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We haven't unleashed all of the Millaze remixes featuring Andrei Legend, but Slip Away (Andrei Legend Remix) has gotten such a response that we wanted to share the backstory behind this Pittsburgh producer - right now! From MIC intern to one of the most innovative remix producers MIC has found in the burgh, here's his story and what you can expect from him in the future (here's a clue: more Millaze remixes, and an EP of his own. Yeah boi.)
1) Who is Andrei Legend?
Andrei Legend is my producer name (and potentially) all-around stage name. I started out as Legendary Beats and eventually switched over as I realized I needed something more personal in what I want to be known as. I have been making beats for about 11 years and have worked with a wide variety of artists, both industry and local. Over the last couple years I’ve started engineering artists and it has helped me grow tremendously. I have also began to dabble in making my own solo songs over my own beats (for now) and hope to refine them to the point that I might release them at some point in the future.
2) How did you start working with Millaze/MIC?
I started working with MIC originally as an internship my junior year of college. I was responsible for keeping in contact with artists and digitally interviewing them to get a sense of who they are, where they’ve been and where they plan to go. These interviews were then published on the website in order to promote the artists.
Since Emily knew I was a passionate producer, she had me remix a couple of her songs that really challenged both how I make music and what I make. They were a different style than anything I had worked on, and I learned a lot simply by giving them a shot because they required I forget everything I knew, and try a whole new approach. This, coupled with collaborating with a different type of musician than I was used to led to even better results I could have hoped for.
Normally, I would be in the studio working “on the fly” so to speak, but with Emily it wasn’t an in-person relationship which meant that every musical step in the process had to be calculated and that taught me a great deal about communication and having a clear idea of the type of music you want to make. Given the uncertainty in making new music, it is important to not be afraid to give new things a shot, as long as you have a plan B.
3) Where does your music inspiration lie? How/why/when did you get started in music?
My inspiration in music lies in Usher’s 2004 smash hit, “Yeah” which took the country (and myself) by storm. I liked his voice when I first heard it but after hearing Ludacris’s verse, I was hooked. I started devouring his entire discography and then branched out to more and more rappers. Some years later, I began creating my own extremely amateur sounding beats in FL 7 and never looked back.
I tried rapping a little at first, but I found beatmaking much more rewarding as in a matter of an hour or two, I could create a whole soundscape for (what I thought at the time to be) a hit song. I grew up listening to underground hip hop which at the time was heavily influenced by 90’s golden era hip hop, which explains why most of my beats for the next few years would fit right in under a Big L acapella. Then as high school rolled around I started to socialize more and discovered trap music. This completely redefined my whole career as it opened up a world of possibilities. Suddenly I was part of the “new wave.”
From there, I began emailing and DMing rappers incessantly, sending hundreds of emails to hundreds of artists a day for years. This eventually netted me my first placement ever as well as my first industry placements. After that, I turned my attention to the local scene and began networking within Pittsburgh and producing for every rapper I could. I now work as an audio engineer in my free time and get the opportunity to work with a lot of local artists on a regular basis.
4) What makes you unique as a indie musician?
I think what makes me unique is my sound choice. Typically there will be a chord progression or melody that is universal to hip hop; it’s just the current “sound” at the time. But I hate stagnation, even for a second and so I will be constantly looking for the latest new buzzing artists in any genre and try my hand at building on top of their sound. This often results in some really unique but at the same time familiar beats. Furthermore, the fact that I put my own twist on whatever “sound” I’ve been interested in lately means that there is a wide variety in the kinds of beats I make. I have made boom bap, EDM, trap, r&b, and even a mix of those. What also helps is my interest in other types of music, as mentioned above. I am an avid fan of deep house, progressive metal and post hardcore rock and I believe these influences are unlike those of any other producer.
5) What are some of your struggles as an indie musician, and how do you use the IMBM to help you handle them?
Some of my struggles, particularly as a producer, is getting credit and getting paid. Far too often rappers just assume they have free reign over your beats because you want to work with them and will sometimes be flaky about paying you or giving you credit. The IMBM has given me a clear direction about what I want from my career so I am not focused on minute things like getting paid if it means that there is promotion for my own beats involved. There is an opportunity cost associated with every move I make as a producer, and I’ve learned when to focus on which goals, as I’ve noticed that some of my biggest records were not ones I got paid for.
6) Share your favorite past projects, and your current ones!
Thus far my favorite project is this one, I did with my former boss (I interned for him as an engineer) who is an artist named $toney (formerly Norman Dean). He is an engineer that has worked with Jimmy Wopo, Wiz Khalifa, Rae Sremmurd, Project Pat of 3 6 Mafia, Mac Miller, Riff Raff and many more.
EP I engineered and produced most of for a good friend, CEO 50 who runs his own label called Fly High Records - here.
And these are my favorite singles:
Ill by Famous Dex and Ghetty
Man Down by Tony Moxberg and Jim Jones
King of the Burgh by Jimmy Wopo
7) Anything else?
In the future I plan to release an EP or two with my favorite songs that I’ve produced as well as songs featuring me rapping or singing. I don’t have a set time table for each of these but the plan is to just keep creating content until I feel like I have a good selection that is ready to be presented. I am extremely grateful to be a part of the local music scene and I hope that by working with the unbelievably talented musicians here in the city, I will be able to bring the new sound of Pittsburgh to the rest of the world.
