Emmy-nominated Producer/Vocals

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

A: Music Supervisor for Will Play For Food, an Emmy nominated travel/food show. It was SUCH a great experience, I composed a lot of the material in the show and learning how music fits to TV gave me a TON of perspective on how to make music good for licensing!

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Too much D: Trying to make an EP for my Lovejack project. Sync/licensing music for my band Streetlight Cadence. Projects on SoundBetter. Still practicing singing a ton and taking lessons every week!

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

A: If you need amazing accordion, Jesse Shiroma is where it's at. K808 ( Munnycat ) is a monster producer/singer/songwriter AND she's female, honestly this industry needs more girls who know how to produce, it's truly a language and knowing it empowers female artists to have a voice. If you wanna support females in the industry, it's K808.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both! Me, I'm more about getting stuff through a mic and making it warm and real there.

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

A: That I will listen to them and do my best to fulfill their wants and communicate every step of the way!

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: It's SO soul satisfying and fulfilling to make great music!

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

A: How soon can you do it and the answer is yesterday.

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

A: That you can't do it without renting a place like Sphere Studios (which I've done, and yes, the signal chain is cleaner + the lunch is great but you can forego a lot of that)

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What do you want it to sound like and do you have an example?

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

A: I'd say check the sound reel and pay attention to that person's contribution! We upload them ourselves so it immediately gives you a sense of what we're proud of and where we see ourselves.

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

A: Probably 5 coffees, duh

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

A: Was halfway through a Masters of Social Work in Hawaii when my band got waaaay to busy! I decided to leave school and do the band full-time. That was 2014 and it's been a wild, crazy ride ever since!

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Johnny Depp and Tim Burton's love child.

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

A: 5 Seconds of Summer, I'm a massive fan boy to be honest, pretty embarrassing!

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Always always always record that first vocal, don't underestimate it! 30% of singers I know sing best when they're on #1. Always keep that first when comp'ing!

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

A: I shine brightest somewhere between soft, dark and alt pop, as well as indie/indie folk.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: As mentioned above, communication to give people what they need! Beyond that, I've definitely developed several skills, my strongest offering I would say is as a singer songwriter.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Because I'm an all-rounder (past music supervisor, artist, producer, singer songwriter, fan of music) I feel like I see music for holistically than a lot of people, so I can communicate well between producers, clients, artists, TV people, you name it. So, while I may not be the guy with a $500,000 studio, I better understand what someone unexperienced is trying to say when they say they want X and reference Y. Beyond that, I think my acoustic sensibility brings a slightly more organic flavor to songs than a lot of current producers.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: If I'm doing everything, typically my flow looks like: Write the song, solicit feedback Lay down a key, tempo, scratch vocal + piano, solicit feedback Add a first batch of acoustic instrumentation + percussion, solicit feedback Arrange acoustic instrumentation with electric/virtual, solicit feedback Begin shaping the mix, add (or even subtract) based on prior feedback Create finalized vocals, solicit feedback Fully mix, solicit feedback Master and bounce out requested file types

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I run everything off Logic with a 'less is more' mentality. My acoustic instruments (voice, guitar, strings, piano) are often my main weapons and starting point. Vocals especially, as I reverse audio, run biovox/vocoder (VocalSynth2) through background vocals, all kinds of stuff to create a fresher soundscape that isn't over the top. Beyond that, I like to shape sound with electric guitar/bass, THEN virtual instruments to fill in whatever gaps that remain. I use a handful of playback devices for mixing, my favorite being HS 7 monitors. Lastly, I master with iZotope's Ozone 9, bouncing tracks based on the client's needs (streaming, CD, video, sync/licensing).

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

A: Tom Higgenson (Plain White T's ; Hey There Delilah) is a close friend to my band and was an incredible co-writer and mentor in Fall 2017. FINNEAS working with Billie Eilish inspires me to not be afraid of breaking rules and experimenting to achieve potent, fresh sounds and vibes!

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

A: Production, Singing, Songwriting and Cello Performance!