ABOUT

He produces, mixes, engineers, DJ’s, writes, performs, presses and distributes top chart quality music across the Pittsburgh area. He has released a reputable collection of mix-tapes and CDs of his own and earned himself a loyal base of fans. He has been in the lab, on stage, in newspapers and on screen in videos representing himself as the man and machine behind Pittsburgh ’s emerging hip-hop fame. Simply put, he is the Hitmaker, by far the city’s hardest working and most prominent one-man show in music and entertainment.
Hitmaker (also called Hit) answered the curious call of destiny at the age of thirteen. It was then he got a taste of his own creative abilities by putting together a cassette of nine songs for his schoolmates. With just a dual-deck boom box and an inexpensive plug-in microphone, Hit gathered a collection of bass music cassette singles and melodies and “sampled” any available “loops” he heard, from one deck to the other, repeating the process until he had a three-minute length track. Next, he plugged in his microphone and began the process of deck-to-deck cycling yet again only that time adding his own lyrics to his home made instrumental and, in a whirl of inspired determination, produced his first track.
From that moment on, music has been the passion and purpose of his life. With not much money in his household, Hit he had to find a way to support his craft. His sophomore year in high school, Hitmaker seized a chance opportunity when he lied to the school chorus teacher about being able to DJ. She needed someone for a school dance the next week and he needed the money. With no equipment or experience, Hit worked himself a $300 advance, purchased a Gemini XL1000 and 15 vinyl singles and in one week taught himself how to “spin”. The dance was a complete success earning him paid bookings for dances, proms, homecomings and birthday parties for the remainder of the year. Just one year later, Hit had earned himself enough money to purchase a CD burner and his first beat machine; a BOSS SP-202. With 32 seconds of sampling time, 8 touch pads, a CD collection of loops and sounds and two local emcees, Hit began paving his way.
Early in, the young man possessed the discipline and drive of an executive three times his age. Every penny Hit made selling his impromptu musical creations he put back into his craft. He strove to constantly improve himself as an artist and update his equipment. By age 19, Hitmaker had the makings of a complete studio in his apartment. He sanctioned a room as his recording booth (sound-proofed with foam and other materials on the walls), purchased a mixing board and better microphone, teamed up with the city’s hottest lyricists and trucked his way further toward his goal.
Dissatisfied with relying on other producers’ works to create his music, Hit turned back into the challenge and inspiration of his own creative mind and completely gave up sampling. A Tascam four-track digital tape recorder and a Playstation program music generator became the newest tools of his lab. With only two years of piano lessons under his belt, he fashioned himself a music man and started developing his own drum patterns and melodies. His discipline quickly paid off. In very little time, he created what became his recognizable “sound” as a producer. Hitmaker tracks were solicited by MCs from all across Pittsburgh .
The euphoria of earning fans and interactively promoting his music are the fuels that propel Hitmaker further and further down his path to becoming a music industry legend. Beat after beat and song after song, Hit throws himself deeper and deeper into the culture of hip-hop music in an effort to learn all he should to be a Master in the art. He has learned by book, magazine, radio and audience ear what puts a song at the top of the charts and come up with his own effective formula for making that hit.
Never deterred by obstacles or stumbles, Hitmaker has endured and overcome his deal of disappointments in his pursuit. Now 24, Hitmaker has risen himself above the hype of “fast talking” self-proclaimed managers and label owners, diligence lacking MCs, hip-hop prejudice performance venues in Pittsburgh and his own momentary self-doubts to find himself at a place where destiny is no longer the hazy reflection of a curious boy but the clear visions and sight of an able ambitious man.
He now works with a Korg Triton and the genre popular MPC. With idols like Rick Rubin in sight, he has spent thousands of hours alone learning to mix, engineer and produce quality in his sound. As the industry advances, so does his skill. He has all but mastered Pro-Tools. He currently produces the most audibly aesthetic “underground” recordings in Pittsburgh . Hit is more than his collection of beats, songs, CDs and collaborative works. He is a hip-hop mogul in disguise. Hitmaker has exploited his own energy and esteem to go beyond the music and learn every functional aspect of the business side of the industry from marketing and promotions to artist development and “points”. He has even become a top list MC himself.
Fully empowered and armed with talent and decidedly married to his fate with music. Hitmaker is more than a fan of hip-hop. He is its adoptive father and plans to raise hip-hop to new heights in creativity and overall quality while keeping the red dot of his hometown, Pittsburgh , PA on the music industry map.