We haven't unleashed all of the Millaze remixes featuring Andrei Legend, but Slip Away (Andrei Legend Remix) has gotten such a response that we wanted to share the backstory behind this Pittsburgh producer - right now! From MIC intern to one of the most innovative remix producers MIC has found in the burgh, here's his story and what you can expect from him in the future (here's a clue: more Millaze remixes, and an EP of his own. Yeah boi.)
1) Who is Andrei Legend?
Andrei Legend is my producer name (and potentially) all-around stage name. I started out as Legendary Beats and eventually switched over as I realized I needed something more personal in what I want to be known as. I have been making beats for about 11 years and have worked with a wide variety of artists, both industry and local. Over the last couple years I’ve started engineering artists and it has helped me grow tremendously. I have also began to dabble in making my own solo songs over my own beats (for now) and hope to refine them to the point that I might release them at some point in the future.
2) How did you start working with Millaze/MIC?
I started working with MIC originally as an internship my junior year of college. I was responsible for keeping in contact with artists and digitally interviewing them to get a sense of who they are, where they’ve been and where they plan to go. These interviews were then published on the website in order to promote the artists.
Since Emily knew I was a passionate producer, she had me remix a couple of her songs that really challenged both how I make music and what I make. They were a different style than anything I had worked on, and I learned a lot simply by giving them a shot because they required I forget everything I knew, and try a whole new approach. This, coupled with collaborating with a different type of musician than I was used to led to even better results I could have hoped for.
Normally, I would be in the studio working “on the fly” so to speak, but with Emily it wasn’t an in-person relationship which meant that every musical step in the process had to be calculated and that taught me a great deal about communication and having a clear idea of the type of music you want to make. Given the uncertainty in making new music, it is important to not be afraid to give new things a shot, as long as you have a plan B.
3) Where does your music inspiration lie? How/why/when did you get started in music?
My inspiration in music lies in Usher’s 2004 smash hit, “Yeah” which took the country (and myself) by storm. I liked his voice when I first heard it but after hearing Ludacris’s verse, I was hooked. I started devouring his entire discography and then branched out to more and more rappers. Some years later, I began creating my own extremely amateur sounding beats in FL 7 and never looked back.
I tried rapping a little at first, but I found beatmaking much more rewarding as in a matter of an hour or two, I could create a whole soundscape for (what I thought at the time to be) a hit song. I grew up listening to underground hip hop which at the time was heavily influenced by 90’s golden era hip hop, which explains why most of my beats for the next few years would fit right in under a Big L acapella. Then as high school rolled around I started to socialize more and discovered trap music. This completely redefined my whole career as it opened up a world of possibilities. Suddenly I was part of the “new wave.”
From there, I began emailing and DMing rappers incessantly, sending hundreds of emails to hundreds of artists a day for years. This eventually netted me my first placement ever as well as my first industry placements. After that, I turned my attention to the local scene and began networking within Pittsburgh and producing for every rapper I could. I now work as an audio engineer in my free time and get the opportunity to work with a lot of local artists on a regular basis.
4) What makes you unique as a indie musician?
I think what makes me unique is my sound choice. Typically there will be a chord progression or melody that is universal to hip hop; it’s just the current “sound” at the time. But I hate stagnation, even for a second and so I will be constantly looking for the latest new buzzing artists in any genre and try my hand at building on top of their sound. This often results in some really unique but at the same time familiar beats. Furthermore, the fact that I put my own twist on whatever “sound” I’ve been interested in lately means that there is a wide variety in the kinds of beats I make. I have made boom bap, EDM, trap, r&b, and even a mix of those. What also helps is my interest in other types of music, as mentioned above. I am an avid fan of deep house, progressive metal and post hardcore rock and I believe these influences are unlike those of any other producer.
5) What are some of your struggles as an indie musician, and how do you use the IMBM to help you handle them?
Some of my struggles, particularly as a producer, is getting credit and getting paid. Far too often rappers just assume they have free reign over your beats because you want to work with them and will sometimes be flaky about paying you or giving you credit. The IMBM has given me a clear direction about what I want from my career so I am not focused on minute things like getting paid if it means that there is promotion for my own beats involved. There is an opportunity cost associated with every move I make as a producer, and I’ve learned when to focus on which goals, as I’ve noticed that some of my biggest records were not ones I got paid for.
6) Share your favorite past projects, and your current ones!
Thus far my favorite project is this one, I did with my former boss (I interned for him as an engineer) who is an artist named $toney (formerly Norman Dean). He is an engineer that has worked with Jimmy Wopo, Wiz Khalifa, Rae Sremmurd, Project Pat of 3 6 Mafia, Mac Miller, Riff Raff and many more.
EP I engineered and produced most of for a good friend, CEO 50 who runs his own label called Fly High Records - here.
And these are my favorite singles:
Ill by Famous Dex and Ghetty
Man Down by Tony Moxberg and Jim Jones
King of the Burgh by Jimmy Wopo
7) Anything else?
In the future I plan to release an EP or two with my favorite songs that I’ve produced as well as songs featuring me rapping or singing. I don’t have a set time table for each of these but the plan is to just keep creating content until I feel like I have a good selection that is ready to be presented. I am extremely grateful to be a part of the local music scene and I hope that by working with the unbelievably talented musicians here in the city, I will be able to bring the new sound of Pittsburgh to the rest of the world.
Find us @theMICmountain on social media because we, too, are humans on our phones.
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