Lil B has been a pretty much inescapable, if contentious, presence in hip hop over the last year. With a prolific output and far reaching internet presence, the Based movement has permeated the hard to breach hip hop world with their own unique, honest and intensely creative approach. Whether you are a fan of him or not (I am not going to enter into that debate here), the one thing that people can agree on is that he has impeccable taste in producers. Clams Casino is one notable example, and he has rightfully gone on to receive a lot of recognition as an instrumental producer in his own right. However, it is Seattle-based producer Keyboard Kid that has always interested me the most. More spacious and crisp than Clams, his instrumentals have provided the perfect landscape for Lil B’s slurred, abstract rhymes on a number of tracks, evoking grand futuristic planes and unconquered virtual dimensions. That said, it is as instrumentals that his music really comes to life, afforded the freedom to diverge from the lyrical into purely sonic realms.

Since first stumbling upon his free ‘Video Games & Blunts’ mixtape last year, his nebulous, empyrean instrumentals have been a constant source of fascination to me. Removed from the restraints of the genre’s typical tropes, Keyboard Kid’s productions have expansive, immersive and emotive qualities to them that landmark the work of a fully formed artist in his own right. As he says, “If i’m sad I want to you to feel it in the music, if i’m happy and so on. A lot of my songs have a movie soundtrack like vibe to em..like u could just play my trax and put visuals to them and be done.. I try to do that with every track. That’s where i’m trying to take it, I want my songs to be like visual paintings.”

With a prolific work rate that is barely conceivable and genuine ambition to change the musical landscape, Keyboard kid is out to make an indelible mark. An impressive string of production credits, free mixtapes and EPs put out through his bandcamp seem like just the tip of the iceberg for a producer who is about to stumble on something phenomenal in his obsessive search to create.  His most recent ‘Cosmonaut EP’, which is available now for the price of some small change through his bandcamp, is a great showcase for his productions.  Over the course of ten tracks he crafts a vivid and visceral journey through a futuristic and otherworldly  dimension. From the melancholic, tangling synth lines of the title-track to the skittering 808 drum lines and jutting, electric synths of ‘In A Galaxy Long Long Ago’ or the eight minute swirling closer ‘Journey Home’, this is evidently the work of someone bigger than a list of production credits on rappers’ mixtapes. His retro-futuristic sonic vision could find touchstones in lauded artists like Kuedo, Ital Tek or Zomby. Make sure you grab the EP from his bandcamp now, and while you are at it grab hold of ‘Based In The Rain’ and ‘The Mind Is So Complex When Your Based’ as well.

With a mixtape coming out in collaboration with Mishka NYC as well as an EP slated for the ever on-point Donky Pitch label it seemed like the perfect time to catch up with him. We cornered him for an in-depth chat about honing his craft, the Based movement, and just some of his many plans for the year ahead. Keyboard Kid’s stream of consciousness communication provides an honest insight into the mind of an artist with his sights sets firmly on writing his name into the history books. Currently looking to new projects with the likes of Zomby, Clams Casino and Lil B, he is certainly on his way.

Hi, thanks for speaking to us. First up, for those that aren’t already aware of who you are and what you do can you please introduce yourself?

I go by Keyboard Kid.. The Seattlite.. NorthWest Astronaut.. NW God.. I’m a high ranking based legend in the basedworld scheme of things.. I’m Lil B’s main producer and part of his basedworld studios. I have been working with him for a few years, mainly behind the scenes providing him with beats for his albums and mixtapes since he’s started his solo career. This last year I have dropped free beat tapes like crazy on the internet…Two mixtapes. Probably about 300 trax this year. Not including the production I did for others. I make new age based experimantal hip-hop/electronic music, thas how I would classify it I guess. I blend whatever I like together pretty much. Get used to hearing bout me imma be doing this for a while. I’m getting into doin live shows as well so look out for those in 2012.

When did you first get into production and why? Was there anything in particular that made you think ‘right I want to do this’?

I first got into production like junior year of high school, goin into my senior year. That summer I pretty much downloaded a dope working version of Fl Studio – this is like in 03-04 time by the way –  so it was a super old version, like version 2, I got my hands on. I was always writing raps to instrumentals I downloaded. I remember when I heard Kanye West’s ‘Through the Wire’ instrumental.. I hadn’t even heard the song jus a leaked version of the beat I got via Napster somehow.. But anyways I loved that beat so much I would just put it on repeat and write ryhmes to it lol. I pretty much started making beats because of Kanye. I was like man I don’t care how or know how imma do it, but Imma make some sick beats like Kanye Lol. So basically I got that Fl and just started experimenting. I went for Fl as well cuz I knew 9th Wonder who is a legend was using it. So man he kinda sparked the flame in me for making beats. I was always an avid music lover tho growin up. I feel like I always wanted to do music growin up tho. I never had money for drums or nothin or the space cos we lived in apartments growin up. So I think as soon as I found a tool I could make music with which was FL it clicked and man it was over from there.

