Terrace Martin (Kendrick Lamar, Stevie Wonder) on how he stays inspired

“I don’t remember life without making music,” Terrace Martin tells us.

“I don’t even understand life without it—I thought everybody was a musician. I didn’t walk down the street and bump into it. It saved my life.”

Terrace Martin is a veteran multi-instrumentalist, rapper, singer, and record producer who’s known for his distinctive sound that sits at the intersection of funk, jazz, classical, and soul. He has worked alongside some of the most iconic artists across generations, including the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Busta Rhymes, Quincy Jones, and Stevie Wonder.

Above, Terrace sat down with us to discuss his perspective on creativity and how Create and the new Splice mobile app empower him to find inspiration, regardless of whether or not he’s in the studio.

“Because we already have so many roadblocks in life, we don’t need another one when it comes to creation,” he says. “Creation’s supposed to be your 100% free moment to be yourself, in a universe and a world where sometimes, surviving, you can’t be yourself.”

What’s your favorite track from Terrace Martin? What would you like to see on the Splice YouTube channel next? Let us know in the comments section of the video, and join the Splice Discord to start a conversation with us and an active community of other music creators. If you’re interested in incorporating Terrace Martin’s sounds into your own productions, you can also find his top-notch loops and one-shots via his Make Believe Files sample pack.

“Hopefully, with the help of AI and Splice, this will be another way to bring everybody closer together,” Terrace concludes. “That’s the whole reason for music. There’s no other reason for it.”


Use Create and find inspiration on the go with the new Splice mobile app:

March 11, 2024

Harrison Shimazu

Harrison Shimazu is a composer, content strategist, and writer who’s passionate about democratizing music creation and education. He leads the Splice blog and produces vocaloid music as Namaboku.