Meet Zara616 - A producer with a plan

Patrick Mazara (born April 13, 2002), known professionally as Zara616 is an American record producer born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He’s a member of the production team “Grease” which is a producer collective in his hometown.

The emerging producer is best known for his work with artists such as YN Jay, Baby Money, Baby Smoove, Jdot Breezy and more. Growing up with an indescribable connection to music, Zara was certain he would find himself expressing himself through music somehow. Initially starting off as a rap artist and going by the name Young Zara, he quickly transitioned into the heart and soul of music after watching Pablo616, a producer friend, cook up one day. “I was in awe how by just clicking in patterns and choosing the right sounds you could make anything you wanted, and it fascinated me. That’s where it all started,” expressed Zara.

Inspired by the likes of Kanye West and Pharrell, Zara616 too wishes to be an inspiration to others. “My main goal is to make an impact in the producing community by spreading knowledge on the game and how to grow in it.”

We recently caught up with Zara616 for a brief interview and he dropped a few must-have gems for aspiring producers. Check it out below.

Moore: What makes Zara616 stand out?

Zara616: I’ve been producing for about a year and have worked with well established artists such as Skilla Baby, Baby Smoove, Jdot Breezy, Baby Money, YN Jay, Baby Tron and more. I’ve always been big on growth and with what I’ve learned early on I’d like to be a voice that advocates for producers and also teaches them how the music industry works.

Moore: What were some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced thus far and how did you overcome them?

Zara 616: Finding a sound early on and standing out from the thousands of producers that send beats to the same artists as me. Along with this I’d say being persistent because placements can take months if not years to drop.

Mia Moore: What are some of your dreams and aspirations?

Zara616: I’d love to work with podcasts such as ProducerGrind to continue and motivate producers to keep grinding even when the results aren’t immediate. Some of my dreams and aspirations are to build a studio, sign a publishing deal, and work with artists such as Lil Durk, Kehlani, Tyler the Creator, Babyface Ray, Don Toliver and more.

Mia Moore: What wisdom would you want to share with others? What lessons can people learn from you?

Zara616:

Step 1: BRAND

Understand that you are your brand. Your first steps as a producer is to get a tag made and have socials that reflect that account because that’s how people learn of you so make sure you go about growing it with authentic content and allowing people to put a face to the name.

Step 2: Publishing and Beat Store

Get your publishing together by creating a BMI or an ASCAP so that when the bigger placements do come, you’re eligible to sign the paperwork. Look into creating a beat store as well such as Airbit and Beatstars so that your audience can both listen to and purchase your beats.

Step 3: Networking

Networking is one of the most crucial steps! Your skill will only get you so far and if you have no way of having it heard you won’t get any placements. So network with producers, work with the smaller artist in a camp and soon the bigger artist will want to work with you because they hear what you’ve provided for their mans.

Step 4: Genuineness

Stay genuine. When you’re so hungry for success we tend to just jump the gun but staying genuine and realizing people are still human is one of the best things you can do. I personally get tired of people trying to work before even forming a connection so I know engineers feel the same because people attempt to use them for placements but don’t even form any kind of bond first as well as with A&R’s and managers. Have a respectful approach, don’t blow them up but show you genuinely admire their craft or love their artists’ sound and your time to work with them will come.

Step 5 : Patience

Understand that your time will come. Do not be envious of another producer getting back to back placements because they worked just as hard if not harder to get to where they are. Take your time and develop your own sound. I recommend making a single drum kit with all of your favorite sounds and only using that one. In a few months you should be able to play your beats and tell that every beat has some type of similarity that people can recognize and say you produced it.

Step 6 : Business

Do not take things personal. You have to understand these people do not know you. They aren’t obligated to respond back, or rap to your beats. If you blow up and rappers you wanted to work with finally hit you back, do it! You’ll miss out on the opportunity if you decide to be petty because if they came to you, they’re more likely to take you serious.

Step 7 : Consistency

Work hard and be consistent. If it was easy everybody would do it. As long as you’re constantly sending beats out and working with producers, your chance of a placement will only keep increasing so stop just sitting on beats. Send the same ones out until they get placed, have some versatility so you aren’t confided in a box. Invest in going to studios or even running ads on your posts because you never know who could see it.

Step 8 : Manifestation

Manifestation has gotten me a long way and is an in-depth topic however I just say believe in yourself and put the energy out there that you’ve already made it. We constantly tell ourselves negative things and that’s the reason why it happens but if we flip that around and only tell ourselves good things, those good things will come to pass and be ours. So I always tell my peers to be grateful, and that even if it isn’t something you have just yet, believe you have it. By having that energy of gratefulness you increase your frequencies and that allows your manifestation to find its way into your life and when it does you can truly be grateful.

Mia Moore: How can people contact you or stay in touch?

Zara616: For any inquiries send an email to [email protected].

Stay Connected:

Twitter: @zarabeats

Instagram: @zarabeats_