Posted on: January 29, 2016 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Today, we are speaking with Kitchener, Ontario’s Jin .B.. Can you give us a little background information about yourself?

My name is DaNeng Vang, currently 23 years old and been rapping for three years now. Born in Kitchener, Ontario, Living in many areas of Kitchener, Waterloo I was able to experience some hardships growing up. Most of the content that I write and rap are about my struggles in the entertainment field over the past 5-6 years, and personal stories that made me who I am today.JIn .B.I graduated from Conestoga College from the Television Broadcasting course back in 2012, soon after using my skillset to help the talents in Kitchener, Ontario, this led me to self teach myself how to record vocals and soon after write and rap.

You have just released “Mask”; what was the writing/creative and recording process for the single like?

The writing and creative process for “Mask” was quite easy, this song was inspired by the many failures I’ve had during my time in the entertainment field. “Mask” is a song about loss of identity, not knowing who you really are because of how much a person changes over the years. How change can corrupt the mind.

Recording “Mask” was the challenge of the whole process, I wanted the song to have a certain feel, even if it meant weeks of recording the same lines over until I felt it was right.

How has Kitchener and Canada generally helped and hindered your career?

Kitchener is primarily rock and punk based so it’s extremely hard for someone like me to find a place to promote my music. Toronto has been a great help on the other hand as most of my connections come from the Greater Toronto Area. These connections introduced me to promotional sites such as “Reverbnation” and “Soundcloud” which helped me build a small following.

To get into a bit of the technical, what does your recording set up look like (what do you use to record, what are your favorite instruments)?

For my recording set up I use a Steinberg CI1 USB audio interface with an Audio Technica AT 2020 Cardioid Condenser Mic. I use a Mac Book Pro, Logic Pro X and sometimes I’ll use Adobe Audition. This is my set up, nothing fancy, basic basement studio set up but putting out amazing quality music.

Which artists are the greatest influences for you and your music? Is there a dream lineup of performers that you would like to perform with if given the chance?

My music since day one has been greatly influenced by Eminem and 50 cent. These two artistes are lyrically amazing, I love the realism and emotions that they emit through there music. The passion for what they do, the drive, the love, its amazing how with each and every song that they release, everything is there and its inspiring to listen to.

Some other artistes that I would like to name that have influenced my music and my life greatly are TL and LP, DeathRhyme and David Yang. These artistes are amazing and the messages they bring to the table is greatly inspiring. Talking about the struggle of being an artistes to dealing with life.

If ever given the opportunity I would love to perform or even collaborate with TL and LP, DeathRhyme and David Yang. These artistes are fellow Hmong’s who have struggled to get where they are now. Influences on the youth of our generation, this is why with my music I want to be an inspiration just like my fellow Hmong artistes.

How has your style evolved and changed over the time since you first started performing?

The evolution of my style has changed quite dramatically, I was able to find “Jin .B.”, his voice and his own unique style. When I first started rapping, I took on as many styles as I could trying to find which one was more suitable for me. Realizing that the music I was writing was my own and that I should have my own unique style.

Which sort of social media website have you had the best successes with? What about these traditionally online services are different from the traditional face to face meeting that musicians utilize?

With social media its always going to be trial and error. The two sites I use a lot are soundcloud and reverbnation. With soundcloud it’s a social media site that is primarily for music, other artistes promoting there music. As for reverbnation, this site is one of my very favorites as it has stats from your own city, region and overall. With this knowledge it is very helpful as to see what my listeners listen to on my page.

These online services are able to connect musicians from all over the world, allow more platforms for promotions and listeners from all around the world. With the traditional face to face, you’re limited to the connections you have at your hands.

What are your plans for 2016 and beyond? How can interested NeuFutur readers locate samples of your music?

As of right now, my plans for 2016 is to release my very first EP album called “Dreaming of a Reality” by sometime mid March. The EP will consist of 6-7 songs, 3 of which that have already been released and 4 which will be entirely new. I will be doing a lot more promotions this year with my new EP album and hoping to continue producing amazing music. For interested NeuFutur readers you can reach me on my soundcloud at www.soundcloud.com/jinbmusic or go to reverbnation and look for  “Jin .B.”. Thank you for the opportunity to be apart of this amazing interview.

Thank you so much for your time. Finally, do you have any additional thoughts about life and the universe for our readers?

All I have to say is, chasing a dream is never going to be easy. You will always second guess, you will always doubt and you will want to give up but don’t. Push for your dreams and live the reality you want to live. I have been doing this for 6 years and for about 5 years I made no money doing what I did, but here I am making a living off my passion.

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