For Interview #18, I was so stoked to chat with the amazing Deaf Girl! We get to discuss how Deaf Girl began, influences, what software and equipment is used for DG's magic, and future goals. We laugh (well, I laugh), we cry, and talk music.
trtlz: Hi. Thank you for taking time to do this interview! Let's get into it.
trtlz: So what can you tell me about Deaf Girl? How would you describe yourself and your music?
Deaf Girl: Sell-out.
Deaf Girl : Turns out people want more of the simple stuff. Straight forward.
Deaf Girl: So that’s what I do now.
Deaf Girl: It started with the intention of being this weird noir death electro hip hop mesh
trtlz: For real? Is that really what most people are asking for? Or you mean you just feel like that's what most people are into?
Deaf Girl: That’s what people ask for.
Deaf Girl: There are exceptions.
Deaf Girl: But they want a more pop sound.
Deaf Girl: Which is all good, people like what they like. I just wanted to be weird and have other singers and rappers be weird with me and do something somewhat original and weird.
trtlz: Yeah totally. I guess the goal is to make what people want but definitely gotta have some fun doing it too.
trtlz : Do you still have fun?
Deaf Girl: I do have fun making music, but I’ve been uninspired for a while now, so many projects in the past like maybe 4 months have all been trashed.
Deaf Girl: *emo intensifies*
trtlz: oh no. So early in the interview.
trtlz: How did all of this begin? How did you get started in making music? How long have you been making beats?
Deaf Girl: Deaf Girl started when I was getting into digital music making and one of my best friend’s had a deaf sister. Her sister would enjoy “listening” to music on very loud speakers and at concerts because she would feel the booming bass and the vibrations.
Deaf Girl: So I would make really dirty heavy bass tracks and show her.
Deaf Girl: I’ve been doing it... I don’t even know anymore. Not that long, but still kind of long.
Deaf Girl: 4 years maybe?
Deaf Girl: I didn’t start making “beats”, I was just making kind of experimental electronic music
Deaf Girl: Inspired by hip hop
Deaf Girl: Eventually people started reaching out about collaborating and that’s where it kind of shifted to more “beat” oriented stuff
trtlz: Dang. That's really cool.
trtlz: So you never even originally intended to "make beats" in the beginning?
Deaf Girl: Nope. Not at all.
Deaf Girl: Didn’t even really know that was a thing.
trtlz : That's interesting
trtlz: Do you also play any instruments? If yes, how do you incorporate that into your music?
Deaf Girl: I play guitar a little bit.
Deaf Girl: Ive used guitar for a few songs but generally try to stay away from adding actual instruments I play, beyond keyboards.
trtlz: Do you have any big influences that you kind of look at for inspiration or certain techniques?
Deaf Girl: Owl Vision and BlockHead were the two that made we want to start. And they keep inspiring me every time I hear them. Death Grips is also a big influence and inspiration.
Deaf Girl: As far as techniques, sampling wins all. It’s not really a technique, but sampling is so inspirational.
trtlz : This is kind of a huge question and maybe you kind of sort of answered it before a little, but what motivates you to create music?
Deaf Girl: Honestly, and this is gonna be a super grim answer
Deaf Girl: If I don’t, I get really depressed. It’s kind of lame.
Deaf Girl: So instead of taking drugs and stuff I just make music.
Deaf Girl: And that’s like the only thing I do somewhat decent in life.
trtlz: Oh no that's a perfect answer. I completely get that and I guarantee that's super relatable for other artists
Deaf Girl: I wish I could answer with “money”
Deaf Girl: but not even that
Deaf Girl: The money is good too, but even if I was very rich I’d probably still have to make music. So I keep this depression cloud away.
Deaf Girl: Sorry for the super depressing Interview
trtlz: What are some of the tracks you've made that you are most proud of?
Deaf Girl: Hmm...
Deaf Girl: “Lipstick” and “I Lost My Pencil Case During The War” come to mind at the moment.
Deaf Girl: Also “The Quiet Terror of Being Alive” is pretty good. And "Sad Beach".
trtlz : Oh yeah for sure I really like sad beach too!
trtlz: sorry, here's a tougher question. Is there a track of yours that you really struggled with at first and in the end you were glad you didn't give up on it?
Deaf Girl: Hmm...
Deaf Girl: Honestly no.
