Benny Cassette

Benny Cassette
Origin Los Angeles
Genres Hip hop, pop, rock
Occupation(s) Producer, rapper, singer
Instruments D.A.W.
Labels Very GOOD Beats
Associated acts Chuck Inglish, Kanye West, BJ the Chicago Kid
Website BennyCassette.com

Benny Cassette (born Los Angeles[1]) is an American record producer, rapper,[2] singer,[3] and songwriter. Signed to Kanye West's Very GOOD Beats as a producer and songwriter since 2013, he worked on Kanye West's Yeezus album,[4] among other projects. In 2012 he released the EP Angel Dust,[5] and he has released a number of official remixes as well, including the 2013 song "You're Not the One" by Sky Ferreira.[6] In June 2014 Cassette released "Raging Bull,"[7] the first single and music video from his unreleased Apocalypse EP. Apocalypse will feature performances by BJ the Chicago Kid, Stacy Barthe and Marsha Ambrosius.[8]

Early life

Benny Cassette was born in Los Angeles.[9] Neither of his parents were involved in the music industry, his father working as an architect, but Cassette was still exposed to the diverse local music. He has stated, "I came up in the LA hip hop scene listening to N.W.A and the Beastie Boys. On top of that, I grew up in a Latino neighborhood where I heard salsa, ranchero and oldies. At home, dad listened to jazz, and at school kids either played rap at lunchtime, or rock after school."[1] In high school he began rapping as part of a youth-performance group, which inspired him to consider pursuing music as a career. He toured with the group during his summers, performing at diverse locations including prisons. He stated "I learned real quick how to cover stuff up because if you mess up there, on stage, you get boo'd."[1]

Music career

Production, songwriting

Early in his career Cassette collaborated as a songwriter or producer on projects associated with Dr. Dre, Eve, DMX, Timbaland and Mos Def.[1] In 2012, he released the EP Angel Dust with producer and rapper Chuck Inglish.[2][5][10] In 2013 Cassette was signed to G.O.O.D. Music as a producer and writer,[11] and for his first project[12] was flown to Paris to work on Kanye West's Yeezus album.[4][11] Cassette has since collaborated with his friend DJ Skee,[9] also working on projects with John Legend, Miguel, Eric Bellinger,[11] Jojo, Nico & Vinz and others.[13]

Cassette contributed as a guest artist to Inglish's 2014 album Convertibles,[5] and on April 1, 2014 Cassette released two official remixes of Sky Ferreira songs: "I Blame Myself" and "You're Not the One." Both songs were originally off Ferreira's 2013 debut Night Time, My Time, and the remixes were exclusively released through Spin Magazine.[6] Stated Spin, "Cassette bolsters the tight snares of the singer's 'Blame Myself' into a trap-addled bounce and softens the lovelorn 'You're Not the One' into a breezy, skip-along groove."[6]

In 2014 he was a co-writer, producer, and co-executive producer for the Mary Lambert album Heart on My Sleeve, due out on Capitol Records on October 14.[14] He co-wrote the album's track "Secrets" along with Lambert, Eric Rosse, and MoZella.[14] The single was released in early August along with the track "When You Sleep."[15]

2014: "Raging Bull" and EPs

External video
"Raging Bull" Music Video on MTVu (May 30, 2014)

In 2014 Cassette released the song "Raging Bull"[7] as a promo single for his upcoming EP Apocalypse. The song "features Benny Cassette’s own vocals over his synthesized and drum-pounding production."[12] The music video for "Raging Bull" premiered on MTVu[12][16] on May 30[17] and on VEVO on June 3,[7][8] with The Juice Daily praising the video's "intriguing visuals."[16] About the sound production, AFRSH.com wrote that Cassette "has mastered a distinct hybrid of hip-hop, alternative and pop music (which is evident on 'Raging Bull') that proves utterly infectious."[11] Cassette's upcoming Apocalypse EP will include guest appearances by BJ the Chicago Kid, Stacy Barthe and Marsha Ambrosius.[8] A second EP has also been announced for after Apocalypse.[11]

