By Andrew Santos.

Bryan Gee is one of the most important figures to the Brazilian Drum’n’Bass scene, since the license of the brand "Movement” to the Arena’s night, in the end of 90’s.
All of his several visits to Brazil are extremely effectives. He is a real head-hunter.

By his labels (V Recordings, Chronic, Liquid V, among others), great hits were released, such as Unreals remix to the track "Fighter", from DJ Meaker, "Touch the Sky", from Critycal Dub, "Ghetto Sound", from Level 2, besides the immortal ones "LK" (Carolina Carol Bela, from DJ Marky & XRS) and "Só tinha de ser com você”(Fernanda Porto, ESOM & Dj Patife), that had put together Brazil and the worldwide scene of Drum and Bass.

Since the first generation with Dj Marky, Patife, XRS and Andy to the present one with Critycal Dub, L-Side, Andrezz, Chap, Level 2, Unreal, Young G, Jam Thieves and Subsid, Bryan could be considered as a bridge between the Brazilian producers and the global D&B market. Checks the interview with this legend, which will be present at the Forbass & Tendence, on February the 28th @ Trackers.

Drumnbass.com.br: Bryan, all your fans are waiting for this gig since last year, we feel like every time you come back is just like the first time, with the same intensity and expectation. How do you feel about it? Is it the same for you?
Yes of course I feel this way as well. I now it’s easy to say this but I feel deep down in my heart a spiritual connection with Brazil and feels like I’m almost with my family, definitely feels like a second home, from the very first time I came and it was cemented when I went up north to Salvador to a place called Bahia, which felt more cultural and had a strong African West Indian feeling to it. From then I’ve always said, “if I ever leave England it would be to come there"

Drumnbass.com.br: The V Recordings has completed 20 years, last year. How does it feel to be in an independent market for so long, without missing the essence and keeping the success?
Bryan Gee: I’m still struggling with coming to terms that it’s been 20 years of V recordings. I never imagined, when we first started, that we would be 20 yearsin deep and where did the time go? If just seems to have gone so fast! Like they say “time flies when your having fun” and it has been one hell of a ride.

We have never worried about keeping the success when we started V because we love music and the music we release has never been for trying to keep up with what’s going on. We try to let the people buy into our vibes, it’s simply music that I like, it’s what we been doing for 20 years although we got a few labels that handles different styles of drum and bass we have managed to create a sound where weather its hard, liquid, jungle deep or jump up you can hear and feel that V flava.

Drumnbass.com.br: This bond with Brazilians was very important either to the record label or the producers. Comparing the two D&B Brazilians generations 15 years from now, what are the differences between them, according to V Recordings and its sub labels?
Bryan Gee: Making the connection when I first came here was very important to lay the foundations of what is happening now in Brazil with great new producers like level 2, DJ Chap, L side, Duoscience, Simplification, Critical Dub, Nitri and the list goes on, there’s so much talent coming through and all getting worldwide recognition.

I remember when DJ Andy shouted at me and said “hey, I got some tunes from some new guys, who were Critical Dub and Acuna and from then Thiago Borges linked me with Level 2 and the “Going Back” track, which probably never had gone how it did if not for Roni Size, who kept talking about this song, so I listened again and really liked it, so released it on liquid V and kind of kicked off the new chapter of V recordings in Brazil, which over the last few years have been a massive part of the new sound coming out of V recordings liquid V and even Chronic. The difference now is that a lot more people are producing, people are sharing more ideas, it’s not so easily recognized like before, where most Brazilian Drum and Bass had the samba break or Brazilian percussions etc.

They managed to move on from that but at the same time it still has that “Special Sunshine”, I call it, whatever type of drum and bass there’s always that Sunshine, that Brazilian vibe you wont get nowhere else, apart from that, there aint that much difference, another thing as well, I find a lot of the music from Brazil feels kind of timeless a lot stuff from the Marky and Patife era could easily sound like something new from Chap, Duoscience or subside, for instance.


Drumnbass.com.br: In such a globalized world, many producers bear in mind to release only in labels already known in the market, to raise credibility. Is this the best path to musical production?
Bryan Gee: The most important to me is to work with a label that believes in what you’re doing, where you want to go and most important, want to get behind and support your music, yes its cool to be on a big or cool label but the relationship and working with the right people that love your music, to me is more important. I think it’s important to find the right label and work with one that enables the label to invest in you as an artist and build and work towards the future, where if an artist is on many different labels, all will release it, but you wont get that extra support, which is important, as a label will only do so much on a release, if an artist aint signed, where as if he is a signed artist, you’re more prepared to invest more in the project i.e. advertising, videos or remixes as you can look at it as a long term Project.

Drumnbass.com.br: Im wondering if your mailbox is full of music coming from the entire world... As A&R, how do you select the repertoire, how do you analyse the artist, before entering the recording label? Among Brazilians, Which producer stands out at the moment?
Bryan Gee: Yes we get a lot of music which does take a lot of time to get through sometimes by time you get to find something it’s gone already, as a lot of artist send to a few labels at the same time, which I find frustrating, sometimes you can’t always make an instant judgement on a track, sometimes it’s instantly and your like straight away “I want that!” other times it takes a few listens or jus that right moment, I like to put all new tracks in my aim folder, drop them on the IPod and on my way to gigs in the car I listen to them all, I find always get a good sound in the car and if off to a gig can be a hour or 2 so it gives me time to listen to all tracks I get in a week.

Out of all the Brazilian producers I’ve been working with over the past 2/3 years, I would find it hard to choose one! It’s like saying to pick the best 11 Brazilians for the national team very hard because you guys have so much talent! (I’d rather leave that to Felipe Scolari!) Same with Drum and Bass producers in Brazil, all I can say is I think you guys are in a good place right now!

Drumnbass.com.br: To finish the questions, we’d like to ask something already asked to other recording labels about Drum & Bass, which is considered a "new" style, if compared to others electronic music approaches. This exchange is really important so that we can export music worldwide. Even though Brazilian Drum & Bass havent stabilized yet – We still depends on the international attractions to hold up an event, even with qualified producers on the line-ups. What solutions would you suggest for us to set a better scene?
Bryan Gee: It’s easy to look abroad or somewhere else for something, when its right on your doorstep, a lot of the time it’s just the way in England too, we even have a saying to express that “the grass is always greener on the other side”. Not always it’s is like that so though, yes it’s good to have the overseas attractions but I can’t say 100 % as I’m not where you are although there’s a lot of great talent coming through and I feel it’s only a matter of time to all these young producers start getting a few hits.

Hopefully that will raise their new profiles and they will be coming to Europe, The USA, getting there new out there and when people at home see this it can make a difference, not that there gone or going anywhere but you need to bring through the new Patifes, Dj Andys, Markys, Spies etc. From what I’m seeing that doesn’t look too far off, until then, people will look overseas for their idols, and stars, for that extra thing to get them excited.

Drumnbass.com.br:Thanks in advance, for participate. It is always a pleasure to have you here in our country; you are as Brazilian as we are! Please, leave your message to all junglists! :)
Hello Brazil! It’s your son! Bryan Gee excited to be coming back home! I can’t wait to get here and see all my friends. I missed picanha and that fresh laranja and abacaxi mixed that only in Brazil it tastes like this hmmmmmm. But most importantly I can’t wait to come and bring some new music over to you, we always have a great time when I come and I’m expecting the same as usual! Take care and see you on the 28th bye...