TyC Lets the Work He Does Speak for Itself

TyC has been weirded out by the LA scene since his transition of moving over took place. Since settling in though he has seen LA for what it is worth and calls it home. During which time has been spent writing and recording material leading to a debut single “All 2 Myself”. As well as a debut EP set for release this summer time! TyC spent some time discussing his debut efforts, single, and how he came to LA in the first place!

NP: Let us help you, by having you help us, get to know a little bit more about this project. How did you decide and get started in music? What is the story to be told?

So I started songwriting and playing guitar at a very early age. I started playing jazz initially in Cleveland but went on to study classical composition at Berklee College of Music. It was there where I started to learn production and joined the band Carousel. I spent the last years in school on tour, before moving to New York City. I lived with Sonny Step in Brooklyn and we started our own project shortly after. I spent 2016 writing and producing with a network of artists, and developing the sound for my debut EP!

NP: Ty may be your name but is it your real name or a stage name you use for this project you call TyC? What does the “C” present in TyC?

My name is Tyler Cratcha and everyone’s always called me Ty so it just kind of fit. At first I was trying all the mysteriously generic producer names but it wasn’t me. Branding the facade of who I thought I was supposed to be just didn’t feel right.

NP: What are your favorite artists/bands? Any new good one’s from your area you’d like to mention?

I’m always listening to new music! Keeps me sane these days. Recently I’ve been loving Krane, Sam Gellaitry, Thundercat, Tennyson and MachineDrum. My favorite musical minds ever, however, would have to be Debussy, Ravel, Coltrane, Miles Davis, Prince and Michael Jackson.

NP: “All 2 Myself” is your debut single, what was the recording process like for this release?

I wanted to do my take on the retro-80’s vibe for the start of summer, but with an edge to it. I started off just writing the hook one day imagining it through a vocoder while playing my casio in the park. I always write a song before I produce it so I don’t waste time on the post production. Next day I made an 80’s drum track on steroids and tracked the piano, guitars and basses. Lastly, I added effects/transitions, trimmed up the arrangement and recorded the vocals. After 3 days, I always bounce it and put the track as far away from ears as possible. You can imagine I’ve heard every
2-second clip 100 times, I then go back a week later and spend a day or two mixing and it’s done.

NP: This single comes off another debut for you, your debut EP. You have yet to title this release, what do you have in mind?

Great question. I’m not too sure yet. I want to call it “Nobody” because I just moved to LA and couldn’t feel smaller. May make it “self-titled which at this point may have the same affect. Either way, I think the answer to this question will clear itself up with the latter releases.

NP: What can you tell us about the lyrical content of “All2MYSELF” ?

So my girlfriend and I drove across the country, from NYC to LA with our kittens at the end of last year. We were initially very isolated, both original being from Cleveland. We were weirded out by the LA social scene, and maybe just too weird for it in general. Sufficed to say, without her the transition wouldn’t have been possible.

NP: Did the song writing come easily to you? What was the process like?

Songwriting often comes the easiest for me actually. I’ve written for jazz big bands and symphonies and I think production has a lot in common with large-scaled compositions. It’s disciplined nonstop work. I spent my life indoors because of it lol. I write songs on my production breaks and with just a guitar or my little casio, I can go outside and get some much need Vitamin D.

NP: Where are you in the process of this EP?

I have everything done I’m just in the mastering stage! The hardest part for me, and what consequently takes the longest is marketing. I’m doing it all myself without a budget so sometimes it can hold me up for weeks. Once I solidify my release strategy I’ll be ready to make the next steps!

NP: When can we expect the EP to be released?

By the end of the summer. I have some other tracks coming out with different artists which will probably hold me up a little bit but definitely as soon as I can! The next single will be out next month featuring REN! I’m working on a very limited budget so I have to take the releases one step at a time for now.

NP: Besides your debut single, you have two other tracks “Bring Me Back The Music” and “Closer To You” where you worked with Sonny Step. Can you disclose as to how that all came into effect, will those tracks be included on your EP release?

Sonny is my best friend! I lived with him in Brooklyn and we’ve been creating ever since. He will be featured on a track but those are off of a project we started last year. I’m really pumped on our next release which will be out next month entitled “Still Believe In Love”. When we lived together we wrote a bunch of songs and we’ve been slowly putting them to life over the years. We were both very busy having to work non-stop to live in NYC, so it was very slow at first but we have a lot of music left to release and he’s definitely one to watch out for!

NP: Who do you believe your fan-base is composed of?

All sorts of people really.

NP: Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?

I would like to continue putting out projects of my own while producing for different artists out here in LA! I just need to gain a little traction and hopefully the work can speak for itself! I want to remain independent for as long as possible in order to build a network of fans that can really latch on to the intimacy of what I’m trying to do.

NP: What are your plans for the rest of 2017?

1 song a month for the rest of the year! I try and make a new track a week at least, whether for myself or another artist for their project. Marketing/PR is what holds me back but once I learn the routine I should be able to line everything up more efficiently.

NP: How do you all balance doing this project with the needs of a normal life?

What’s a normal life haha. When I was in high school I practiced guitar 8 hours a day. College I composed 8 hours a day. Now I produce. Nothing has really changed because it has always come first. I definitely don’t sleep much and I don’t party so that frees up a lot of extra time. Mainly it comes down to creatively planning my days so I don’t get too worn out. More and more I find my productivity relies on how thought out the schedule is.

NP: Whereabouts can we find out more about you and your works, social media the norm for you like many others?

I just set up all my social media links a few months ago which is way too late in this digital age, I assume everyone abandoned twitter after Trump killed it, so I’ll leave it out.

http://tyc-music.com
https://soundcloud.com/user-529490570
https://www.instagram.com/tycmusic/
https://www.facebook.com/TyCmusicc/
https://play.spotify.com/artist/2VjJ70ddXIbIGaeR5h35Ry

NP: Anything else you would like to say to the future fans of the mighty TyC?

Mainly, thank you for supporting independent musicians! It’s 2017 and the airwaves have all been bought and paid for so the fact that you are searching for new forms of artistic expression, in any form, is inspiring.

By: Natalie Perez