Billboard Gold Producer/Mixer

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring a vibe, a flavor, a feeling, enhance the action, toy with perception and combobulate that all in to a track that helps the artist realize their sound.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: There is absolutely nothing else in this whole world I would rather be doing than making music. I like connecting with people over their art and helping take their music to the next level.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: I ask about the backstory of the song, the feelings that surround it, and what the song's message is so I can think about it and channel that into the final product, as well as bringing a few of my own feelings too.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I don’t care — plugins, outboard, it doesn’t matter. It's about how I hear it. They are all just tools and I'm happy to use whatever works. It’s ultimately about the song and how it makes you feel — is it a bumping club song, or a more thoughtful singer-songwriter jam? Different sorts of songs require different sorts of tools. That said, I like the idea that when the sound leaves the computer and all my outputs go to this gear in the analog domain, it's something real as opposed to just 1s and 0s. It makes the music thicker, warmer, creamier. For me, recorded music needs to sound natural and musical, but also at the same time in control, and my setup helps me do that. I have an ITB (inside the box) version of this setup just in case a unit is down. Both the ITB and analog versions sound really close — some of my gear I don’t have emulations for but the counterparts essentially perform similarly; I’m not a snob, I can’t always tell the difference. I can definitely tell the difference between 1176’s and my Waves plugin — my hardware is much crunchier and crispier.

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

A: I would simply take two pieces of gear actually: ASC Attack Wall and a pair of avantone mixcubes. Monitoring is everything!

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Working with the artist to interpret and enhance the feeling off the song. Working on Kidz Bop tracks for so many years has helped me develop an encyclopedic knowledge of sounds, gear, and instruments. If my client gives me a reference for what they want, I can dial it up in a jiffy. This saves time and will have you playing and experimenting on the track before you know it.

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

A: Michael Brauer is the ultimate mix-master and producer and one of my mentors. He captures the moment and immortalizes the feelings within the song as something tangible in a way I find incredible. I take a lot of my influence from him.

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

A: I have over ten years of industry experience in New York City. In 2015, I opened Freshly Baked Studios in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, where I produce for a wide variety of artists. Previously, I worked with Neil McClellan (The Prodigy, Kano, Carl Cox) at The Lodge Music Production House, creating advertising music for products such as Dentyne gum and Hot Wheels toy cars. I have also worked extensively producing tracks for Razor and Tie Records for a major Pop Music compilation brand. This experience helped me identify each component of a successful pop song in order to recreate it and to develop a hyper-awareness of what goes into the production of a hit song.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: The secret to a good production/mix is simply how well you know yourself, trust your feelings, allow yourself enough space to listen to & understand the artists intentions, deciphering what the song is about by highlighting the core feelings instruments and narratives whilst also examining what you're feeling as you're listening and taking note, whilst also recalling and recycling classic sounds from an internal encyclopedic knowledge of songs from your past that have a similar feeling to the song you’re working on, and craft it to feel and move in the same way but also remove yourself from the situation just enough to create something new. This can only be achieved by really understanding your past and present selves and your equipment and whats worked before and what hasn't and as soon as you start feeling like you understand the process too much, and its turning into habit change it up and try something new. You must go to therapy eat right exercise every day and combobulate all of that into a balance that works for you over and over again. It's as simple as that!

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

A: I promise to give every track everything I have. Each and every client will get my best work, no matter what.

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

A: The biggest misconception I've encountered is that mixing is simply about balance.

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

A: Take your time to produce the best work you can make by yourself before you bring it to me! Half the fun of making music is for me to embody what you're actually after. This helps the whole creative process run smoothly and helps make more complex art.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I would describe my style as always moving, always changing. This applies both to my techniques as well as the way I ride each individual instrument around the track so nothing is ever static. Tracks fall flat if you don't move everything, so keep riding!

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My studio — Freshly Baked Studios — is a digital/analog hybrid studio. I have lots of equipment in an amazing-sounding, comfortable room.

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

A: The most common work I do with clients is producing, mixing, and mastering. I take their songs from demos or rough mixes to fully produced, radio ready products.