Personal life

Cassette continues to live in his hometown of Los Angeles. He is involved in the local music scene and Baha'i community.[1]

Discography

EPs

EPs by Benny Cassette
Year Album title Release details
2012 Angel Dust
(with Chuck Inglish)
  • Released: Oct 30, 2012
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: CD, digital
2014 Apocalypse
  • Released: tba
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: tba

Singles

Selected songs by Benny Cassette
Year Title Album Notes
2012 "Say No To Drugs" (with Chuck Inglish)[3] Angel Dust Music video[18]
"Xmas Sweater" (with Chuck Inglish)[19]
2014 "Raging Bull" Apocalypse Music video (MTVu, VEVO)[7]

Remixes

Production credits

Albums

Selected production credits for Benny Cassette
Yr Release title Artist(s) Notes, role
2013 The Wack Album The Lonely Island Co-producer
2014 Convertibles Chuck Inglish Engineer, featured artist, vocals
Heart on My Sleeve Mary Lambert Co-producer, co-writer[14]
R.P.Y. Moxie Co-producer[4][20]

Singles

Selected songs with productions credits by Benny Cassette
Year Single name Primary artist(s) Album Notes
2014 "Secrets" Mary Lambert Heart on My Sleeve Co-producer, co-writer
"When You Sleep" Co-Producer
"Honey Dip" Dev Bittersweet July Producer
2015 "nwa" (feat. Kurupt) Miguel nwa.hollywooddreams.coffee Co-producer, co-writer
"Live For Today" Stacy Barthe (feat. Common) BEcoming Producer
"Wonder" Stacy Barthe BEcoming Producer

Further reading

Articles

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Benny Cassette". Sonic Bids. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Johnson Jr., Billy (December 5, 2012). "Benny Cassette Struggles to Get Over an Ex on Empires". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Benny Cassette - Say No to Drugs". DJBooth. October 24, 2012. Retrieved 2014-08-10. |first1= missing |last1= in Authors list (help)
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Kim, Rich (November 13, 2013). "Exclusive Premier: Moxie’s "Dirty Lights" Music Video – EDM News". Magnetic Mag. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Llamoca, Janice (October 31, 2012). "Benny Cassette & Chuck Inglish – Angel Dust (EP)". Los Angeles Leakers. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 "G.O.O.D. Music's Benny Cassette Remixes Sky Ferreira Hits". Spin. April 1, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Benny Cassette - "Raging Bull"". HipHopDX. June 5, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 Carter Jr., Darryl (June 4, 2014). "Benny Cassette – Raging Bull [Video]". Elite Muzik. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  9. 9.0 9.1 "Benny Cassette". BuildDestroyMusic.com. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  10. Sawyer, Jonathan (October 31, 2012). "Benny Cassette & Chuck Inglish – Angel Dust (EP)". Hypetrack. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 "[Watch] Benny Cassette – Raging Bull". AFRSH.com. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 "[New Video] Benny Cassette – "Raging Bull" (Produced by Benny Cassette)". iStandardProducers.com. June 5, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  13. "Gregory Stutzer". TheSixtyOne.com. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  14. 14.0 14.1 14.2 Mandell, Sean (July 23, 2014). "Mary Lambert Spills Her Secrets". TowelRoad.com. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  15. "‘Same Love’ Mary Lambert’s debut album is taking pre-orders". Gay Salt Lake. August 6, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  16. 16.0 16.1 "Benny Cassette - "Raging Bull"". The Juice Daily. June 3, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  17. "Benny Cassette’s New Video ‘Raging Bull’". MTVU. May 30, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  18. "Benny Cassette - "Say No To Drugs (LUST)" Official Music Video". TrillHD. December 6, 2012. Retrieved 2014-08-10.
  19. "Benny Cassette - Xmas Sweater". DJBooth. December 3, 2012. Retrieved 2014-08-10. |first1= missing |last1= in Authors list (help)
  20. "Buzzworthy Music Artist: Moxie". Hydrogen Mag. May 14, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-10.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Benny Cassette.