Love From Ly Da Buddah

German based DJ, producer and party animal Ly Da Buddah has released his brand new album ‘Love’. Jamie has interviewed Ly Da Buddah before, so on hearing news of this LP we got him to reconnect & find out everything he could…

The last time we spoke was 3 years ago! Crazy. How are the positive vibes in 2021 compared to 2019? How has your life changed since then, especially before and after the pandemic?

Hi, nice to meet you again. In 2019 I had my daily routine of checking new tracks, producing, mixing, drinking and organising events. Now, at the end of 2021 I am getting into the groove again, but I appreciate every single moment even more. Nothing is taken for granted. 

For me as an artist a lot changed, I produced four LPs and one EP since March 2020. I locked myself up in the studio six days a week and used the time to be productive. Now my 5th album will be out on the 22nd October.

My DJ set has changed a lot, mainly because I play a lot of my own music. I am also working on a live act with two vocalists for next year.

You have always mixed your love of artwork with music production. They kind of go hand in hand don’t they? 

Yes, they bring colour to my life. I love everything that stimulates our senses. Nearly all of my friends are very creative people, most of them with a graffiti background. These two underground lifestyles, drum & bass and graffiti culture, fit so well. For me it was always a natural process that audio and visuals go hand in hand.

I am working a lot with my closest friend Dennis Gabbana, he is a genius. We started our label Monkeejuice for wicked street art. He also did the cover for this new album. 

The forthcoming ‘Love’ LP features some great merchandise, can you tell us about the creative process? Why do you think it’s important to provide these extras with big projects?

We were thinking about how to make a physical album interesting without using vinyl. So we started to create an arty package with exclusive stickers, little punky booklets and some unique surprises, hand numbered and limited to 100 pieces each. The first three LPs sold out very fast, the fourth was voted as best LP on the German Drum & Bass Awards.

Talking of the LP, the artwork by Dennis Gabbana is fantastic! He’s worked on quite a few projects with you hasn’t he? What’s the story here?

We have known each other since our youth and experienced a lot of funny and dirty stories. Later on we started Monkeejuice to bring audio and visuals together. We did a lot of artwork for the Fusion Festival, turned clubs into galleries and the other way around. Giving out exclusive stickers for the first 100 guests at each party, we have our own sticker mags, clothes, everything totally unorganised, with high motivation and always as a limited edition.

Another big link up on the LP comes in the form of ‘Watching You’. Not only does this feature the incredibly talented Bassface Sascha but also microphone champion MC Spyda. That’s certainly impressive on paper but how did the idea come about?

It was all about vibes and reflects how long we are working in the scene. I booked Spyda about 20 years ago for the first time. He is one of the most impressive vocal artists in my view. His voice is strong, he writes lyrics like other people eat sweets and has the most catchy hooks around.

I have asked him since that day if we want to collaborate. We kept talking, I was sending him tune after tune, and finally he said: “Yes, let us do it with this beat”. It was a big surprise after nearly two decades, not because he said yes, but because of the riddim he chose and the lyrics he dropped. You know him for strong badman talk, but for ‘Watching You’ he is singing “Love is the best feeling in a any one life. When love come around, you always bring the sunshine. Love is the only feeling that no one can buy…”. I had tears in my eyes the first time he was singing it to me on my mobile phone.

About Bassface Sascha: He is also a legend. He started drum & bass in Germany and is still one of the top DJs and producers, internationally known. We played a lot of gigs together, had a release on Nicky Blackmarket´s Kartoons label, where Sascha remixed my tune ‘Beastmode’. Drum and bass brought us together. He is mixing all the vocals for Spyda, so I called him and asked how my tune and Spydas vocals are blending. Both are very strong in the low to mid frequency range. He was laughing, because he got mad at this “problem”.

While we were talking, we had the idea to make a new version of Love…and here is “Watching You”. The process was full of good vibes and I am very thankful about the way we worked together and the outcome. 

9 tracks on the LP and 4 for the EP is no doubt a treat for your fans. Do projects like this take a lot of time and energy? From start to finish, how long has this taken you? You’re obviously happy with the end result!

They take a lot of time, but it gives me energy. Because I love what I am doing. It is pure pleasure for me to sit in my studio and just do the stuff I want to. It took about six months, with at least five days a week, eight hours a day. Around 900 to 1000 hours of work for this album, including 20 tracks for the recycle bin, a lot of communication with the other artists, vocal recordings in different studios and some hours laying stupidly in the sun, smoking and thinking about how to tune my snares right.    

HVZY and Monch feature on the LP. For those that are unfamiliar with this producer and MC, can you tell us a bit about them?

Of course. HVZY is a young guy from my hometown Braunschweig. He is a very strong producer for deep, techy stuff. One day he will be on the big stages and Alicia Keys will cry for a collabo with him. I like to support talented youths and he is top notch! Monch is a very good friend and one of the most known MCs in Germany, he is still young but not a newcomer anymore. I love to play gigs with him, because we both have a strong live energy and our connection is extraordinary.

It was very interesting to produce a drum & bass song with German lyrics: “Es geht nach vorne” for the LP. Really excited about our future projects.

Lastly, any shouts or big ups?

Shouts to everyone I worked with and had a couple of Jägi bombs in the last 25 years, hugs and kisses to my Braunschweig massive and big love to everyone supporting our drum and bass culture.