Just Keep Loving Ish D

Just Keep Loving Ish D: Former Lil Wayne producer Ish D has recently moved out of the hip-hop space to focus on disco-influenced house, and his new single “Just Keep Loving Me” is a gem.

He got his start DJing and producing when he was about 9 or 10 years old.

“I used to spend summers in Arkansas with my older cousins and get crash courses in so many different genres/subgrenes of music,” Ish D says. “I noticed everyone nodding their heads, and I’ve been trying to figure out how to recreate that to this day. If I can cause a physical reaction to something I produce, it makes me feel complete. And it’s the same thinking when I’m DJing. If I can get someone to physically react to a tune I’ve selected, it’s the best feeling, especially when it’s something I’ve produced. One thing feeds into to the other, DJing has become the vessel to show off the production. I knew it was very real when I landed my first production credit in high school. I had No connections back then with very little information. It’s just always been me figuring things out, it’s what keeps it exciting.”

Today, he describes his sound as “very much influenced by soul music / disco / grooves, at least that’s one side of it.”

“It exists between disco and ’90s house,” he says. “All of that with a dash of 2020’s sonics. Having a pretty well-rounded production career, there’s so much ground I always want to cover musically.  That’s one of the things that excites me about my production career in the electronic space — I don’t feel boxed in.”

The artist says that electronic music is currently getting back to its roots.

“By that I mean, we’ve got more black and brown people coming BACK into these spaces and bringing culture along with them. it’s been a personal mission with every DJ set to make some of these rooms more diverse, whether it be with the crowd or record selection. You can’t have house without its foundation. It has been dope to see the more traditional 90’s influences being brought into the mainstream. Like how the liquid jungle thing that’s happening right now, and the subculture it stems from entering mainstream audiences.  It just goes to show that POC will always prop up these genres and spaces to continue to push things forward. Its also exciting to see black women continuing to push electronic music forward and bringing diversity back into these booths and lineups. It’s straight up like the 90’s in the best way possible with acts like HoneLuv, Kaleena Zanders, Jayda G, Coco & Breezy (shoutout to Tadia & BUFU).”

His latest release is “Just Keep Loving Me.”

“I actually created ‘Just keep loving Me’ in Joshua Tree late last year,” Ish D says. “It was during one of those proper decompression getaways to the desert for a few days. After just enjoying the vibes out there, I was able to lock myself away for a few hours and craft a large part of the record. I spent most of last year just living, feeling. A lot of the new music that I’ve been creating is reflective of just that. In my music, conceptually there’s a constant through-line. There’s people we come across in our lives that we share experiences with. We’ve all got them. Right person, wrong time. Right time wrong person. Some short, some long. I think we’re all just a collection of these moments at any given time. Friends & Lovers alike.”

Looking ahead, he has plenty planned for this year.

“For 2023, I just want to continue to push dance music and culture forward and introduce new and old sonics in dance to a wider audience of people,” he says. “Expect more singles that continue to bring the soul back into some of these rooms and in these DJ booths.”

Just Keep Loving Ish D: Ish D’s single “Just Keep Loving Me” is out now.

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