Combing a wide number of genres together while binding everything under a heavy-hitting and versatile aesthetic, Bassassin is one of San Diego’s strongest rising stars. Having graduated from the Musicians Institute with a focus on Music Production and Music Business back in 2013, Bassassin has been producing professionally for over eight years, coining his own genre, thugstep.
Bassassin has produced songs alongside the likes of Waka Flocka Flame, Three 6 Mafia, and Serj Tankian, while performing at the biggest venues in California including Avalon Hollywood, The Pechanga Arena, and the Glen Helen Amphitheater. Last year, he collaborated with San Diego rap legend Mitchy Slick for the official theme song for the San Diego Padres, which earned him nominations for multiple city and state awards. Bassassin just dropped his brand new single “Slayer,” and is gearing up to release a lot more music throughout the year.
We had the pleasure of sitting down with Bassassin and picking his brains:
You just released your new single “Slayer.” Talk to us a bit about the creative process behind the song.
I wanted to create my first riddim track so I watched a few tutorial videos and got some good ideas and it wasn’t until a few months later after starting the project that I came back to it and thought it would sound good with some guitars in it. I had reached out to my former guitar teacher and asked for some slayer type guitar riffs. I even got some recordings of people screaming SLAYER. As anyone who has ever been to Slayer concert knows that is what you will hear people screaming in the parking lot before and after the show.
How did you come up with the idea to combine metal and dubstep in such as seamless way?
Metal and dubstep are my two favorite genres to listen to daily. Combining them makes sense to me musically because of the similar tempos, using low-mids as the lead, and minor scales often with repeating notes.
Looking at your discography, you certainly are big into collaborations. What is something you’re looking for when sourcing new people to collaborate with?
I’m big on collaborations especially with singers because I want to create songs not just tracks. Songs people remember. When I’m scouting for new collaborators I like to reach out to artists who I listened to as well as local San diego rappers as one of my goals is to bring San Diego hiphop to the level it needs to be in the hiphop world.
What would be one piece of advice you’d give to a younger producer who is just starting out and would like to follow in your footsteps?
One piece of advice I would give to a younger producer is to learn music theory and music business at the same time. Get an understanding of how music is made while also understanding how the music industry works. And don’t be afraid to network and ask for help from people who are already doing what you want to do.
