“A true lover of this art can identify good music in any genre,” says megastar producer Tainy when asked about his ability to produce chart-topping hits by effortlessly weaving reggaeton music into mainstream pop culture. 

Tainy, also known as Marco Masís has managed to position himself as an experimentalist in the forefront of the Latin Trap boom that’s swept over the nation in the last few years. In the past, the Grammy – award winning producer helped shape the current sound of artists such as Bad Bunny, Wisin y Yandel, Cardi B, and J Balvin.

But he didn’t stop there. Tainy has also managed to successfully venture out into the musicscape by producing his own music with an EP titled The Kids That Grew Up on Reggaeton. Since then, he’s been working on more projects– including his new EP, Club Dieciséis out today and also co-running his creative space, NEON16.

VMan talked with Tainy about his influences, past collaborations, creative processes, and possible future projects. Read the interview below:

VMAN: Who did you listen to growing up versus your current inspirations for your music? 

TAINY: As a kid, I had a very diverse palate for music. Here are some of my faves growing up: Vico C , Eminem, Linkin Park, Jay-Z, Daddy Yankee. Present inspirations and what I’m currently listening to are Frank Ocean, Rosalia, Travis Scott, Tame Impala & C. :.

VMAN: Does your upbringing influence your music in any way? 

TAINY: Yes, for sure. Growing up, at home my mom, who is Dominican listened to baladas & merengue, so those sounds definitely have left a mark in my footprint as a producer, but the balance was at my age, and at school we listened to a lot of Reggaeton in Puerto Rico but definitely was very tuned in to the mainstream with rap and alternative rock.

VMAN: You’ve worked with artists from diverse music genres and styles. From working with artists such as Dua Lipa, Justin Bieber, Janet Jackson, and Selena Gomez what first inspired you to branch out into other genres and get experimental with reggaeton?

TAINY: I am a fan of music and every genre. A true lover of this art can identify good music in any genre. As a genre (Latin) that has positioned itself at the top globally, we don’t want to or should be locked in a bubble or box. So crossing genres for me is important and something I very much love to do.

VMAN: How would you describe what it was like collaborating with J Balvin, Bad Bunny, Daddy Yankee, Anuel, and Ozuna?

TAINY: On my collabs, it’s cool and an honor that artists of this caliber trust me and my vision to make their music. And I am like a sponge around such creative talent so at the same time I learn and always take something with me from working on music with these artists.

VMAN: You released your first ever EP, “The Kids Who Grew Up On Reggaeton: Neon Tapes” back in March. What was your vision when you started working on this album and how did it feel to see it come to life?

TAINY: My vision was clear from the beginning with this EP. When I was starting out, my opportunities came because someone gave me a shot. So my vision with this EP was the same feeling for me to pay it forward now that I am in a position to do so. I wanted to showcase some of my favorite emerging artists including Alvaro Diaz, Cazzu, Kris Floyd, C. Tangana, Las Villas and Dylan Fuentes and also bring in some cool established talent like Sean Paul, Lennox and Lauren Jaregui. We truly had a blast putting this together and I felt satisfied with the different sounds and being able to give these talented artists a platform like this.

VMAN: How has the lockdown been for you?

TAINY: Lockdown time has given me the opportunity to work on my creative development, spend time with my family, and really strategize and plan my next moves. Also, I can really say I have appreciated having some more “me time”, which is something I don’t usually have.

VMAN: What did you do to stay creative?

TAINY:  I have really dived into doing tons of research on all kinds of things. Music history, fashion, art, and other areas that I hadn’t really done so extensively before. I have also been watching tons of documentaries and listening to old records, discovering sounds and things I hadn’t before.

VMAN: What is your work process like now?

TAINY: The work process for me varies for a number of reasons. Sometimes I want to create from zero and other times when speaking to the artists, they have their ideas in place already so we’ll roll with that, to get the process going. Then when I am working on my own music, I get to do things the way I want to. I have creative freedom and that is always something I value, because at times, I am working on a project with an artist and I have all these great ideas but know they would never let themselves try something new, etc. With my own music I am not restricted in any way.

VMAN: What was it like for you and the rest of the team at NEON16 to work on the soundtrack for The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run?

TAINY: Working on a film soundtrack was something that was definitely on my bucket list to do. SpongeBob is one of my faves and I grew up watching it. I know the characters and storylines by heart as well as the classic music theme. I understood what the goals were from the beginning. We wanted to create something fun and give the music a present-day refresh but at the same time maintain and stay true to the franchise and who and what it represents as a global brand. It was so fun to get to create and executive produce and A&R and oversee my team and partner Lex Borrero at NEON16.

VMAN: We heard that you’ve already produced a song with Shakira for her next album. Is there anything you can tell us about that?

TAINY: I’m excited to have worked with her and I am anxious for her to drop it already! I’m still just another one of her fans! It was a career highlight to get work with her on the new music.

Take a listen to Tainy’s surprise EP that dropped today, below.