Frankel Makes Beats
The New Jersey native has been playing piano since he was 6 years old. He went on to take guitar and drum lessons and later, participated in his high school band. His outstanding musicianship gained him acceptance to the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston. Foreseeing better opportunities in Florida, he decided to attend Full Sail University, where he obtained degrees in Recording Arts and Music Business.
Ryan Frankel, aka FrankeL, didn’t want a false on-stage persona, hence the simplicity of his stage name. He has played around with a few other aliases but, in the end, the only thing he felt comfortable going by was an extension of his last name.
His exotic flow is vintage and yet still relevant. The productions are stimulating even if only by their simplicity and sincerity. The listener is quite literally engulfed in the organic nature that seeps through each track. FrankeL has an undeniable knack for capturing the original emotions of every sample and possesses the ability to translate and convey them into his own heartfelt pieces.
FrankeL's dynamic potpourri of influences spans from Burt Bacharach, Stevie Wonder, Brian Wilson, Quincy Jones, J. Dilla, Jneiro Jarel, MadLib, Blockhead, Doom (formerly MF Doom), Carole King, and so on. He’s already built an impressive catalog of work, sampling everyone from Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, Crosby Stills & Nash, to No Doubt, Boyz II Men, Miles Davis, The Zombies and anything in between.
The multi-faceted producer is constantly recording, mixing and mastering tracks from his home studio. He can also be found on the local Orlando scene, showcasing his beats at lounges and beat battles. There’s a label in the works – Skeptik Records, whose name comes from his skepticism of what the mainstream media is pushing onto the public as 'good hip-hop'. He hopes to elevate the public’s opinion and assist in expanding the perception of the genre – so it’s regarded as a true cultural art form and meaningful vehicle of expression. He wants to push things forward so that the masses might finally hear what he hears in the underground - a true form of urban high art.
- Kat Nunley