It is common knowledge that the music industry is a cut-throat industry for performers.
But the same holds true for those behind the scene, the producers who craft and polish the sound. Luckily for brother producers BNYX® and BEAUTIFULMVN, the duo from Upper Darby has each other to brave the beats and tracks of their dog-eat-dog field.
BNYX®, pronounced Benny X, works with House of 99, a label that includes artist-producer Charlie Heat. At 23 years old, BNYX® has already worked with the likes of Dougie F, Tdot Illdude, Bri Steves and Ty Dolla $ign. His 19-year-old brother, BEAUTIFULMVN, who also goes by the name of James, is not signed with a label but has teamed with artists, such as Heat, Lil Baby and G Herbo.
BNYX® and BEAUTIFULMVN have made independent strides in the industry, however, as they struggle to make their marks, they prefer to do it together with their complementary attributes. BEAUTIFULMVN starts many of their collaborations with a loop and melody, plus a whole lot of charisma. More grounded, BNYX® finesses the concepts, turning them into polished beats.
Collaborating on a number of projects, the two have already produced a track, “Live Up to the Hype,” for Shy Glizzy. In addition to production, the pair also writes songs and is excited about their latest creative endeavors with up-and-comer Andrea Valle, a Philly hip-hop artist.
In addition to conducive work habits that promote optimum creative steam, BNYX® and BEAUTIFULMVN value the safe haven that a sibling dynamic can bring to the professional space. Albeit, there are times when the two will work from separate rooms, at the end of the day, they are able to work through projects with the utmost honesty and produce their best work.
“I’ll be in the studio with someone that’s not James, and sometimes I’d be scared to express my opinion, even though sometimes that’s what you have to do to earn respect,” explained BNYX®. “The music industry is so tricky because you don’t know who has the big ego, you don’t know who’s going to get hurt by what … so when you’re scared to say something it’s the worst feeling.”
But egos are just one of the many pitfalls the brothers said they have to traverse in the music industry. Another is the oversaturation in the production industry as a result of the upswing in technology.
“Nowadays in the music industry, the way that people see producers and our music and our creations, it’s kind of like candy to them,” said BEAUTIFULMVN. “It’s because it is so accessible and everybody is doing the same thing.”
Like many others, the siblings’ first introduction to production started when BNYX® received a laptop during his senior year at Upper Darby High School. But unlike many others who only mess around with production software on their computers, they both had been classically trained in music, mainly in the piano. Even more so, music is in their blood, literally the reason for their existence.
Their father, a Haitian immigrant, came to America on a visa to perform in a national gospel tour as a singer and guitarist. After moving to the states, he then met his soon-to-be wife, also an immigrant from Haiti.
Imbuing passion and love into their music learned from their father, the brothers moved toward creating music instead of playing it. Praising the “control” they can have over their craft, the siblings are preparing to take control over their careers by moving to to Los Angeles.
“The thing is with us staying in Philly right now, there’s not a lot going on. Nobody’s really looking out for anybody, especially when you’re trying to make it in the place that you’re from,” said BEAUTIFULMVN. “People are going to make you wait until you pass this certain threshold, this imaginary threshold, before they’re going to say, ‘Oh yeah, now I like what you’re doing.’”
Ready to leave their old neighborhood behind, the two are seasoned for the West Coast, a place they have been to a handful of times this past year. A fan of hit songwriter-producer Max Martin, BNYX® hopes to one day trade in hip-hop beats for pop ones, believing there is more freedom, both artistically and financially, that pop can afford for a young producer.
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