Open Mic with Cash Cash!

Speaker 1: (00:17)

DjWhtDaHek: (00:18)
Hey guys, what’s up? It is DjWhtDaHek, here with you again for another addition of Open Mic, and today I got a very special guest. JP, you’ll know him from Cash Cash. Thanks for coming on the show, man.

Cash Cash: (00:29)
No problem, man. Thanks for having me.

DjWhtDaHek: (00:31)
Yeah. How’s it going? Where are you at right now?

Cash Cash: (00:33)
We’re good. We’re back in Jersey, resting up after a whole weekend of crazy shows. We were in Vegas, just all over the place, having a little run. And then next week we got a bunch of shows, so we’re just resting up right now. We got Lollapalooza next week, really excited about that, and so many shows. We’re going to be in Raleigh too.

DjWhtDaHek: (00:54)
Yep, you’ll be in Raleigh here shortly. Looking forward to that show, especially.

Cash Cash: (00:58)
Oh yeah.

DjWhtDaHek: (01:00)
What’s it like being back doing all these live shows again? Would you think it was more maybe anxious nerves to get back on stage?

Cash Cash: (01:08)
Oh, definitely. I mean we wanted to get back on stage so bad in the middle of the pandemic and the best that we could do at that point was those drive-in shows where you would drive up your car. And we did a couple of those and they were fun, it was still cool to get out of the house and feel that energy again, but it wasn’t the same. And then we did a couple of those socially distant shows where it was private events where everyone was separated by six to eight feet, and there were little groups of people that were already tested and stuff. And it was fun.

Cash Cash: (01:43)
There was little stuff that we did here and there to keep us sane, but we just focused on making our new album. That’s what we did the whole last year and a half, and trying to finish up all the songs we had laying around, and were able to get that out the door. It’s called Say It Like You Feel It, it’s got 10 or 11 new new songs that were on it plus our old singles that were in between our last album that were just floating around that needed a home.

DjWhtDaHek: (02:07)
So really the break from the shows was a little bit of a help in finishing up that album.

Cash Cash: (02:12)
Yeah, I mean it made it possible to just all be in one place, because Sam and I actually do most of the touring, and we leave Alex at home in the studio working on stuff that we start, or he’ll start something, and then when we come home, we’ll finish it up. But when we’re all home, it was just so much easier to finish up the album.

DjWhtDaHek: (02:32)
Does Alex get a little stagefright? Is that why he’s at the home base?

Cash Cash: (02:36)
Nah, it was one of those things where we just realized that for DJing, you really only need two people. And even at that, one guy can do it, but when me and Sam go out, I’ll focus more on being on the mic and doing some other stuff, and it’s just three people can get a little bit … I don’t know. Well, three’s a crowd, I guess, in the DJ booth a lot of times. And it’s fun sometimes when we’re all up there, then one person can just relax a little bit, and drink, and just get wasted. But I don’t know, I mean for us, it was just Alex was just the best in the studio, so it made sense to have him stay back for most of the shows, and Sam and I, we’ve just been doing it for so long on the road. We don’t know any other life.

DjWhtDaHek: (03:22)
Yeah. You guys got a routine at this point.

Cash Cash: (03:24)
Yeah.

DjWhtDaHek: (03:25)
Well, let’s take it back a little bit to when you guys were first starting out. I’m curious to see how did you guys get into the EDM side of things?

Cash Cash: (03:34)
Yeah, I mean that goes back to the whole thing of we started out as a band. We were one of those, I would say synth pop meets, I don’t even know. I mean we were very electronic, but we had guitars and we had drums. We also had electronic drums and were messing around with all that electronic production, but it was in a more traditional band sense. And that was our early incarnation, and then we started doing remixes for other artists, and that influenced our sound because the remixes were obviously super EDM and super dance. And then things just happened naturally. Our drummer left the group around 2000 and I want to say ’10-ish, around then. And then we started to mess around with we were this weird hybrid group where we would play with drum machines and stuff like that. And that was part of the evolution.

Cash Cash: (04:35)
It just happened organically, and then all of a sudden it was like oh my God, here’s our new sound. And we were working with other features, we were focusing on just being producers, and being in the studio, working with different artists. And then all of a sudden, the whole DJ EDM thing popped off and they were like well, now we have an outlet to playing shows again because that whole scene took off, and it was like let’s start playing shows as DJs. And it just made sense because it was just this organic evolution over the last decade or so.

DjWhtDaHek: (05:07)
Interesting because I was listening to the Party In Your Bedroom track.

DjWhtDaHek: (05:10)
(singing).

DjWhtDaHek: (05:10)
And that sounds pretty different from the stuff you guys have been putting out recently.

