SingerSongwriter Demo Producer

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

A: Rick Rubin, Rick Beato, Prince.

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

A: A song called Autumn Moon. We collaborated with a concert violinist virtually. This was the first time that I had done a collaboration online with someone that I only knew from the internet. Most session players we use are local musicians we know in real life. He did an incredible job and I look forward to more projects like this.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I am working on a new blues song to complete my EP with Aligned Alchemy as well as playing live shows and working on other songs for local artist Bill Simpson.

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

A: Not yet!

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital. Almost no one can tell the difference, and digital is infinitely less expensive.

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

A: That you will get exactly what you want. I'm here to serve you and the song, and I'm really good at taking feedback and implementing solutions.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I like to create beautiful things and share them with the world. Helping other people to realize their music like this brings me a lot of joy.

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

A: How do I get this song on Spotify? I use Symphonic Music Distribution and CD Baby. There are also many other companies that you can choose from. Make sure to do your research before you make a decision.

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

A: That I am going to make you sound better than you are capable of sounding. I can tune your vocals, I can fix your timing, but I cannot fix a bad performance. There is no tool for removing vocal fry, so what we do is vocal comping. We use several takes to patch together the best performances.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Do you have a decent recording of your song? Do you have the lyrics and chords written out? A reference track? Who are your favorite musicians/artists?

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

A: Make sure that you are settled on the final version of your song. This is the most important thing. You want to have the lyrics and chords written out and a live version recorded that is accurate to what you want it to be like. This will ensure that we can get you exactly what you want.

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

A: A Solar Panel, Electric Guitar, PA system, Microphones, Mac Book Pro

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

A: I was acting in Hollywood as a stunt man when I injured my back. I then went into live audio and quickly transitioned to studio work. I have been doing this for about 5 years.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Soulful and bluesy with some classic rock and jazz influences.

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

A: The Konexos - Because their music is really creative and cutting edge and their vibe is right on.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Mixing and mastering is just taking raw audio and cooking it until it's even in loudness and frequency distribution.

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

A: Folk/ Americana and blues

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I can listen to anything and then recreate it on guitar or in the studio. If you give me a guitar recording, I can listen to it and then play it exactly like it's played on the recording. I can listen to a live recording of a song, and then reproduce the song using all my instruments and performances by ear.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I have been playing guitar for over 30 years. I can play multiple genre's for lead or rhythm. My experience playing in Symphonic Band and Jazz Bands as well as rock bands and my current project Aligned Alchemy is at the root of what makes me a good producer.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Typically I will receive a recording of a song along with the lyrics and chords. I will then recreate the recording inside Bitwig Studio. I will choose an average tempo, record the guitar part, arrange the drums, come up with a bass part, and then use this music to get the vocal recording tracked. After that I will mix and master the song and send it out for distribution.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I use Bitwig Studio and a pair of Shure SM7b microphones to do most of my production. I have midi controllers and a synth and a variety of guitars.

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

A: Most of my clients are singer songwriters that want to record their song so they have a full band version of the song that is studio quality. I make sure that you can hear every word and lyric and that the music doesn't cover up the vocals. I use a reference track to get the vibe of their song dialed in so that they get exactly what they want.