When the drums really hit, you hit the heart. This truth is something every hip-hop producer feels intuitively, a gut reaction to a beat. It’s the inspiration for Knock Audio, a new audio tech company from the mind of master producer DECAP, who built a name for himself by setting a new standard for drum sound packs.

An extension of DECAP’s established reputation, Knock Audio is creating compelling sounds to drive and shake loose the next generation of producers, shaping the sound of music to come. 

Knock Audio is kicking off the producer’s next era, launching with a series of plugins that promises to grow DECAP’s existing cult following for his sound packs, Drums that Knock. It is also starting one of the first sound pack labels, nurturing a carefully curated crew of sound designers and producers. The company plans to keep things simple, intuitive, and always hard-hitting, so that from the first open, producers of all levels can find something that knocks. 

“Producers don’t have to be in the shadows anymore. We’re the ones making the record, from melodies to song structure. We’re coaching the artist to give the best performance, but we’re not always ready to step out and acknowledge our role publicly. It doesn’t have to be this way. Producers have the power to build their own brands, just like any rock star,” DECAP notes. “Over my career, I’ve pushed that energy forward, and I want to make it easy for others to do the same.”

DECAP’s journey reflects this broader cultural transition of the producer from studio shadow to public legend. He started off much like other producers of his generation, chasing placements and credits and sharing beats online. He succeeded. His work has been used by Beyoncé, Eminem, Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar, Dua Lipa, and Charli XCX, among many others, and he has released his own music as well on his own label. 

Yet the producer hustle was only part of the equation for DECAP. He wanted to do more than make tracks, also going deeper into the art of sound design. He began to explore what lay behind the element of his sound, the drum sounds that knocked, that hit clear and hard. That told an emotional story of their own. He began to develop his own sound pack where every drum hit hard, what eventually became Drums that Knock. One of the most popular drum sound pack series of all time and a regular #1 on Splice’s charts, Drums that Knock changed the game for percussion sample packs.

The popularity flows from DECAP’s innate sense of what knocks: “You feel it in your chest. You’re dialing in the frequencies that punch in the right way. That’s what makes a drum knock,” says DECAP. “As a sound designer, I wanted to learn the technical side, getting the levels consistent across samples, for example. I wanted to know how I could manipulate the waveform to tweak the sound so it goes into your ear that way, so I dove into synthesis and layering sounds.”

Hot on the heels of Drums that Knock’s success, DECAP built a following online. Like many other astute producers, the pandemic shifted DECAP’s perspective, and he began to livestream and find virtual ways to engage, finding an audience eager to learn from his techniques. Now, DECAP is expanding his world once more, giving aspiring and experienced producers new tools to spark creativity. “To distill my progression, I went from a studio producer chasing credits, to being a creator, to a tech entrepreneur giving tools and ammo to other producers,” DECAP says. “Instead of trying to up my brand in association with artists, I’m creating this empowering platform to help producers create their own sound.”

Finding that sound should be a spontaneous, enjoyable process, one that doesn’t get bogged down in technical complexity, but that gets back to the visceral moment when something hits. Plugins should spark creativity, not dampen it with too many features or options. Instead, Knock Audio aims to knock producers loose, giving them leeway to mess around with settings and parameters, the way someone might explore a guitar pedal or other hardware. To do this, the company keeps things straightforward and intuitive.

“Plugins have a complicated feeling to them that turns off people, even if they are veterans. You want to feel it, get creative and have fun,” DECAP reflects. “We’re making tools that are deceptively simple. You can load them up and instantly get something cool, not have so many knobs that you don’t know where to go. I want a new producer to get the feel fast, but I also want someone who’s been in the game a long time to feel good. That’s the ultimate goal.”