louie vega
Masters At Work Winter Sessions
Few partnerships in dance music are as instinctive as Masters At Work. When Louie Vega and Kenny “Dope” Gonzalez step into the studio, the years dissolve, and what remains is pure chemistry.
“When Kenny and I go into the studio it’s like we’ve never left. We work so well together and compliment each other to a tee. The sound we are chasing for, we don’t really know, but it happens with a sound or a beat. We don’t chase the hit, we create, and if it feels good and we get the chills and good vibrations, then we know we are on the right track.”
“We trust our instinct, and a lot of the times what we come up with, people get it later, but as long as we feel good about it we are happy. Then the proof is on the dancefloors and reactions, tes- ting grounds are important. Today we are much more savvy with producing music and technology, so sky’s the li- mit. When we collaborate as well with some of our guest artists, it also can help pull something else out musically from us. The new Masters At Work al- bum will have some surprising collabo- rations which will bring new sounds into our landscape. We have been vibing in the studio and I already see it coming just within the tracks we are coming up with.”
NUYORICAN SOUL RETURNS
For Louie, the name Nuyorican Soul carries both history and responsibility. The long-awaited follow-up will honor the spirit of the original while carving out space for a new generation.
“It will be a bit of both. There are legendary artists joining Nuyorican Soul 2 and there are new legends, let’s say, seasoned artists but in their 10 to 20 years in the game. Then there are brand new artists we are looking at. So we will be resurrecting the spirit of Nuyorican Soul for the diehard fans, and we will also venture into new territory for us.”
“We’ve already created six epic pieces, journeys, like three records in one telling a story. This will be sprinkled with incre- dible artists lacing us with their ama- zing talents. Our production ideas are in our heads, and as we keep recording, the ideas and tracks accumulate into this spectacular canvas. We started the Nuyorican Soul 2 last year but stopped the project when the opportunity came to produce the Brian Jackson album Now More Than Ever.”
That album with Brian Jackson became a defining moment. For Louie, it was more than a collaboration; it was a direct link to one of his earliest inspirations.
“Working with Brian Jackson first off was a true honor. Imagine he and Gil Scott-Heron wrote all those genius tunes together. When you hear him playing
chords you can hear his
contributions to the Heron/Jackson legacy. I’ve loved Gil Scott-Heron since I was a child hearing The Bott- le, It’s Your World, Peace Go With You Brother, which were all soundtracks to my life up in the Bronx. Always one of my favorite artists, and to think years later we would be producing his musical partner Brian Jackson, who is one of my favorite musicians, a dream come true.”
“When Pete from BBE approached us we were working on Nuyorican Soul 2 and quickly said let’s halt the album a sec and produce this one. Now More Than Ever came out like Nuyorican Soul meets Brian Jackson in some ways, with layers of Brian inspiration. He brought lots of goodness from us on the pro- duction side. We finished up 19 tracks for the album.”
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