Having worked with The Weeknd, Jorja Smith and Wizkid, and helped build Sonder alongside Brent Faiyaz and Atu, Dpat has spent much of his career shaping the music we listen to, often without being the name in the spotlight. His first major production credit, Wiz Khalifa’s Remember You featuring The Weeknd, even earned a Grammy nomination, setting the stage for a career that would take him far beyond his early expectations. Today, the Texas-born producer releases infinite youth, an eleven-track album that explores a more personal side of his creative universe, moving between electronic music, R&B and moments of nostalgia.
“I wanted the album to feel like a movie – a complete body of work that takes you on a journey from start to finish,” he tells us about the new record, which arrives thirteen years after his debut, In Bloom. A lot has happened in between, from working with some of the biggest names in music to building a collective that became much bigger than he ever imagined. But how much has the person behind the music really changed? We caught up with Dpat to talk about growing up, the early days of the internet, the friendships that shaped his career and why, given the chance to speak to his younger self, he wouldn’t change a thing.
We’re just two days away from the release of infinite youth. How are you feeling?
I feel ready to let go and stop making it mine.
Eleven tracks and a whole new chapter. What does infinite youth represent in your life right now?
It represents nostalgia and reflecting on those fleeting moments in your life where you felt completely present. Arms stretched out, wind blowing in your hair, laughing until your stomach hurts, beating hearts, freckled skin, moments you thought would last forever.
I want to take you back to 2013, when you released In Bloom. Thirteen years have passed since then. When you listen to that project now, what memories come back? Do you still recognise the person who made it?
I don’t think I’ve listened to that album since it dropped, but I would still recognise him. I remember regularly staying up until 6 am, putting so many hours into this craft and thinking it was the only thing in the world I wanted. I was still trying to find my sound and who I was and what I could give of myself to the world.
“Your goal is to make beautiful art, and if you can impact one person, you’ve succeeded.”
Are you happier now than you were back then? What’s changed the most in your life beyond music?
I’m equally as happy. I was very excited about what the future would hold back then, and I’m just as excited now. Your goals tend to shift when that amount of time has passed. Beyond music, I’m happy I’m able to take care of myself and others off of doing what I love. I never started making music or creating for that sole intent, but it’s nice to be able to reap what you sow, especially when it doesn’t feel like work.
Let’s go back to your beginnings. You co-produced Wiz Khalifa’s Remember You featuring The Weeknd, which went on to earn a Grammy nomination. How do you remember that period of your life, and how did the people around you react to everything that was happening?
All of that kind of happened in a blur for me. I remember being kind of enamoured with The Weeknd, the way he was rolling out his music and the mystique around him. He seemed unreachable at that point since no one knew who he even was, but I remember thinking, “I’m going to work with him, no matter what.” It’s interesting because I think once I decided to actually try to pursue music seriously, I began manifesting everything I wanted subconsciously, and at one point it felt like I tapped into the universe’s frequency and it would listen to me, and everything I wanted started falling into my lap.
Back then, who were the artists you looked up to?
Definitely The Weeknd, but I was also starting to go through a really big Timbaland and Ginuwine phase—the whole Bassment movement—which would influence a lot of my career after meeting Brent.
And when everything started moving so quickly, did your idea of success change?
Well, when The Weeknd song happened, I had just started making beats a year before so I had very few expectations or even goals at that time. It was something I did for fun with my best friends, not something I was genuinely pursuing. Landing that song and seeing the success it had made me realise that this was something I could take seriously, though. Again, it felt like the universe was reaffirming what path I had to take in life.
From The Weeknd to Jorja Smith and Wizkid, you’ve helped shape the sound of some remarkable artists. But after so many years working behind the scenes, have you ever felt that people knew your music better than they knew you?
Of course, but that’s by design. The artists are the face and the voice, so it’s natural for people to know the music or the movie or the art without knowing who the individuals behind it are. But the majority of these people aren’t necessarily wanting the spotlight either. Your goal is to make beautiful art, and if you can impact one person, you’ve succeeded.
You were also a founding member and creative director of Sonder alongside Brent Faiyaz and Atu. What do you miss most about that period of your life, and what did being part of that collective teach you about friendship and creativity?
I think I learned and grew the most during that period of time. I was so used to being a bedroom producer; I had to transition from making beats freely to making actual songs with structured pre-choruses and verses, and that’s something Brent taught Atu and me a lot. Working alone feels nice and comfortable, but they opened my eyes to seeing that collaboration is where the real magic can happen. Sonder felt like my baby, and experiencing all of the emotions that come with watching it grow and become bigger than you while being side by side with your brothers is an indescribable feeling. Landing placements and producing for big artists is amazing, but if I could give any sort of advice to young creatives, I would urge them to create their own movement with friends or artists that are also starting with you. That way you are creating your own identity and not just adding to someone else’s.
“I miss when people were posting freely; now everything is very curated and packaged. It feels like the algorithm controls us more than the other way around.”
You grew up immersed in skate culture and made some of your earliest industry connections through Tumblr. Do you ever miss that era of the Internet?
100%. I miss when people were posting freely; now everything is very curated and packaged. It feels like the algorithm controls us more than the other way around.
Let’s talk about coda. Adrian Villagomez, who directed the video, recently said you approached him with a story that could happen anywhere, before eventually shooting it in Peru. What was the idea behind it, and why did that setting feel right?
I approached Adrian with a story I had that I knew was strong enough to be visually striking and emotionally resonant for viewers. I was listening to Fast Car by Tracy Chapman a lot, and initially, I wanted to shoot it in the middle of the US and make the characters feel like they’re from a small town and dream of getting out, but the story ultimately ends in tragedy. But after talking to Adrian, the idea grew in scope, and what I love about working with him is the fact that he shoots globally. We discussed potentially shooting in Eastern European countries like Georgia or Ukraine before landing on Peru, partially because he had production connections there, but also because we’re both Latin, so that felt important to convey and show how beautiful it is.
I also wanted to ask you about soft pulp and bruise theory, the songs that open and close the album. How important was the order of the tracklist, and what kind of journey did you want listeners to experience from beginning to end?
I approach music and album sequencing in a very filmic way, so whenever I’m creating, I’m always thinking in the back of my mind about how it could look visually. I wanted the album to feel like a movie – a complete body of work that takes you on a journey from start to finish and feels like you’re living in this world. Something that flows organically and elicits different emotions throughout.
There’s something interesting about calling an album infinite youth when you’ve already spent more than a decade in the industry. Imagine you could sit down with the younger Dpat who was making In Bloom. What would you tell him about the life waiting for him?
I wouldn’t tell him anything at all because there’s not one thing I’d change about the journey I’ve had.