How do you think that your music has evolved to where it is now? Was there any moment when you felt you had found your own voice as a producer?

Man truly I think my style has just devoloped through hours of trial and error, always wanting to improve and push myself creatively. I get bored really fast and when my favorite artist would put music out I always want more so I kinda of subconsciously have this drive to just always be putting out new music cuz I don’t want the fans to get bored. But also I just pull my sounds from life…everything I’m into and think is cool I want my music to exude that energy. I play video games watch anime, I’m into fashion, art and all that so I think my music mashes that up. Man also growin up here in seattle has made my music have that moody feel being inside all winter and stuff. But I try to paint a picture with every song. I try to make music I would actually listen to while i’m doing certain activities. Man my style is real unorthodox..I just go by emotion truly. I’ve always had a good ear and eye for cutting edge things. I feel I am now just coming into who I want to be as a producer, just barely tho, I still have tons of growing to do so really this ain’t nothing yet. I got lots of growing to do as an artist/producer.

I guess hip hop is the foundation for your music, but a lot of what you make is certainly not just straight up hip hop in a traditional sense. Where else do you take influence from?

Yea definitely the bottom foundation would be hip-hop but I take inspiration from everywhere.. to me life is music.. if I hear a jingle on the radio with a cool melody, a commercial, a video game, I may try and mimic that in a beat. Man I take lots of inspiration from jazz..pop..lots of overseas japanese music..all the electronic stuff goin on in europe. Man with me it’s no boundaries to where I feel I can draw inspiration from. I like to take lil things from my fav artist and make them my own as well.. I love Pharrell, Kanye, 9th, Dilla. those guys all are my fav producers. Truly anybody else I end up soundin like is pure coincedence. My mind is always full of rhythms and beats like if I couldn’t get em out I’d go crazy. Like I like to just sit outside and listen by the water to the birds and ocean or hike in the woods and listen to nature.. that for some reason is like music to me and I think of lots of ideas when I just get in those environments and relax.

I’m not going to ask how you would define your sound, but do you think that there is anything that is fundamental to all the music that you make?

Yea I couldn’t begin to define my sound, I like the listeners to do that for me.. but one theme throughout is that I try to make the beats be a song by themselves a lot. If I sample somethin I want it to tell a story in the way the voices sing together or whatever. If i’m sad I want to you to feel it in the music, if i’m happy and so on. A lot of my songs have a movie soundtrack like vibe to em..like u could just play my trax and put visuals to them and be done.. I try to do that with every track. That’s where i’m trying to take it, I want my songs to be like visual paintings.

You are pretty prolific by most people’s standards having released a number of mixtapes to date. When do you work? And do you find inspiration easy to come by?

Wow me prolific, I like the way that sounds lol, but nah I just work when I can. I work full time so any chance I get to sit down and release some creativity I jus go at it..i’ll make like 5-6 beats in one sit down. Lots of late nights and long work days with little sleep. But inspiration is easy to come by as long as I don’t have too much stress blocking my creative connection. Like stress just blocks that line of energy I feel I get when I’m making music. But when I’m clear minded man it just pours out. I’ll be happy to hopefully just be able to do music full time soon if everything pans out the way I hope this next year. Wait til that happens, you’ll see me dropping music at Lil B Speeds haha.

Keyboard Kid’s The Mind Is So Complex When You’re #Based by The FADER

There is always a lot of space in your productions. Is this with vocalists in mind or just what comes naturally to you in a purely sonic sense?

I think it just comes to me in a natural way…When I make beats I already hear a song in my head – at least the frame work for one appears – so I think the beats just naturally come out with that vibe. They used to be more cluttered but as I have gotten more in tune with the music I have been able to find a nice medium I think.

You have worked with a few key rappers, but the majority of your music is instrumental. Have you always been drawn to the production side of music?

Yea I have been always drawn to production. I grew up being shy. I always thought the producers were the coolest ones tho. Like Dre being the mastermind behind all those beats being that I grew up on the west coast. SoI thought it would be cool to be in the background making hits. Like i wanted to be on some MF Doom type shit when I first started, not show my face. Pharell was super cool to me so I wanted to be that guy in the vid where people would be like ‘hey who is that guy he’s everywhere’ type thing lol. I definitely think I enjoy the music more than the words tho.

