Justin Hibbert [i]

Today’s feature is on Justin Hibbert, a producer, rapper, and engineer who releases music under his own name as well as the name “i”. Hibbert has worked with artists such as Lola Monroe, Keida, Damas, and Teflon, among others. His most recent release (“Initiation”) is the main topic of conversation in our interview, along with his favorite recording experiences and his future plans.

Could you tell us about your musical background? How did this latest project and accompanying collaborations come to be?
“I began my musical journey as a drummer in local bands and later progressed to production in high school. I made my own beats from there on out and went to school for audio engineering. I have been writing my whole life but stepped up to the plate as a full-fledged artist around my college years. I do just about every aspect of my music besides the guitarists/bassists or horns players I work with. My project “Initiation” was recorded over a few months in Atlanta while I was recording my pop album; I recorded over 50 songs and used the pop tracks for my album and used the progressive tracks for “Initiation”. I spent the past seven months tracking the background vocals/instrumentation and special features from Sole, Project Pat and Troy Ave.”
What can you tell people about your most recent release “Initiation”?
“I would say that it’s the sound of getting on.”
Who are your biggest musical influences?
“I listen to music non-stop and go through many phases. My favorite artists right now are Oh Land, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Danny Brown, Jeru The Damaja, Sole, The Mars Volta, North Korea, M.I.A., and Prince Far I.”
What are your favorite activities outside of music?
“Painting and reading may be my other favorite activities. I live a pretty active life so working out and sports are up there, along with snowboarding and skim boarding. Oh, and getting trippy.”

What artists’ have you had the best experiences recording and producing?
“I would say working with Sole was one of the smoother experiences, he’s a truly down to earth dude and cares about the music, not to mention he was one of my favorite rappers growing up. These days I don’t really record anyone but myself with the exception of my artist Stella Sol who is always entertaining to work with.”
What does 2014 hold in store for Justin Hibbert? Do you have any live performances or upcoming releases lined up?
“2014 is gonna be a good year; I have a lot of music coming out this year, and will be dropping some music videos which is a first for me. I don’t like the concept of music videos so (initially) I was hesitant to go that route until we did my pop album. I’ll be playing shows this year but am taking my time in terms of letting the music soak into the public first. I’m very happy to just be able to watch my music spread whether it’s [i], Stanki Face, Stella Sol or Justin Hibbert.” - Tom Lohrmann

I’m not a big fan of rap in general but there are a few rap artists I enjoy. “I” is one of them.


Initiation New Project
“Initiation” is [i]‘s(Justin Hibbert) newest project, the follow up to his debut project “Illusion”. Featuring artists in the caliber of Project Pat, Sole and Troy Ave “Initiation”‘s tracklist is enough to proove [i]‘s true diversity and musical span. Many artist fall into the pit of the sophmore slump but “Initiation” is everything but that.

Sonically, this project is immidetly disifferverable from [i]‘s debut project. Where [i] started is definitly not where he is in “Inititaion”, with less reggea samples and 808’s it seems to be a more hood or street. Whatever it may be that caused this change in sound it is 100% for the better. For me this album’s highlight track’s are it’s intro “All The Kings”, “Boombox”, stripper anthem “Pole” and the outro “Naked”. - Maghine

For starters i would like to give a brief background on this artist Justin Hibbert [i], the brain child behind these innovative and sexually driven [i] projects. Justin Hibbert [i] reared his head in 2012 under only the name "i" with basically no pictures of him other than a shirtless spary paint picture and a couple silhouette type face shots. An approach reminding me of another upstart The Weeknd in terms of its delivery and promotion. His debut under the name [i] was a reggae based sound with a psychedelic twist, i thought this was something very special in terms of its "spiritual" honesty and newness to the production that I have not seen since Kanye West or 40 introduced their sounds to hip-hop. Not to mention Justin Hibbert [i] is his own standing Producer([Prod. i]) and Engineer, thus adding to the skill and control of the vision Justin Hibbert [i] has exuded through his releases. Spending the majority of 2013 releasing club based mixes as a DJ (Stanki Face) and releasing Pop music under his birth name Justin Hibbert, [i] was very silent in terms of the underground sound he began with. Little did i know "Initiation" was secretly be crafted in the array of Justin Hibbert's club music.



