EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

RICK YOUNG

 Many would never think that Rick Young and Vince Moore were heavily into Philadelphia's music scene. Sitting outside a local cafe, the two men, along with their female companion, Nikkia Keith, dust off the idea that they are like others, as they extol the virtues of what they do in their spare time - and that is create music.

Both Young and Moore are co-creators of The Beat Factory - a local independent record production company that creates, produces,
writes,arranges and manages new music talent.

With an extensive involvement in their work, both Youngand Moore say that their hands-on approach to working with music has become
an asset and one of the many details that distinguishes them from other producers in the area.
Both Young and Moore are co-creators of The Beat Factory - a local independent record production company that creates, produces, writes, arranges and manages new music talent. With an extensive involvement in their work, both Young and Moore say that their hands-on approach to working with music has become an asset and one of the many details that distinguishes them from
other producers in the area.		  
 
  "We do everything. We record the music, we play the instruments, we produce it, we mix it, promote it, we master it... Not becuase we want to, but out of necessity. All those different departments all want huge amounts of money to do those things. Actually it's been pretty good becuase it gave us a wealth of knowledge because we actually do everything."

With a broad style of music, Young and Moore refer back to the old Philadelphia sound as they hope to beomce the modern version of Philadelphia International Records, by keeping their sound local while also taking notes from the Motown legacy, which included a roster of artists who worked and collaborated together and helped the label maintain a family-feel.

With the Neo-Soul movement sweeping through Philadelphia and with the lides of Jill Scott, Musiq and Bilal, it has caused record companies to expect a specific type of Philadelphia artist and as Young desribes it, limited opportunities. "I don't think any ste of producers should be pigenoholed into just being like, Neo-soul producers. Then you kinda limit your ability for your cross appeal."

The Beat Factory's focus is on R&B, through they are also involved in hip=hop, gospel, and jazz. As Moore says versatility is the key, "...We don't only do one style of music. You know, a lot of record companies, they specialize in Neo-Soul. We do all kinds."

With hopes of beoming nationally distributed by one of the larger record companies like Sony, Warner Brothers or J Records, Young says, "We're looking to actually take it to a whole another level. We're looking to be distributed by a mjaor record compnay. We're looking to have a record compnay come into Philadelphia and make us the record company."

The goal of this team is simple and that is to create and promote great music in the Philadelphia area and to also have the opportunity to produce a few of the already pominent artists in an attempt to keep the Philadelphia sound familiar, refreshing and progressive.

- written by Sylvia White for Rolling Out urbanstyle weekly newspaper

  
 

 

Producer

J Strong

The pulse of the hip hop industry is starting to fade and Preston Jstrong Knox has made it his personal mission to revive the industrys heartbeat. Through his eclectic beats to his hard hitting rap game, Jstrong, rapper and producer, is breaking the stand still state hip hop is in. Jstrong produces tracks that each have their own individual feel and sound which most producers are failing to do. Elliot Ness (Bad Boy Records), Young Gunz (Roc-A-Fella Records), Freeway (Roc-A-Fella Records), Oschino (Roc-A-Fella Records), Pooda Brown (GIFI Records), On the other side of the coin, is Jstrongs rap game. His sound and style has been compared to JayZs flossy type flow. In his young days, he had experience in being with the group DCA, who was featured on No Questions hit single the I Dont Cares (Remix). Performances include venues such as Powerhouse, The Electric Factory, Pegasus night club, and Philadelphias annual Sistas event at the Philadelphia Convention Center.