Cash Cash: (05:24)
Yeah. I mean you can definitely hear the electronic influence on it. There’s definitely the electronic bass, and a lot of the samples and stuff are super electronic, but yeah, it was definitely more a traditional synth band kind of thing.

DjWhtDaHek: (05:38)
Right. I think the thing that I’m really interested in is where do you think you guys actually found your Cash Cash sound? Because when I hear a song on the radio, Like How To Love, for example, I’m like oh, that’s instantly Cash Cash. You hear a sound. Where do you think you got that sound from?

Cash Cash: (05:56)
I think our sound just has this super melodicness to it. We really focus on melody and everyone has their own melody. It’s interesting, the melodies that we make with the music, even with the songwriting, when we’re working with a lot of the artists, and songwriters, and stuff, and the different features, certain melodies, there’s a style of writing, and our writing, I don’t know how to describe it, but it is that Cash Cash melody. The notes that we go for, the rhythms that we go for, it’s what makes Cash Cash sound like Cash Cash. And then the features that we work with expand that, and make all our songs sound different, and take us to different places. That’s why we like to work with rappers. We have a song with Wiz Khalifa, and then we go to pop artists, like we have a song with Lukas Graham, he’s on it as well too. And then we’ll also work with alternative artists and we’ll work with anybody, females to guys, everything. There’s no limits with us. That’s what makes the sound [crosstalk 00:07:03].

DjWhtDaHek: (07:03)
You sound very versatile to many different genres.

Cash Cash: (07:06)
Definitely.

DjWhtDaHek: (07:07)
Yes. Well, let’s take it back to very beginning, and the name Cash Cash came out through a copyright thing. What happened there?

Cash Cash: (07:17)
Yeah, we just got signed to our first record deal, and we went to trademark the name and stuff. And we were like oh yeah, we never did any of that stuff. We didn’t have any legal rights to any of the names that we wanted to actually make official. And then so we’re like oh, right. And this one guy was coming after us, he went to take down some of our other stuff and completely redo everything. And we got cease and desist letters, and we were like oh my God, we don’t even have any money yet and everyone’s already trying to screw us over. We had this old agent that was trying to screw us over. So when coming up with the name, we were like why don’t we just name this group Cash Cash? And then it stuck. We all laughed, we were like wait a second, that could be cool. And then it was actually surprisingly open, nobody trademarked the name, so we made it ours that day, filed the trademark, and the rest is history.

DjWhtDaHek: (08:14)
And the rest is history. It’s a great story, man. Well, let’s talk some trash.

Cash Cash: (08:21)
It didn’t sound great at the time, but looking back now, it’s funny to look back and we were so stressed out, but now it’s just a laugh.

DjWhtDaHek: (08:30)
Stressed out and the first thing that comes to mind, money.

Cash Cash: (08:34)
Oh, when I think about money, what’s the first thing?

DjWhtDaHek: (08:36)
Yeah.

Cash Cash: (08:37)
Just remembering what it was like to not have any of it. I mean we were living in a van, and we were on tour, barely, and I remember being on Warped tour literally living in the van. I mean we would just go from city to city, and find random bathrooms and stuff to shower in on tour.

DjWhtDaHek: (08:54)
Wow.

Cash Cash: (08:55)
There was 10 of us packed in a van and trailer, and it was just definitely roughing it out and doing that whole thing in the beginning, and getting a hotel room once a week to just reconvene and whatnot. But yeah, it kept us humble over the years, I think. When you earn your success, it’s easier to appreciate it. A lot of people, they get handed to them or they become these overnight successes and they’re just delusional. They have no idea how life works or how things are earned and stuff. So we’ve definitely been through our road of speed bumps and stuff over the years, moving from different record labels, and where many people would’ve just given up, we were just like no, we’re going to keep going and keep going. And literally, since we started, it’s like a stock, it goes up and down, and up and down, but we’ve always been growing and we’ve never really crashed and burned. We’re so lucky to say that we’ve been a group for over a decade.

DjWhtDaHek: (10:04)
Yeah, I’m happy you guys have been a group for over a decade because there are so many songs, man.

Cash Cash: (10:11)
Thank you.

DjWhtDaHek: (10:12)
Yeah, let’s talk about some tracks now. And I have to say, this was the hardest part because I think you guys are going to have to come back when we do our three to four hour interviews, because there’s just too many songs to talk about, but I’ll try to narrow it down to just a few here in the interest of time. Let’s start out, Take Me Home with Bebe Rexha. What was it like making that track and then working with her on it?

