Lead & BGVs - Pop/Rock/Country

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

A: The first song I ever sang BGVs on for an actual Blake Shelton studio single was God's Country. I went into the studio with Scott Hendricks and Blake. They just said "go for some ad libs" at the end. I sang anything I could think of for multiple takes getting valuable feedback from Scott, one of the industry's most successful producers. I'd do a pass and hear "a little too Kelly", "hmm, a little less Christina", "too P!nk" etc just trying to find the vibe and sound they were hunting. And then hearing the sweet words "WOW!! THAT'S IT, WE GOT IT!" . I LOVE sessions where you get to dig deep like that and that song went on to be Blake's biggest digital release of his career and went on to be grammy nominated! I am so grateful that they believed in me to give me that opportunity.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: The Voice Season 26 live shows and Blake's new music coming out late November. Also Coldplay just released a new album and I had the pleasure of singing on 2 of the songs. "We Pray" and "Man In The Moon". I have been a lifer fan of Coldplay and am thrilled to have finally gotten the chance to work with them and their incredible supporting vocalists.

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

A: My promise to my clients is fulfill any promises made. I will work very hard to ensure that all parties are happy with the finished product.

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

A: I was in a touring band when I was in high school playing drums and singing southern/rock. I moved to Los Angeles right after my high school graduation and began working on any projects available. I said yes to everything. I booked my first tour through some demo sessions I'd had and went to Japan in 2009 to tour with a Japanese artist named Eikichi Yazawa. Yazawa ended up releasing a live DVD of our first performance of the tour, Live from Tokyo Dome, and it sat at number 1 in Japan for the entire 3 months we were there. I came home and was able to book a sub position for Cher when she did her Las Vegas Residency at Caesars. That went very well and the same manager for Cher managed Joe Cocker and they asked me to go on Joe Cocker's world tour. I toured with Joe for 2 years until I made the exciting (though difficult) choice to move over to NBC's The Voice. Thankfully Joe fully supported me moving to this new show with the red chairs. None of us knew it would take off the way it did, but I have been with The Voice since Season 2 and we just finished filming all but the live shows for Seasons 26 and 27. I met Blake Shelton on set and he hired me to join his touring band. I have been full time with Blake since 2015. I also toured with Lauren Daigle. I helped to source some of the singers on her tour for her, but then when one needed a sub, I stepped in to finish out the year. It was an honor. What a pro. I have also recently started vocal coaching for The Masked Singer where I help the celebrity mystery contestants learn and perform their songs for the show. It's such a fun job helping people who don't feel like natural singers bring their songs to life!

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: I strongly believe that quading vocals to have as an option when it comes to mixing a song will never work against you. If it sounds too big you can always adjust and take it back to a double, but being able to pan the vocals RLRL help to really bring the song to a new sonic level.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I possess a rich, textured voice that I can skillfully manipulate to create clean, gritty, and captivating soundscapes. This versatility enables me to enrich background sections, making it feel as though multiple voices are harmonizing in unison. My extensive knowledge of industry standards comes from my experience collaborating with an array of renowned artists, including Blake Shelton, countless Voice contestants, Coldplay, Selena Gomez, Hilary Duff, and Lauren Daigle, to name just a few.

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

A: My brother Corey Britz is also a full time musician here in Los Angeles. He is a brilliant bass player but is one of those jerks who can play every instrument with ease. Ha! I'm not jealous at all!

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I LOVE bringing people's projects to life. I especially love if someone doesn't fancy themselves a singer to help become their voice.

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

A: That it's easy and just stacking a bunch of vocals and throwing them through a tuner. To truly be a demo vocalist/backing vocalist, you need to sell the song with your performance and send it to someone as if the dry vocal is what will be printed as a finisher, so that any tweaks and production can truly take it up a notch rather than save a poor performance.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Who are your biggest inspirations vocally? What vision do you have for this project? Whose fans do you see listening to this music and becoming your fans? How can I help you bring that to life?

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

A: My MacBook Air, my mic, my interface, my external HD, and a sock for the mic. Ha!

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Southern Rock/Pop Country

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

A: I'd love to work more with Kelly Clarkson because she has such a natural gift that goes beyond just an incredible voice. Her emotion and connection to the music as she sings is next level.

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

A: I usually work on pop/rock, big ballads, and a lot of current country/southern rock.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My strongest skill is delivering quick professional vocals that match the energy of the song. I throw myself into the lyric and sonic sounds of the music hopefully helping to sell the story. My highest honor is being able to sing with someone who has a vision that maybe everyone can't see yet and really working to bring that vision to life with the artist.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Typically, I download the track to record to, and then refer back to any notes regarding that specific song and client and sing it through keeping every pass at least 10-20 times since I find my pocket gets cleaner the more I settle into the track. I prefer to record very clean doubles on all lead vocals and then I love quading backing vocals. I am normally asked to send back dry vocals.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I have a home studio set up in my home office/studio where I've recorded for The Voice, Masked Singer, Disney, and multiple award show performance prerecords. I use Logic Pro, singing into a Blue microphone, with KRK playback monitors and a Scarlett interface. I record onto my Mac Mini and have a backup rig I can bring on the road with me working off of my MacBook Air.

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

A: Kelly Clarkson, Lauren Daigle, P!nk, Adele, Bonnie Raitt, Annie Lennox, Steven Tyler, and Chris Cornell are some of my biggest inspirations vocally.

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

A: Having arranged and performed on over a thousand Voice contestant releases, I have found a niche to arrange and sing backing vocals on a multitude of genres. Arranging, contracting, and tailoring each recording brings me the most joy. I also demo a lot of lead vocals to help contestants on competition series and to help songwriters sell their pitch-able songs.