ShaoLen Rage is a military veteran turned music producer that was raised in Kinston, NC. He is a proud graduate of The Art Institute of California. He graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Science. In this interview ShaoLen Rage tells us how he got into music, how he spends his late nights and early mornings and more.

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How did it all start for you? What first got you into music?

It started around my sophomore year in high school. At that time I was listening to artists like Jay-Z, DMX, Wu-Tang Clan, Canibus, Eminem, Dr. Dre, 2Pac, Biggie, Outkast, The Lox, Redman, and Nas. I started off with just writing lyrics with help from a friend of mine at the time. He gave me some tips on writing rhymes, punchlines, metaphors, etc. At age 21, I started getting into beat-making using MTV Music Generator Vol. 2 on the PlayStation 2. Then when I got older I started working with FL Studio for my music.

I know that being a Music Producer requires a tremendous number of late nights and early mornings. What time do you normally go to bed? What does your average week look like?

I'm usually in bed by 10:30 at night and wake up around a quarter til 7 in the morning. Since making the move to be a freelance artist/musician, I came up with a weekly routine I follow religiously. I spend Mondays just making beats for myself and other clients, starting at the time I wake up. Tuesdays are my off days. I take that time to refresh my mind and relax. On Wednesdays, I spend most of my time writing lyrics. Thursdays are my recording days. And on Fridays, I spend the majority of the day just mixing and mastering all the music I recorded.

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“I'm not focused on trying to be like "the next (insert artist's name)" but the 1st ShaoLen Rage.”

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How would you describe the music that you typically produce?

I would say that it is unique and true to who I am as an artist. I'm not focused on trying to be like "the next (insert artist name)" but the 1st ShaoLen Rage.
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I read “Psychologists have found that the creative personality contains layers of depth, complexity and contradictions which makes many artists highly sensitive.” How do you approach the sensitive task of discussing changes and rearrangements with artists?

Usually, artists come to me and ask me to make them a certain type of beat. From there, I immediately get to work on it. I send them a rough of what I made so far and if they don't like it; I don't get upset like I used to anymore. I just go back to the drawing board, make the requested changes, and send them the updated version on the same day. The same thing applies to my art as well.

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What would you be doing right now, if it wasn’t for your music production career?

I would probably be a comic book artist, creating video games, or be a content creator on YouTube. Either way, I would be doing something productive and creative.