Deaf Girl: Usually if I can’t finish a track in one sitting, I scrap it.
trtlz: Is that because at that point you know you don't like it? Or you just run out of patience?
Deaf Girl: Maybe cause i have too many ideas
Deaf Girl: So the next day I want to try something different and then forget about the other one.
Deaf Girl: They’re not all good, mostly all bad ideas. But they’re still ideas I want to try.
trtlz : I seriously doubt they are mostly all bad ideas, but I get it. That makes sense.
trtlz: I've been a huge fan of your music since I first heard you. You've got a really great selection on your soundcloud, but a few I listen to the most are "Bubble Gum Machine Gun", "Bath Salts", and "Sukomo (On Ma Weird Shit 2)". Anything cool worth mentioning that maybe you discovered or learned while creating those?
Deaf Girl: Hmm...
Deaf Girl: With every track I make my mixing gets better. Little by little.
Deaf Girl: Bath salts is a pretty straight forward simple beat with nasty bass. I like that one a lot.
Deaf Girl: Sukomo is just bringing different ideas together for one track without it sounding too far from each other.
Deaf Girl: Like movements
Deaf Girl: If I wanna sound pretentious
Deaf Girl: Bubble gum machine was influenced by Sophie.
Deaf Girl: Just plasticky nasty jarring sounds.
Deaf Girl: That one actually was a commission and the guy paid me and then disappeared.
Deaf Girl: He might’ve passed away. I don’t know. I can only assume.
trtlz : Oh shoot! That's pretty crazy...
trtlz : Now that I know this, I can totally hear a Sophie vibe in Bubble gum machine gun
Deaf Girl: Yeah. I like her stuff. But I like more her position in the global music scene.
Deaf Girl: And the whole PC Music group
Deaf Girl: I guess they were an influence too
Deaf Girl: Like pop music can be weird too.
trtlz: yeah for sure
trtlz: Do you ever team up with any other artists or is it usually a separate thing like you just create the track and someone hears it, falls in love, and buys it?
Deaf Girl: I’ve tried but it never panned out. I’ve wanted to make an actual project and perform live with someone singing or rapping. But I’ve had trouble finding people to commit.
Deaf Girl: Some people buy beats in bulk like 5 or 10 at a time.
Deaf Girl: And then I never heard from them again.
trtlz: Hmm. Yeah I was actually gonna ask if you've ever tried like djing or performing with someone before live.
trtlz : So you haven't yet? But that's something you'd like to do?
Deaf Girl: I’ve done it twice. But it was long ago and I didn’t know what I was doing and it was lame.
Deaf Girl: I have all the gear needed to perform, but actually braking down the sounds to perform parts live is too time consuming for me. Besides my music is kind of background music type
Deaf Girl: And too different to be able to maintain a crowd
Deaf Girl: Like from one song to the next.
Deaf Girl: From pop to death electro.
Deaf Girl: I asked a couple people for help with direction on how to perform live but nobody has really helped so it’s no longer a main goal.
Deaf Girl: I dont want to just press play and sit there.
trtlz: True yeah I've actually been to shows where they do pretty much just press play and it's not exciting at all. I personally love to watch djs and stuff do their thing live even though I don't exactly know what's going on haha. It's super fascinating to me.
trtlz: Well.. I mean if that's something you'd wanna try again there are people out there that would be willing to give you some tips to get you in the right direction
trtlz: So are you willing to talk a bit about the kind of gear you use and your DAW?
Deaf Girl: Sure!
Deaf Girl: I use Logic Pro and Ableton.
Deaf Girl: And a MacBook
Deaf Girl: Other than that I have a lot of stuff but I don’t really use it.
Deaf Girl: My most useful tool is probably my wireless mouse.
Deaf Girl: I have the classics Roland SP 404 sx sampler
Deaf Girl: Which I love to death, but don’t use it much.
trtlz: You should start using it more! Or is there a reason you don't?
Deaf Girl: I can do all that it does on my computer much faster and with more control.
Deaf Girl: I was gonna use it more for live shows. But that never panned out
trtlz: Ahhh I see.
trtlz: Can you describe what your workflow is like when creating a track? Do you usually start with the beat, or melody or does it change based on what you're feeling at the time?
Deaf Girl: It’s different every time. I don’t have a specific pattern.
