Everyone is always looking for the biggest life hack or cheat code in life, am I right? It’s so much easier to do something when it’s laid out for you and just that…EASY. That’s the mindset of the group Cheat Codes who have undoubtedly created some of your favorite tracks hitting the radio now (i.e. “Let Me Hold You”, “Sex”). Don’t lie, you’ve found yourself bumping your head without even checking to see who’s to thank for all the catchy music blasting through your speakers. No need to look any further to know more details about Cheat Codes. Check out our interview with the trio below to learn about who they are, what their biggest life hack is, and their goals for 2017.
Cliché: For our readers who don’t know who you are, how did you three meet and eventually form Cheat Codes?
Cheat Codes: We all met in Los Angeles and used to be involved in different music projects! Matt used to be in a rock band, Trevor did Singer-Songwriter Acoustic stuff and Kevi used to rap. So when we started the project we wanted to do something that was flexible enough to kind of jump around stylistically.
What’s something you’ve learned now that you’re in the music industry that you can share with someone who wants to follow your footsteps?
We learned everything not to do, basically haha. One of those being, DON’T TAKE ANYTHING TOO SERIOUSLY. The whole point of making music your job is to have fun, so when it gets too serious and starts feeling like a stressful grind, somethings wrong. We’re just having a blast every day so we don’t get tired of working constantly. It keeps the stamina up! Our earlier previous projects really taught us to be self-reliant, and just do the most you can, with the resources you have. If you make that your mantra and repeat it every day, you’ll become aware of the abundance of resources at your disposal.
With a three-piece group you get different likes and dislikes. How do you guys go about agreeing on what songs/sounds go well together, when a track is finished, etc.?
We just paper scissors rock and the winner gets to pick. Just kidding. Yes, the 3 of us are different in lots of aspects but luckily for us we are all pretty relaxed and similar when it comes to agreeing on the songs and sounds for Cheat Codes and when you are making songs from scratch it’s really easy to make little changes until all 3 of us are happy. Producing software these days is really helpful. The main question we’re asking ourselves is which ideas are the best and then we cut the fat from there.
There are so many debates with EDM music and some think it’s not “real” music. What’s your take on it?
Haha this is an interesting question… I think music is evolving, technology is at the forefront of it, and Electronic Dance music is embracing that. Music is just vibrations, so saying something isn’t “real” music is kind of closed minded. Didn’t people say Elvis was the devil’s music when it came out? haha
How did the signing with 300 Entertainment come about? What does this new journey mean for you as a band?
The biggest reason we signed with 300 is because they let us operate our business exactly how we want to. We weren’t too fond of signing into a major label system and putting out music the same way as everyone else. We like flexibility and the ability to take risks. 300 gives us that!
When was the moment you realized Cheat Codes was gaining momentum and eventually a huge fanbase?
There’s been a lot of crazy moments in 2016, I think one of the first one’s was playing Firefly Festival in Dover, Delaware. We had a super early time slot, one of the first of the day and weren’t expecting many people to come out, and we walked out on stage to a sea of people, and they were all singing along, so that was an amazing experience.
Based off of your Twitter and Instagram posts, you guys seem to be having a blast pretty much all the time. What do you do when you’re not on the road or creating music?
Honestly, we’re workaholics…. We all feel like we have a lot more to accomplish before we can take a real break; so we try to incorporate as much fun as possible into our work. When we’re just chilling, we’re usually on Netflix or Hulu watching Forensic Files.
Since you guys go by Cheat Codes… What’s your biggest life hack you’ve learned in life?Make everything as easy as possible. A lot of people pursue a goal thinking it will be a lot of hard work, we go into everything thinking it’s so easy that it’s impossible for us to fail. I think that gives us an edge.
What is the group’s biggest goal for 2017?
We have a lot of goals for 2017! We want to put out our first E.P., start a clothing line, create new custom visuals for our live show and headline our own tour by the end of the year!
Listen here to check out their new song No Promises (feat. Demi Lovato).
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Let’s Talk About Music with Cheat Codes. Photo Credit: Ellie Stills
