Brandon Michael Green, better known in the music industry as Maejor, is a record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter originally from Detroit, Michigan. Together with Dutch DJ Martin Garrix, the two comprise AREA21, a popular EDM duo. Maejor has also written and produced songs for many prominent artists including Justin Bieber, Trey Songz, Monica, Keri Hilson, Frank Ocean, Iggy Azalea, and will.i.am.
Maejor has also produced successful national campaigns for Pepsi and the Boston Celtics, and has also scored soundtracks for films including The Princess and the Frog and Think Like a Man.
This Face the Current Music Feature is published in Issue 26 Nov/Dec 2019 Edition. Order PRINT here, SUBSCRIBE to digital membership for unlimited access, or continue reading this article below.
Even with this mainstream success and a promising future, Maejor seeks to achieve deeper fulfillment and a more meaningful connection to his audiences. Face the Current enjoyed a wonderful and hopeful discussion with Maejor on topics including the ways in which he measures success, what it means to bring ancient sound healing into modern music, and his method for changing the energy of his listeners while uniting them with the power of sound.
Photography by Niah Rose
Sasha Frate: How long have you been involved with and working in the music industry and how did it actually all start for you?
Maejor: I’ve been working in the music industry for about fourteen years. I got started when I was living in Detroit, Michigan and I was uploading my music to the internet. (This is during the time of MySpace!) It just spread to the right people and I ended up featuring some songs and major albums, and then from there I just kept going. It’s been a long, awesome journey.
SF: How did sound healing become part of your mission to heal the planet through music, and what set you on the path to studying the science behind it before later making it a part of your music?
Maejor: I always had a vision of wanting to make an impact with my music, and there were moments when I tried to do that through lyrics, but I felt like it wasn’t resonating with the audience I was speaking with. I was mostly working with mainstream types of artists; mainstream consciousness. It was more about things that don’t necessarily fit in a conscious space; it was just what’s common—what you hear on the radio. People don’t want to hear strong words or they don’t want to feel preached to.
I had to find a new way to use this energy and this message and find a way to uplift people into music. That’s when I said, “Okay, forget the words. Let’s go to the frequency and the sound itself and let’s see if I can embed it into the music so that whatever the words are saying, it’s still having an uplifting effect on people.”
That kind of led me down a whole rabbit-hole of experimenting with sound healing, learning, reading books, going to seminars, meeting people, and traveling. All of these things came as a result of me trying to implement this into the music.
SF: So now you’re essentially creating that stepping-stone, too, for more of a mainstream part of humanity who is not yet necessarily fully seeking that for themselves, but they need it just as much as anyone else. It’s moving them in that right direction.
Maejor: Exactly.
SF: In the realm of sound healing, you’ve studied modern technologies, binaural beats, brain waves, sound baths, and Tibetan monks, and you’ve also journeyed to places in the world where ancient, yet advanced civilizations once existed. Have you studied any of these ancient applications of sound resonance and healing vibrational frequencies?
Maejor: Yes, I saw you in Peru when I experienced this. There’s so much information out there about the power of sound and how it was used in the pyramids in Egypt. Even when we were in Peru, they were talking about the vortexes and how they were created to be acoustically-treated spaces for working with sound. So, yes—you see it in the history of humanity; you see it going back pretty much as far as you can see. You see people using sound and just trying to harness that energy to do something. I’ve even found examples of people using it for destructive forces in terms of trying to weaponize sound.
It shows that sound is just really powerful, and we all intuitively know it. That’s why we play different music when we go to the gym versus when we go to sleep. We play different music when we need to study and focus. We know it, but it’s just about being more intentional with it—that’s what we’re doing right now. We’re zoning in on exactly what’s doing what. It’s a really exciting time.
SF: Your latest track release, “I Love You”, with rising Columbian star Greeicy is said to be the first mainstream commercial song to use “intentional healing frequencies”, applying 432 Hz tuning. While the positive vibe of this song is sure to give people that “feel good” feeling, if you didn’t let people know it had healing frequencies, they’re likely not going to realize its harmonizing effects are going above and beyond. Is this subtlety also intentional?
Maejor: Yes, I want people to be able to hear the music and not know that they’re hearing a different style of music. I want them to feel like it’s the music they’re accustomed to and that they’ve heard their whole life growing up, but then on a deeper level, it’s having a harmonizing impact.
SF: Similar to music, how has your ability to speak multiple languages enabled you to positively impact a larger global audience?
Maejor: I feel like with the gift of music, I speak all languages. It’s the universal language so I speak that, and then I learned bits of so many languages. I won’t say I’m fluent in any of them, but I’ve learned pieces of Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch—pretty much anywhere I go, I try to learn some of the language and about the culture.
SF: Do you do that for your own personal fun and interest, or to connect more with people?
