Producer/Mixing/Mastering

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

A: Most often customers ask me how can I make their song stand out. To that I say, how do YOU want it to sound out. Big sounds clean mix ir whatever else it might be. I’m here to bring yoyr vision to life.

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

A: I would have to say my own project "YKES" is something I am incredibly proud of. I am the sole creator, producer, mixing engineer, mastering engineer, concept artist, graphic designer, and funder. I am involved in every aspect of the project and I am incredibly proud of what I have achieved and what is still to come.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I currently am mentoring 4 students in Electronic Music Production as well as working on an EP for my personal project.

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

A: No, I currently am unaware of any of my peers or mentors using SoundBetter.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I do love analog gear but personally, I say digital. Nowadays you can recreate or at least emulate anything and everything that is done on analog, digitally. Also, I believe that doing things digital opens doors otherwise impossible using analog gear. It could be from my lack of knowledge and expertise in analog but I feel digital is as capable or better in almost everything.

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

A: Money back guarantee. If you aren't happy with the result I don't expect to get paid. I'm confident that I will always be able to deliver on my promise because I am unyielding and relentless in my pursuit of perfection.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I love every aspect. It truly is impossible to just pick one thing. I love making music and anything related to music and that essentially is my job so I love every aspect.

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

A: Everyone thinks I'm a DJ simply because I make electronic music. Which definitely isn't true. I feel I'm doomed to have to explain people the difference between an electronic music producer and a DJ for eternity.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: I always ask for references to other songs in terms of mixing or mastering. For production, I ask clients what they would like to sound like and who they enjoy listening too. I think these two questions provide a strong idea for me to deliver something they will absolutely love.

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

A: Definitely, do your research on who you hire. Specifically, what do you need and is the person you hire the absolute perfect fit for the job. It's so incredibly important that you have the "right" not necessarily the "best" working with you when it comes to music. Just because someone is the best at what they do doesn't mean that it is the best thing for your project.

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

A: 1. Laptop 2. some way to charge my laptop 3. headphones 4. my apollo twin 5. my JBL 8's

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

A: This is and has been my career path. I have been "professionally" producing music for over 5 years and went to school for music production for 2 years before that. I have always known that this is the line of work I want to be in.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I would describe my style with pretty vocals and body0numbing drops. I tend to write verses that are airy and ethereal and tangle that together with a heavy, bass-rattling drop.

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

A: A dream for me is to work with Skrillex. In my opinion, he defined what today is known as dubstep. He brought what was an underground genre into pop culture. He continues to define and redefine what is possible in the electronic music realm. He is a personal idol of mine.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: A great tip that I received by a previous mentor and that I think anyone who produces should know is: EQ more, Compress less. Often times I see producers putting a compressor on absolutely EVERYTHING in their songs with no real rhyme or reason behind it. If you have a problem within a sound you should always be reaching for an EQ over a Compressor.

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

A: I prefer to work on heavier electronic music but I do not like to limit myself. I thrive when I work on multiple different genres but my most familiar field is heavy electronic music.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I would have to say it is sound design. I can recreate almost any sound I hear. Whether it is a pad, a dubstep growl, a lead, or anything in between I consider myself a true professional in the realm of sound-design.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring years of practice and expertise. I have truly honed and mastered my craft and I believe that I am capable of bringing a fresh approach to a song. I do have a tendency to work on heavier electronic music but that allows me to look at simpler genres, such as pop or hip-hop with a different set of eyes. I bring years of practicing and refining into simple yet elegant solutions.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: It depends on what I am trying to achieve. For production, I usually start at the very beginning of the day so I am completely uninfluenced by external forces. I always do my best work in the morning. I try to begin with something that inspires me (i.e. a melody, a sample, a drum pattern) and build the song slowly from there. Once the initial idea is written it is just filling in the smaller pieces, albeit those are usually the most important part.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My personal home studio isn't all the spectacular. I have an Apollo Twin interface hooked up to a pair of JBL 8's with a matching JBL Sub. I also have a pair of Adam 7s.

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

A: I am constantly inspired by large artists in the scene. For my personal project, Zomboy and Skrillex have been huge inspirations. But I strive to pull inspiration from multiple genres as focusing too much on one aspect of music can cause your taste to become rigid and stale.

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

A: The most common work I do is production help. Usually in the form of asst. producing but I am very well versed in full ghost production and mixing/mastering.