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Exclusive Interview

Nov 2, 2024

Produced by: Rudy Manager

Edited by: Rudy Manager & Andrej Aroch

Supah Mario – “Listen to the artist, understand what they want, and then go from there.”

In this exclusive interview, we sit down with Supah Mario, real name Jonathan Priester, the acclaimed music producer behind hits for some of the biggest names in the industry, including Young Thug, Lil Uzi Vert, and Drake. With nearly a decade of experience and a catalog packed with chart-topping tracks, Supah Mario opens up about his journey from his musical roots to becoming a powerhouse in production. From his creative process to collaborating with top-tier artists, this conversation offers an in-depth look into the mind of one of today's most influential producers. The interview was conducted by Rudy Manager via video call on October 20, 2024.


Could you share how you first got into music and how that led to your transition into music production?

I started playing drums at a really young age, around three years old. I grew up in a very musical environment—my father plays instruments, and most of my family on that side is involved in music. My grandparents sing, so I’ve been surrounded by music for as long as I can remember.

Music has always been a part of my life. I knew from early on that it was something I wanted to do forever. At first, I didn’t even think about making money from it; I wasn’t sure if I could. But by the time I was around 10, I knew I wanted to be a live musician. I wanted to play drums in a band. I didn’t care what kind of band; I just wanted to play live music, since that’s what I was used to.

For a while, I played with my dad and his group, moving around with them and playing drums. When I was about 11, I started staying at my uncle's house on weekends. He was a producer, and that’s when I was introduced to music technology—keyboards, programming, and production. But he was using pretty outdated ‘90s equipment, so I couldn’t quite get into it.

Then, when I was 15, I discovered FL Studio. I was in high school, and one day, I skipped school and went to a friend’s house. He had FL Studio, and at first, I thought it was a video game because it looked so different. It was FL Studio 3, an early version, and when he showed me how to use it, it just clicked. It felt so much like a video game that it made sense to me, and from that point on, I was hooked.

Around that same time, digital beats and 808s started becoming popular, and that’s the style everyone wanted. It was easy for me to get into that scene. I started selling my beats on CDs, passing them around in my city and nearby areas. Eventually, I took some beats to Atlanta, and one ended up in Young Thug’s hands. That was my first big placement.

Can you share how you first connected with Young Thug and how you started working with him? What was your first placement with him?

My first placement with Young Thug was a track called “2 Cups Stuffed.” This was early in his career, from a mixtape called 1017 Thug, back when he was still signed to Gucci Mane. At the time, he was also working with Hoodrich Pablo Juan, so the way he got the beat was through them—DJ Scream and those guys. They were providing most of the beats for that mixtape, although Thug had his own people too. But he also looked for beats outside his circle, and that’s how my beat got to him.

It wasn’t until 2016 that I actually met him in person, though. At that time, I was living about three and a half hours away from Atlanta, so I rented a car and made my way there for the first time. DJ Scream, or someone from his camp, connected me with Thug’s manager, and that’s how I ended up in the studio with him.

I was basically just a fly on the wall. He didn’t even know who I was. I waited until he was done recording before I introduced myself and told him that I had already produced a track for him, and that I should probably keep producing for him. That’s how we officially met—at a studio in Atlanta back in 2016, though I think that studio’s closed down now.

Can you share how you first connected with Young Thug and how you started working with him? What was your first placement with him?

My first placement with Young Thug was a track called “2 Cups Stuffed.” This was early in his career, from a mixtape called 1017 Thug, back when he was still signed to Gucci Mane. At the time, he was also working with Hoodrich Pablo Juan, so the way he got the beat was through them—DJ Scream and those guys. They were providing most of the beats for that mixtape, although Thug had his own people too. But he also looked for beats outside his circle, and that’s how my beat got to him.

It wasn’t until 2016 that I actually met him in person, though. At that time, I was living about three and a half hours away from Atlanta, so I rented a car and made my way there for the first time. DJ Scream, or someone from his camp, connected me with Thug’s manager, and that’s how I ended up in the studio with him.

I was basically just a fly on the wall. He didn’t even know who I was. I waited until he was done recording before I introduced myself and told him that I had already produced a track for him, and that I should probably keep producing for him. That’s how we officially met—at a studio in Atlanta back in 2016, though I think that studio’s closed down now.

Can you share how you first connected with Young Thug and how you started working with him? What was your first placement with him?

My first placement with Young Thug was a track called “2 Cups Stuffed.” This was early in his career, from a mixtape called 1017 Thug, back when he was still signed to Gucci Mane. At the time, he was also working with Hoodrich Pablo Juan, so the way he got the beat was through them—DJ Scream and those guys. They were providing most of the beats for that mixtape, although Thug had his own people too. But he also looked for beats outside his circle, and that’s how my beat got to him.

