YOUTUBE FAMOUS: ARAABMUZIK MAKING LIVE BEATS ON HIS MPC.

For a 23-year-old, Araabmuzik is sure surrounded by a fuckload of nu-style music buzz. He’s a darling of Vice TV, is a featured “creator” on the Creators Project, and last year his debut album Electronic Dream got a rave review from Pitchfork, with the rest of the Internet hipster-verse hopping on the bandwagon. In live shows, he got serious hype from playing Coachella earlier this year, and in the 23 days left before Fuji Rock, he’s playing five other international music festivals, including Pitchfork in Chicago, Roskilde in Denmark and the Wireless Festival in London. The day after his Friday, July 27 FRF set as part of the after-midnight Planet Groove lineup in the Red Marquee, he’s scheduled to play in New York City. In the last year in the studio, he produced the beats for 50 Cent’s May 2012 single “Murder One”, did music for an Adidas commercial featuring Derrick Rose, and now is set to feature in another commercial alongside NFL quarterback Cam Newton. There is also an album project with A$AP Rocky that was well hyped but now seems to have stalled. He recently told Vice TV, “I don’t know man. I don’t think it’s coming out anymore.”

Araabmuzik is Abraham Orellana from Providence, Rhode Island. His music is American-style dubstep, with a lot of crossover into hip hop. Much of his fame has been built on YouTube videos, for the way he creates all of his beats live on a machine called an MPC Player. Yes, you read that right. He makes his beats LIVE. And not just some of them. ALL OF THEM. Here’s how he does it.

The Akai Music Production Center – or MPC Player – is combination of a MIDI sequencer and a drum machine. It has a grid of 16 small drum pads that you play with your fingers, and tapping a pad activates a drum sample or loop. Araabmuzik plays it like a kid who just drank 15 Cokes plays an X-Box. To see exactly what I mean, watch the video posted at the top (2.5 million views since it was posted in December) or hit the Creator’s Project link in the first paragraph.

I got to see Araabmuzik once at SXSW 2011, where he was part of the Fool’s Gold showcase. Fool’s Gold is a label run by A-Trak, who is Kanye West’s touring DJ and Armin van Helden’s partner in Duck Sauce. The crowd was ostensibly burning up to hear A-Trak play Barbara Streisand, but Araabmuzik got the key slot before him and, together with MC Duke Da God, tore it up with some booty-shakin’ bangers. It was just raw house party shit, in the best and freshest possible way. Araabmuzik never did put out anything on Fool’s Gold – maybe his fame was just spiking so hard he just superseded it. And with a career riding a wave of Internet popularity, who knows where it will take him or how long he will last. But he is certainly interesting now, and young, and at the top of his game. As far as his time slot in the Fuji Rock schedule, it will make for some interesting decision making. He’s going up against a pretty insane all-Japanese DJ lineup at the All-Nite Fuji rave at the Orange Court, as well as the chance to see Lynval Golding of the Specials live in the Palace of Wonder. But if you’re jonesing for some seriously cut-up wob wobs, Araabmuzik will get you your fix.

Araabmuzik Official Site: http://www.araabmuzikmvp.com