"PME Gotta Flex!" - Music, Creativity & Positive Energy with Jonathan Brown

Hello Everyone! Welcome back to another BIG Yellow Pot Interview & Recipe :)

What would life be without music? I struggle to answer this question every time it comes across my mind. So many of the amazing experiences I have had or wonderful friendships I have acquired over the years have been preserved in a song or note. I'm reminded of those bonds, experiences and memories as they resurface in my mind. In my darkest times, a song could cheer me up OR make me feel much worse… but at least somebody out there understood my pain, right? Music fills the air with poetry. I would also argue that music has a direct tie into our most raw and unfiltered emotions. Simultaneously, music can make mundane or annoying tasks fly by with ease or lift your spirits when you’re down. Most people are consumers of music which is wonderful. But sometimes when you consume instead of create, you lack the knowledge of the extensive process and work put into each piece or song.

Our special guest today knows the ins and outs of musical production, composition and more. Johnathan Brown is a producer out of Fayetteville, North Carolina. Coming from a musical family, Johnathan has always exhibited creativity from a young age. However, as he got older, his love grew into an extraordinary talent in producing smooth hip hop & jazz inspired lofi instrumentals. Johnathan AKA PME has produced multiple singles and a set of EP’s. All different and beautiful in their own ways. What is even more impressive is that he taught himself the art of producing and each project he releases is better than the last. Not only is PME flexing his producing skills but he has also started playing around with multiple instruments and his own vocals. PME is also well respected in the gaming community as well, which makes sense knowing how much he & his brothers used to play video games growing up. They always had the newest systems and consoles and I loved coming over as a child to watch them play games while I asked 1000 questions. Johnathan remains a selfless individual who has grown his talent from the help of multiple influences and hard work. Always supporting small businesses, entrepreneurs and bloggers such as myself, he is also just a stand up guy and great individual. He may be my younger cousin but he has given me many wise words & encouragement that are beyond his years. Im extremely proud of him. Whenever I have a headache or have a hectic day at work, I pop in the air-pods and its instant relaxation. His music has also been featured in my Q&A on Instagram.

If you would like to see more, please follow him on all platforms. He will provide that information in his introduction. Please welcome Jonathan aka PME.jib to The BIG Yellow Pot!

YOOOOOO!

What’s up! Caitlyn kinda already gave me an intro of sorts but, my name is Johnathan Brown AKA PME and I am the best music producer you will ever meet. I specialize mainly in Hip-Hop, RnB, Jazz, and Nerdcore type stuff. I appreciate Caitlyn for letting me come to her platform and just talk about myself!

/ NEW MERCH OUT NOW /

I just released a project “In My Element ''. I would love it if you checked it out and stayed tuned for this year because I am going IN and would love for anyone who is reading this to join along in the wild ride in the jungle! If you wanna find my socials, I am @pme.jib on all platforms and PME on all streaming platforms! Thank you for reading!!

My linktree - https://linktr.ee/pme.jib

My website - https://johnjohnb6.wixsite.com/purplem

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Interview

How long have you been producing and learning the ins and outs of music production? What have you found the most challenging?

I have been producing music since 2019 I believe. I started my last year of high school and just kinda fell in love with it. Even did my senior project on Music Production and made a terrible terrible beat. I will never let anyone listen to it so don’t ask. The most challenging thing of music production is to not be repetitive. I find myself doing similar stuff on a lot of beats so I have to catch myself and go outside of the box sometimes.

We come from a family of great cooks and talented musicians/vocalists… Do you feel like that has aided in your creativity? I ask because I never looked at food differently until I learned about food science OUTSIDE of the family. Being surrounded by talented cooks made me think my talent in cooking wasn’t special because I didn’t know anything else.

Not exactly, no. I grew up around music and it wasn’t that I didn’t feel it was special, it was something different. I didn’t even wanna do music at a very  young age. It was when I got to middle school and high school I wanted to do music and by that time I was able to be more creative due to the environment I was in choir class. I was able to explore other music beside just the stuff on the radio and what was sung in church. I was able to learn about notes, keys, majors, minors and that wasn't taught to me in church. School gave me the tools to actually make the music that I wanted to make.

What is one of the biggest challenges as an independent producer? Do you ever wish you had a team?