It wasn’t until 2016 that I actually met him in person, though. At that time, I was living about three and a half hours away from Atlanta, so I rented a car and made my way there for the first time. DJ Scream, or someone from his camp, connected me with Thug’s manager, and that’s how I ended up in the studio with him.

I was basically just a fly on the wall. He didn’t even know who I was. I waited until he was done recording before I introduced myself and told him that I had already produced a track for him, and that I should probably keep producing for him. That’s how we officially met—at a studio in Atlanta back in 2016, though I think that studio’s closed down now.

What was your process for improving your music back then?

I was surrounded by other musicians, like friends who already knew how to make beats. They laid the foundation for me, at least in terms of learning how to program. Over time, though, I developed my own unconventional approach to making beats. I would experiment with things until I figured them out.

I didn’t like asking for help, so I’d just tinker with stuff until I understood it. That’s how I learned Fruity Loops. I kept messing around, pressing buttons, reading the manual, and figuring out what each function did. It wasn’t until about two years ago that I really started using YouTube as a learning tool. But once I did, it changed everything.

The amount of information we have access to now, especially for musicians and producers, is incredible. If I have a question, I can just look it up online—I don’t even need to call anyone, although sometimes I still do. But once I realized how resourceful YouTube is, that was a game-changer for me, and I’ve stuck with it ever since.

How do you usually approach new production? Do you mostly use samples or create beats from scratch? What’s your process like?

Honestly, it depends on how I’m feeling that day—whatever strikes me. Some days, like a couple of days ago, I feel super creative, and I’ll just play everything myself. I usually start by experimenting with different chords. If I’m not in the mood to use samples, I’ll sit down and make loops from scratch. I don’t even add drums right away. I’ll create a loop or a small chord progression and then save it in a folder. If I feel creative again later, I’ll revisit that folder and add more to the ideas I started. It's a pretty minimal, step-by-step process for me.

On days when I’m not feeling as creative or need some inspiration, I’ll reach out for loops, or I’ll go through my email to see if there are any new samples. Usually, there’s something, so I’ll scroll through and listen to samples for hours until something clicks with me. Those are the days I’ll focus on adding drums.

For the most part, I prefer creating everything from scratch. Depending on how much I love the idea, it might take me two or three days to finish a beat, or I could knock out three to six beats in a single day.

Of course, now that I have kids and other responsibilities, my process is a bit slower. But about five years ago, I was making 10 beats a day, all from scratch—no loops. Back then, I didn’t even know what loops were!

I think using loops is pretty normal now, but when it first became a thing and people started sharing ideas that way, I wasn’t really open to it at first. Back then, I felt like nine times out of ten I wasn’t as creative when I had to share the idea with someone else. I preferred to start the idea myself and then have someone else add to it. Or better yet, I wanted to be in the room with them and build it together from scratch. That was just my mindset back then.

But now, I’ve gotten used to it, and I think it’s amazing. Some of these kids are so creative. Just sitting there and listening to the loops they’re making really inspires me to come up with new stuff and experiment with different ideas.

Do you have any creative routines when it comes to making music? Like, do you work at a certain time of day, or do you do anything beforehand to get in the zone?

I’ve realized that I make more and better music, and I can work for longer periods, when I make music late at night—when everyone else is asleep. And by everyone, I mean the whole neighborhood, the whole world feels like it’s asleep. I don’t know what it is, but it’s like I can tap into all that open energy for myself, you know what I mean? It’s just a better space to create in.

So I usually work at night to catch that vibe. But if I need to work during the day, I’ll step outside for a bit, get some fresh air, or grab a coffee to reset before getting back to work.

At this point, it almost feels like a regular day job.

What do you think is the most important thing for producers to keep in mind when working directly with artists in the studio?

I think the most important thing is to remember that the artist comes first. It’s their vision you’re contributing to. Our job as producers is to take their vision, enhance it sonically, and offer our input on how to bring that vision to life in the best way possible.

A lot of times, producers will walk into the studio and immediately want to start playing beats, usually ones they think the artist would like based on their sound or style. But you never know—sometimes I’ve gone into sessions where the artist wants something completely different. They might be working on a concept project that requires a specific type of sound.

So, the first thing I do when I walk into the studio is listen. I talk to the artist, understand what they need at that particular moment in their creative process, and then contribute to that vision.

You’ve worked with some of the biggest artists in the world, and you’ve also produced a lot of tracks for Lil Uzi Vert. Can you share how you first met Lil Uzi and how the track “Silly Watch” came about?

I’ve only met Uzi once—literally just one time. I was with Don Cannon at a studio in Atlanta, and both Uzi and Playboi Carti were in separate rooms recording. I had my own session going on too, and I didn’t even know they were there. The way the studio was set up, their section was kind of blocked off.

