Morelia
Origin: United States
Born in Dallas, TX, but later living in South Florida, Denver, and now Long Beach, CA, Morelia, aka Tanner Munn has been on a journey of electronic music production since the age of 13. Forever branding himself as Mannequin, once getting down the proper technique, Tanner began a house-specific alias called Morelia. This project has been gaining momentum since the day it started and has had music signed to labels like Box Of Cats, Perfect Driver, Broken, and My Techno Weighs a Ton.
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Hometown: I was born and raised until the age of 12 in Arlington, TX. Then I lived in the Florida Keys, moved back to TX, and then to Denver, and recently moved to Southern California.
Currently Living: Orange County, CA
Origin of Name: Morelia is a genus of python that I am absolutely fascinated with. I’m all about reptiles and spiders and stuff.
Weapon of Choice: Honestly, for me, a creative work environment is crucial. I work on FL Studio and Ableton, as well as use all kinds of synths and drum machines in my tunes, so I couldn’t pick one specific tool of choice besides a creative space.
Source of Power: Justice, Crystal Castles, Billy Kenny, Claude VonStroke, kLL sMTH, deadmau5, G Jones—my taste goes everywhere, haha.
What advice would you offer someone thinking about entering the Discovery Project competition?
Just let it all out. Go deep into the sounds you love, and have fun with the mixing. Risky over safe all day!
Blurb yourself:
Music has been my life as long as I’ve lived. I began playing drums when I was about 7 or 8 years old and was obsessed until a move and tragic (but eventually proving meant to be) event separated my drums and me. I was hungry to keep my ideas going, and I met a friend in Florida that was on Fruity Loops. I was instantly hooked. I was about 12 years old by then, and I haven’t been able to put down a computer since. When living in Denver at 19, I got a few tracks signed on L.A.-based Perfect Driver and instantly began planning my move to California. Music and I have some dreams to accomplish before I leave California, and we’re going strong!
Are there any dots to connect between where/how you grew up and your musical output?
The ultimate spark for me was a really small rave in Hollywood, FL, in August 2010 that a friend’s sister brought me to. I had no clue what I was getting into. When I left, it’s like my whole life book wrote itself in my mind. I’ll never forget being in the middle of the crowd, hearing crazy house music (I had no clue about any genre of electronic music, so this was all new to me) and being just full-on mind-blown. I had to do that.
Tell us about your most memorable night out, as an artist or as a fan.
Dirtybird Campout 2016, yo, OMG! That was the most amazing experience I’ve had, and that festival continues to blow me away. The energy of all the people, the community that it is, the natural environment—it was just awesome. I heard some really boundary-pushing sounds, and the amount of inspiration it gave me was insane. I came home flooded with ideas and still look back to that night for reference of the music I’m making.
What sound or noise do you love?
I’m all about the thick, open basslines under a simple house beat. A clean saw wave with a hard low pass is so nice; I can’t get enough of it!
What should everyone just shut the fuck up about?
HA! I love this question. Quit hating on music that isn’t up your alley! Music means something different to everyone, and what you may really dislike, someone out there is obsessed with. Seeing people comment on lineups with nothing nice to say just doesn’t make sense to me. Live and let live!
What do you remember about your first DJ gig?
It was in 2010—December 21, to be exact. My buddy and I had some CDJs that we would practice on all the time, so we made a mix, submitted it to a promoter, and got the gig. The gig was mad overwhelming: mainstage at a massive club (Club Cinema, Pompano, FL, which is now closed) with a ton of people. It was a BUST. I had never seen a DJM-2000, let alone used one. The CDJ-2000s were just as new to me. Tried to mix in the second track, and the mixer settings were all weird, and everything went silent. At least 1,000 people were just staring at us like “WTF.” Nightmare. Great learning experience, though!
