From airy vocoder breaks to hip-hop collaboration tracks, Ekue is dipping his production hand into the multi-genre melting pot that seems to be the electronic scene nowadays.

For now though, he’s been laying low posted up in his studio in Maryland currently producing tracks for Roll Wit Us All Stars, a hip-hop duo from DC who Ekue says may be signing with Warner Brothers in the upcoming months. “I’m producing like half of that album,” he says. “They have a really versatile style.”

The R and B influence is obvious on Ekue’s tracks – whether breaks or hip-hop – and his versatility seems to fit well with Roll Wit Us’s clean-cut party-pimp style.

Ekue, a.k.a. Casey Wolfram, was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, and then moved to Germantown, Maryland, in 2003 to study at The Omega Studios’ School of Applied Recording Arts and Sciences.

There he was able to learn “everything from the physics of sound to live recording” and graduated in 2005 with Pro Tools certification. Wolfram’s been producing tracks since 2000, he says, but has been DJing since age 18, when a friend of his freely handed over 80 breaks records.

“DJing before you start producing definitely helps out 100 percent,” he says. “It helps you to lay out the track and make sure it’s not sloppy. The way you format and structure things makes it easier when there’s going to be breakdowns.”

Wolfram enjoys the collaboration process. Aside from Roll Wit Us, he’s recently done some hip-hop work with Midas, a solo artist from the DC area.

Collaborations with hip-hop artists are a little different than with breaks artists, he says, because he’s mostly working with MCs who are trying to put their lyrical sound onto his tracks. “Hip-hop, like any music, is an art form. It’s just someone’s opinion whether it sounds good or not,” he says. “My biggest rule is to know what people’s credentials are. But if they think [my track] sucks, it doesn’t really matter. You can’t take it to heart.”

Wolfram also says he draws inspiration from other genres such as drum ‘n bass for both his breaks and hip-hop tracks. “I’m trying to incorporate the blending of breaks and hip-hop,” he says.

Ekue’s most recent efforts have landed him on the touring roster of SubFreqs Sounds and a vinyl and digital release of a new tune “Demon Cleaner.” SubFreqs label owner and breakbeat veteran Darkline has a remix of Ekue’s tune. Also on the table for Ekue is a remix of “Floor Burner” under the SubFreqs’ imprint. He continues to work on a Roll Wit Us All Stars album this summer as well as with T.O.N., another D.C.-based hip-hop act and more solo tunes. Keep an eye out for Ekue. Check him out >>