Manchester-born Mark Bradbury Aka Rudosa has been crafting his trade as a DJ / Producer in his city since 2008 delivering an intelligent yet driving strain of techno. On top of it all he has been running a DJ school “Make Me A DJ” for the past 10 years.
We had a chat with him back in 2018 and in the past time he has not been sitting still at all. Find out all about how Rudosa is killing his time.
Thank you for being back on Tanzgemeinschaft. It’s been a year and a half since our last chat. What has changed in the course of that period?
Lots of things have happened in the past year. I joined a new agency, started my label Moments In Timeand released a sample pack. Have played some really cool shows and then, of course, more recently, been grounded by the major pandemic. Such a crazy 12 months.
You have fresh work coming on Terminal M. Want to fill us in about the release? What’s it about?
I’ve been chatting to Monika about a release for a long time, we just needed to find the correct records that still pack a punch but have the Terminal M feel, which I think with this upcoming EP we have achieved. It will be out in September. Hopefully, by then gigs will have started to return slowly, and the tracks can be enjoyed on dancefloors and I might even get to play them out.
You are not the type of guy that sits back and relaxes so it seems. You also released “Deeper Expectancy” via Umek’s 1605 label. How do you push boundaries and connect with labels, other artists for collabs etc?
It tends to come naturally really from people playing my music and reaching out, or myself getting in touch saying ‘hey thanks for playing this’ and sending some more music. It’s very rare I actually send an official demo unless I don’t have a contact with the owner of the label. I feel doing things organically is always the best way.
Collaborations can take on many forms. What role do they play in your approach and what are your preferred ways of engaging with other creatives through, for example, file sharing, jamming or just talking about ideas?
I tend to limit the number of artists collaborations I do to be honest, I need to have a good musical connection with the person. I have plans for the next Moments Vol 2 on my label which will be collabs with my industry friends, some of whom I’ve worked with before and some I haven’t but at the moment this is just an idea.
For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and the transition towards your own voice? And what is the relationship between copying, learning and your own creativity?
With anyone I teach, I always advise them to have a reference and label in mind when they create but not to stick to it all the way. For example, look at the speed and key of the record, what type of kick has been used, how has the low end been created etc. But after time this starts to fade away when you get successful at productions and as you build up your own sample library that gives you an identity. Reusing sampling kicks and drums from your old tracks for example and improving them and defining your sound. Most importantly making the hook or lead and drop something crazy that you would turn to a friend on the dancefloor and say! WTF is this!!!!
Most importantly making the hook or lead and drop something crazy that you would turn to a friend on the dancefloor and say! WTF is this!!!!
Another thing we did not talk about back then is your own music school “Make Me A DJ”. What’s it about? How does it work? And how does this reflect in your own growth and vision?
The “Make Me a DJ” school has been running in Manchester, UK for around 10 years. It allows me to invest in the label and Rudosa projects, which have become a real lifeline in lockdown while I live without gigs. The concept behind the school is one to one lessons from producers and DJ’s who are successful in the scene. We teach from beginners through to advanced mixing with myself.
What do you say to aspiring creators out there trying to find their voice and identity as artists?
It’s a long road to finding your sound and it’s done by putting in lots of hours and ultimately making tracks that will most likely never see the light of day.
Finish everything and keep adding them to the pile, don’t rush to send out a demo. It’s better to send to DJs slightly higher up the tree than you, to play and give feedback. Work on your own sample library and network at every chance you get. It’s a long road to finding your sound and it’s done by putting in lots of hours and ultimately making tracks that will most likely never see the light of day. It only takes one big DJ or one viral video of one of your tracks to set the ball rolling so keep working no matter what.
