Music Producer/Songwriter

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

A: I am very proud of all the music I work on.

Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

A: Yes, JUAN SAUCY PENA - mix engineer DANIEL MILLICE - mastering engineer

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: digital. Convenience - It's all about the song, then arrangement, and then the mix. I have many friends who buy tons of gear and make trash music lol frank but true

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

A: I promise to never stop until you are happy with your song.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Everything, from the creation of the song to meeting new people, to the laughs we have in the studio, to the drinks we have after in celebration of another one done!

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: The most common question is "do you make beats?" and the answer is yes lol

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

A: My advice is to listen to their previous work and speak to them on the phone or in a video call. It's important you like the person you are about to work with.

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: Apollo twin x - U87 - neve pre amp - focal speakers - M50x headphones

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

A: I played instruments in my early childhood and then picked up production when I was 15 years old. I didn't think much of it until I started to get good and then I realized around 17 that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. The rest is history! there is more to it but I'll save that for when we meet.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I am an aggressive producer, meaning I lay down the beat as fast as possible to keep the juice flowing. I produce off of instinct and don't think too much. Once I begin an idea I try and think about the next sound while I am laying down the current one. I play out a lot of my beats and parts as opposed to using loops. Get more of a human touch. Then after I have a sollid production I go in and arrange it, clean it up, quantize it, work on transitinos and mixing the whole time while I produce.

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

A: I would love to work with Drake, Ariana Grande, Kendrick Lamar, Joey Badass, Anderson Paak, Halsey, John Mayer, Kendrick Lamar, Brent Faiaz, and Jorja Smith. To be honest, anyone who is musically talented and has something to say and is good vibez.

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

A: Hiphop, trap, pop, r&b, funk, dancehall, sing-songwriter, and blues.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My strongest skill I think is being able to mold well to every artist to complete their vision of their song. I never follow a template style for production. I ask my clients for a few references before we begin production to get an idea of what direction they want to go in. Then I ask them questions about their personal life, their nationality, heritage, influences, and use the information they give to develop a new sound mixed with the style they wanted with the references. I hope that made sense lol

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring out the essence of a song through the use of instruments and vocals. To bring life to the best moments in a song that will be memorable and make them slap!!!

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I have a studio space in Ridgewood, NY with a beautiful handmade desk, a hand made vocal booth (my grandfather and I) Apollo Twin X, Focal Shape 6, AKG C414, WA-87 microphone, Audio Technica m50x headphones. The area is great with plenty of restaurants and bars nearby.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: The first producer I can say that inspired me greatly was Pharrell Williams/The Neptunes. His drums and grooves are just MWAH and as a youngster teaching myself production I always striver to get mine to knock like his. I also love his instrument riffs; they were always so hooky (Drop it like it's hot). Stevie Wonder is my guy as far as soul and singing goes. If you listen to "For Once In My LIfe" (my favorite Stevie Album) it is such a gritty, raw, and vocally/musically spectacular body of work.

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

A: I write, produce, mix and master songs, and any combination of the 4.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I am working on singles with EMHASLEFTTHEBUILDING, finished up MARVIN DOLO's album.

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

A: The biggest misconception is that the producer just makes the music or beat, throws the artist in the booth and the song is done. Yes, the producer does record and create the music, but, he/she is the guiding hand for the artist in the booth by giving constructive feedback to draw out a great performance from the singer. Also, the producer is responsible for the vocal production or arrangement/FX (unless there is a budget for these roles) which means either doubled, harmonies, Backgrounds, distortion, phase modulations etc.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: First I ask what the vision is and what they need from the role of a producer/mix engineer. Then depending on the answer I ask them how they would like to go about it as far as what there budget is and what kind of production they are seeking.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Don't force it! Whether it is an entire song you can't finish because there's "something missing" or a sound you keep striving to get but can't find, or the mix isn't right, or whatever it is. Move forward. Or switch it up and work on something different so you have a clear mind when returning to the problem.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I usually like to get to know the artist first before we begin laying down instruments. I always like to have a demo or at least mp3 of the song with a 2-3 production references before the session. This allows me to load up a template and begin laying down drums for instance prior to the session. t's nice for the artist when they walk in and I can play them an idea so we start a step ahead!