucky.

NFX: I know you started out playing piano at a young age can you tell us about how you discovered music and what your early influences were?

RJ: I really just started playing with a toy (key word: toy) keyboard when I was younger.   The thing had one or two octaves on it and you couldn't play more than two notes on it at the same time but I wore it out.  I started trying to play little jingles from TV, or simple songs like "Mary had a little lamb".   At around the third grade, a family friend that played guitar would have jam sessions with me - we'd play stuff like "Money" from Pink Floyd.   And sometimes we'd just turn on the classic rock station and jam out to it.  I wasn't very good at the time, but he taught me the importance of timing as well as just having fun with music.

NFX: When and how did you know you had a talent for music?

RJ: In middle school, I started to understand that what I was doing wasn't the norm for kids my age.   I was never on the level of a prodigy kid or anything like that, but I really just loved writing music and had no problem spending hours creating arrangements on my Yamaha PSR-500.   I enjoyed normal activities too - mainly swimming and basketball with the guys.

NFX: How did you discover your appreciation of hip hop?

RJ: In high school, most of my friends were rap fans.  I was always the guy who would say, "OK, time for some real music" and I'd throw a Pink Floyd CD in which usually wouldn't last long.   I guess after countless hours and hours of hearing Tupac, Snoop, Outkast (the early Aliens CD was awesome), and other good stuff, I began to appreciate what those producers were doing.   Looking past my dislike of the terrible lyrics and bad messages that some of those songs conveyed, I began to hear the music behind it.  I'm very thankful for those friends playing those CD's now because with my rock n' roll goggles on (I still love rock); I was too biased to appreciate hip-hop on my own.

NFX: Many people question whether you're putting on an act in your videos. Silly hats, thick glasses, friendly humorous attitude. What people can't question is that you make heat with your beats. Regardless, it's obvious that you don't fit the stereo type for a hiphop head. Personally I think it's great. Do you think this can work against you in a culture that often defines itself by negative images (ie. thugs, gangstas, pimps, etc)?

RJ: Let em question all they want!  That's okay.   I don't mind and I'm not surprised.  And to your question - I think there are a lot more like myself (maybe not as goofy) behind the scenes in music that you never hear about. I don't expect to be on the front-lines of the hip-hop scene, but I would like to play a part in some type of music production.

NFX: Where would you like to go in your musical career say 5 years from now, where is your ideal situation?

RJ: My ideal situation is making a living only doing music.  But what it comes down to is that I have fun with music regardless of whether I'm getting paid for it or not.   The money would be a great plus, but mainly being able to focus more on music would be the awesome part.  Who knows?   Either way, I'm always going to play to some degree and enjoy myself.  If you play music at all, please understand how lucky we humans are to be able to create and enjoy music.

NFX: One of the things that impresses me most is that you have a very good grasp on almost every type of element. From drums to keyboards to guitar to synth to sound effects you appear to have mastered their usage. How did you become so proficient at them?

RJ: Wow, thanks!  Seriously, this means a lot coming from a fellow producer.  The great thing about electronic music is that there is a growing trend where emulating certain instruments (brass, guitar, drums) is becoming more tasteful and acceptable.   Sometimes I just scroll through all the instruments on my keyboard and try to play different instruments to make them sound more authentic and acceptable.   You can learn a lot when you put those headphones on and zone in for a while.

NFX: Your songs have great jazzy and funky rhythms and pretty much stand on their own without vocals. Do you have Timbaland, Scott Storch, Pharrel and Dr. Dre tied up in your basement? :)

RJ: Haha, again, thanks!  I love all of those producers and really appreciate what they can do.   They inspire me to create a cleaner and simpler sound - something I'm always striving for.  

NFX: Can you tell us how you start writing a new song? Drums first? Melody? something else?

RJ:  If I'm itching to just play, I create a really simple beat pattern in FL Studio (something better than an annoying metronome to keep my timing), then I come back to polish it later after I've gotten whatever was in my system out.   And sometimes it can go the other way around.  I don't think there is a "right" way to do it.  But if you've got a tune in your head and you want to get it recorded, do that as fast as possible - don't stress on the details until you get what's in your head out.  I still struggle with this part, but in general, it's the way to go.