Deaf Girl: Sometimes it starts with an actual idea
Deaf Girl: Like
Deaf Girl: Bubble gum machine gun, even though it was a commission
Deaf Girl: I approached with an specific idea
Deaf Girl: Sometimes I start with a sound and make it weird until I feel like I hear more instruments over it.
Deaf Girl: Or just a sample.
Deaf Girl: It’s always different.
trtlz: I like that. Never heard someone describe it that way. Starting with an idea. That's cool.
trtlz: What do you do to create your sounds? Do you like to use pre-made samples and kits, create your own, a mixture of both?
Deaf Girl: I have a big library of drum samples.
Deaf Girl: I usually tweak them until they sound far from the original.
Deaf Girl: But sometimes I use them as is, if they’re pretty so I don’t have to mix them in in much.
Deaf Girl: As far as sounds, I try to not use presets
trtlz: Nice!
trtlz: It seems to me you like to create beats for a variety of genres. What are your favorite types of beats to make? Is there a type you haven't tried yet, but are thinking about exploring?
Deaf Girl: Ok so
Deaf Girl: My favorite type to make is the weirder ones. The ones that don’t have clear structure.
Deaf Girl: And I get excited when someone actually buys those songs.
Deaf Girl: Because I see someone challenging themselves
Deaf Girl: They vibe with the weird tracks and think they make something great with it.
Deaf Girl: I’ve been wanting to make a like pure pop beat
Deaf Girl: Like the chain smokers
Deaf Girl: Something super generic
Deaf Girl: Stuff you’d hear on the radio
Deaf Girl: That's what I wanna try
trtlz: I love how you put that "Because I see someone challenging themselves"
trtlz: And of course when it's something you're really proud of and someone chooses that one it's gotta be pretty exciting for sure
Deaf Girl: I just know that my stuff is mostly not very accessible.
trtlz: So this next question I guess goes along with that
trtlz: How do you feel about creating beats with time signatures outside of the standard 4/4? Do you find it challenging? Exciting? Not much different? Haha
Deaf Girl: I probably have a few 3/4
Deaf Girl: Making those is no challenge at all
Deaf Girl: But beyond those two
Deaf Girl: I don’t think I’ve ever tried
Deaf Girl: It would probably help the beats be even less accessible.
Deaf Girl: I might try that soon!
Deaf Girl: Like 7/8 or 5/4
trtlz: Haha yes! You should totally try that
trtlz: I'd love to hear that!
trtlz: So besides trying out different time signatures hahaha, What are some Deaf Girl goals or future plans?
Deaf Girl: Have more people getting music to sing and rap on.
Deaf Girl: Probably target singers more than rappers.
Deaf Girl : Try to develop a live project with someone
Deaf Girl: Stay alive
Deaf Girl: Stay happy
Deaf Girl: Get happy
Deaf Girl: Then stay happy
Deaf Girl: Not cry as much
trtlz: </3
trtlz: A live project would be really cool I think
Deaf Girl: I think so
trtlz: I know you lease your beats, is there any artist you are really proud to say has used your beats?
Deaf Girl: My two really favorite ones actually stopped doing music and deleted their account ya
Deaf Girl: Well one got reported and his account got deleted and stopped because of that
Deaf Girl: Another is Nodji
Deaf Girl: He used one of my tracks for his song “pick a smaller knife”
Deaf Girl: Which was really good
trtlz: ::taking notes:: I'll be sure to check him out later!
trtlz: That sucks the others stopped music
trtlz: So, if someone is interested in using one of your tracks, how do they go about doing that?
Deaf Girl: Usually They DM me.
Deaf Girl: Most of the sales come from IG which is surprising since I don’t really use IG much at all
Deaf Girl: I also have music on Traktrain and other beat selling sites.
trtlz: That's awesome! They just find you then on ig
Deaf Girl: It has to do with the hashtags and the algorithms
Deaf Girl: I could probably improve my IG marketing and sell more. But I’m lazy and sales aren’t too bad
trtlz: Ahh ok yeah I hate those things but they actually do work if you use them right!
trtlz: Well thanks so much for hanging out and answering all my questions. Is there anything else you'd wanna add?
Deaf Girl: Hmmm...
Deaf Girl: Nothing comes to mind at the moment :(
Deaf Girl: Thank you for taking an interest in my work
You can hear Deaf Girl's music on Soundcloud here: https://soundcloud.com/dot-en-dash and Traktrain here: https://traktrain.com/deafgirl#345081