In this edition of Sonic Architects, Omar discusses the struggle to keep your authentic voice intact on major records, why he believes a little gatekeeping in production might not be a bad thing, and the art of making vivid, dark, and imperfect beats.
My name is Omar Guetfa, and I’m based in Austin, Texas. The beats I feel closest to are vivid, dark, and imperfect.
Most definitely Private Landing and Hitek Tek. There’s also a record I did for Gunna with Marshmello that made its way around leak communities (booo).
Private Landing. When music passes through so many hands, your voice can get lost in the mix. Samples get chopped, keys get added.
But with Private Landing, the sample I made was preserved—BPM, key, arrangement. Everything I created is in there, speaking for me. We fight so hard to have our voices cut through, and that’s one where I helped define the sound of the track.
Grateful to Cardo, Derek, Sickamore, and Rob for hearing the kid out.
From my limited perspective as a guest in the rap space, I think it’s a double-edged sword. A lot of the originators of rap come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, so removing that financial barrier to entry is ultimately a net positive. We need more voices from those communities to continue defining the genre.
On the other hand, it’s harder to gate-keep, and I believe some gatekeeping is good. Seeing the producing space get diluted by people who only superficially embody the culture can be tough.
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