Rob Bates Reports From One Stop Shop Producers Conference

The following is special guest post from producer Rob Bates of the Insomniac Music Group.  For those that still don’t know, Rob was one of the few finalists of the 2008 Red Bull Big Tune Beat Battle and a promising up and coming producer to keep an eye on.  Be sure to visit Rob Bates on MySpace and follow him on Twitter.

Two weekends ago one of the biggest events of the year took place in Phoenix, AZ: Sha Money XL’s One Stop Shop Producer Conference. The conference, held in Phoenix annually, drew the attention of producers of many different genres from all over the world. Thanks to Sha Money, many of these talented up & coming producers were able to meet with label representatives, A&R’s and other producing legends who have notably left their mark on the history of Hip Hop. And though registration alone was $300, for many the event proved to be well worth their time.

The producers/artists/managers who were in attendance were also able to meet several industry artists who have recently been making a lot of noise (shout out to Skyzoo). There were several panels throughout the entire event covering everything from the visual aspect of the music industry & marketing schemes, to major online blog sites (and yes, Crate Kings was definitely mentioned as well). Each panel  answered several important questions that the up & coming producers had for them, including an A&R panel with some of the top industry A&R’s of today.

During the Red Bull dinner, the showcased the National Red Bull competition Finals from the 2008 competition. Note: The Red Bull Big Tune finals are set to air again on BET May 16th, 6:30pm. Afterwards, they had a mock battle so that the producers and other individuals in the room could get a feel for how the Red Bull Big Tune goes.

Another interesting section of the conference was when the kid VoghnBeatz took the whole conference into his hands with a brunch beat showcase on Sunday. The kids beats were FILTHY!!!! (And I do mean that in a good way!!). I felt honored when he named me as one of his newer influences as an up & coming producer. That is one talented 11 year old and I expect much success from him.

The most highly anticipated panel though was the Producer panel. Legends like Jus Blaze, DJ Premier, 9th Wonder, Needlz, Jake One, Q-Tip, Hi-Tek and others including Don Cannon, Drumma Boy, also were part of this extraordinary panel.
As Sway led the producers through the discussion, the producing legends shed their knowledge of the music bizz. and what they had to say was very insightful. Artists Nipsy Hussel and Cory Gunz joined the producer panel, and then once the panel was finished, the beat battle began (big ups to HitMakers!)

I must say that I definitely enjoyed the conference and even with the cost of the hotel and the flight, it was well worth it. I took a lot of pictures from the event and I am proud to share my experience with the good people of Crate Kings. Special shout out to IllMind VoghnBeatz,NickSpeed, Sakwe  and HitMakers!!! I definitely had the experience of a life time. Thank you Sha Money XL for the great opportunity!

Peace & Respect

Rob Bates
Insomniac Music Group
Chicago, IL