If theres one thing we know about electronic dance music artists, it is that they love their fans.  Our friend J. Rabbit is no exception.  In fact, he loves and appreciates his supporters so much that he has provided US Dubstep, in conjunction with Media Contender, with a few exclusive tunes available for free download!  Plus, J. Rabbit answered some exclusive questions for us here at U.S. Dubstep to give our U.S. Dubstep bassheads an inside view at the life of J. Rabbit.  You know what time it is.  Sit back, read up, crank the bass, and share the music!

1. Tell us about you, where did you grow up, where are you living now ect. 

I grew up in South Orange County California then moved to New York City in early 2005, where I really began to develop my career.  However, now my fiancé and I have moved back to Southern California.

2. What is your opinion about “underground” as opposed to “mainstream”?  Do you believe in these classifications?  Why or why not should Dubstep/EDM go “mainstream” in the U.S.? 

I think the term “underground” is loosely used, but really, just refers to any genre of music that isn’t advertised or promoted in the way mainstream music is.  I think Dubstep and EDM has always had it’s place with American commercial use and what not, however, we’re now beginning to see it more and more.  More pop musicians are being influenced by synth work, vocoders, house beats and even Dubstep breaks.  I find it very exciting and the people who don’t find this exciting should realize that if mainstream EDM does well, then underground EDM will do well simply by default, everyone wins.

3. Originally a Drum N Bass extraordinaire, what impact do you feel your Dubstep production has on the morale of your long time Drum N Bass followers?  Do you feel that the reaction has been a positive one, advancing the Drum N Bass/Dubstep scene or have there been differing opinions encountered? 

To be honest, for the most part, hardcore Dubstep fans and hardcore drum n’ bass fans don’t venture into one another’s genre.  Some do, but most don’t.  I find it unfortunate if someone has a predisposition about a genre of music that haven’t given it a chance, but then again, if someone simply prefers 140 bpm as opposed to 174 bpm, then that’s cool.  I make electronic music, I love all kinds.  Those who like dubstep, I hope can appreciate the work I do with other genres that they might not be as fond of.

4. Do you think that the U.S. Dubstep/Drum N Bass culture will ever evolve as far as the UK in regards to popularity and acceptance of these genres in mainstream society?  Why or why not? 
I do.  I think that the combination of a halftime beat, mixed with the possibility of incorporating all different kinds of sounds, makes it a very viable form of music.  People are becoming fans of dubstep, that have not been fans of electronic music before, if you fast forward 10 years, we may be hearing very similar dubstep beats in pop music, commercials, movie trailers – oh wait, didn’t 16bit just do the trailer for transformers, maybe only fast forward 2 or 3 years.

5. Considering the amount of emerging artists in this ever evolving scene, what would be your top three unique suggestions of “Dos and Donts” that have successfully impacted your growth and achievement as “JRabbit” pushing you to the level to which you are now producing?  
1) Learn compression, multi-band compression to be specific, but when anyone asks me about ‘secrets’ I always recommend learning compression inside and out. 2) Start putting in hours – at the end of the day, I’m a firm believer in logging hours.  The more you try, the more you train your ears, and the better your tunes will sound.  Remember, once you hit 10,000 hours of doing anything, you officially become an expert. 3) Always maintain a professional attitude when shopping your tunes or when at a show, first impressions can make or break a producer sometimes, even if the tune quality is there.

6. Are there any other musical Genres or personal musical history that has deeply influenced the music you produce today?   
I played electric bass for 8 years as well as other instruments. As far as genres go, I would really have to point to “trip hop” or other down tempo tunes.  I’ve been listening to electronic music, pretty much exclusively since I was a kid, so definitely all EDM and especially old electronic music from back in the day have played their part as well.

7. If you could trade lives with any other musician in the world for one day, dead, or alive, who would it be and why?  What would you do during that one day? 
I would be Quincy Jones, and during that day, I would transcribe everything I knew about music theory and industry then email to J. Rabbit so when the next day came, I’d have advice from Quincy Jones.

8. What are some milestones and upcoming events that you would like to tell the U.S. Dubstep community about? 
Well, I just had Ministry of Sound pick up the remix I did of Benny Bennassi’s “Satisfaction” and put it out on “Sounds of Dubstep 3″ along side some other very recognizable, very talented artists.  Also, I have a tune coming out with Steve Aoki’s label “Dim Mak” this October entitled “Hello Stan”, which is kind of a friendly jab towards haters or “stans”.  Also, in October I will be joining Skrillex’s Mother Ship Tour along with many others such as Dillon Francis and Alvin Risk, it looks like it’s going to be epic.  The tour has quite the buzz, both underground and in mainstream press and blogs, and I’m quite honored to be a part of it.

9. Last words for the “JRabbit” fans and the U.S. Dubstep Community? 
Well, to my fans, just know that I love you and I’m always working hard for you, if I’m not tweeting or posting anything, it probably means I’m in the studio zoning on a snare drum or something.  Also, there are lots of things I can’t mention yet, but just know I’m working my ass off to get my music from my computer to your ear drums… by any means necessary.

FREE tracks are brought to you by Media Contender & US Dubstep.

J.Rabbit – I am Toki Remix 2011 // FREE DOWNLOAD

J.Rabbit – Mistadobilina Remix v3 // FREE DOWNLOAD

J.rabbit – mr. balloon hands v5 // FREE DOWNLOAD

Interview : Andrew Jones // Photos & Art : Steven Pahel

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