Making his presence felt rather quickly in the world of electronic dance music popping onto the scene with his debut single “Came For The Low” alongside ZHU, partywithray looks to make some serious waves once again with the release of his #Partystarters EP.
Featuring 4-tracks including his reunion with ZHU coming in the form of “Lil Mama,” this blossoming talent’s latest offering showcases his production prowess and versatility throughout once again proving he is one to keep a close eye on going forward.
“I’m so excited for the songs on the #Partystarters EP to be out!!” partywithray enthuses. “The four tracks on this EP really capture the vibe and energy of my sound between the fat and groovy basslines, the vocal processing with pitch effects, and the touches of live instrumentation. Each song is the soundtrack to a different party so let’s get it started!”
Still buzzing off the release of his new EP, we took the time to chat with the party enthusiast. Check out our exclusive interview with partywithray below.
DJ Life Mag: You popped onto the scene with your debut single “Came For The Low” with ZHU, what was it like reconnecting with him for “Lil Mama”?
partywithray: We have a similar process every time we get together – which is basically hang out, listen to music, go out to eat, etc. until we’ve got some inspiration and then we work fast! Lil Mama was a demo I had for a few months that I hadn’t finished. I showed it to ZHU and he hopped on the mic in a drop section and it complimented my low vocal part so well! We definitely have the ability to work off of each other’s strengths which is very dope when it clicks.
DJ Life Mag: After dropping your debut EP last year, what was the creative process and inspiration behind #Partystarters?
partywithray: I always keep trying new things sonically and I try to keep the songwriting style fresh for myself too. I feel like I write my best stuff when I’m not really trying, it just flows. So I try to get to that inspired place with my process as much as I can. With this EP I definitely wanted to expand on my production style, but also really focus on my vocal parts more. The live vocals and interacting with the crowd are a big part of my live sets as I keep playing bigger stages!
DJ Life Mag: Would you say your sound/production has evolved over the past year?
partywithray: Definitely! Nothing like a global pandemic to throw a wrinkle in all your plans :/ BUT I, like a lot of people, used it as an opportunity to try a lot of new things in the studio. This past year definitely gave me some new ideas for how to grow the sound of the project over the next few years.
DJ Life Mag: In the studio, what’s your set-up these days?
partywithray: Ableton is my go-to DAW. I work really fast in it and at this point I’m very organized with it. I’ve got my main synth sounds (I use Spire and Diva alot, as well as Ableton sounds), all my drum packs including lots of percussion and FX (I use Splice a lot – I prefer to search for sounds as I need them and get new ideas while writing/producing), and all my effects that I’m comfortable with (Soundtoys bundle is DOPE and Ableton stuck plugins are a staple). I’ll move out of Ableton on select occasions for very specific things but I can do pretty much everything I need in there. It’s amazing.
DJ Life Mag: What can the dance music community expect from partywithray for the remainder of 2021 and beyond?
partywithray: I am so hyped for my first main stage festival play at Escape in October!!! There’s also another release or two coming before the end of the year. Beyond 2021 look for the live show to keep getting bigger, it’s a BIG party.
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