A Conversation with Dallas Austin

 

In honor of Black History Month, Vydia’s Label & Artist Relations Manager, Antonio Tubbs, sat down with legendary producer and songwriter Dallas Austin, the Atlanta visionary behind some of the most influential sounds in R&B, Pop, and Hip-Hop, to reflect on his journey, legacy, and the enduring impact of Black music.

 

What does Black History Month represent to you at this point in your life and career?

I mean, it’s super important, especially with all the challenges and stuff that’s going on right now. People are trying to erase Black history and rewrite it, and that’s real.

To me, Black History Month is about recognizing the accomplishments, from Martin Luther King to Beyoncé. These are real achievements, and I feel like if we don’t recognize them, we run the risk of losing what’s happened in Black history.

And a lot of that history has made some of the biggest differences in the world and in the way we function today. So that’s what it is for me. I’m always proud of it.

 

What first pulled you toward R&B, and how has that connection influenced how you make music across genres?

Oh man, my mom and dad used to own a nightclub in Columbus, Georgia. During the day, when my mom would go do inventory and clean up, I’d be there playing on all the funk bands’ equipment they left from the night before.

It would be like the fake version of Earth, Wind & Fire, you know what I’m saying? They’d leave their Sinclairs and everything set up, and I’d just get on and play. All the radio promoters used to hang out at my mom’s club, too, so they would take me to concerts all the time when I was a kid. I saw The Mothership, The Isley Brothers, all of that.

I’d leave a concert the same way a kid leaves a movie. I’d go home, look at the album covers, and then play the songs I just heard over and over again. I did that from the time I was about five until I was twelve, almost every week.

If Zapp and Roger were coming to town, they’d eat at my mom’s restaurant. Everybody would eat at my mom’s. Then I’d go play down the street at the auditorium, so we’d see them during the day. I was always seeing Lionel Richie, George Clinton, Natalie Cole, everybody. I was just a kid seeing all these legends in the restaurant. After they’d leave, I’d go play their music on the jukebox or go upstairs and play on my mom’s piano.

One of the greatest parts about it is being able to work with most of them later. Full circle.

How do you continue to push your creative boundaries after decades in the industry?

I’m always inspired. Never not want to be in something. I feel if you don’t get inspired, you don’t dream anymore. If you ever get too comfortable, you don’t dream anymore.

I always like to be in wonderment and dream. How can I push the boundary next? I always say, “Out of Frustation comes INNOVATION.”

Even with music, sometimes you can get frustrated until you hear something new. Whether it’s “Hey Ya!” by Outkast or “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley. When something like that cuts through, it shows there is another path to be inspired again. I like to stay inspired by what’s happening and how the culture shifts. 

 

What’s been one of the toughest challenges in your career, and how did it shape your approach to music?

I think my toughest challenge has always been not sounding the same. Never really having a lineage of music to stick to. I would have to start over each time. Or still till this day, I have to prove to someone that it’s what I do, although there may not be something like this in the current marketplace. 

There was a record I did for LA Reid for Blu Cantrell. He wanted a funk-sounding soul record, as I did for another artist. I ended up writing “Hit ‘Em Up Style,” and it wasn’t what he asked for, but before we even made it to the hook, he was saying that it was the first single. 

Even with Clive Davis, when I did “Don’t Take it Personal (Just One of Dem Days)” by Monica.  I’ve never made the perfect record. 

(Interviewer note: But he’s ALWAYS made the perfect record!)

 

When you think about your legacy, what feels most important for people to understand about your journey?

I think I’ve tried to be as good a person as I could. As far as legacy, I feel like I’m here to help God out. When I’m done, I go home. I’ve never really taken things that seriously, and I’m just grateful for everything.

I came here to help people. I feel like that’s the expansion of being blessed enough to do music and see how it affects people, whether they’re in an arena, in a car, or in a grocery store. It’s a real trip because you’re reaching people you don’t even know, and there are millions of them. You’re still able to affect them and touch them without ever meeting them. So I’m grateful.

I want people to know that I did everything I could through music to help, to keep some calm in the environment.

Clarence Avant once helped me clean up my finances when I was in a tough situation. I tried to give him a gift to show my appreciation, a Rolex Daytona. He looked at it and said, “What is this?” Then he told me, “What you can do for me is look out for other people.” He meant other Black artists and creatives. I took on that role from Clarence.

 

Of everything you’ve achieved, is there one accomplishment that stands out as the most exciting or meaningful?

The Songwriters Hall of Fame. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis told me, you’re going to get a feeling that’s going to stay with you for the rest of your life. 

When I got in that room, I got that feeling, and it hasn’t left me to this day. A lot of people didn’t know that I was a songwriter because I came up in the producer era, but I wrote every song that I produced. Being inducted with Cat Stevens made that moment even more exciting

 

How do you approach supporting and mentoring the next generation of artists?

I like to approach them by understanding where they are coming from. Even with A.I. Music, the five-year-old kid is never going to know a life without A.I. The 10/11 year old that is interested in making music is learning Suno like some learned ProTools back in the day. You have to enter the door they are interested in and mentor them from there.

 

Looking ahead, what are you most excited to do next?

I’m most excited to grow my distribution company (D.A.D) and rebuild my catalog. 

 

Lastly, if you had to choose one song to be the soundtrack to your journey, what would it be and why?

“Unpretty,” by TLC {Written by Dallas}. It kind of sums up musically the change for me at the time, and lyric-wise what it means to people.

Follow Dallas Austin on Instagram here.

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