Earlier you said something interesting - that you were listening to Blues of a Journeyman and it felt like the version of yourself that made that album was speaking to today's version of yourself...

Yeah, preparing for what is to come next. More or less in chronological order, what I've been able to accomplish, where I've been, my experiences. It's like a reminder that allows me to make the follow up project better based on where I'm at and what my direction has always been. It's not mixed and mastered properly to the way that I would have loved but this is what I had to work with. There's a rawness to it but you hear the potential.

So now on Dance Party, would you say that you are happier with the quality of the recordings?

With Dance Party I'd say I was satisfied because I was advancing, my sound was advancing, I was being able to become singular with the music as to what I wanted. You know, I think the amount of love you put into something is what you'll get out of it and that's what I witnessed with the progression of what I was able to obtain.

What was the main difference then in the process from the previous album to what you did with Dance Party for the Heavy Hearted?

Well, with Blues I was on the road so I was actually out there. And the concept of what Blues represents is... it just happened to become Blues but it was just a result of my focus towards making Dance Party. You see I've always been trying to make Dance Party. So as I was travelling, I was putting the songs together and once I had an abundance of these songs, they weren't sounding like Dance Party was sounding in my mind.

Instead I just took it for what it was - like on the track Melodrama. Being out in Hollywood, and I would spend late nights walking. and sleeping on the floor at the studio, going though what I was going through. Living out of the studio, washing my face early so people can't see me type sh*t. So I created Melodrama and that's when I realized that this is a different project - it's not Dance Party. The only thing I got out of the culmination of those songs was Suburban Vixen - produced by Ark Angel (Vindata). That's the first song that was designated for what Dance Party was going to become.

Can you tell me a bit more about how and where Dance Party was recorded?

It really started with just being able to finally be in a comfortable groove and realize that I was creating Dance Party finally. A lot of that came with my discovery of Grabbitz, working closely with him and seeing his potential and his talent. He's from Elma just outside of Buffalo and I found him through Facebook. I put on a show where I featured him in a Team Radio showcase and he did a great job.

From there I recognized his skill set and his talent and the value that he was bringing and I wanted to nurture that so we developed a great bond and musically that is exactly what I was looking for all along. He played some tracks for me that he had produced and I could hear elements of what Dance Party was to me.

So who else along with Grabbitz played an important part in execution of the creative vision?

Yeah, Grabbitz really inspired me to get back to the youth element in a way. Around the same time I was also able to work with a few different engineers and I discovered Nameless and it started being the foundation for something bigger than the music. [We recorded] at his studio right here in Elma, and I also recorded at Adam Korbesmeyer Whiteout Audio in Cleveland and with my man Rob out in Lockport. Then I had Suburban Vixen in the can from when I was out in California. So it was like I had the missing pieces to complete the album.

So what can we expect to see from you next on the Dance Party project?

Well, I would love to be done with the presentation of this project, but I have a committment to this it and it needs it's due diligence. I want the audience to obviously hear it sonically the way it was designed, and then also see it performed live the way I intended.Then once you see the films you find yourself really engaging with the concept of the project for what it breeds. It's all honest! That's me in a nutshell as an artist or who I am - that's me... Sometimes I surprise myself with how open I've been...
 

Without question, Dance Party for the Heavy Hearted is an honest represenation of Chae Hawk as an artist. While staying true to the original vision and appealing to a broader audience, the music and visuals create a complete picture and tell a story - one to which anyone from this hip-hop generation can relate.

On Saturday, September 27th - Chae Hawk performs live at the Elmwood Village 20 Block Bash Anniversary Party