Peace and love, thanks for your continued support, we are blessed to keep these interviews going as we head into the second quarter of 2021. I hope your year continues to become more productive and insightful. Let’s stay safe and find ways to build up our communities.
Welcome back to another spotlight feature by the Rooted Minds Blog, where we connect with Artists and Entrepreneurs to learn about their journey and to celebrate the stories behind the brands and artists that are interesting to us. This one is a special one as it is coming with access to a brand new documentary, by a local creative here in the Valley.
This interview will feature a hardworking man from our community, that we've had the opportunity to connect with during one of our Point of View open mic events that were held at the old Rise Craft Coffee + Eatery in the heart of Downtown, Phoenix. I even purchased some art and always kept up with his movements on social media. From the Stolen Art Show to just seeing him pop up as a vendor around town, it was dope to see the growth.
K.U.T. is set to release a documentary this April, so we hope that you learn a bit about his background and journey and then take the next step in checking out his latest body of work as a creative. I'd like to give a special shout-out to the Phoenix community, it is very rich, diverse, and creative. Let’s keep pouring into the creatives that help to keep our community strong and vibrant.
So without further ado, let's get into the bio and the story behind this amazing feature.
Artist K.U.T. Bio
K.U.T is a creative, music artist and visual artist from New Jersey. He is the owner of K.U.T. Productionz and is currently working in Phoenix, Arizona. He has a growing YouTube channel that touches on popular and current events. He‘s produced various events and has vended at events all across the valley. He is set to release a documentary on April 1st titled ‘Conspiracy Brief.’
Education:
Art Institute of Philadelphia Graduate 2006
Won Best of Quarter- Concept Development
Won Best Portfolio In Class- At Graduation Ceremony 2006
Deans List- Art Institute of Philadelphia
Music Releases:
1997 Sektion Zero Land of None Album (Independent release)
The Beat Theory- Instrumentals 2014
The Stolen Art Show Beat Tape 2019
Art Vends:
Over 200 Vends selling Art.
6 Months Straight selling at 1st Friday 2016,
Other Events, Including Comic Comic-Con, Archwood Exchange, Mesa Music Festival, Sunny Slope Art walk, Chandler AZ Classic Car Show, Maricopa County Music Festival,
2 appearances at the AZ Hip Hop Fest Artist Vendor
2 Showings at the Pancakes and Booze Art Show
1 Showing at the Chocolate and Art Show
Photo, Film and Video Work:
For Paul Renee Furniture, Phoenix Fashion Week, Bravo Tip or Pay App- Video led to an appearance on Shark Tank
Films:
The Stolen Art Show Documentary, Conspiracy Brief Documentary, Protest In These Time YouTube documentary
Solo Art Exhibitions:
The Stolen Art Show at Public image Downtown Phoenix, "THIS IS ART Show" Hosted By Prime Cut & Sew Mesa, AZ K.U.T. Presents the All Wu-Tang Clan Art Show Hosted By Public Image in Phoenix, AZ
Rooted Minds
Spotlight Feature
K.U.T
RM: Rooted Minds
KP: KUT Productionz
RM: Tell us a little about your journey to film and production and what inspires your creativity today?
KP: My journey into film started in maybe 2013 making videos for YouTube Channel. I always liked film but it wasn't my 1st medium. When it comes to production if you mean music production that goes back to the mid-90s when I had my group. I was the DJ/producer. I started out with a home studio on some really crude equipment like a Tascam cassette 4 track recorder, keyboard, and a drum machine. Before that, I was plugging in any old piece of audio equipment I could get to make beats or to try and make beats. I learned a lot. Then things got better when I got an Akai MPC 2000, and a digital 16 track, and I started sampling from records. What inspires me today is probably seeing other artists out here killing it creatively and creating my own work to inspire others.
RM: Describe for us what type of artist/creative you are? What do you do?
KP: The type of artist I am is, I'll say all around. I feel I've been blessed to be able to move to different mediums and produce some cool work that people support. My essence is visual art painting, drawing, graffiti, abstract art, photography, and whatever. I can build models from scratch and just create something. No problem. If I had to sum it up right now today I'd say I paint and produce films, my own. That's for now. I like being able to pause one thing go to the other one that is calling. Playing with a drone right now I'm loving the visuals from above, that opens up a whole new realm visually I haven't even fully processed that yet. I have some plans and ideas though.