You have worked a lot with Lil B in particular. How did you guys first hook up and why do you think that your creative partnership works?

Man yea Lil B is my brother man, nothing but love and respect for him.. He was the first one that really got where I was coming from as a producer and an artist. Man at a time when I was down and nobody wanted to work with me he was down to do work. He kept me goin at thr time just sending him beats and him giving positive feedback.. Man we both had the dream to make me and him a big success. Like I wanna be the Pharrell of Basedworld you know he was like ‘your my Pharrell’. We linked up on Myspace back when he was startin his historical 150 pages of music. I just hit him with a message, a very sincere one, just saying I think me and him could make some really classic music and change the game.. so it’s like damn here we are and we are making things happen so it’s just a blessing. We just relate on the most basic level of being humans..Being young men trying to make it in the world.. As far As music goes man it’s like we be finishing each others sentences and shit, it’s crazy. We met in person when he came to Seattle to do some shows and been like fam ever since. The whole wolfpack was real cool actually.. Shout out to the wolfpack. They showed love from the jump..If I go to Cali I know I got some homies to hit up and a place to stay.

Are there any other MCs that you would like to work with?

Man I wanna work with Young L, I think we could make some out of this fuckin galaxy system type shit. Me and Stunnaman 2800 needa do some more songs. I wanna work with Spaceghost Purp.. Asap Rocky.. Pretty much I really want this #based shit to take over, all of us getting noticed. I want us to link up man and really on some young artists, young men takeover type shit. We got enough talent and what not to run things, I hope in the long run we can set all our egos aside and just continue to make history. I’m also wanting to do more music myself so as I get trax knocked out imma be reaching out to a lot of artists I want to work with. Just Know 2012 is gonna be a good year for music from the #based camp.

There is a very DIY vibe to how you get your music out, dropping free mixtapes and getting your music out there quickly. Is this how you like doing things or is it more that this is the best way for you to get your music heard?

Yea you know I like having the freedom to drop music whenever I like and not have to worry about promo and all that stuff. I like the fact that it truly rests on the music being good music, that if people like it they will tell their friends. That people will discover it and write about it. I think it’s fun and keeps things exciting. I think a lot of people trip about the quality of your not taking your time. But I feel like sometimes over complicating things makes it worse. It’s art, just put it out and let the people decide if it’s a classic or not. It really came from necessity to get heard tho. I felt like people were ignoring me..Nobody would back my sound or put money into what I was doing so I was like man the hell with it i’m going to jus put this music out, and all of a sudden more and more doors started opening so I was like hey i’m just going to keep this going. So I been very active just releasing my music on my own. I like being able to just drop sumthin out of nowhere. As I get more and more busy i’m sure i’ll have to release music more strategically but for now i’m just having fun making whatever I feel like making and dropping and releasing whenever I want.

Project wise what have you got coming up moving into 2012?

Project wise so far for 2012 I got ‘Trapped In Basedworld’ coming out in collab with Mishka Nyc Clothing It’s gonna be music accompanied by animation visuals. So like mini movie cartoons with the songs.. Should be very next level and #Based. Also I got a release coming with Donky Pitch just titled ‘Donky Pitch x Keyboard Kid 206’..Its gonna be like 5 never before heard trax. Very different from my last release. ‘The Mind is So Complex When Your Based’…Right now with all the great positive attention I got lots of ideas been making a lot of new connections thru networking so lots of things are just ideas like an EP with Zomby. I also have talked to Clams Casino about putting out sumthin epic…but also gonna be working with #basedgod, we got some untitled projects we are starting soon as the New Year hits. But we’ll see what all happens, I’m just taking it one day at a time.

What is the scene like in Seattle? Is there much support for what you are doing?

You know maybe a month or two ago I could have been like ‘man cats ain’t really knowing who I am’ or whatever but just as you guys have found out about me recently.. It seems even the people in my own city have also started picking up on the sound or have heard my name so it’s cool to see such a wave of support I never knew existed coming my way. I’m getting more and more welcomed on the Seattle music scene. I feel like the scene is real tight knit. I was one to shy a way from all that, I wanted to the let my music speak for itself rather than get involved in the politics. But you know I can say I have a good support team being built so I’m looking to take things to the next level in 2012.

-KEYBOARD KID 206 ‘COSMONAUT EP’ IS AVAILABLE NOW VIA HIS BANDCAMP