Staying focused. I have moments where I just don’t make music. Not because I don’t want to be, mainly because I just don't feel like it. I’m starting to realize that I can’t do that because when I do become the big producer in town I can't just say I don’t feel like it especially if it pays the bills. I do think about a team sometimes but I don’t even know where to start. When I have way more stuff to handle later on down the line then I will get some more people but for right now I don’t need anyone to really clutter the work process.

As a gamer, do you include inspiration from your favorite games in your beats/composition? If not, do you plan to in the future?

I don’t on purpose. A lot of friends have told me that they hear the influence of video games in my beats but I don’t. I guess it's just so ingrained in me that it just leaks out. I have made lofi or trap remixes to different game tracks, some are already out but I will most definitely release some more this year.

Why did you choose LoFi or calming style as the genre you started with? Will you ever venture into music with lyrics or loose vocals?

I started to notice that everyone was listening to lofi. People use it to study, play video games, read, write, and everything under the sun. Plus lofi doesn’t exactly need vocals so for me it was the easiest thing for me to do so I could start releasing music. I will eventually get into vocals but I have the worst anxiety when it comes to recording and singing in front of others. ( I’m working on that lol) Once I move out and I’m on my own in my own space I’ll for sure dabble with it. I have a couple cover ideas as I am typing this!

What is the story behind the name PME.jib or PME?

PME stands for PurpleMonkeyEntertainment. When I was a young. My best friend Gabe and I wanted to become Minecraft YouTubers. When we first made our YouTube accounts I decided on the name GamingPurpleMonkey. I ended up keeping it as I grew and when I decided to do music I decided to change it from GamingPurpleMonkey to PurpleMonkeyEntertainment. I didn’t wanna box myself in in case I did wanna do other stuff. PME.jib is just PME plus my name lol.

What have been your 3 favorite singles or projects? Why?

It's hard to choose because I love all of my songs. BUT IF I HAD TO CHOOSE…
3rd would be 20/20/20 as a whole. It was the first full project so it has a special place in my heart.
2nd would be a tie between Bobby, a song off of “In My Element”, and We Love Rybo. Both songs are dedicated to two different people. My homie Rybo was going through a lot mentally so when I made the song and released it, it helped him to kinda get out of mental rut. I LOVE YOU RIBBLE #JIBBLE. Bobby is dedicated to someone who I say is my big brother. He passed away about a year ago and I miss him dearly. He was a very big influence in my life by being just a dope ass person and someone who motivated me to become a better version of myself and gave me hella life lessons.
1st would have to go to Puzzle. I don’t know what it is about Puzzle but it just moves me every time I hear it. It may be a frequency thing or just a music science thing I DON’T KNOW but when I hear this song I get nostalgic but also this feeling of reflection. Even down to the name Puzzle I named it that because it made me think of the different things in my life that makes me me. I just love that song.

As a producer, have you found your perspective on music has changed? I know from personal writing and recording that I wasn’t aware how hard it was to use certain programs like FL Studios or how mixing and mastering makes a song so much better. What realizations have you found & has it changed your perspective of music you already know and love?

It has most definitely changed. I respect songs way more now than I did before. I respect producers and I now have gotten to a point where I love most producers more than artists because those guys are the real MVP's in the music industry. Artists who also produce their own plus other people's music?? Those are the people I aspire to be. the T-Pain’s, the Ye’s, the Pharrell's are the ones I respect the most for sure. The amount of work or even the lack of work that can go into a beat can be shocking when you listen to it. There's one song that I love called Sunday by KYLE that is very simple production wise but it is something that is hard to accomplish. It's a very simple hi hat, kick, snare, 808 but some people would over complicate stuff and make it sound like too much. Learning that simple is better is the best thing in the world sometimes.

Where do you see PME as a brand and collection going? What milestone would you like to achieve this year?

In the future, I wanna get into fashion like every other artist out there, make some jewelry maybe. I would also like to get into the video game industry. I wanna make a game and not no Shaq-Fu shit like a triple A game that will be critically acclaimed and loved by many. This year I have made it a mission to make a beat everyday even when I don't feel like it to sharpen my skills. I also want to sharpen my instrumental skill by learning more guitar and get better at the piano. I’mma release a couple more singles too so y'all gonna get some more PME in ya ears!

If your music was a food group, what food group would it be?

You are making me think and I don’t like it. I had to look up the food groups to answer this question properly. Fruits because everyone has a favorite fruit. Everyone has a favorite fruit juice. Fruit is versatile and it can be used in a variety of things plus every fruit is different like my music, different , in my opinion. Changing the game one fruit basket at a time. I was gonna say dairy to make the joke that I’m shitting on these other producers but I’mma let it slide this time. 

