Aaron “Amplified” Parra grew up in Oracle, Arizona – once a prospector’s town – his musical mining came from when his dad would play “Mr. Blue” by The Fleetwoods and “Runaway” by Del Shannon, or when his mom would put on an Elton John or Beatles record. Amplified’s older brother, Ruben, introduced him to the hip hop sounds of Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, House of Pain and Cypress Hill. He melded those sounds with his own musical influences: talented producers/performers like BattleCat, DJ Muggs, Daz Dillinger, DJ Quik, and Warren G invaded his ears. He trained in piano for nine years, applying those lessons to the keyboards and instrumentals he contributed to J Boog’s 2016 Grammy-nominated “Rose Petals.” He got to contribute to BattleCat’s production on “Intrology,” which featured George Clinton on Snoop’s “The Blue Carpet Treatment.” For that, the kid from the gold mining town received a gold record. Amplified’s producing career took shape from there, working with a slew of hip-hop, rap, reggae and R&B artists that grew with him: Kurupt, Young Buck, Iggy Azalea, Butch Cassidy, Kokane, WC, Mykestro, Focus and Tha Dogg Pound. Not to mention more work with Snoop and Daz, another chance to collaborate with idols. Amplified’s debut album, “Authenticity,” was released on June 13, 2018. Creating a replica sound to blend in with others’ success is fool’s gold. The music Amplified is mining for is the real thing.