Session Guitarist & Songwriter

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

A: About 6 months ago, I was given the opportunity to work as a songwriter on a track by an EDM artist called Klahr. This was a challenge for me as I hadn't done much songwriting in this genre. However the song was successful and I'm grateful for that opportunity.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm currently working with a young British pop artist who is preparing to release his first EP with the label he's signed to. I've played guitar on the tracks, and worked as a songwriter on them too.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I can't choose. I use both in the studio and I think they go hand in hand now anyway.

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

A: I can promise I will give my all to your project. As an artist myself, I know how important it is to have people fully on board with your work. Together we can create something you will be truly proud of.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I enjoy seeing peoples projects come to life. Often they start out as just a small idea, and end up being a complete work of art, representative of an individual.

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

A: The biggest misconception about musicians in general is that we are lazy.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Whats the goal for your project? When do you want it finished by? What inspired the project?

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

A: Get in touch with a number of different people, there are a lot of talented musicians/producers/writers out there. Find the one that is going to suit you best.

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

A: Fender Telecaster Orange Amp Reverb Pedal Shure SM58 Marshall AS50D

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

A: When I was a teenager I was going to be a dancer. I studied at the Royal Academy of Dance, but then I decided I wanted to pursue making music. I've been doing so for about 8 years now, and working with other artists as a professional since I graduated from BIMM London in 2015.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Groovy.

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

A: Paramore - Those guys are so unbelievably talented as writers and instrumentalists. I think I could learn so much from them.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Try as many different sounds as you can, whether its guitar, vocals, keys, drums. You'll know the right sound for the track when you hear it!

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

A: I usually work on pop, indie-pop, indie-rock music. Though I have worked as a writer and guitarist in many other genres, including house, funk and more.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My strongest skill is being able to turn an idea or a sound into a great song.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: When songwriting, I bring clever lyrics and catchy melodies. As well as expert guitar parts for tracks that need it.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: My typical work process varies depending on the work. Typically for songwriting work I will listen to the track several times away from the studio before I start work on it. I find this helps me to understand the vibe before I try to write on it. I will then bring the song up in Logic Pro X and start to lay down some melody and lyric ideas. With guitar work, often the client knows what they want. However I still spend time trying out different guitar/amp combinations, to find a tone that will really work with the song.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My studio set up currently consists of me working through Logic Pro X on an iMac, with a high end Focusrite audio interface. I run various different analogue pre amps for vocals and instruments, and have a range of high quality microphones for different situations. When doing guitar track work I have multiple different guitars I use, including a Fender Stratocaster, Fender Telecaster, a Gibson Les Paul and a few others. These are sometimes plugged directly into a pre amp and then run into Logic, other times I will mic up one of the several guitar amps I have. These include, Vox, Orange, Marshall and Blackstar amps.

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

A: The three biggest inspirations to me as a musician are; 1.) Lana Del Rey 2.) Paramore 3.) John Mayer

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

A: The most common work I do at the moment is songwriting. However I still do production and session guitarist work.