If you could pick one of your projects for me to listen to and from a recipe based on, what project would it be & why?

In My Element. The vibes this project has is immaculate and I feel at this current time that is the best representation of my work. It’ll inspire me for sure. If you wanna listen to Puzzle too you can do that. And Player One…and Rainy Day….and Drive…and Study… and @infinity…. and Curly Headed Cutie….and 20/20/20… and We Love Rybo….and Ringtone… and Jelly…and Relax, Calm Down….and Peanut Butter. Just all my songs are fire but the answer to the actual question is In My Element. 

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Chicken n’ Hash Brown “Waffles”

WHAT YOU NEED

• 6 Whole Chicken Wings (washed & pat dry)

• Cumin

• Chili Powder

• Black Pepper

• Cajun Seasoning

• Coarse Sea Salt

• Smoked Paprika

• Grapeseed Oil

• 4 Large Russet Potatoes (peeled)

• Box Grater or Potato Ricer (NEED TO HAVE THIS)

• 2 large eggs

• Tablespoon Bacon Bits

• Non-Stick Canola Oil Spray or Duck Fat

• Half Cup Buffalo Sauce or Hot Sauce of Choice

• Half Cup Honey of Choice

• 1 tsp unsalted butter

• Green Onion (garnish)

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

• Clean your chicken wings, remove any scum, feathers or yellow skin. I wash mine with white vinegar and rub with limes and coarse salt. Rinse with cold water until it runs clear and pat dry with paper towels.

• Season your chicken wings generously with salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning, cumin and chili powder. Toss with grape seed oil. Add to a baking sheet lined with non-stick foil. Bake at 375 degrees until crispy and tender. For me, I baked them for an hour and turned the oven off until I finished my waffles to let the heat continue cooking.

• While your chicken bakes. Place a large stock pot full of salted water on the stove to boil. Once you reach the boiling point, add 4 russet potatoes that have been peeled. Boil for 10 minutes.

• Remove potatoes from the water & sit in a bowl to cool for about 10 minutes or until you're able to comfortably hold your potatoes (I have chef hands, so mine cooled 5 minutes tops)

• Once your potatoes are cool enough to hold, grate them with the smaller side of the box grater. A potato ricer will work as well if you’d rather do that. I don’t own one as of right now, so I chose to use a grater. Either works fine.

• Grate two potatoes into a bowl. Add a pinch of salt, one beaten egg, smoked paprika and a touch of black pepper. Use a fork to mix until homogeneous.

• Heat your waffle maker, spray with non-stick canola oil spray or brush waffle iron with duck fat (my duck fat jar will NOT open, I’ve been trying for days - duck fat is ideal with the potatoes but the canola oil spray worked fine)

• Once your waffle maker is hot, spray the oil and add ROUGHLY ¼ cup of potato mixture, spread evenly and press. Cook until the waffle is crispy and solid when lifted, if its crumbling or breaking, its not done yet.

• I cooked mine for about 5-8 minutes BUT if you use less waffle filling, it would cook in under that time. Just keep an eye on it.

• Two potatoes made enough filling for 3-4 mini waffles. The ratio for wing to waffle is 1 to 1. So if you make 6 wings, you make 6 waffles. That's why I chose to use 4 potatoes, to make an equal amount of waffles to chicken wings.

• While your waffles are being made, make your sauce by combining honey, buffalo or hot sauce & teaspoon of butter. Microwave in 30 second increments and whisk until emulsified. It should coat the back of your spoon and be slightly glossy. Set aside.

• You should have 6 crispy juicy tender chicken wings, 6 fluffy and crispy waffles & a bowl of sauce. You can chop and add green onions for garnish.

• Waffles down first, chicken wings on top, drizzle with sauce & add green onion to garnish.

• SERVE HOT!

As ALWAYS, you can watch me make this in a step by step video. Just head over to the Instagram tab of this blog or follow me on Instagram @thebigyellowpot & follow along there!

I knew Johnathan aka PME loves his comfort foods. After sifting through a couple ideas, we agreed on Chicken and Waffles. Of course I had to go ahead and add my own little flare to it and this is how the hash-brown waffles came to fruition. However, I am really happy about how this recipe came out. I will perfect it over time and adjust the recipe accordingly but for a first try, this came out beautifully.

Thank you for reading and we will see you in the next one! - Caity C.