Now things are getting interesting. The other night, word came out (via this press release) that Carlos Escalona, a "Universal Music Publishing Songwriter and Producer," co-wrote Aiden Jude's "Tonight" along with a singer by the name of Nafsica. This caused a bit of a stir, considering that when we first got wind of this 10-year-old producer Aiden Jude putting out "Tonight," many of our readers automatically assumed that this 10-year-old had nothing to do with the production on the track. Seeing that someone "co-wrote" the song raises eyebrows, and has many thinking that Carlos did more than "write the song."
That night, Aiden Jude (or whoever is tweeting for Aiden Jude around 10PM on a school night) sent us the following tweet:
guys, @DoAndroidsDance @EDMsauce @YourEDM @LessThan3 thanks 4 the love, but as trusted blogs, check ur facts #Hardwell #MartinGarrix
— Aiden Jude (@DJAidenJude) April 24, 2014
With Carlos hitting us up today with a similar tweet:
FYI @DoAndroidsDance @EDMsauce @YourEDM @LessThan3 @waitingftdrop guys, I'm not @DJAidenJude producer, please check your facts. — Carlos Escalona (@HitMusic21) April 25, 2014
Now, what are the facts that need to be checked? We'd say it's "what exactly did Carlos Escalona do on this Aiden Jude song?," right? Here is a look at some of the tweets that have been going back and forth:
@DoAndroidsDance @EDMsauce @YourEDM @LessThan3 @DJAidenJude songwriting, actually he showed me his Logic session before we tracked vocals
— Carlos Escalona (@HitMusic21) April 25, 2014
@DoAndroidsDance he made the track and @nafsicasinger I I wrote the song with him, he is a real producer not a songwriter.
— Carlos Escalona (@HitMusic21) April 25, 2014
@DoAndroidsDance to be honest, I couldn't believe at the beginning but I asked some questions about production and synths, he knows about it
— Carlos Escalona (@HitMusic21) April 25, 2014
@waitingftdrop @DoAndroidsDance @EDMsauce @YourEDM @LessThan3 @DJAidenJude we made some changes that he asked in the estudio
— Carlos Escalona (@HitMusic21) April 25, 2014
@HitMusic21 @DoAndroidsDance @EDMsauce @YourEDM @LessThan3 @DJAidenJude Carlos, que tal? What is the truth? Did you co-write the track?
— Waiting For The Drop (@waitingftdrop) April 25, 2014
@waitingftdrop @DoAndroidsDance @EDMsauce @YourEDM @LessThan3 @DJAidenJude because he didn't wrote, he just asked for changes and we rewrote
— Carlos Escalona (@HitMusic21) April 25, 2014
@DoAndroidsDance @waitingftdrop I did not produce it, I just wrote the son with @nafsicasinger the rest is @DJAidenJude
— Carlos Escalona (@HitMusic21) April 25, 2014
Now this is where things get interesting; the folks behind the forthcoming EDM documentary Waiting For The Drop recently interviewed Aiden Jude regarding these claims, and had actually spoken with the lawyers that sent out the press release regarding "Tonight." They shared their findings and insight:
@DoAndroidsDance We spoke to Jeffrey Jacobson yesterday. He said Carlos "co-wrote" the song with Nafsica. MORE...
— Waiting For The Drop (@waitingftdrop) April 25, 2014
@DoAndroidsDance When pressed, Jacobson said he didn't know if there was a formal contract laying out intellectual property rights.
— Waiting For The Drop (@waitingftdrop) April 25, 2014
@DoAndroidsDance Lawyer, regarding Carlos, that "it is hard to jump on a bandwagon when you are the one that is starting the bandwagon."
— Waiting For The Drop (@waitingftdrop) April 25, 2014
And here's the footage they uploaded regarding Aiden responding to how tracks get made. It's interesting to note that Aiden does make a comment that "everyone has help making their tracks." We know of a LOT of producers who do handle the production, mixing, and mastering on their own...
So in summary, what have we learned? Not much, really. Carlos Escalona, a Universal artist, admits to writing the track with Nafsica. He seems to have had his own doubts about Aiden being a young producer, and says he asked Aiden about production and synths, and deemed his answers satisfactory. He alludes to changes being made in the studio and rewriting, but there's no certainty regarding what that means. Are we talking solely the singing/lyrics/etc. of the song or the actual production on the track? And finally, the law firm that put out the press release that stir up this hornet's nest is not sure if there's a contract laying out there that definitively outlines who did what.
At the end of the day, those who think there's no way Aiden could be producing at such a young age might not be swayed by these tweets. We're still muddy ourselves on what all of this truly means. And truth be told, the hype about this kid and this song doesn't have much to do with the actual song, but his age, which bothers people on a different level.
It might be interesting to see Aiden working on a track. Sure, there might be more than one chef in the kitchen (maybe Aiden has a few sous chefs), but for fact-checking sake, it would shut up a LOT of mouths if this kid really can work a DAW and isn't hiring ghosts to produce his material.
