We were lucky to catch up with Shawn Kelly recently and have shared our conversation below.

Shawn, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?

The First Hundred: It all started when I paid $1200 for a beat machine, my father said something that sticks with me to this day. He said “make sure you make back the investment” I am paraphrasing a bit but I took it as, make sure you at least make the money you paid for the beat machine and more of course. So the start of that journey was a months later and I’ve been making a decent amount of beats. One of my brother’s friend’s brother was a rapper and my brother and I started to collaborate with this individual and eventually he wanted to pay me for one of my beats. I was thrilled and did was ever i needed to get him the music on time. I even made a handwritten contract. One hundred bucks, I will like to report that I made at least $1200 and then some.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Can you please tell our readers about yourself?

Hello Hello, my name is Shawn “ARCKATRON Kelly, I am a New Jerseyian from Jamaican parents. I am first generation, youngest of four, and yes, I was the baby. I grew up with my family in Lakewood, New Jersey.. Jamaican culture was heavy in the house along with bit of American culture. So, the music I was exposed at a young age was seemingly all of the above, Reggae, R&B, Pop, Hip Hop, Jazz, Blues, Rock, Calypso, Ska, and Classical. My parents gave us the space to figure out who we wanted to be and to think for ourselves. Also we we able to see the bit of the world so we were exposed to different things, customs and culture. This made me feel like I wanted to explore and venture out there. I moved to Philadelphia during my college years at the melting pot that was Temple University. I felt like I met people from all walks of life on that campus. Philly was where I started as a professional musician and sound engineer. I recorded a lot of songs there. I met a lot of great people and musicians. Currently, I live in Los Angeles County, Inglewood to be exact. The vibe is different in a good way, strangely welcoming in ways never expected. A place I have more appreciation for as I see it through my son’s eyes. I also collaborate with my partner, Khadija, she is a creative artist and director at a children’s museum. We are starting something with the three of us called “Rebel On Board” centered around our journey as creative parents raising a child.

How you got into your craft?

My brother Audio Rohn started me on my path to music production. He would bring beat machines home from his friends and I started making beats then eventually I started making cassette tapes after my father bought me a tape deck. I was always interested in music. I loved the idea of creating something out of seemingly nothing. I loved the idea that a thought can become something you can hear in a musical way, creating the characters and story through music.

What type of services/creative works do you provide and what sets you apart from others?

There are levels to service side of the music. I make beats, Hip Hop, R&B, Pop, etc. which means that can create the foundation of the music. Music production, which means being there to ultimately finish a product or song, being they every step of the process. The process is more collaborative between artists. I also compose music for movies, animated works, and commercials. This work is client based, whatever they want I try to give them that. I think that is what sets me apart. I am a completist. I love to finish the work. I also have been told that I have great attention to detail. There was one time I was sound engineering for a client and the vocals were great but one of the statements should been phrased as questions. We couldn’t get the vocalist back in the studio for weeks if at all. So I spliced and diced the vocals for hours to make her ask a question. It was very proud of that achievement.

Tell us about you brand?

I like to think of my brand as a service to the arts. I create because I love to do it and you can make a little monies to support yourself and hopefully support your family. I started from just beat making to composing music for an animated series. I love the creative process, the tedious parts and free flowing parts. I want the next person or persons that I work with to know that, I will be in your service and let’s make something special together. My brand name is ARCKATRON, all caps, no trick spelling. for all the DOOM-heads. Thank you for reading and thank y’all for the interview.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

In my view, society could support the creative community financially. The term “starving artist’ is a real thing. Financial support such as grants, sponsorship and paying for services can open a lot of doors. Doors otherwise seemingly closed to artist who are not getting the backing needed to get the art out to the masses. Society can push the education system to bring art studies back as the standard for all schools. I feel this would bring awareness to the importance of the arts. I had general music class in elementary school, it definitely help me on the path to make music professionally.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is knowing that someone who you never met is listening or watching the art that you create. Just to know that someone is listening is very rewarding and important for me because it is what keeps me going. There was a time 10 years ago that I was gonna hang it up, sell all my music equipment and I got a random email from a friend telling me about one of my projects. Their passion for my work reignited my passion to keep working and stick with it. And I am glad I did.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://arckatron.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arckatron
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/arckatron
• Other: Adult Swim’s Lazor Wulf – https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10133864/fullcredits/?ref_=tt_cl_sm

Image Credits
Wes Pendleton – https://www.wespendleton.co/ Sarah Arnold – https://www.instagram.com/saraharnoldphoto Michael Young – http://thatnerdsoul.com/