Audio Engineer, Songwriter

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital. I believe digital has come a long way since its humble beginnings. I believe analog probably did sound better to begin with, but with new technology that perfectly emulates analog equipment anyway and tons more headroom and versatility to work with I believe digital has the capacity to take care of any situation with much more clarity and security.

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: I will put my heart into every mix. My goal in mixing is to make you feel something and that starts with the heart.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Being around music. "without music, life would be a mistake" - Friedrich Nietzsche. I truly believe that. I am an artist and a musician as well as an engineer so there is no better way to be a part of what you love than to create it.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That we are miracle workers. We can fix a lot of things and we can make things sound awesome and sync up timed effects and blow your shoes off but nothing can replace a good recording in the very beginning. Take the time to record somewhere quiet so there is no noise coming through the signal and get the best recording you can get first.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What do you feel with this material? What do you want it to sound similar to if anything? What is the purpose of recording or mixing this material?

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Make sure you know what an Engineer does. It sounds simple but I understand that money is hard to come by sometimes and I don't want customers to over pay for something that they did not know was part of the job.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I had many career paths, actually. I went to Itawamba Community College and later to Delta State where I graduate this semester with a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Music Entertainment Studies with a Concentration in Audio Engineering. That's a mouthful. Before music I had been studying to be a Physical Therapist, then an Athletic Trainer, then a Biology Teacher, then a Landscape Architect, and even a brief semester in a classical music program. Music kept calling me back though and I have never been happier than I am being an Audio Engineer

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: I worked a surround 5.1 heavy metal mix that I love. I was the mixing engineer and I loved the placement of various instruments and sound quality of the session. I will admit that the session wasn't my best session, but it was my favorite session. The lower frequencies were a bit dark but it was really my choice because it sounded so awesome.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Clean and emotional. It's tough to answer a question like this because I really just do what the artist wants. If the artist is satisfied I can offer my opinions on what I like and if they like them than I can work them in but if they don't, they are still happy.

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: I would love to work with Rob Thomas. Everything about his music with Matchbox Twenty and his solo projects inspire me.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Don't be caught up in what you can do to a song. Listen to the song and really feel what brings it to life.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: I have worked many different genres but I love Post-Hardcore styles similar to A Day To Remember or Pierce The Veil.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: By way of engineering, I would say gain staging. Proper volume levels are extremely important to the mix itself and also for mastering engineers so they have everything they need to work with.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I work from my laptop with a set of studio reference monitors. I use Protools and Logic interchangeably depending on the type of effects I am trying to use. I have access to a professional studio with tons of plug-ins and equipment if a session calls for that. It is equipped with JBL LSR4326p's near field monitors and 5.1 surround. Acoustic treatment and an Icon digital sound board. I also have access to a Neve analog console with the same JBL's as monitors.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Myself. At the end of the day, you have access to many engineers, but I am the only me. My creativity and stylistic choices are unique to me and I believe I have something special to offer for anyone interested in my services

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: In general I start with organization and then move on to gain staging, followed by all the cool FX processing. It's hard to pinpoint typical because every song is different, I believe you have to balance between everything throughout the process to get a cohesive end product

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: Engineering is my primary focus, I also deal in some creative aspects such as songwriting and instrumentation if that is something the client would like assistance with.