Music Producer

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

A: I started out in 2013 using a program named LMMS. I tried to make dubstep, but all I did was brutally fail. (This was a time when I was a mega furry....or was I? I just liked animals.) :: http://bit.ly/2diih8v << That's my first song ever, right there. :: Eventually, there was a point where I was a brony, and I tried to make everything pony related. http://bit.ly/2d2pAzH < That was in 2014, when I changed my name to Crux of the Core (or Crux). I could go on and tell my life story, but this is already really long. :: Anyways, over the years I changed my name around, like, 7 times? I first started as "RemixTheDragon", and then "Crux", and then "Pegabyte", and then "Philharmonian", and then "Rubicon", and then "Torrent", and then KAiROS. :) You can clearly see why I changed names so often - I was so bad at making names. LOL

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: I can give you three. - Never use a limiter when you're not mastering. Mixing with a limiter on really messes everything up. A limiter is a compressor, so you never know what it really sounds like without the limiter. Maybe that bass is way too loud compared to the lead, but you don't know that because the limiter's on. :: - Never use an overused synth preset right out of the box. There's probably over a million people out there who have heard "PL Mute Guitar 2". People will hear your track and either think you're copying the other person that uses that preset, or they'll just think your track is extremely bland and generic. :: - Never use too much reverb in a track. Using reverb on everything in your song can make everything extremely muddy and it will make it hard to tell what synth is what. Keep the reverb to a minimum - 30% dry/wet on your chords and 60% dry/wet on your lead. That's all. If it still sounds really bad, try adding a delay to the bass. (Just not the sub or the kick; That will sound extremely terrible.)

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

A: I am proud of my edit of Cartoon's track On And On. It is the first track on my SoundCloud to ever get on a promotion channel, and it's also my most popular - with 1,416 plays on SoundCloud, 23 downloads, and 4,233 views on YouTube (via FlyingTunes).

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: At the time of writing this, I'm working on my newest ID.

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

A: I'll be honest here, I don't know anyone here on SoundBetter. Sorry.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I would say digital, because I am living in the digital age and digital is way more intuitive and has more possibilities than analog nowadays.

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

A: I promise that I'll turn your lyrics into a song that you'll absolutely love in only three tries. Guaranteed, or your money back....even though you don't pay until the very end when you are satisfied.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I like making music the most about my job. It's my passion and it's the only thing I want to pursue right now.

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

A: The biggest misconception is that I simply press a button and the newest Tiesto edit comes out. This is wrong! Haha. (Not saying I ghost produce for Tiesto.)

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: ¯\_(ツ )_/¯

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

A: Please do not come at me with no idea at all. I can produce your track, but that's about it. You'll have to write your own song to go with the track. Also, I do not do ghost production work.

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

A: A power generator, an XDJ RX, some speakers, some headphones, and some cyanide pills. :^)

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I would describe my style as "KAiROS", because I strive to be unique compared to the millions of other 13-year-old "producers" out there who use nothing but vengeance loops.

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

A: ..I'd like to work with any decent artist out there?

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

A: I almost always work on some sort of EDM, whether it be Trap, Electro House, or even Drum and Bass. I produce music under the alias KAiROS, when I'm not doing production work.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My strongest skill is mixing and producing. I've been doing it for three years, as I've said earlier.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring as much as I can, and as much as you want me to.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: It begins with someone (like you) giving me an idea of what they want. If you have made a song without a backing track already, I'll ask them to record it somewhere (very preferably in a quiet room with a high quality mic, or, a studio). If not, I'll ask you to come up with some sort of idea before asking me. I can't do much if you have no idea what you want it to sound like or what genre it should be. When I'm done, I'll send you a snippet of the track in a 64kbps MP3. You pay, and I'll give you the full track. :)

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My studio setup is very simple - I do all of my work on a Lenovo Ideapad P400 Touch with some "studio" headphones.

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

A: I'm going to give you a typical answer here. The people who inspire me are people like Tiesto, Martin Garrix, or KSHMR. This list is subject to change, though, as I'm always listening to new music from different artists.

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

A: I mainly do EDM. If it's not an original, I usually remix others' music for them.