RM: How does where you are from or what you have been through impact your work?
KP: I think being from Jersey and growing up a Hip Hop Culture fan and participant has impacted what I do tremendously. This meaning Hip Hop is competitive and with the hunger and drive it takes to create in that realm you gotta be dope. So that 1988 energy that Hip Hop embodies is what I feel I use as the spark to get me going on a project. I don't think about it at this point it just happens. When I say Hip Hop I'm speaking on the 4 pillars; Emceeing, Djing, B-Boying/Break Dancing, and Graffiti art. The energy that all those elements give off is like my All Spark. For the Transformer, nerds reading this.
RM: What has been the best piece of advice that you have received over the course of your career?
KP: The best piece of advice I've received over the course of my career? Wow, great question. But MANY people have dropped gems on me for years. Hard to pinpoint just one. But most of it sums up to the thought of keeping ongoing. Not stopping. Because things will get beyond tough will your doing what you are passionate about. You will be tested, absolutely that's guaranteed. But it's important to know the dream and what you're trying to accomplish and why. Then staying the course during the when it pours as it will. It's a part of it.
RM: What has been your proudest moment and what has been your biggest obstacle?
KP: My proudest moment in all of my creative ventures and dealings was my 1st solo art show titled "The Stolen Art Show". This is also a film you can find on a link through my website, shameless plug lol. But that was a great success people came out and supported the show, my family flew in from the east coast, and my other artist friends and day 1 Phoenix friends came through, it was amazing one of my top moments. This very show produced its own obstacles. I had 6 months to produce it which is no problem, I worked on multiple pieces at a time but the pressure was still on, "like can I make this fire?!" Then the other obstacle was my wife got really sick during this creative process. So I was torn between studio work, late nights, and being home or at the hospital. This was that test I was speaking of that will show up. Real-life issues don't care about your art show, music release nor how much you've spent already. You're going to be challenged on your journey. But hold on tight and keep going.
RM: RM: Tell us about your upcoming release, set for April 1st what is it about? What was the process like, in terms of research and production?
KP: So yes! My upcoming release is a short film titled Conspiracy Brief. It's a documentary on a few conspiracy theories out there, historical ones even a Hip Hop one. Ones I'm intrigued by. I'm all in! Outside of being an artist- truth, freedom, justice, real knowledge, nature and just being 100 flows through my being. I've always wanted to know why and how. And if it's bad for us and it's not based in truth and fact get rid of it! So this film is a culmination of conspiracies I chose to share. Some you may have heard of and some maybe not. The process of researching the subjects chosen came from books on my shelf and documentaries I have. One of the books being Behold a Pale Horse. People should read that. I filmed the bulk of it at home using a backdrop my camera and overhead mic.
I put together some graphics in a special way. I also was granted permission to use audio from the great Steve Cokely (R.I.P.) a legend in dropping bombs on the conspiracy subjects with his lectures look him up also. His son gave me permission to use his father's material which was amazing. Because the brother Steve is Legend, he's like a Malcolm X in this truth arena. I started this last year sometime after the Covid pandemic was unleashed. (no typo)
To watch click here - https://gumroad.com/l/VrpYl
RM: How did you get into documentary film-making?
KP: I guess I got into making docs by accident. It started with my YouTube channel covering art events and talking to people about art what they have going on. Next, I like capturing a moment or a unique subject all on its own, given it, its own story if you will. You can choose anything and it can be a documentary I think that's dope. For example, I love model rockets and rockets period. I build, design, and launch them, mainly scale historical ones. This may end up being a documentary I may make. Finally because to me it's easier than working with actors I think. Even though some great documentaries use actors. I'm a kind of intimidated by directing actors and production I'll admit that. One of my fears actually, me directing some actor, something for me to conquer. Deep down I know I can it's just new territory. I love classic films and great acting, but can I capture that? Probably.
RM: Where can we check out the film and how do people support it?
RM: What are you hoping viewers take away from your documentary?