"Initiation" begins with a single soft synth that immediately just has that "feeling" very similar to how i felt when someone would turn on Drake's song Successful. Growing into a full on choir "All The Kings" is a true statement the terms of the growth in sound. After the first hook Justin Hibbert [i] begins with no sense of hesitation behind lyrics like "A wise man once said there can be another Jesus" and "but this altitude has me suffocating on success" he seems to have gained a very noticeable bravado.



Following the albums intro is "Only Proof" a saxophone led ode to money and the ways someone must get to it, speaking on life on the road and it's ramifications. Later followed by the feature heavy "Boombox" with guest verse from indie rap god Sole and NYC's Troy Ave. This track is like the definition of hip-hop, the guest feature choices are some of the best i've seen in awhile. I can honestly say i never thought i'd hear "Bottle Of Humans's" Sole rapping with Troy Ave, rap's newest version of coke rap. For some reason it all works and truly believe that is because Justin Hibbert [i] is glue in the genre gaps between those two artists.



After showing his long lost reggae sound in "Babylon" we get to hear a bit more of this man's personal life in "Lost Beauty". "Lost Beauty" is the one sad song on "Initiation" and speaks of a seemingly lost model and might be the sequal to the song "Meditations" the interlude on his debut album. Like many of the singer's on this project the hook is sang by an unnamed yet talented artist. I truly recommend this track to any of Justin Hibbert [i]'s female fan base. This track is followed by Project Pat featured song "Blacked Out" which is for me a reach in terms of Justin Hibbert [i]'s gangster prowess but 100% shows how many different demographics receive this truly universal sound.





"Pole" comes in at track number 7 and is Justin Hibbert [i]'s raw take on strippers and that life in general. I think he may have been spending a bit to much time in strip clubs during his time in ATL. My favorite part of this song may surprisingly be the added Jacob Miller sample still showing the reggae roots these [i] projects started in. After seemingly promoting stripping the sample repeats "dont let money full ya girl" give a bit more layers to the song indeed. "International" follows with a similar beat featuring UK newcomer Janai.




The outro to "Initiation" is the track "Naked" which stood out to me maybe the most on the whole album. With promotional pictures of Justin Hibbert [i]'s hands on white womens butt i was wondering how sexual he was gonna get on the album. Interstly he got so sexual on the "Naked" to the point of actually hving sex on the track. Throughout the song you can hear moans of a seemingly very satisfied lady which i must say is very fitting giving the tracks title. I was left saying "Take it off" the whole next couple days. With an encore bonus track Justin Hibbert [i] closes "Initiation" with a freestyle that may be the best i have ever heard him rap in the 2 years he has been releasing music. Take a listen.




Download Here:

https://soundcloud.com/listentoi/sets/initiation-prod-i

http://www.mediafire.com/download/63g1dl3lkg11h66/i-%20Initiation%20%5BProd.%20i%5D%20.zip

http://www.4shared.com/zip/L6tH6ecoba/i-_Initiation_Prod_i_.html

http://www36.zippyshare.com/v/85787047/file.html

https://soundcloud.com/listentoi
https://twitter.com/whois_i
http://allofimusic.tumblr.com/
http://iamjustinhibbert.tumblr.com/
https://www.facebook.com/whoisimusic - Pwr Moves

Justin Hibbert [i] recently took to Instagram and Twitter to reveal his upcoming song with Texas legend, Mike Jones. Platinum selling artist Mike Jones hasn’t been a force on the scene for many years now; however, he shows promise with his latest release Moneytrain. The eclectic Justin Hibbert [i] recently put out an acoustic EP in Fall of 2015, so this change of pace is an interesting move for the young artist. Ultimately, both of these artists could make a potentially huge record, especially if produced by Justin himself, who’s become known for putting classic artists on new sounds such as Project Pat and Sole. No release date has been given for the track, but we believe you can expect this banger in 2016. - Above Average Hip-Hip

Known for his eclectic sound, Justin Hibbert [i] infuses EDM and Reggae on his release “Herbman”. The song features Taylor Gang signee Lola Monroe, it also gets a boost of island styling from Jamaica natives Keida and Teflon. - Daily Dose Of Bass

Multi-genre artist Justin Hibbert [i] releases a banger of a track with Mike Jones. The self-produced ([Prod. i]) rap/rock/EDM track is a new radio-ready sound that we have not heard Justin pull off before. From the guitar solo to the distorted Yeezus-like 808’s, “[i] Am Work” is a fresh sound for any Hip Hop lover.

Who? Mike Jones. - HipHopDX