NFX: There are people who hear music in their head before they play it. Others just have a feeling at the moment or have lucky accidents when jamming. Where do you fall into that picture?

RJ: Great questions, friend.  All of the above applies to me but if I were to pick one, I'd say that lucky accidents are what occur the most.   One thing leads to another.  When you have one really small lucky accident, you can be more mechanical about it and build on that idea to finish the song.

NFX: From the videos I have seen, I can tell you use a Triton and you also have FL Studio. Can you tell us a bit more about your setup? Hardware and software you use? What plug-ins do you use most?

RJ: I use a Korg Triton LE which was actually not my first choice, just what I could afford at the time.   Thankfully, it's got some pretty good sounds on it.  I use a lot of plugins, mainly various free VST instruments.  Every long once in a while, I'll get on kvraudio.com and try to find as many new free VST instruments as I can.  I've built a lot of my sound library from free stuff.

Lately I try to play more "live" stuff where I'm recording into a wav editor (from the Triton) and then placing those recordings into FL Studio.   It might not be timed as well as when I click the notes in FL Studio, but it gives the beat a more natural feel to it.  Even a good beat can benefit from shifting the timing up a little on your hi-hats and snare.   A few very carefully placed timing variations can go a long way in making your beats sound more natural.

NFX: If you had to take your experiences and pick one, what would say has had the most influence in your skill as a musician?

RJ: When I was a senior in high school, a friend recommended I join the school's marching band.   I was skeptical because I didn't know how to read music and I didn't think I would fit in with their music - or with the band kids.  It turned out, I met a ton of really cool people in that band and after they heard me sit in there and play the keyboard a few times, they actually allowed me to join and write my own solos for songs.   Their whole routine was based on jazz which was very enlightening for me.  I was really appreciated there for my abilities and that event inspired me to keep getting better years after high school was over.

NFX: your recent CD is really great. Is this your first release as an artist? If not please tell us more about your previous ones.

RJ: I have never published anything to the degree in which I did with that CD.  All of my other stuff was kept pretty low-key.   Some of it, I plan on going back and developing more for future releases.

NFX: Have you (or are you) in a band or do you collaborate with others on your music? If so, where can we hear some more of the RJ music?

RJ: I have done some collabs in the past, but nothing very notable.  Mainly simple stuff that helped me get some experience with working with others musically.   I wish I had more time for collabs lately.  I get a few offers here and there, but usually don't have the time unfortunately.  

NFX: What projects can we look forward to in the future from you?

RJ: Right now, I'm just getting ready to start focusing on producing more tracks.  Selling my music and keeping up with the youtube thing has taken up a lot of my free time, but I'm ready to get back in the game. :)

NFX: Have you upgraded your 56k modem to DSL, Cable or FIOS yet? :)      [note: Ronald raps about his beloved 56k modem on his album.]

RJ: Haha, yep!  I'm running on a high-speed 10MB cable modem now!

NFX: Is there anything else that the world should know about Ronald Jenkees that we don't see on Youtube?

RJ: To those who may be interested, I would like to offer just a few words of advice.  Its okay if you don't crank out beats in 1 to 2 hrs.  I NEVER crank out completed beats in 1 to 2 hrs.  Never.   I always come back a day later and sometimes spend hours on just a few bars of the whole beat.  Sometimes I don't even have anything to show for it! :)   But the point is, slow down and put all the time you want to into a track.  It's better to take a long time and have just a handful of great beats than it is to fill up a lengthy soundclick page with so-so stuff.   If even you do this just every once in a while, try slowing it down and homing in on the little details of the track.  It's very rewarding when you can just relax, take your time, and focus on the small stuff.   The small stuff can set a beat apart from a lot of other ones.  I don't claim to be a master beat-maker or anything, but maybe my advice can help some that feel rushed with their production.   Slow down, focus, and have fun with it.

A huge thank you to Ronald for giving his time to Warbeats and blessing us with a great interview!

Ronald's CD can be purchased here: http://www.ronaldjenkees.com/

Watch his videos here:http://www.youtube.com/ronaldjenkees