Music producer / audio engineer / trumpeter Chris Stanley a.k.a. “Behnu” recently dropped part 1 of his EP series title Winter.

We had the opportunity to interview Behnu at the end of 2017 and discuss the project.

1. Tell us about yourself? Where are you from? How long have you been producing music? What is the meaning behind your stage name "Behnu"

I was born in Chicago and relocated to Central Jersey when my Father took a new job offer out there. I was young, like two or three, so I don’t remember much.

The one thing I do remember vividly was the change of scenery and sounds, other than that it’s just a blur.

Mom and Dad have a stacked collection of LPs, mostly traditional Jazz and Funk. Those got spun in the house quiet often.

Dad plays a little bit of guitar and Mom specializes in African percussion, so I was surrounded by music most of the time as a kid.

I started playing trumpet when I was about 11 and I really enjoyed the process of learning how to play it, so I stuck with it.

It’s an extremely difficult instrument to learn to control. It demands confidence, not arrogance, and a lot of practice time.

I’ve been making grooves and beats long before I knew what Audio Engineering was.

I would always watch my mom drum and try to mimic them on another drum or beat-box the rhythms, then watching/hearing Dad play his guitar I grasped an understanding of how rhythm and harmony meet up.

Combining all this with my music education over the years and my love of listening to records, producing kind of just happened.

I didn’t get my hands on my first DAW until the end of High School. Trumpet is a full-time job so that was the focus.

During my free time though I would mess around with programs but I had NOT A CLUE what I was doing technically so I just learned as the necessity for something camp up.

I just knew I had sounds in my head and I needed to find a way too record them. Fast-forward 10 years and here I am.

Thankfully I had a lot of patient teachers in Undergrad and Grad school along the way, they always helped whenever I was curious about something.

They helped guide me along a proper path of growth too.

The name Behnu comes from Benu (or Bennu) in ancient Egyptian Mythology. It’s related to the Egyptian verb “weben” meaning, “to rise”.

The physical representation is a bird, usually a Heron. You could think of it as a phoenix in more modern times. I chose this because it represents life in its purest form.

Your daily experiences can mold and shape you into a better (or worse) version of yourself.

So how you react in the daily grind is very important. Everyday you wake up, it’s a clean slate. Why? Because some people didn’t wake up, life is fragile like that.

Each time you open your eyes in the morning is another chance to change the world for the better.

2. How would you describe your production style?

My style is very simple. No sound is off limits. If something doesn’t really work out how I thought it would, then hey I tried.

Maybe it’ll fit into another Idea I have down the road. Sometimes there is a lot of brainstorming involved, sometimes it’s the exact opposite and I discover things by complete accident.

What keeps me grounded is my formal musical training. If something doesn’t work my ear will tell me.

A good amount of the time I usually have sound in my head that I’m trying to figure out how to create with the tools I have.

From there it’s a matter of how to make it groove.

3. What was the inspiration behind the EP?

The inspiration behind this EP and really all my music is just life.

I’ve experienced so much all ready and I’m grateful to be here to write it down and record it.

Documenting my steps through life is therapeutic for me.

Music has helped me out of very dark mental places in the past.

It’s such a constructive outlet, and all I want to do at the end of the day is spread good vibrations.

4. In a few sentences walk me through each song and talk about the inspiration behind it.

Changes - You’re not living if you’re not changing for the better.
Rise – The title symbolizes the concept of Behnu in a nutshell. Rise to your higher self.
Flight Home – Always remember where you came from. Point blank.
28 Degrees – To be honest it was just cold as hell outside when I wrote this.
Knight (The K-9) - One my favorite dogs I’ve ever met, a total goofball.
Chill Out – I wasn’t too deep about this; the world has enough chaos already. Don’t add to it.
Trials – This is what life is all about. Trials happen, react to them in a positive way to make the best out of the situation.

5. What are you goals for the project?

The goal of this series of EPs is to just give people something to relax to really.

I want to pass on the mindset that being securely you is the best thing you can ever do in life.

The hard part was trying to put those feelings of reflection and gratefulness into music without words.

That started to come through when I began to approach writing in a very simple way.

I was trying to do all this crazy shit at first and all of it sounded awful and completely fake.

6. If you could collaborate with any producer or production team who would it be and why?

Dilla and Nujabes (Seba Jun), but unfortunately, they’re no longer with us. So I just do my best to learn from both of their libraries.

Those two inspired me to write and continue to do so.

7. If you could collaborate with any artist or group who would it be and why?

For top of the mountain (Music Business) type stuff it would have to be Kanye, Pharrell, Rihanna, Frank Ocean, or Drake; but odds are I’m not just going to get a call like that. But dreaming has its place and purpose.

8. What are you currently working on?

Right now, I’m working on a bunch of original tunes that showcase my trumpet playing; as well as the continuation of the beat EPs.

In the meantime, I create my own samples to throw in an idea folder to sift through later on.

9. What are your thoughts about DJing in addition to producing? Your original music gives us the vibe of a swanky lounge somewhere foreign / abroad.

I can see myself doing it but that requires a whole new set of skills to learn, it’s not an easy job by far.

A great DJ is battle tested. It’ll take some time.

Nothing is worse than a bad DJ at a good party.

My biggest fan boy moment was catching a Madlib set in Atlanta a few years back.

I kid you not it was like watching a god; this man had an aura around him like no other.

As far as travel, I’m happy to go wherever my work takes me.

All that’s in my control is how I take care of the music, and all I can do is be honest with whoever is listening.

10. Who's music have you been listening to recently?

Louis Armstrong/Wynton Marsalis (Always)
SBTRKT/Sampha
Daft Punk (Always)
Clark Terry (Always)
Frank Ocean
The Seatbelts
Big Boi
Verzache
Moonchild
Joey Bada$$
Snoh Aalegra

11. Where do you see your music a year from now? 3 years from now?

In near future, I see my writing being more defined/confident.

There are a lot of people out there who sound incredible but are about halfway from where I sonically want to be.

There are still quite a bit of elements and skill sets I’ve yet to discover in focusing my own sound, that just comes with time.

I have a good idea of where I want to go though. I’m just going to keep on experimenting and enjoy the ride.