Meet Ernest Rareberrg: the pseudonym of vocalist Khaleed F.
Ernest met his producer Walt on twitter over 1 year ago—it’s a sonic internet romance that became an inspiring outlet for the two who have been working on music across state lines ever since but only collaborating in person once or twice prior to landing in LA for the Future Classic x Dropbox Residency program. Ernest’s sound described as 20/20 notes Jon Brion, Neil Young, Scott Walker, & Thom Yorke as influences. We caught up with two to discuss who they are, their first impressions of LA, and hopes for the next year.
Ernest Rareberrg producer Walt in the FC x Dropbox Studio in LA[Photo: Rashad Ricks]
How do you guys know each other?
Ernest: “We met through twitter, through a mutual friend. I had a group chat. We were talking about adding people and my friend Clint said‘I know this sick producer’ and then he sent his music in. When I first heard his stuff on Soundcloud I was like‘Yo try to get him in’ and Walt was down at first but the rule of the group was to be active, if you can’t be active, you can’t be a part of it. Walt had a lot going on he wasn’t really like saying nothing in the group.”
Walt:“They were too active! Texts all day long…24 hours a day. Nowhere you can cut in, so I didn’t say anything.”
Ernest:“Yeah so we ended up kicking him out the group[laughs]. We created a website and it had an application process and stuff like that and he ended up applying again…”
Walt:“Oh yeah and I applied and I was like‘Let me back in please!!!!’”
Ernest:“Sure enough we just started talking again like almost everyday and every week and got really close. The group didn’t work out but we just kept talking and it just turned into this, like us out here.”
What was the first artist you heard where you thought‘I want to do that’?
Walt:“I guess really Pharrell when I found out he did all the things that he did all at once - he was making hip hop bangers, pop bangers, rock bangers, and you’re like what… so if he can do that I was like I’m down.”
Ernest:“For me 50 cent, oddly. Like all the hits that he had, and the confidence that he had—as a kid I struggled with confidence and shit so seeing someone with confidence like that was really cool.”
[Photo: John Liwag]
[Photo: John Liwag]
Outside of music who or what else is inspiring you both?
Ernest:“Edwin Catmull. He was the founder of Pixar. His book“Creativity, Inc” is very important. As soon as I read it I was like‘Yo walt you need to read this’ everything he says in there is so essential to life especially in a creative business.”
Walt:“What was that one thing on netflix?”
Ernest:“Umm”
Walt:“Ohhh the End of the Fucking World. Me and my friends watched it and then I made a beat that night. At the time I was living in dorms and everyone went to bed so I made the beat and that was like the first time where I was trying to capture what that show felt like with my music.”
You guys haven’t worked together much in person right? What’s your process been like recording in the same room together?
Walt:“When he’s trying to feel something out, since I’ve never seen that in person it’s really interesting. You can tell the face when he’s trying to figure something out, and then like when something starts going he will pull out his phone and start to record some voice memos and if that keeps going - he’ll listen back to it and then if it’s sounding good we’ll record the melody. Pretty cool seeing that in real-time in person.”
Ernest:“I think for me see how quick Walt could get something going and start from the drums up…It’s really quick… it feels effortless at times, I really admire it.”
What’s your experience been like in the FC x Dropbox studios?
Meet Ernest Rareberrg: the pseudonym of vocalist Khaleed F.