KP: I hope viewers take away a little more knowledge than they had before and I hope it inspires them to research a subject and share the information. And lastly to become more aware of things that have been taking place in this country and around the world for many years. Don't bury your head in the sand and pretend some crazy things aren't happening all around us. Go down the rabbit hole face the fear and become knowledgeable and pass it on. It can save you. Because some wild things are taking place and have been.
RM: What was the most challenging part of making this happen? What obstacles did you face?
KP: Making this one did have a couple of challenges. Most issues were in-house technical issues which I'll get to. One outside issue was concerning an interview I wanted. It was with a family member of a Police officer that died suspiciously during the Oklahoma City Bombing. His name was Terrance Yeakey. I just wanted a few words from a family member I found. But they were really just trying to move forward which I understood. His death is covered in my film, you have to see this. The other obstacles were technical production problems computer, mics, music, and software issues. It was pretty manageable creating it since it was all self-contained and I didn't need much. I recall being close to being done. I had a folder titled Conspiracy Brief on my computer hard drive I would save to. I went back to it and the file and folder were totally gone! GONE! I was bugged out by this and mad. I had to pretty much start from scratch. I had an initial version saved. So I had to rebuild upon that. Now from that point forward I took the film pc off the wi fi and internet and renamed the folder something else and backed up regularly. Did they take it? I don't know. It was a challenge putting everything back together again. Especially since my laptop is living it's last days and slow
Thanks I AM ROOT you Legend" Keep up the good work! -K.U.T.
Conspiracy Brief Documentary Trailer - (Film Available April 1st 2021)
Thanks for taking the time out to read our interview on K.U.T. and his upcoming documentary ‘Conspiracy Brief.’ It has been dope watching him grow and build in this Phoenix community, be sure to check out his upcoming project and continue to support the amazing creatives that we feature in our spotlight.
Be sure to check out his documentary and leave us a comment on what you thought about it. Here is the link - https://gumroad.com/l/VrpYl -
If you or someone you know should be featured, please visit www.iamrootco.com/submissions and drop a link so that we can check it out. This has been a dope experience prepping this article, we'd like to thanks to K-U-T for chopping it with us, we wish you much more success on your journey. We aspire to be a resource for up-and-coming artists, everywhere, so let’s keep it growing.
Please share this with a friend and help us to keep the spotlight shining bright on these creatives. It takes a community!
Videos by K.U.T.
K-U-T Productionz An Inside Look, The Quarantine Edition
The Stolen Art Show Documentary Trailer (Short Film) (Short Documentary)
221 views • May 25, 2018
MF DOOM R.I.P. Did MF DOOM Really Die On Halloween? GOING THERE!
364 views • Jan 1, 2021
#mfdoom#hiphop#thevillain Like, Share and Sub to K-U-T Productionz!!!
K.U.T. Web: https://www.k-u-tproductionz.com/inde...
K.U.T. ART SHOP: https://society6.com/kutproductionz
More about I Am Root®
I Am Root® LLC is a Lifestyle Brand that specializes in events and productions for Local, Underground, and Emerging creative arts. The I Am Root® Collective is made up of 7 independent artists and a blog team whose mission is to inspire and be inspired.
We [typically] curate monthly and quarterly live music showcases, concerts, open-mics, special release events, and various specialty shows across Arizona. We have curated over 150 events here in Phoenix Metro Area. We work with local, emerging, and underground artists, the Maricopa Community College School District, Arizona State University Organizations, Non-Profit organizations, and others to help push the culture and create a community for artists and art appreciators.
We are here to inspire and be inspired.
Check out more features at www.iamrootco.com/features
Subscribe to the I Am Root® Youtube Channel www.youtube.com/c/iamrootco1
Peep our last feature with B. Hunt
More about Dom Root
I am from Inglewood, California, currently working in Phoenix, Arizona as a Sound Engineer (Live, Recording, and Mixing). I am a Music Producer and Creative Artist looking to build my portfolio and for live performance opportunities. I graduated from Arizona State University studying Creative Writing and Philosophy. I later studied audio production technologies at Mesa Community College, before taking on more freelance work.
LINKS:
Dom Root
Dom’s Podcasts
K.U.T. Productionz