Then Don came in and was like, “Hey, Uzi’s here. You wanna meet him?” I was like, “Yeah, let’s do it.” This was early Uzi—around the time he was working on The Real Uzi. So, I went in, and the room was packed with people, like a bunch of guys from Philly, including Maaly Raw. Cannon introduced me; I shook everyone’s hand, and then I looked at Uzi and said, “I’m gonna work with you one day.” Then I just left. He kind of gave me a look like, “Okay.” At that point, the only track we had together was “Mood,” but Uzi had no idea I was involved with that beat. So when we met, I was still just the “new guy.”

As for “Silly Watch,” that beat was actually one of probably a thousand I sent him. He gave me his number through Instagram after he previewed “Myron,” and I reposted it to let people know I produced it. He reached out and hit me up on Instagram, like, “Bro, we gotta lock in.” So I gave him my number, and he texted me the next morning. After that, I just kept sending him beats—probably driving him crazy with how many I sent. His engineer, K.Lee, was also instrumental in getting things rolling and helping me build a relationship with Uzi. Shout out to her for sure.

Now, “Silly Watch”—that was the most basic, boring beat in the pack I sent him. Like I mentioned earlier, you never really know what an artist is looking for. I had been sending him more complex beats, thinking he’d want that Luv Is Rage type of sound. But I guess he already had enough of that, so I switched it up. I sent him a pack I originally made for Young Thug and Young Dolph, and “Silly Watch” was one of those beats. It’s really just 808s, snares, hi-hats, and pianos. But the way Uzi delivered on it is what made the track great.

I believe he recorded “Silly Watch” in New York, and I’ve noticed that whenever he’s there, he tends to make different types of music than he usually does. I think the people he was around at the time were encouraging him to do something different, and that environment played a big role in how well the song turned out.

Is there a particular production of yours that holds special value to you? One that stands out for any reason?

I actually have two. The first one is a snippet I posted on my page of a beat I made in 2018. I value it so much because I created it completely from scratch on a MIDI keyboard, and it sounds like an entire live band. It took me 19 hours to make that beat, and I didn’t stop the whole time. From start to finish, I worked on it, refining it until it sounded perfect. It’s just a beat, no lyrics, but it means a lot to me because of the effort and the live sound I achieved. It’s on my Instagram page.

The second one is a track called “Fake Love” coming out soon that I produced for Cochise. It features him and a rapper named Veeze. The beat feels super nostalgic, like something from the Luther Vandross or Whitney Houston era. That’s the kind of music I grew up listening to, so it just gives me this deep sense of nostalgia, which is why I value it so much.

What advice would you give to upcoming producers who are trying to build a successful career and work with artists?

Honestly, I’m not even sure what advice I could give at this point because these kids are doing everything we should have been doing when I started. But if I had to say something, I’d say this: build your brand first. I just saw someone on Twitter mention that if you're a new producer nowadays, things like selling sound kits, building an online audience—whether you have placements or not—and making sure your presence is felt on platforms like YouTube—that’s key.

Even though I’ve never been a YouTube producer myself, I’ve seen how effective it is for today's artists. Posting beats on YouTube or sites like BeatStars still works, and it works really well. A lot of artists, especially emerging ones who are going to be huge in the coming years, aren’t reaching out to producers directly anymore. They’re going online and searching for the beats that fit the vibe they’re looking for. So, right now, building an online audience is the best thing you can do. I’m not sure what the future holds, but at this moment, it’s definitely the way to go.

What kind of music do you usually listen to in your free time?

I listen to a lot of different stuff. I love Anita Baker, Prince, and SWV —I’m really into old music. But I also listen to more current artists like Yeat, and I still listen to a lot of Young Thug. I’m also big on jazz and absolutely love Afrobeat. Fireboy DML and Rema are my favorites right now. Rema is really changing the game with Afrobeat. So yeah, it’s a mix of Afrobeat, R&B, and a lot of gospel as well.

Which upcoming artist and producer do you appreciate the most for their work, and why?

I have to say, I really like LUCKI a lot. LUCKI and BrentRambo make a great pair. But to be honest, my favorites would have to be BNYX and Yeat. They have really built their sound together and started creating some incredible music.

Is there anything you would like to add, like any last words?

Not really, but I want to express my gratitude for still being in this industry after nearly ten years. Next year will mark my tenth year, and I'm thankful that I've been able to do this and take care of my family. I don’t seek accolades as much as I used to, and I don’t see competition anymore. At this point, I’m just really grateful to be making music because I love it and have the opportunity to do it in my free time.

Follow Supah Mario on Instagram: @supahmarioig

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