What’s good? I’m back with another talented local artist that I met making my rounds through the city of El Paso. I was set to perform at a Spanish battle rap tournament. Now mind you, I do not speak Spanish fluently, so I was not partaking in the battle portion of the event; I was just one of the many artists asked to perform in between the battles. While at Tha Spot, there I met “Jcruize“. Cruize, very laid back dude, was all about business. Once he found out I was an artist, he immediately showed me his studio setup. He also runs IlllMusic, which is his brand. Under that brand, he helps local artists with studio time, music production, video production, graphic design and many more services, at a very affordable price. So enough from me, I would like to introduce IlllMusic’s very own, Jcruize.
Where are you from?
I was born and raised in El Paso, Tx.
How is it working with artists in El Paso?
El Paso is a great city, beautiful, I would say. Meeting a lot of talented artists in this city makes it even more interesting. It’s always a great experience working and collaborating with local talent.
What’s your musical background, if any?
When I was young, to be honest, I wasn’t really involved in music as much as I am now; but I did join Orchestra in Elementary and I would play the violin. Entering middle school, I joined guitar class, and that’s what eventually got me more involved into playing music.
What have you been listening to recently?
Ever since this Covid situation happened, I’ve been exploring more new artists that aren’t trending, but they do put out great content; like Souly Had, Bryson Tiller, H.E.R., Jazmine Sullivan.
What is one thing every song must have for it to be solid?
I believe every song must have a dynamic sound for the song to take you on a rollercoaster and have meaning to it.
Who is the best music producer working in the industry today?
I would have to go with J.Cole. Even though he’s not much of a producer, he does his part with production and knowing what he wants in his sound.
What program do you use in your recording studio?
For about 5 years now, I’ve been using Ableton. I recently started to learn of Pro Tools and Logic, but Ableton is my go to.
How long have you been making music for?
I started to write when I was about 15 years old, but never really put as much effort as I do now.
What made you want to get involved with making music?
The way of expressing yourself in music is what caught my attention. Music being the universal language, I got involved more and more, every time I learned about music production. It was like a puzzle to me.
What are you currently working on?
Right now, I’m working on expanding my own movement, called “illlMusic”; to find hidden talent and expose it the right way. After I do that, I want to release a small album that defines me.
How has the current pandemic affected you?
I wouldn’t say affected me, but affected my brand. Before the pandemic, illlMusic started to expand in a lot of ways, from doing showcases for local artists to doing artist interviews, cyphers, (and) behind the lyric videos. We were building a platform for local talent. Ever since then, we had to stop doing a few things, but eventually we found ways to keep on moving during these times.
Any social media links you wanna share?
Instagram (illlMusic) https://www.instagram.com/illlmusic/
Instagram (Jcruize) https://www.instagram.com/jcruizeonthemove/
SoundCloud https://soundcloud.com/jcruize
Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGwcMsiEacsb6QxEfL3VeyA?view_as=subscriber
Other Links solo.to/illlmusic
In case some of you were wondering, I had to ask Jcruize about the spelling of his brand’s name… Why do you spell “illlMusic” with 3 L’s?
It’s like a universal spiritual thing, bro. I know a lot of people don’t comprehend it, but for me, I would always see the number “1111” for a pretty good while, and I still do till this day; so I decided to put it on my brand and have it spelled with 3 L’s.
Yall make sure you check out JCruize on all streaming platforms, and remember #staygrinding #stayworking.
