Seattle-based house producer DILF emerged onto the scene in mid-2024 with a sound that blends the soulful, rhythmic energy of classic house with his own original twist. Drawing inspiration from deep house, tech house, and disco, he’s not afraid to experiment across genres. His track Feel Something was recently featured on SoundCloud’s “Artists to Watch” playlist and just passed 18K streams - a strong start for an artist carving out his space in the scene. In this interview with RepostExchange, DILF talks us through his journey so far, from picking up production to finding his workflow and creative voice.
I’ve been producing music for about seven months. I started by watching YouTube tutorials to learn the basics. Thankfully, I got some early positive attention, which allowed me to connect with mentors who really helped speed up my learning process.
I use Ableton as my DAW, mainly because it’s what Deadmau5 uses. I’m a big fan of his work, and seeing how he uses it inspired me to choose Ableton to build my own sound.
Recently, I’ve really been enjoying using a MIDI controller. It’s simplified my creative process and has made it much easier to bring my ideas to life more intuitively.
As basic as it might sound, I really enjoy using Serum. I had an amazing session with my mentor recently, where he broke down the ins and outs of the plugin. It completely blew my mind and opened up new possibilities for sound design. I also recently discovered a plugin called Rave Generator that allows me to create wicked stabs.
My approach is pretty sporadic. I’m lucky to be able to sit down and create something in an hour, then spend a day or two fine-tuning it. I’ve found that when I spend weeks trying to perfect a track, it doesn’t turn out as well because I tend to overthink it. Creating the way I do helps me stay more natural and avoid that.
I started off with YouTube, and from there, I just played around in Ableton. Splice has been helpful too, especially for sounds and samples. But the biggest help has been the mentors I’ve connected with—they’ve really accelerated my growth.
The last YouTube tutorial I watched was about warping vocals in Ableton. I’ve been working on remixes of famous 90's songs, and I struggled with getting the vocals to fit my track. The tutorial really helped me understand how to warp vocals properly. I highly recommend it to anyone working with vocals in Ableton.
I wish I’d learned to be kinder to myself. It's important to realize that it’s okay to go a week without feeling creative. It doesn’t mean you're not progressing; sometimes, taking a step back can be just what you need.
A challenge I face is related to my bipolar disorder. On the highs, my creativity and motivation soar, and I feel unstoppable - like I have a superpower. But on the lows, it can be tough. I struggle with motivation and creativity, and it can be a really dark place. I overcome this by recognising it as part of my personal journey and being kinder to myself. Journaling helps, and whenever I have an idea, I jot it down so I can come back to it when I'm feeling more creative.
Find a mentor. It’s life changing. Be humble. Your mentor might not have 100K followers on Instagram and that’s okay. That does not determine the knowledge that someone has.
At first, it was really tough to get feedback because my family and friends don’t really enjoy the genre I’m creating. They didn’t understand the structure of deep house, like the long intros and steady beats, since they’re more used to quick intros and big drops. I did take their feedback on specific sounds, though - most people can tell what sounds good to the ear. Over time, I connected with people who enjoy the same genre, and that was really validating.
Interestingly, the track I’m most proud of is Zara. It taught me a valuable lesson about my creative process. Before that track, I would spend weeks working on a song, which often led to overthinking. One morning, I saw a reel where someone said they felt like they were in a club every time they shopped at Zara, so I decided to create a track that would fit that vibe. It took me just one hour, and I was surprised to see it get more attention than a song I spent weeks on.
RepostExchange has connected me with others in a similar position. It's helped me meet creators who are finding their style and looking for support from like-minded, goal-oriented people working towards the same things.
Top left to right: nanoKONTROL 2, Gorilla Mind Energy Drink.
Middle: Serum.
Bottom left to right: Splice, Ableton.
Connect with DILF on SoundCloud, Instagram, TikTok, and Spotify.
Want more? Sign up at RepostExchange.com.
This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity
