From Thought, to Production: The Reverend Deepens Evil Dubstep

What is your name & Where are you from? I'm Hunter Mansfield, my alias is “The Reverend” & I’m from Dirty Jerz! (New Jersey) How did you begin to DJ and how do you describe your style? I have been passionate about dubstep for a while now, probably since around 2011/2012. I was in middle school! I have only recently dabbled into the producing/DJing side because of the built passion & tension for the music I've had over the years. Ya know? Making it how YOU would want to hear it. And with that being said I would describe the style I strive to have as a consistently evil, rip your face off, glitchy undertone type of dubstep!

How did you develop your DJ name and figure out why you chose this style? My coworker used a word generator for religious/occult terms while I was talking to him about possible names. Reverend popped up and I knew instantly that is what I wanted to be known as. My style for the project as The Reverend is best said as “Dubstep Dark Priest." I grew up with more religious parents and I guess the vibe of being the polar opposite of that peaked my interest. But despite all the dark tones, there are lots of positive affirmations hidden in my music. What is your creative process and workflow like when creating your music? When I go to start a new song, I usually listen to other music that I admire and would like to emulate in my own way. Then I usually start sound designing and playing with patterns until something catches my attention. It's game on from that point! Who are some of your inspirations in the EDM industry? I have a few. I obviously and totally love Svdden Death and of course his whole VOYD alias too. I would say he is my main inspiration for sure. Then I’d have to say Dubloadz, Oolacile, Cromatik, Marauda, and Avance are also inspirations. Their music has a lot of my favorite elements that I love when it comes to dubstep and I try to emulate those elements in my own way!

How do you perfect your craft and do you have your own setup? If so, what is it like? I try to keep perfecting my craft at nonstop research and practice. I'm always looking for things to further my knowledge with both producing and DJing. I do have my own set up too. I just recently bought the XDJ-XZ for DJing but before that, I had a little Traktor controller lol.

What program(s) do you use to make music? I use quite a few different programs. The main ones for me are Ableton, Serum, & Malström. What is your dream venue or festival to perform at? LOST LANDS!! LOST LANDS HANDS DOWN!!

Have you found it easier or more difficult to create music during the quarantine? For me, I've had way more time on my hands so it has been easier because I can

just sit and take as long as I want while working on projects.

What are some challenges you have faced when trying to reach your goals? A challenge I usually face is time because I usually am working a lot and don't have as much of a window to give this project the effort it deserves.

How do you promote yourself on social media accounts, do you have a team that helps promote and create? I usually try to make memes or cool promo vids of or relating to my music. It seems to help plus I enjoy doing it. What is some advice that you would give to people who are trying to get into DJing and the industry, any tips? I don't really have too many tips. I'm still working hard to get myself out there as much as possible. But if I had to say something even though it's very cliché, it would be to just have fun. If you're not thoroughly enjoying the craft, it will show in your work and you won't make it as far!

Thank you for reading! To check out some of Hunter's music on Soundcloud click on this link!