Q&A: This is Notation
“Making music takes my stress and anxiety away and it’s amazing that it can do the same for other people listening.” - Notation
It was a pleasure to recently interview Notation, a musician I found while listening to his friend and collaborator David Chief. We discuss his musical beginnings, his 2024 goals, latest album, his A&R role at Insert Tapes, and his appreciation for his fans! Be sure to check out the playlist below at the end and continue to support his future work!
How did you get started making lofi music?
I started making lofi eight years ago with my friend David Chief. I was always interested in production and making old school style beats but David Chief is who really got me into making lofi. We now have four projects out on tape! I used to be more focused on becoming a rapper than a producer until 2020, when lofi and producing became my main focus.
Tell me about your latest album "Motions".
Motions was super fun to make. It was a collection of a bunch of tracks I had made and hadn’t even thought of releasing them all as an album until NinetoFive presented the idea when I sent the demo in. The album featured my talented friends howiewonder, TOMC, and lofisax.
You also do A&R for the Insert Tapes record label. How did you get started working with them? How do you balance this role and being a musician too?
I saw that Insert had posted they needed help with some playlists and I messaged them to see if they needed any help with bringing more tracks in. It’s been a great label to work with from the A&R side and releasing with them as an artist. I try and balance the roles by setting time for each one. Also, if I am ever feeling like I need a break from making music, I will focus more on the A&R side. It’s so cool to be able to help other artists get on releases they are excited about.
I recently interviewed your good friend and frequent collaborator David Chief. How is it like working with him and can we expect another collaboration in 2024?
Dave and I have always had a great workflow when making beats together. We’ve been working together for almost a decade now and it always feels effortless. We just had our first collaboration release of 2024 in the form of a single on the new insert tapes vinyl. You can definitely expect more beats from us in 2024.
What are two major musical goals that you have for 2024?
My goals for 2024 are to become more present on social media in the form of making more videos of myself making beats. I’ve been thinking about doing a 30-day beat challenge or something like that for a while. As a lofi artist, a lot of people are just listening to you on a playlist but don’t know who they are listening to most of the time. This leads to fewer people actually following you for you and more just following the playlists you might be on. I want to tap into finding my audience more so my solo independent releases have more success.
What would you like to say to your fans?
To my fans I just want to express how grateful I am for every person listening. As long as I can make one person's day better or less stressful with my beats, that’s all that matters. Making music takes my stress and anxiety away and it’s amazing that it can do the same for other people listening.
