"I definitely don't plan to slack off" - Producer MENJU in interview
After the release of his 3rd single "JIMMY CHOO" with Ahmad Amin, we interviewed producer MENJU in a phone call. As he gained more notoriety through the successful collaboration with Dardan, he recently worked with other well-known artists like RAF Camora, Hava, Bonez Mc, Kool Savas ... together.
On Thursday, your third single comes out ("JIMMY CHOO" featuring Ahmad Amin). How did the track come about? Will there be more singles from you in the near future?
MENJU: Dardan and Ahmad Amin are connected. Ahmad Amin celebrated me and asked Dardan if he could connect us. "Jimmy Choo" was actually the first song I did with Ahmad. The song was written 1.5 years ago. It somehow never came at the right time to release the song. Since I also have a Universal deal on singles, at some point I asked Ahmad if I could have the song.
There are more singles coming. I have a relatively big single already out. I think it's really cool. But I still have to check it out with the labels. That's another film. I'm currently in the studio with so many people. There will be quite a bit in the next few years.
In the past you produced several hits for Dardan. When did you get to know each other? What is it like to work with Dardan?
MENJU: We met 3 years ago. I invited him through his manager. He just came, we got along and made songs.
Working with Dardan is really fun. I love to work and to work a lot. Dardan and I have become real bros. We've been in the studio so much, been to so many countries and experienced so much together. "Facetime" was our first song, after all. That just connects when you make a song together for fun, and then it goes through the roof like that. That's really cool.
Most recently, you also worked on several songs for RAF Camora's album "Zukunft I & II". How did the collaboration with RAF come about? How was the collaboration?
MENJU: I've known RAF for 10 or 15 years. We met somewhere backstage. Since then, we've run into each other again and again. I do a lot of work for Ahmad Amin. That's how I became closer with Hadi El-Dor. I think it was a mixture of recommendations from Hadi and Ahmad. But I never really asked. Maybe RAF also celebrated my stuff from Dardan. At some point a WhatsApp came from The Cratez: "RAF would like to have a single mixed by you. To test." I was really really happy because I really badly celebrate RAF. But the joke was, then I did it and RAF didn't like it. Then I met him in Barcelona. We talked and I checked out what he wanted. Then I tried again. Then he liked it. The collaboration is definitely blatant. It's a blatantly professional team. Especially The Royals, The Cratez and Lex. It's a real exchange all the time. It's a lot of work, but it's fun and appreciated.
What other genre of music (e.g. rock, pop, classical) most inspires you or has most influenced your music?
MENJU: Generally, there is no one in particular. But I listen to a lot of pop, a lot of oldies. But I also like film music. I produce a lot of commercial film music myself. These are completely different things than hip hop. That already shapes me in a certain way. I don't have the classic hip hop sound anymore. If I would have made that sound 10 years ago, everybody would have said, "Sorry, but that's not hip hop." I'm very pop inspired now. I also produce a lot of pop myself. There's definitely a lot coming up in the near future.
How much time a day do you spend in the studio? Is there still time for other things?
MENJU: On average, I'm probably in the studio 8-10 hours a day, 7 days a week. There are studio days that go 15 hours. There are studio days that only go 6 hours. I start at 8 or 9 in the morning. Then I produce and mix all day. In the evening, artists often come in for sessions. That is sometimes really at the limit of what is possible. Then there are all the trips. Then you have to go to Berlin, then you have to go to Kosovo, then you have to go to Santorini, then you have to go here. I'm already working non-stop.
Where will you be in 5 years?
MENJU: Much further up, hopefully. Fifty more gold plates. No, I definitely don't plan on slacking off. I always set my goals very high. It doesn't look like it's going to be less.
Social Media MENJU: Instagram