Cash Cash: (10:32)
That was a really fun song to do because, talking about what we were talking about before, actually that song came together at a time where we were really at a low. Like I said, we were dropped from our first record label, we didn’t know what we were going to do. The three of us lived together actually in, it was a rented house in Harrison, New Jersey, right outside the city. And we had a studio in the basement, we were producing other artists. That’s what we were doing a lot of remixing and stuff, but we weren’t really killing it. It was around 2011-ish, 2012. Yeah, 2012, business was bad and we just ended up moving back home with our parents. We literally felt like crap and it felt like it was over. And we were thinking about going back to college and stuff, where I was like yeah, I should go back to school, get a real job, but we were like nah, we’re still holding onto that dream. And I remember I ran into Bebe Rexha at a bar with our manager.

Cash Cash: (11:30)
And we were like, “We should do something. We love your voice.” She was in a similar situation, just came out of a band with Pete Wentz and it didn’t work out, so she didn’t know what she was doing. She was unsigned at the time. And we just came together on this song. We recorded it literally in my parents’ basement. It was nuts. A lot of that first record was made in my parents’ basement, a lot of those features literally just flew out from LA and stuff to record in our parents’ basement, and there was a lot of magic on that record, for sure. But yeah, the funny thing, I remember hearing Take Me Home on the radio, right outside of our house, you can park your car and look into the studio window. And I remember just hearing it on the radio and then looking at the studio window, and being like how did we get the music from there to here? How did we get this song from that little basement to this radio in my car? And it was just insane moments to just be so grateful and appreciative of having that opportunity.

DjWhtDaHek: (12:40)
I mean, and this track, it freaking exploded too. I mean that’s one of my favorites as well. I mean my goodness, it’s a great one.

Cash Cash: (12:46)
Thank you, man. It opened up the doors. And people always ask does it get old hearing your songs on the radio? And it really never does. Every time we hear one of our songs on the radio, you get the same feeling. No matter how much success you have, it’s a feeling that you get that you just can’t put your finger on.

DjWhtDaHek: (13:09)
Yeah. We play plenty of Cash Cash here on WolfBytes Radio. Let’s go talk about Devil, because I have plenty of friends that when I say Cash Cash, this is the song that comes to mind.

DjWhtDaHek: (13:29)
(singing).

Cash Cash: (13:32)
Yeah, that was a fun one. We always thought Neon Hitch was a great songwriter and had an awesome, unique voice. So we got in with her, we recorded the hook, we wrote the hook together, recorded the hook, and sat on it for a while. We didn’t know what to do with it. It was just this weird little demo that had her hook on it and the little build up, and then to drop. And then we were like oh, we should get a rapper on it. So we started sending it out to different rap artists or even different regular singers to see if maybe singing would work in the verses. We ended up getting B.o.B on it because we were on the same label, and we were like okay, this is kind of coming together now. This feels like it could be a song. And we had the other verse open and we were like who would take this to the next level? And Busta Rhymes just fell to the picture because I think he was actually doing a label deal with our label as well.

Cash Cash: (14:30)
And yeah, that one came together, but that took two years. So what I’ve just said was over the course of two years, literally. The song just sitting there, not knowing what to do, having different versions of it, and then each feature came on it slowly, and then all the paperwork gets done, and then boom, then it goes out the door. And it was a fun one. Like I said, we’re all about working with so many diverse artists, and working with Busta Rhymes was crazy because we grew up watching Busta Rhymes on MTV as a kid. And that was just one of those humbling experiences where you’re like wow, how did we do this? Same thing working with Nelly on Millionaire. I mean that was crazy, and then the fact that we got him to sample, “Must be the money.”

Cash Cash: (15:15)
(singing).

Cash Cash: (15:15)
That was insane. That was like what? I remember being in studio and I came up with the idea, and he looked at me. I was waiting for him to be like, “Never in a million years.” He was just like, “You know what? That could be good.” And he was like, “Say she must be the money.” And I was like, “Dude sold. Let’s do it.”

DjWhtDaHek: (15:47)
That’s great. Oh my goodness. I have to say the live version you guys do of Devil is probably my favorite. The original is good, but the live, there’s just something about it. It’s hype.

Cash Cash: (16:00)
Yeah, we usually play the VIP mix that we made that’s just super hyped up. We do that a lot too, we’ll do live versions of our songs that are just way more, I don’t even know if I want to say clubby, just more intense. Because sometimes you’ll make music that’s for the radio, it’s for listening purposes, or music for Spotify. People listening to music in their car, it’s different than when you want to hear a song at a festival.

DjWhtDaHek: (16:26)
Right. Well, what would you say that selection process is there? I mean how do you know okay, this next song we’re going to make is for radio or how do you know the next song, okay, we want to do this in the clubs?

Cash Cash: (16:39)
I mean we don’t really think too much into it. It’s more if we do something and then afterwards we’re like oh, this song is not really working live. It wouldn’t work live. We have to make a version of it that’s a VIP edit or a live edit. It’ll just come to us. I mean working with different features also usually guides where we’re going to take a song. If someone has a certain voice, we might cater to something a little different. We’re like oh, let’s make this one a little bit more this sounding or a little harder, a little softer. Like How To Love, it felt more like it would be a chiller type fall on the floor dance thing. But yeah, it all depends on the song. It always starts with the song and the feature.

