We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jonathan Robinson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jonathan thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

As a child I was always exposed to mix media. Books and videos. Records, cassette tapes 8 track cartridges. I grew up watching lots of live performances on tv whether syndicated talent shows like ‘Showtime at the Apollo’ or more intricately produced events like Austin City Limits. I would sit around for hours with my cousins watching MTV and BET when we were off school for the summer. I was always immersed in musical performances. My dad would religiously watch doowop. Throughout my grade school tenure I was in theatre and orchestra. Slowly I came to understand my personal music taste and eventually would emulate those artists finally seeking electronic music performance as my medium.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Jonathan Robinson/ Hela Negative.

I consider myself an interdisciplinary electronic musician meaning I explore, experiment and create many contemporary genres of underground electronic music by using a variety of instruments. I use synthesizers, drum machines, loop pedals, effects modules mixers live instruments and found sounds and field recordings all mixed into sound collages using live recording methods. Predominantly without the use of computer based workflows. I first got my start in music in the 6th grade when I joined my middle school orchestra as a violist. I think what sets me apart from most electronic musicians is that I have a demystifying approach to creating music. It’s not rocket science to loop a sample or create a beat. I strive to make really good music with a level of simplicity and effortlessness. Without a level of pretentiousness often found in this industry.

I want what I create to have depth of emotion as well as an inviting nature for those who choose to listen to my music. It’s truly a personal observation of my psyche that comes into this world as sound. At times I used to be very overly concerned with the quality or density of my music. I seek to make very honest straightforward music that evokes thought, movement and and overall catharsis to the listener.

It’s a highly thoughtful and emotional journey to create these songs. Often inspired by feelings in between joy and turmoil. Loss and grief. Despair created by a highly industrialized technological society. Spirituality and the deep desire inside of human nature to touch the divine. Justice and equality and well as race and gender explorations.

Hela Negative is derived from the cell line of Henrietta Lacks a black woman’s genetic material used in many of today medical fields specifically genetics and. I encourage your readers to explore.

My current project Field Exercises is a deep exploration of love. I jam and record with my partner Dj Midwife when were together. I’m channeling the emotions of love and the feelings and challenges into beautiful expressions of sounds for them to listen to. Music is a process of exploring life for me.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I think when I’m able to sit back after laboring over a track and and it makes me want to listen to it over and over again and dance or nod my head or sing Ive accomplished something. I often send music to friends who are more solid in the industry and to get praise about the direction of my music from my friends feels rewarding.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

I think that society idealizes creative people as individuals who have unlimited energy and potential to make things. To be an artist means that you have to live two parallel lives. Those who are lucky can mesh those into one functional existence where you are only creating. Most artists I look up to still work day jobs.. Those who don’t are in my opinion lose perspective of the things that brought them to create in the first place. Having a deeper perspective about the lives of creatives may lend to better relationships with artists and those who observe.

Rap music has shown me that there is a desire to embrace and embody the tenants of different cultures without realizing that those who create the product people choose to consume are truly living in the conditions that lead them to create art. I think those who are in these trying positions globally are expressing true narratives. In whatever societal conditions that occur its always healing to have some for os self expression or reason for moving through life healthy. So like the mundane routines and challenges that people are caught in are the true inspiration for the things we love and choose to buy listen to read wear or hang on our walls. I think people need to understand that.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://helanegative2020.bandcamp.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hela_negative_?igsh=MTQ4Z2FsbXhzYXI4Yw==
• Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCRXzVc9V-ZZao0SEhaP5cnQ
• Soundcloud: https://m.soundcloud.com/search?q=hela%20negative

Image Credits

All images owned by me except photo 5 credit Kristi Gogos