Phonk, Fonk, Funk, and France?
An interview with SKANK MANE, one of Paris France’s rising phonk producers.
By Aidan O’Flaherty
When phonk entered the mainstream around 2017, it became a fitting score for skate videos, chill music live streams, and any other setting that fit the vaporwave fad. Almost four years later, however, phonk producers are still active, collecting thousands of streams primarily on Soundcloud, thanks to which artists are able to release and connect with each other.
There are multiple interpretations of phonk and its origins, but this article will focus on the phonk popularized by music producers. These artists come from all corners of the world, including countries like Brazil, Italy, Russia, Germany and many more. DJ YUNG VAMP and Soudiere, two of the most influential producers, are French speakers themselves, but they represent a mere fraction of the immense talent from France. Personally, I became more curious about the scene in France due to artists like these.
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with SKANK MANE, an extremely talented 20 year old from Paris, France, who’s been producing phonk for the past three years. His style stands out, due to his sophisticated sampling technique, especially the incorporation of horn lines and balancing them with syncopated percussion.
With regard to his name, he told me “[it’s] kind of a tricky name because I realized later that... in English, everything skank means is bad. I didn’t know at the time. I created the name because it was about the ‘skank’ in reggae music. The ‘skank’ is both the swing or setback of the guitar and the kind of dance to it.”
While many have discovered phonk music on Soundcloud or chill music livestreams, SKANK MANE’s introduction to the genre relates to its roots in Memphis.
“I discovered Memphis rap at first. When I was thirteen, I did a lot of skating and I watched a lot of skate videos. In those videos, particularly one video, Baker 3, there was a track from DJ Paul and Juicy J called ‘Smoke a Sack’ which I instantly gravitated toward.”
Unaware of Memphis rap at the time, it took a year until one of his friends introduced him to the culture and sound of Memphis rap and later on phonk.
Besides his interest in Memphis rap, SKANK MANE is a huge fan of funk, soul, and jazz, which are heavily incorporated into the phonk sound. His skillful sample work demonstrates this aspect of his music taste, which he commented on.
“When I realized that producers like Soudiere, DJ Smokey, Mythic, and Aseri used those kinds of samples I was like, yo that’s too hard! I need to make the same thing.”
SKANK MANE began his music career as a boom-bap producer, but after making a phonk track “just for fun,” he put it on Soundcloud. While the song is currently unlisted, its popularity inspired him to release a track every month since 2017.
What exactly is phonk music? When I asked SKANK MANE this exact question, he cautiously informed me of the various interpretations of the genre and informed me of his own opinion.
“Now everyone has a different definition of phonk music... I don’t know if I can say this, but some tracks now that are on Soundcloud in the phonk category, are just not phonk anymore.”
Although some of the general buzz words to describe phonk include “spooky,” “808,” “trap,” “sampling,” and “Memphis,” the evolution of the genre has led to multiple perceptions.
According to SKANK MANE himself, “The phonk genre is evolving, and that’s a good thing.”
Despite its inception by incorporating Memphis rap acapellas, phonk today features vocals from contemporary artists like Migos, Hoodrich Pablo Juan, and Chief Keef. Part of this trend is a result of the inclusive and widespread community of phonk producers. SKANK MANE informed me that artists shared drum kits which featured Memphis rap acapellas leading to an unwanted surplus of tracks utilizing the same sounds.
Accordingly, there are phonk producers from all over the world, continually supporting and inspiring each other. SKANK MANE, a member of the collective FIEND WORLD, expressed that just because there are a lot of French phonk producers, they don’t all know each other personally. In fact, he mentioned that out of the many French producers he is acquainted with, he’s only met one of them in person. In regards to FIEND WORLD, it features a global roster, hence “WORLD”.
Despite its various interpretations and international presence, phonk has a distinguishable aesthetic which many producers share. Obviously, there are differences in each artist's aesthetic, but an overall retro and cartoon like artwork glues together the genre.
“The aesthetics are a kind of large subject,” SKANK MANE explained. “The main aesthetic that appeared first on Soundcloud [was] the cartoon one... The other aesthetic of phonk music is inspired by the ‘Pen and Pixel’ graphics from the 90’s. These are mainly used for EPs and album covers. The goal behind these covers is to tell a story. If you look at the cover you can understand there is a story being told. That aesthetic fits phonk music.”
Although aligned with the overall aesthetics of phonk music, SKANK MANE’s art reflects his personal story and more of a connection to G-funk.
“I listened to a lot of G-funk when I was a kid and I think that’s what got me into phonk. I think phonk has a lot of the same vibes as G-funk. That’s why I [use] Grand Theft Auto [for] covers because I think it fits with my tracks.”
So what’s next for phonk? It seems like as the genre evolves and more sub-genres are formed, phonk will never die. One genre, which some may confuse with phonk, called fonk, is becoming more prominent, as the sound of the 80’s has found its way back into mainstream music. But this, SKANK MANE warned me, has nothing to do with phonk.
Additionally, the influence of both the aesthetics of phonk and its sub-genres can be seen through mainstream artists like A$AP Rocky and 21 Savage. For A$AP Rocky the influence of phonk is undeniable. The sample of the 90’s Memphis group, Da Crime Click, is overlaid in his 2019 hit, “Babushka Boy.” Same goes to 21 Savage and Metro Boomin’s 2020 SAVAGE MODE ll, which features a ‘Pen and Pixel’ album cover, repopularized by phonk.
As far as the future for SKANK MANE, he concluded, “I feel like I am going to switch up on phonk. I’m not feeling like I used to feel when I’m making phonk now and when I was making it three years ago. I’ve been working on a more funk/disco/hip-hop based project for a few months now. I want to slowly switch from phonk to other music genres. I’m going to always love phonk and mix these genres together.”
Being the inclusive guy he is, SKANK MANE shouted out all his fellow producer friends. Here’s a list of some other talented producers he mentioned: Goupil., BAXDEW, CHEESY KUT, Sappy, PAWN, Jason Rich, Menthalo, lowpocus, Sin, DJ YUNG VAMP, Mythic, BERRYMANE, N64KIDDO, EVIL, all the members of Unlisted, all the members of FIEND WORLD
He also gave a special thanks to all the members of Purple Posse, DJ Smokey, and of course the dirty south and Memphis scene for all of the inspiration.
Here are links to both his Soundcloud and Instagram:
https://soundcloud.com/djskank666
https://www.instagram.com/skankmane86/