Producer/ Songwriter

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

A: I've been at this whole music thing my whole life but have had a real focus on it for a decade. Back in 2016, my high school choir teacher started me on my production journey. We had a segment during freshman choir where we sampled us singing and turned it into a beat. Mine REALLY sucked, but I never stopped after that. Once that initial interest was planted in my head, I went through many different genres until I started combining sounds. Once I started doing that, I got into the music school (specifically the audio department) at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. That was the place I was supposed to be. I took every opportunity which ended up with me writing classical pieces, performing in many settings, producing music out of plastic bottles, TikTok memes, and other unexpected sounds, joined a rock and metal band (and helped write for the band) and even wrote some experimental non-traditional music.. But my love for music was still rooted in pop, hip hop, and edm. After I graduated college in December of 2024, it was time to lock in. Since graduation, I have put all my energy into music. I now work as a music producer, songwriter, studio and live audio engineer, educator, and freelance musician.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Upbeat but soft is the best way I can describe it. Although sometimes I may deviate from this, you can normally hear my sound even in the harsher "hardcore" stuff I work on. I use a lot of piano, pads, snappy drums, and random sounds drenched in reverb in the background. But, I will also say that I enjoy pushing myself away from my normal sound when working with other artists and musicians to make the song the best it can be.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My personal traveling set up is very basic- I've got my MacBook Pro, an audio interface and mic, four different midi controllers, monitor speakers, and headphones. I try to keep my setup as portable as possible so I can go wherever I need to to create!

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

A: My latest album, Generation Z is one of my proudest accomplishments. This album is about what it's like to be a Gen Zer. I talk about constant once in a lifetime events, depression and anxiety, hookup culture and the lack of love, and trying to find your place when it feels like everything is against us. Generation Z is the first time I truly wrote from the heart and not just trying to copy someone else. I wrote, produced, recorded, mixed, and performed it and sent it to Abbey Road in London to be mastered professionally.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: A lot hahaha. I produce 15-35 beats a week for mainstream opportunities. I also release at least 1 song a month on the solo project (which I usually try to make it 2 a month). I've been building up to a deluxe version of my latest album and a second album that's dropping this summer. Plus I make loops periodically for other producers to use. On top of all that, a big focus right now is live sound services that I provide in my city.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital- and mainly just because of the convenient. I learned on analog and used outboard gear a lot in college but now that I'm trying to be able to do what I do almost anywhere, portability is pretty important to me. Some of my best work was made in a hotel room, on a plane, or on a bus. And I wouldn't have been able to do that if I was all in on Analog...

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

A: As long as you communicate your ideas to me, I will make your vision come to life.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I like a lot about my job. I like seeing the finished product and the reactions it gets. I like the whole process of coming up with the idea, songwriting, production, post production, mixing. The only thing I don't like is not having enough time or stamina to do what I need to do. Sometimes I wish that either there was more than 24 hours in a day or that humans didn't need 7-9 hours of sleep a night!

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

A: I don't really have COMMON questions because I jump around from genre to genre. However, I would say the best way to work with me is communication. I can't do what I do without knowing the direction you want to take your work. If you don't know that yet, then let's talk it out- let's figure out exactly what this project will be.

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

A: This may be a cop out, but some people say "wow you're so naturally gifted". Um. No. The product I'm putting out now is the result of YEARS of practice and a LOT of failures. Some of my first stuff is still out on all platforms to listen. Compared to what I'm doing now, that stuff was absolute garbage.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What is the project? Single, EP, Album, or something else? What genre are you looking for? When do you need it by? What sound are you going for/ who's the inspiration behind this track? If they're comfortable- how is life right now? and again if they're comfortable- what isn't going well? Do you have anything started? Do you have a topic you want to focus on? Did you use generative AI to start this?

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

A: Patience. If you want quality work for an affordable price, then we need time to make your request happen. If you don't, one of those will be affected. You could affect your price if you want quality work faster, or you could affect the quality of the final result. I have 6 ongoing projects on top of work that I do for SoundBetter, and most of those projects of reoccurring deadlines to hit. Know that if you make a request, I see you, I'm working on it, and I will communicate if anything comes up :)

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

A: 1. Computer with Logic Pro on it 2. Any audio interface 3. Shure SM7B (with xlr- I'm lumping those together) 4. a midi keyboard 5. Headphones

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

A: Jon Bellion. Hands down. I believe we have similar processes for writing but the philosophy that he approaches his work with really inspires me. Some of my most meaningful songs actually came from thinking about what Jon's songs meant to me. He gets pretty deep with a lot of his work which really gets my brain going and makes me want to create and speak from the heart just like he does.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: This was a big one that pushed me to where I am today- there are no rules. Make what you want and if someone complains or says something is "off" you can just say it was on purpose. This is YOUR music, so YOU can decide what YOU want to.

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

A: I work on EVERYTHING. My main genre(s) are pop, alternative and EDM, however, I have worked with pretty much every genre imaginable. I have mixed basically everything under the sun. Plus I've helped produce hip hop, folk, trap, metal, rock, and even classical music. Honestly, I only have one rule- NO GEN AI. If there's no generative ai, I will probably take a stab at working at it, however replacing AI with human recorded work, I will sometimes assist with.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: It's going to sound exaggerated, but I can find and make music out of anything. On my phone, on the voice memos app, I record many different sounds. Anything I find interesting goes in there and I end up putting it into my music. I also take time to sample everyday objects and make full songs out of them. Sometimes my music can have a creaky door, or a soda can opening and you would never know unless I tell you.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I think my production and mix style is pretty unique so I definitely add to a song with those. I also bring my own experiences to a song. No matter what I'm working on, experience, emotion, and truth are the most important elements when making a song. No matter what genre I'm working in (mainly hip hop, pop, edm, rock, or alternative for me) I always put MEANING first. A song without meaning has no point. This is one of my biggest pet peeves of the music industry.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: It all depends on what I'm doing. A lot of times, I'm inspired in the moment. I've written songs and produced beats solely around one specific sound that I found really cool. I've also started with interesting chord progressions and building up from there. However, my main process- the way I make almost all of the production that I sell to other people either starts with a drum beat or a chord progression/ melody and I layer ideas on top.

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

A: There's so many! My biggest inspirations include Sickick, Skrillex, Marshmello, Andrew Huang, FINNEAS, Danny Elfman, Benny Blanco, Connor Price, Nic D, and Charlie Puth. I know that's a lot, lol, but I think that's why my music sounds like so many different genres- I create what I hear and put my own spin on things!

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

A: I have done a lot of things. I've recorded groups, mixed for groups live, produced for artists, written for artists, collaborated in a group. I'm open to doing any work that is part of the song making process.