Donald XL Robertson: The Value of Staying Curious and Exploring New Sides of Your Creativity

By Donald XL Robertson

I've been producing music for as long as I can remember, and I still get excited when I hear something that makes me want to try something new. After all these years, I like knowing there's more for me to discover.

I love making lo-fi, jazz-influenced hip-hop. I enjoy the warm sounds, mellow arrangements, and rhythms you can settle into. But lately, I've been having just as much fun making music with a very different energy: heavy percussion, deep bass, and drums that make you want to move.

I didn't sit down one day and decide I needed to change my sound. I was curious, and I followed something that caught my attention.

Following the Sound

Sometimes I'll go online, start exploring something that interests me, and let the algorithm take me wherever it goes. I look at it almost like rolling the dice. Every so often, you come across something you wouldn't have thought to search for.

That's how videos of parties in Brazil got me listening to Baile Funk. The percussion caught my ear. It reminded me of the second-line culture I grew up around in New Orleans, even though the music had its own rhythms and energy. There was something I connected with right away, and I wanted to hear more.

So I kept listening. I paid attention to the sounds, the arrangements, and the way DJs mixed the records. I wanted to understand what made the music work before I started putting my own ideas into it.

When I did start experimenting, I found I had plenty of experience to draw from. Drum programming, arranging, mixing, and working with deep 808 bass were already part of what I loved doing. Now I had a different setting in which to explore them.

That was the exciting part for me. I could hear what had drawn me to the music, and I could hear my own approach coming through, too. I was learning as I went, figuring out where my instincts fit and where I needed to listen more closely.

What You Already Know Can Take You Somewhere New

This experience got me thinking about how often we use familiar skills in ways we didn't expect.

Dave Thomas comes to mind. Before founding Wendy's, he worked with Kentucky Fried Chicken franchises. He brought what he'd learned in one part of the restaurant business into another. That connection interests me because it shows how experience can give you a place to start when you're ready to try something different.

I see a similar connection in Kanye West's move from music into fashion and footwear. The work changed, but he brought his creative perspective with him.

For me, exploring a different style of music didn't erase the years I'd spent producing. I was using that experience every time I made a choice about a drum sound, an arrangement, or a mix. There was still plenty to learn, which was part of the enjoyment.

Putting the Pieces Together

As the tracks developed, I started thinking about the whole listening experience. I wanted each record to have its own personality while keeping the energy moving across the project.

I also had DJs in mind. I wanted to give them arrangements they could work with: breakdowns, changes in percussion, and bass drops that left room for them to get creative in a set.

Westside Gunn has talked about being a curator, and I understand that way of looking at a project. Choosing what belongs together is a big part of the work. You can have individual tracks you like, but you still have to think about how they feel next to each other.

I realized I was doing something similar while writing this article. I'd take a thought I liked, move it somewhere else, cut a part that wasn't helping, and look for a better way to connect the ideas. It felt familiar because that's how I work on music.

Even putting these words together became another way to use the creative habits I'd already developed. I was chopping up the parts I liked and arranging them into a complete thought.

Holding the Finished Record

I work in digital music distribution, but I've always loved physical music. I enjoy opening the packaging, looking at the artwork, reading the credits, and dropping the needle. After spending time making a project, being able to hold the record adds something to the experience for me.

The music that came out of this exploration became No Skips: Top Baile Funk Beats ’25, an instrumental album I arranged, produced, mixed, and mastered with DJs and dance floors in mind.

I'm proud of the finished project. I'm also looking forward to hearing what happens when a DJ brings one of those records into a mix. They get to make their own choices about where it goes and how it works alongside other music.

Still Curious

What stays with me is how much I enjoyed getting there. I went from making mellow, jazz-influenced lo-fi to exploring a collection of percussion-driven dance records, and I had fun studying the rhythms and trying ideas along the way.

After years of producing, finding something that makes me want to get back to work is a good feeling. I don't want to lose that curiosity just because I've been doing this for a long time.

That's what I hope people take from this story. Give yourself some room to explore what interests you. You may find a new use for something you already know, or discover something you want to spend more time learning.

For me, following those sounds led to music I enjoyed making and a record I'm proud to share. Now I'm curious about what I'll find next.

Donald XL Robertson
XL Productionz | The BeatTape Factory

Explore No Skips: Top Baile Funk Beats ’25 on vinyl and CD:
https://elasticstage.com/thebeattapefactory/releases/no-skips-top-baile-funk-beats-25-album