Jimarillo Miller, widely known as Baby Brown, is a second-generation musician whose journey through the world of music has been as diverse as it is impressive. From touring with a rock ‘n’ roll band at just fifteen to becoming a Grammy-nominated producer, Brown’s career spans decades and genres. His early fascination with 4-track cassette recording blossomed into a full-fledged passion for music production, leading him to work with some of the biggest names in West Coast hip-hop. Today, Brown continues to push the boundaries of music production, utilizing cutting-edge tools like zplane.development’s plugins to craft his unique sound.
– You’ve been deeply connected to music from a young age. Can you share a moment or experience that solidified your decision to pursue music as a career?
I hate to say, there was no real defining moment for me. It was always a relationship that tugged and pulled at me and occasionally tried to push me away. I think around 27 or so I got signed by a guy called John Waller, who was a higher-up at PolyGram. I was recording my debut album in their studio in Hoxton Square, London, right by the Bluenote jazz club. I remember looking out of the window one day as Joe Cocker’s backing singers performed backgrounds on one of my songs, thinking, “this is it…” The truth is, it was just another small piece of my picture. I’ve been eating off music since my early teens.
– Touring with a Rock ‘n’ Roll band at fifteen must have been a unique experience. How did that early exposure to live performances shape your approach to music creation?
I’ve been fiercely creative since I can remember. I think I expressed that through my guitar playing. I definitely discovered my hyper-focus during that period, practicing for hours and hours every day. But the live performances though? That was true freedom to me. I was young—about half the age of the other band members—so I was exposed to a lot of Rock ‘n’ Roll things. It also helped me mature, though. I think the hard line between being given absolute creative freedom on stage and the tough discipline of a defined, regular band practice really helped me later. Duality is very important for truth in art.
– You were part of the 4-track cassette tape movement. What drew you to this method of recording, and how did it influence your production style?
What a great question. Without a doubt, it was luck. A guy I knew asked me to look after some music stuff while he tried to deal with his catastrophic 80’s burnout. I was d*cking around with this 388, I think it was, and when I realized that you could record on the recordings..???! It was over! You could say that was one of my defining moments.
– Your journey led you to LA, the heart of West Coast hip-hop. How did this environment and the artists you collaborated with influence your sound?
It was everything. I remember Rectangle telling me not to think I needed to be an expert on hip-hop history. He let me know that it was the innocence of purpose that made my music different. I was influenced by what I liked—not by my social geography. Around that time, he sampled a lot of my guitar on the Akai S3000, and you can hear my guitar, fairly comprehensively, on a great many of those early 2k’s West Coaster bangers!
– From working with DJ Rectangle to being nominated for a Grammy, your career has seen many highlights. What would you say has been the most pivotal moment in your career so far?
Honestly..? I would say meeting him in the first place. I had no aspirations to be a producer, just an Artist. He encouraged me to see myself in a different way. He pushed relentlessly and made me understand that my musicality could be useful for others too. I found out through this journey that it takes nothing from me at all, and in the end, it just adds.
– In your experience, how does elastiqueAAX compare to other time-stretching and pitch-shifting tools you’ve used in the past? What sets it apart for you?
It’s unique because Pro Tools is unique. I actually love the way zplane came at it—they just went all in, straight to the pork and beans, the meat and two veg of the issue. I’d always known Pro Tool’s TCE to be a bit iffy and had struggled with it for years, so for me, it was just no questions asked. zplane’s algorithms are always pristine, and you can hear that in the better-known Elastique Pitch V2 VST plugin. elastiqueAAX is so good that you never even have to think about it.
– When it comes to mixing, accuracy is key. How does FENNEK help you maintain precision in your 5.1 re-renders, particularly with True Peak and Integrated Loudness monitoring?
There’s so much to like about FENNEK. I love plugins that fulfill a specific purpose and do it well. Yes, I’m also a mojo nut job, but the reason I like zplane solutions is that they always deal with a problem or need directly. FENNEK’s strength is in its configurability and resizable nature.
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Sometimes I want a big display with all my values, sometimes not. Sometimes I am obsessively watching my TP reading, and at other times, I prefer not to see it. Meters are not all the same for me. It’s a mood thing. I tend to start with the 1770 preset and then customize two of the readout boxes. One for TP, which I can set for my target (-1dB TP), and the other for IL or Integrated Loudness. Both of these are incredibly important in Atmos mixing—you cannot afford to misread a thing. Overall, FENNEK is a very critical yet elegant piece of software.
– Can you share a specific project or track where elastiqueAAX or FENNEK made a significant impact on the final outcome? What was the difference they made?
élastiqueAAX always! I can’t tell you how many times I use it every day because it’s integrated into my Pro Tools. It’s all over the Brawn soundtrack. I use it to tickle clips in or adjust their mean or average timing. I remember when I installed it… I felt like Vin Diesel, bolting another ridiculous blower onto his Dodge Charger!
– Thanks, Jimarillo, for your time! In conclusion, what do you foresee as the next major innovation in music production?
Thank you guys also for the incredible plugins and support you have given me over the last few years. As far as the next major turning point for human music? That’s easy. ATMOS. Spatial. Immersive. I’m trying to encourage other producers to jump on board, but surprisingly, they can be very resistant. I know why. They’ve spent 15/20 years learning to be at the top of the stereo league, and they don’t want to be nobodies again. Learning Atmos is a journey, especially for a producer, but there’re no other options at this point. Just forwards. There’s a storm coming, and none of us can act surprised when it gets here.
To keep up with Baby Brown’s latest music and updates, make sure to follow him on Instagram and visit his website.
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