Maejor: To connect more with people. To be honest, the reason I like music is because I’m not such a big fan of language and talking. By definition, words are only pointers to something because the same words can have different meanings in different languages. This can bring a different set of experiences to the mind of that ear. I feel like language can be a little bit divisive in a sense because it’s like, “Oh, you’re from there? Now you must speak this language.” I’ve learned to try to be a little closer to the people, but the first language I start with is music and that opens the door to start speaking in other languages.
SF: You’ve produced music with a lot of celebrity artists including Justin Beiber and, more recently, Martin Gerrix. Has your concept caught on with any other artists, and do you plan to introduce this to more artists through your collaborations?
Maejor: Yes, my entire vision is to bring artists into this space and to just make them aware of the power. I’ve been hosting small, private sound baths with my friends from the music industry, and a lot of really powerful artists, executives, and different people are coming through because I want to make this a movement that involves many people, not just myself. They are responding so well to it. It’s actually really surprising that they really love it, so I’m excited.
SF: That is exciting! Some of your songs have been considered big successes such as the hit single “Lolly” featuring Justin Bieber and Juicy J, which peaked at number nineteen on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and “Vai Malandra” in collaboration with Brazilian superstar Anitta. What would you consider a success if you were to achieve it through/in music?
Maejor: For me, the success has nothing to do with the label. Success comes during the creation. That’s my joy—when the song is coming through, when I’m making and I’m writing it, when I’m playing it, and when I see people enjoying it; that’s a success. It’s cool to show other people the numbers and to get them excited to work with you, but that’s all I really see when I look at it. It doesn’t really give me a sense of satisfaction when I see the numbers, but the success is in creating the music—that feeling when everyone in the studio is like, “Whoa, this is insane!” And then, that feeling of being out and seeing people enjoying it—that’s the success for me.
SF: R&B, hip hop, and rap are some of the music genres you’ve produced that are not commonly associated with spreading positivity and healing. How would you say your music has evolved over the years and do you see yourself continuing to produce in these genres from this new approach?
Maejor: Going back to the first part of the question, something that I’ve learned is that hip hop was initially started as a way to educate people about issues and stuff that was going on. That was their language to communicate and that’s how it actually started. In the beginning, hip hop was about learning, history, and bringing people together, and somehow—I’m not sure if it was the commercialization of music—but things kind of changed a little bit. But I feel like the style of the music has nothing to do with the intention of the artist.
Because I’m a creative person, I like to combine styles. I like to merge different styles together and create something that is new—that is catchy to someone’s ear. I like things that stand out. I like things that are different and unique, just like people. We’re all individual, unique, creative people and I feel like the more we embrace that individuality, the better.
In terms of my music evolving, I’m going to be honest: I’m so present that it’s really hard for me to look into where things will go.
Right now, I’m just really focusing on my energy and bringing as much light into the world as I can. One of the ways I think I can do it is by making cool songs that are healing, because both exist. There are songs that are healing and there are songs that are cool, and I kind of want to be a bridge for that.
SF: So much of your work has been about collaboration, whether you’re uniting with other artists, organizations, or campaigns. You’ve worked with the American Cancer Society and even had fun collaborations with Will Smith, Kevin Hart, and others as you united the city of Philadelphia for the NBA playoffs. How do you see the role of the collective in uniting and healing the planet?
Maejor: I feel like we all have a unique skillset, unique gifts, and unique blessings. When we all have the same intention, it’s necessary that you have these people from different walks come together. We all have the same intention and we walk together. For example, I’m not going to know how to make a magazine—that’s what you’re doing and how you’re connecting to people. It’s necessary for people like me to help in order to get what we’re doing to work for more people and inspire more people.
So, I think everyone’s role is equally as important. I don’t think there’s anyone who’s more or less important; I think everyone is part of the whole and without one, we don’t have anyone.
SF: Well said. There have been studies by The Global Consciousness Project (GCP) that look at the power of group consciousness working toward a common goal to effect social change. This can include the organization of worldwide meditations, using technology to synchronize concerts and dancing; even participation in virtual choirs. Do you envision mainstream music with these intentional healing vibrations at concerts in the future as having a similar effort or effect on social change?
Maejor: Yes, my concerts are going to be completely designed with this in mind, bringing this experience to unite people and to make us all better. I want to lift us up; to raise the frequency; to change the energy. So yes, absolutely.When you get a group of people together doing something all as one, it’s really powerful.
SF: Do you have any projects in the works you can speak about, or anything for people to be on the lookout for in the near future?
Maejor: Yes! The next few songs I will be releasing will be using 432 Hz frequency. They’re going to be coming up every few weeks with some music videos we’re doing, as well. I wish I could tell you the collaborations right now, but unfortunately, I can’t! We’re going to launch so much new music and we’re going to do a tour as well. We’re also working in TV and film—we’re spreading this everywhere! It’s a really exciting time. We’re also working with the United Nations on a film that will bring light to the darkest places on Earth, and it’s really exciting.
More Info:
Instagram: @maejor
Facebook: @MaejorOfficial
Spotify: MAEJOR