01 Jan Curated #17 By Kitt Mae
Born in the Philippines and raised in the thriving artistic landscape of the San Francisco Bay Area, Pop/R&B artist-producer-songwriter Kitt Mae carves out a vibrant world within her universe in which listeners dance between the soundscapes of candy-toned pop, Bay Area hip-hop, and gilded R&B.
Influenced by the worlds of fantasy and sci-fi and with a sonic palette as diverse as her surroundings, the Filipino artist creates full sensory experiences for her audience by backing her sound with self-designed, self-painted visuals.
Kitt Mae’s latest releases include the single “Late Nites,” co-written and performed with fellow Bay Area hip-hop artist and producer Chow Mane as well as her own single “Appetite” in collaboration with Los Angeles soul/hip-hop producer Bubbs. She is currently in the studio recording and writing original music. Listeners can expect beats synced to their pulse and sparkling vocals set against cheeky wordplay. Listen to her latest track here:
Here is a list of her go-to products as a musican:
1. Professional Studio Headphones: These are my absolute favorite headphones I’ve ever owned or tried. They sit so comfortably over the ears that you could wear them for hours without pain, the fabric cups don’t make your ears sweat the way vinyl or leather cups do, and it’s got the most flat and clear output out of all the closed-back headphones in its price range that I’ve ever tried. They’re perfect for tracking vocals or instruments, and I use them when I have to get really detailed cutting a track together or when I can’t produce through my studio monitors.
2. Yamaha HS5 Studio Monitor Speaker: Speaking of studio monitors, I love my HS5s for producing and rough mixing because of how flat the sound is, their price, and their size for my studio (also doesn’t hurt that they’re aesthetically gorgeous). I don’t do the final mixes on my own tracks, but I do send out rough mixes to my collaborators so that they can get a better feel for what they’re tracking over, and these are perfect for that.
3. M Audio Oxygen 49 MK IV MIDI Keyboard: This is the first MIDI controller I ever got and I still use it to this day. It’s not the most portable but it’s a perfect in-between option for people that like to track keys with two hands or one, and I love that it comes with trigger pads.
4. Pyle Portable Adjustable Laptop Stand: I do all my work on a laptop and it was really annoying having to carefully reach over my MIDI controller to use the computer. This was such a cheap, simple, sturdy solution that once I got it, I couldn’t believe it took me as long as it did to just buy a laptop stand. You just position your controller underneath it however you want and you’re good to go.
5. Shure SM58 Microphone: I don’t use this as my studio recording mic; I use this for band practices and for live performances, but mostly I use the SM58 to vibe and record scratch vocals at my desk as I’m songwriting/producing rather than having to move my actual recording mic from my vocal booth. Recording mics can be really personal to an artist or engineer, catering to the sonic qualities of the artist’s voice or how they want the final track to sound (which is why I chose not to recommend one for this list), but the SM58s work with everyone’s voice and are a tried-and-true staple for so many musicians and studios.
“Even in the material world, you will find that if you look for the light, you can often find it. But if you look for the dark, that is all you will ever see.”
– Uncle Iroh
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