Today we’d like to introduce you to Morris Sally.
Morris, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Well, I’m old-school Hip-Hop (lol)! I’ve been a rapper and music producer since the late 1980s. So, I’ve done pretty much everything in Hip-Hop. From the artist side to the management side in the music business. After taking a break from music for about 5 years I came across the beat culture called “Lofi” (in 2017) on social media.
The interesting part of “Lofi” is the artists are the producers/beatmakers, and the fans are into the instrumentals that they produce, and the music equipment they use to make the music. Since “Lofi” brought me back to the music I used to make back in the 1990s (we called it Jazz Hip-Hop), I bought myself a drum machine (MPC LIVE), started making beat videos, and posting on social media.
Then I started seeing posts of beatmakers having events called Beat Cyphers. The beat cipher is a concept similar to a rap cipher except for producers. An invitation to the beat cipher is sent to the producer community inviting them to show up and run their beats down on an open aux cord.
Ideally, the flow of the cipher would have two or three, more experienced producers having a ‘headlining’ spot where they can play their music uninterrupted for a set amount of time. Then between those sets, other producers who show up are given space to play their music.
The goal of this project is to make space for producers to network and have a platform to share their work. This gave me the idea to start my own beat cipher event (in 2021) to showcase the very talented producers/beatmakers in the Upstate of South Carolina, called the “SCLofi TakeOver “.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Everything is just an idea until it becomes a reality. I owe everything to the owners of Hadiyah’s Dream (an Art, Health and Wellness Boutique), where the monthly events are held in downtown Greenville SC.
When I talked to Mr. Frank and Ms. Von about my vision of giving the HipHop community something different, they accepted with their door wide open. Especially by them having a very talented musical family, they want to see a very much-needed balance in the Hip-Hop community in South Carolina.
The next challenge was trying to get the producers/beatmakers to come to the event. For the first 6 to 8 months it was just me (Morris “Mo1Only” Sally) performing beats, going back and forth between my laptop and drum machine.
But, with consistent posting on social media, the beat community found me. Now the SCLofi event is attracting beatmakers from Upstate SC, Asheville, Atlanta, and Charlotte.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am the curator of this SCLofi platform for producers/beatmakers. Since I’m a producer myself I know how hard it is to catch a break in this music industry.
So I want not only to create a networking platform but an educational platform as well. I want these producers/beatmakers to know the business side just like they know how to make music.
I want them to know they have options other than working with artists and major music labels.
Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
The SCLofi TakeOver Event is one Saturday out of every month at Hadiya’s Dream, 506 Rutherford St, Greenville SC, from 5 pm-9 pm.
Also an all-age event. Connect on Facebook and Instagram to catch the date for future events.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/sclofi
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sclofi/
Image Credits
Machen44Visuals and SCLofi
