Meet Deca

We haven’t featured some hip hop in a hot minute, so we rallied and would like to present Deca to all you dear music-loving internet fiends.

Hailing from the great land of Denver, Deca is a force to be reckoned with. With unique structures, abstract lyricism, and some pretty excellent sampling, he’s shaking up the NY scene. 

Below, we chit chat about all things collage, good Mexican food, and animation as inspiration. 

Tune in and enjoy! Thank me later. 

LETTER TO A LOVELORN COLUMNIST, A Mad-Lib by Deca.

Dear Miss Lonelyhearts:
I've been engaged to the same man for 10 years. He keeps telling me he AWAKENS me, but we need to wait to get LISTENED until he makes more CATHERDRALS. If we marry now, we will have to GALLOP with my mother and eat SUBWAYS every day. But isn't BEAUTIFUL love worth that? Should I put my EARLOBES down and set a date, or just continue to be SOFT?
Signed,
JEZEBEL

Dear Young Lady:
Don't do anything SINEWY. Something worth SINGING is worth DANCING for. I don't think eating MARMOSETS with the man you PROSTRATE is bad, but eating MARMOSETS and living 10 miles away from your mother is better.
Signed,
Miss Lonelyhearts

Some Questions with Deca

Digital, Records, CD, or Cassette. Which is your favorite format of music? Why?

Vinyl. Most of the music I make is sample-based so I'm always looking for records. I don't hear a huge difference between analog and digital, so It's more about the album art and feel of old records for me, and the rare music you can find that hasn't been digitized. They can take more of a beating than CDs and tapes too.

What about collage inspires you, and how does it feed your sample-based work?

I think there's an element of collage in everything. We're drawn to things that reflect our experiences. With collage you're taking pieces of things created at different times, with different intentions, repurposing them, and filtering them through your own experiences and perspective.

What is the food you get delivered most often? Do you have a favorite place to get it from?

There's a place called Paquitos in the East Village I order from all the time. Killer, affordable, Mexican food. That's my go-to.

If you had to produce music using only one piece of gear, what would it be and why?

The MPC 2000XL. It's what I grew up making beats on and what I still use the most out of the equipment I have.

What was the most surprising place you found inspiration?

I don't know how surprising it is but I came across a lot of old Eastern European animation around 2013 and would watch those while writing, drawing, or working on music. Guys like Marcel Jankovics, Rein Raamat, and Sandor Reisenbuchler. There's a movie by Marcel Jankovics called Feherlofia I recommend to everyone.

What was the first tattoo you ever got, and what was it’s significance?

My first and only tattoo is a woman's face above a phoenix flying over an ocean. It always sounds a little corny when you try to break down the significance of a tattoo so I won't go into it, but it was done by an incredibly talented friend of mine Lee Ball who passed away around 2008. We never ended up finishing it, so half of it is still black and white.

Where did you grow up? Did it shape the music you are making today?

I grew up in Denver, CO. It definitely shaped my music. Denver has more of a west coast influence than anything else, but people's tastes are super eclectic there, so I was introduced to a wide range of hip-hop growing up. I don't have a point of reference because thats all I knew, but it seems like other cities were more insular at the time, and stuck more to what was happening in that particular city. Where as we were soaking up influence from all over the country.

Where do you go to escape the city?

I don't get out of the city often enough honestly, but when I go on tour, I make a point of doing some sightseeing and checking out national parks.

Who would you love to collaborate with, that you haven’t already?

Dave from De La Soul. He has some of my favorite verses of all time.

What hairstyle would you like to see become popular in 2019?

The world needs more pompadour mullets.

Do you have any routines/rituals during a practice?

No real rituals, I just drink a pot of coffee and run through the set over and over.

If you were running for mayor of New York, what would be your slogan be? 

Times are hard, vote for the bard.