Mixing and Mastering

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

A: I'm especially proud of engineering and doing some mixes on the Elevate Ep, by the band UpRooted. It reached #4 on the iTunes reggae charts!

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Currently working on releasing an Ep with a childhood friend.

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

A: Hugo Lee, Mickey Shiloh, John Kennedy, Esof Records

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital, mostly because of its speed and efficiency also, when I started recording analog gear was out of my budget so I began working in the box.

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

A: To give my full attention to their project and to communicate any issues or breakthroughs.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Working together with people and put art out into the world.

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

A: My price and my turnaround time.

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

A: I'm not sure, you'd have to ask them.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: I ask them the vibe they're going for on each track and ask them to provide a rough mix and links to other artists songs that have a similar vibe.

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

A: To feel comfortable discussing every step of the process. Don't be afraid to ask questions and give criticism if the tracks aren't the way you want them. Also, to keep an open mind, you might end up liking a creative choice that you previously hadn't thought of.

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

A: Laptop, Guitar, Midi Controller, Pro Tools, Nueman TLM 103

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

A: My career path was initially a touring musician. I played guitar in a reggae band and toured the USA for most of my early - mid twenties. It was then that I bought a Pro Tools rig and started recording the bands songs and my own songs. Once playing live started to slow down I focused full time on music production and mixing.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: First I'll listen to the clients rough mix (if there is one). I'll ask what their creative vision is for the track and then try and implement that in my mixing. If I feel there's a part of the song that would work well with an idea of mine, I'll add that spice to the mix and ask the client whether or not they want to continue going that direction. If they want to change the direction of the song, I'm happy to do so. It's their art, I'm just here to facilitate their ideas.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I work in the box in my treated room at my house. I run Pro Tools 12 with Apogee Converters and have hundreds of plug ins.

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

A: Right now I'm really into Kendrick Lamar's Mix Engineer "Mixed By Ali". His use of vocal throws and stutters is something that really stands out to me in his mixes.

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

A: Most often I'm mixing tracks for my clients from my home studio in Los Angeles. I also work as a freelance engineer tracking a lot of rap vocals and singer song writers here in Los Angeles.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I take a modern approach to my mixes and try to stay relevant with current trends.

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

A: I love working with up and coming artists who are on the verge of breaking out.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Plug In presets are your friend. Start with a preset and then tweak from there. Especially when brand new this will help your ears and give you faster results than aimlessly turning knobs.

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

A: The majority of my work is tracking and mixing Hip-hop and Pop Rock.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My ability to listen constructive criticism.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Most importantly I bring an honest approach and no ego trip if someone doesn't like any creative elements I've added to the mix. I'm happy to work with the client until they're happy. Other than that, I'm a musician so I have the sensibility and feel for different genres.