By Ilyssa Panitz
However, it was the power of the Internet that enabled this 22-year-old Jamaica resident to move one step closer to achieving his goal.While Martin was on his computer last March, he came across an application for the Red Bull Music Lab. It's a five-day workshop that teaches inspiring musicians like Martin how to create and produce music like the pros and compose original songs. Martin says he carefully filled out the questionnaire and was surprised to learn he was one of 10 people picked to participate in this course. RBML co-founder Lorin Ashton selects every individual and says “what made Martin stand out is he fit right in with the other nine students, and above all else, because he had the key ingredient: enthusiasm!”Being chosen gave Martin the opportunity work with a team of industry experts, master studio production and train on a program known as Reason. For those not savvy with the term Reason, Martin describes it as blending sounds from a synthesizer and equalizer, which many artists use to mix songs.Since its inception in 2003, The Red Bull Music Labs has traveled across the country teaching electronic music production to hundreds of people like Martin. This year Ashton will take RBML to five other cities; Los Angeles, Dallas, Seattle, Greenville and Boulder.Martin is a big fan of hip-hop and frequently listens to Kanye West and Jay-Z. But now he says, his instructors opened his ears to popular hits from Motown and the 1960s.Prior to landing a spot with Red Bull, Martin recalls the time he sold two songs to an underground rapper named Remarqus who paid him $100 for one tune and $150 for the other.Martin says, “Joining this class gave me the once in a lifetime opportunity to play with the big boys and absorb all the knowledge I need to grow.” For their final project, each student was required to construct an original song, which would be featured at The Red Bull Music release party. Martin notes, when his two-minute untitled piece was playing for a crowd of hundreds, his reaction was, “Wow, to hear my music on the loud speaker and watch people dance was really cool.”Martin is currently an accounting major at St. John's University and hopes to combine his education and his passion for music into a career with the record business when he graduates.
