Experimental electronic hip-hop duo H31R, comprised of beatmaker JWords and rapper maassai, refuse to conform to a single genre. Their second album, HeadSpace, draws inspiration from their respective diverse musical backgrounds, creating a fusion of hard-hitting beats layered with rapid-fire vocals. The duo discusses their working relationship forged in friendship, musical influences, and what fuels their passion for collaboration.
It Takes Two
How did you two meet and start collaborating?
JWords: I love to tell this story because it’s like the first time we found love. We met in 2017. It was my first solo set in Brooklyn at The Glove. My set was first, and I was upstairs smoking when my ex called me down and was like, “Oh my god, you’ll love the act that’s on right now.” I went down, and it was maassai. She was killin’ it—she had a saxophone player and a drummer. And then, from there, we became friends. It was like synchronicity. We synced up, and it felt like we were in the same tribe.
maassai: Even though we were making really different music, it still somehow made sense together. We could acknowledge that we were on similar wavelengths just based on that.
Sonic Fusion
Your sound is quite eclectic. How do your individual backgrounds affect what you create together?
maassai: I think both of our sounds, even our own solo work, is eclectic. So, coming together is a fusion of different vibes and influences. I grew up surrounded by hip-hop, jazz, R&B, and soul. When I got older, getting more into jazz opened me up to a lot of other genres of music, even punk and more experimental things. Jazz is just experimental music, you know? I grew up listening to house too. My grandparents love it.
JWords: I’m Dominican, so I was brought up listening to salsa, merengue, and bachata. I also loved hip-hop as a kid. I’m from Jersey, so I was also obsessed with Jersey Club and house music. Jersey Club, bachata, merengue, salsa, and hip-hop—there’s a lot of rhythm going on there. I wanted to be a rapper until I found I can make beats really well. So, I’d rather make the beats.
"I think both of our sounds, even our own solo work, is eclectic. So, coming together is a fusion of different vibes and influences. "
The Starting Line
Do you remember the moment you knew you wanted to make music?
maassai: I started rapping and singing really early because I come from a family of artists. I remember when I decided I wanted to rap. I started off writing poetry. Then, when I was eleven, I thought, “Well, my poetry kind of rhymes, so maybe I should rap.”
JWords: I started in 2013 in a band. Then, in 2015, I started making my own beats and music. I’ve always wanted to work with a rapper and start a duo. When maassai and I met, it felt like the perfect match. On the first night, we said we should start a duo. I already knew it was going to happen.
"When maassai and I met, it felt like the perfect match. On the first night, we said we should start a duo. I already knew it was going to happen."
Productive Evolution
Was your creative process for HeadSpace different from the first album you created together during the pandemic?
JWords: Yeah, I feel like HeadSpace was more intentional. The first one was intentional, but for the second album, we came together and thought through what the album would be about rather than just putting all our songs in one album. This one has a theme. We had an idea, and we executed it.
maassai: Our first album was a real exchange. JWords sent the beats, and I’d send the verse back. We made it like that because we were both quarantined during most of the pandemic. So, this one was a more collaborative process. We sat together and recorded, then returned and tweaked things together. This felt like a cohesive process where we had a goal.
Go, Go, Gadget
JWords, on Instagram, you used a Nintendo Switch to make some beats recently. Is there any other unexpected gear you use?
JWords: I use a lot of different gadgets to make beats. They call me the Gadget Girl. We’re always experimenting with different gear. The first beat I gave maassai was on her first EP, My Name Jack? I made that beat with a bass machine, a mini synth, and the SP-404SX. I love gear so much. It’s one of my favorite things in the world.
Did you use any Roland gear on this on this album?
JWords: I used the T-8 Beat Machine and the J-6 Chord Synth AIRA Compacts. When I was in the band, my first synthesizer was a JUNO-DS. It wasn’t a JUNO-60, but it sounded just incredible. I loved it.
"I use a lot of different gadgets to make beats. They call me the Gadget Girl."
How does your live setup compare to what you use in the studio?
JWords: The H31R stuff is different from my solo work. When I’m by myself, I’ll create the music with the same equipment that I’m going to perform on, so I have everything in one place. Right now, in my setup, I use both the J-6 and T-8. They’re so portable—best gear ever.
About the Art
How do you balance your individual projects with H31R?
JWords: I already know what kind of beats maassai will like, so I’ll make specific beats for her. And when I make my own music, I know it’s for my solo stuff. I’m able to switch between creating different types of sounds.
maassai: Getting on JWord’s production is a challenge, and it’s always really fun because I love a challenge. I get to tap into a different aspect of my art and creativity that I wouldn’t necessarily do in my own individual music. We’re about the art, so we’re going to collab and make stuff because we love to do it, we think it’s really good, and it’s something new. It doesn’t take away from our personal passion projects either. We’re excited about all of it.
"Getting on JWord's production is a challenge. I get to tap into a different aspect of my art and creativity that I wouldn't necessarily do in my own individual music."
What’s next for H31R?
JWords: We’ll go on tour for the album. We plan to do a release show here in New York and then in LA. We might drop one song after the album. And then a third album probably in two years.
Did it take two years to create HeadSpace?
maassai: It took a minute for us to really focus and find the vibe until we knew, okay, this is what the album is. This is how it’s supposed to sound. We don’t like to rush our process. That’s what’s cool about being in a duo. There’s a collaborative process where we’re not pressured to make things. We’re making things authentically and genuinely to how we feel.
JWords: We’re strictly here for the music.