DjWhtDaHek: (17:23)
Right. Well, I did have a chance to talk with Chad from Tritonal, and he’s a character, I have to say.

Cash Cash: (17:30)
Oh yeah.

DjWhtDaHek: (17:30)
And working with Tritonal on Untouchable.

DjWhtDaHek: (17:44)
(singing).

DjWhtDaHek: (17:44)
What was it like working with them? And is this one of those songs that are club worthy?

Cash Cash: (17:49)
Yeah, for sure. I mean those guys are super talented. We did a whole tour with them based on that song and it was a whole bus tour. It was the first time we ever did anything like that, where we actually shared a bus with another group and went like that, but it was fun. We had a great time, and the song was just doing so well, and the fans were loving it. It really was a great year. And yeah, that song definitely works in the club, for sure. It has a certain sound to it that just always works. And yeah, those guys are great. Chad’s a maniac. I mean he’s literally amped on life. Every time we talk to him, it sounds like he just chugged three Red Bull, and it’s just literally off the Richter scale, but he’s so great. And that’s why they put so much music out and they’re always doing so much because they can’t stop. His brain can’t stop.

DjWhtDaHek: (18:46)
Yeah. Was that one of those songs that were just maybe be laying around for maybe two years or was that one pretty quick to come together?

Cash Cash: (18:53)
That one came together quick, actually. The singer on that song is this dude, J.Hart. And we actually wrote with him on another song, we wrote with him our song Gasoline on our new album, but he didn’t end up staying on it. He wrote it, did a demo vocal, and then we had Laura White sing it. But yeah, that one came together pretty quick, I think. The music came first and then Tritonal was in a studio with J.Hart, and that’s how that connection came together. And then it just snowballed into being the Untouchable that it was when it was done.

DjWhtDaHek: (19:27)
Another great track. Well, we’re going to talk about one more great track, and it’s actually your latest track, Ride or Die.

DjWhtDaHek: (19:34)
(singing).

DjWhtDaHek: (19:44)
Tell me a little bit about that one.

Cash Cash: (19:46)
Yeah, Ride or Die was a fun one. We did it with Phoebe. That one came together quick, it was just a pandemic song. She sent us the vocals and we just did the song real quick, and then we sat on it for a little bit because we didn’t know what we were going to do with it, we weren’t sure if it was a single or if it was going to be on the album. And then when, like I said, we got back home, we were sorting all the random songs that we started and that were half finished, and that one, I don’t know, the emotion in that one, I love it so much. I really thought that the way she’s singing it and the lyrics that she sang were so unique, and so we knew that one had to be a single, for sure.

DjWhtDaHek: (20:24)
Right. It’s another great track, for sure.

Cash Cash: (20:27)
Thank you.

DjWhtDaHek: (20:28)
Yeah. And so we were touching on some of the songs you play in the shows, and some of them you don’t, that are more radio oriented. And I guess the more radio oriented tracks that you do make, you can hear them on Cash Cash Radio?

Cash Cash: (20:39)
Yeah, Cash Cash Radio is a lot of fun. It gives us a chance once a month to just compile all the stuff that we’re currently listening to, some of the stuff that we might be playing live, or just our friends’ music, our own music, different remixes that we make, or even our own music as well. It’s just an hour takeover on SiriusXM’s BPM and it’s a lot of fun. For us, it’s just a way to just listen to music and not feel like you’re working. You get to just listen to music, put it together, and make it a show.

DjWhtDaHek: (21:15)
Right. Well, maybe we can do some Cash Cash Radio here on WolfBytes Radio one day. That sounds like fun.

Cash Cash: (21:21)
Nice. Let’s do it.

DjWhtDaHek: (21:24)
Yeah, let’s do it. All right, well for all of the latest Cash Cash information, tracks, show dates, tickets to shows, you guys are definitely going to want to catch out their website, cashcashmusic.com. Check it out. And JP, once again man, really appreciate you doing this and really looking forward to the show in Raleigh coming up.

Cash Cash: (21:42)
Hell yeah, man. Thanks for having us. Keep up with us on Instagram and Twitter. You can find us at Cash Cash, say what’s up, drop us a line, and hope to party with you guys in an upcoming show or festival.

DjWhtDaHek: (21:54)
100%. We look forward to it.

Cash Cash: (21:56)
Hell yeah.

DjWhtDaHek: (21:58)
Well guys, that was the latest Open Mic here with JP from Cash Cash. It’s DjWhtDaHek signing off.