Hip Hop Audio Engineer

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

A: One of the projects that I am proud of is not a big record or a major artist. His name is Frostty Kold, he has a slight disability and makes rap music. I discovered Frostty when he opened for one of my artist's show. I took notice of him and absolutely fell in love with his music. He was genuine and I reached out to make a song with him. This song was for his girlfriend, who's his number one supporter.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Currently working on a debut album for a female artist called "333." She's an indie artist and wrote all of the songs on garage band. Has asked me to mix and master the entire project. I've written small parts for the project and am very happy with where it is.

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

A: I don't know any engineers here on SoundBetter. Hopefully soon.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital. Makes things easier and less hot. Analog gear gets too hot for me to stand, specially when I'm working.

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

A: I am invested emotionally to any music that I work on, this means careful and decisive mixing approaches.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: The one thing that will never not bring a smile to my face is seeing the artist's reaction the their finished song.

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

A: Them: Can I get a discount for a bigger project? Me: Absolutely. The more the cheaper.

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

A: People assume my work is easy. Some choose to disregard that engineers have spent thousands of hours experimenting trying to improve their craft. Many emotions can come from working on music, such as frustration.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: How did you find out about me? Can I get a demo sent to my email? What do you want changed, removed or added to your song?

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

A: Find someone you can trust. You have to trust an engineer's judgment to a degree. Also someone who can you can communicate with any time of day.

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

A: Laptop, Interface, speakers, keyboard and a generator to charge them all up.

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

A: I've been working in the music industry for 2 years as of 2022. 8 years since I started messing around with music. My career path has been clear since graduating high school. I didn't want to take the same route as many of my friends did. I wanted to be my own boss. The only way I could do that was if I started immediately in any way I could. That was when I began investing in gear, and over time studied the production game closely.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Outside of the box approach. I tend to think a little different from other engineers. I can visually display a mix in my mind, so I have the ability to create an entire ambient experience.

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

A: My ideal artist would be Rod Wave. I am a fan of his vocal and the way he guides his engineers to mix it. It's a very real and natural approach. I also like his beat selection.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Adding a clean tube at 10khz and above with a multiband saturator gives you the freshness you didn't think you needed.

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

A: I am usually working on a Hip Hop record. This ranges from slow boom bap music, to a more intense trap sound. I am comfortable working on other genres such as Indie Pop and House.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My learning ethic is hands down my strongest skill. It comes down to wanting to learn more about my field. This allows me to continue pushing forward, towards becoming a better engineer than I was yesterday.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring hope that we create the next big hit. I fully acknowledge the aspiration you have to create something that you can present in front of millions of people. That is why I work hard to deliver an industry standard product.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: When it comes to receiving stems to work with, I tend to listen to the record multiple times before tampering with it. This gives me a good standpoint on where the record currently is, and where it needs to go. I spend around 2 hours adding my effects before I feel content with the mix. I then send out an approval mix with the artist, this is typically where their vision determines the final outcome.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I work at "On The Moon Studios." We have a mixing room, live room, 2 recording booths, 2 grand pianos, a drum set, bass guitar, electric guitar, acoustic guitars, accompanied by high-end analog gear. As well as a huge collection of plugins.

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

A: Gunna's producer Turbo and Weezy inspire my sound and creativity. They're are both a powerhouse for making fire beats and clean mixing. I aim to become a mix of both.

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

A: I provide a full studio experience, write instrumental, track vocals, mix and master.