Tell us a who you are and what you do?
My name is Joao J from Portugal, and I work on Telecom in one of the major ISPs in my country. I have a few hobbies and one of them is making what I like to call 'music'. It is nothing more than a hobby although I do wish I could do it full time but, alas, the way the world revolves around money, I cannot.

Tell us about your studio set-up/space
I work with Ableton Live and use a Keyrig 49 and an MPD 18 as hardware. I don’t have any kind of monitors or professional listening gear and it kind of shows in my work: the lack of adequate mastering.

How did you become a music producer?
In 2002 I was introduced to Portuguese hip hop and especially loving the social critique present; the courage of a few artists to disassociate them from overseas mainstream “hip hop” and trying to leave a mark by being real, revolutionary: they did not care the way people listened to them, they just wanted to be heard and even if nothing changed, they did their job. These guys were Sam the Kid, Valete, among others. I remember hearing the anime Samurai Champloo’s OST (by Fat Jon, Nujabes, etc…) back in 2004. I wondered how these brilliant artists made these beautiful songs. 7 years later, out of a whim, I installed Ableton live. 1 year after that, here I am!

Who are your biggest influences?
Early childhood I was listening to the most influential sounds in my life until today: Pink Floyd, Roger Waters solo, Led Zeppelin, Carlos Santana, Deep Purple, Phil Collins, Paul Simon.
After that, I’d have to say I was a bit influenced by Portuguese rapper and beatmaker Sam the Kid and also a little bit by Nujabes, Fat Jon, Tsutchie, Massive Attack.
Also, I’d have to say this: I am a music lover. I listen to loads and loads of artists and, to be fair, I believe I am influenced by everything I heard up until today, be it “good” or “bad”; we can’t help but be greatly influenced by everything that comes by our senses (an ambulance, a bird singing, the wind on a tree). I am also greatly influenced by some movie directors such as Quentin Tarantino and Guy Ritchie: their techniques in storytelling, random seeming but making absolute sense when looked at as a whole. Books, for example ones who use the device of “frame story”. Basically any kind of Art or random event which deviates from the norm and impresses because of that is my influence.

What encourages you to carry on with music?
Not much really. I love the feedback I get from friends in SC, but that alone doesn’t really empower me to continue. I love to collab, just for the sake of it, but that alone doesn’t either. I guess that, if it is external, I’d have to say “the spur of the moment”: when I feel like expressing myself with music, I do it, simple as that.

How did you come up with your style of producing?
I actually didn’t! I hate to tag music, like “this is pop”, “this is rock” and stuff like that, so when I try to express myself making music I just go with the flow. I bend and chop the sounds the way I feel I can truly relate with them. I guess rhythmically my tunes always sound the same: hip-hop-ish drumkits and bpms. I didn’t choose this approach, it’s just the only one I feel I can do. Maybe someday I’ll evolve and learn to do something else. Maybe not. Who knows, right ?

What do you think about the music industry and independent hip hop at the moment? Where do you think things are going in the next few years?
Firstly, I wish our society would evolve into something that didn’t obsess about money. Everything money touches is corrupted. I don’t really care if I offend anyone with that statement, just bear in mind it’s the truth and also that it isn’t meant as an insult. I also work, I also get paid, so…. You get the picture. I would never sell any track I do or remix, but I think I might accept donations if I ever got to that point with my music. That said, I think the music industry has met it’s end sometime ago. We all know, their purpose: making money. While other ways of spreading music become available, we don’t have to subject to any rules anymore: we don’t need them. They know this and there are still a lot of people in the world who are nothing more than sheep, when it comes to listening to music (corrupt radio, corrupt TV, etc) but more and more people are starting to understand what music is really all about: communication, expression, truth. In the next few years, we will witness a change, that is certain. Will it be censorship ? Will it be freedom ? I really don’t know, but one thing is certain: we live in the most interesting of times, change is imminent and we will watch it happen; I wouldn’t trade that for nothing.

What have you been listening to recently?
Artist BT, album ”If the Stars are Eternal So are You and I“, nonstop.

Biggest personal music achievement?
Starting to produce music, expressing myself. I’m still very new at this, there’s not much I can say I achieved but for personal growth.

Tell us about your new EP you are working on with Kiowa
I’m releasing an EP with my good friend and awesome musician Kiowa (http://soundcloud.com/kiowa). It’s probably going to be a 4track EP with original songs by Kiowa followed by my re-edits of his songs. We’re gonna make it available for free on bandcamp. I’m really excited, because this is my first true release.

Any last words?
Good luck to you Conflict, you’re gonna make it big! Namaste to everyone who reads this, peace, love, truth. Expression