BEATDEALA
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You said it...
Best Advice Given To You As A Producer?
- Thread starter OmegaBeatz
- Start date
- Status
You said it...
drchinofresh
New member
my homeboy told me "you can make money appear out of thin air with this music ****. don't **** it up."
jdepinabeats
Producer
excellent advice from ryan leslie.
TheLetterL
New member
I'm really starting to believe in that team concept...
I like this though:
If u dont like a beat u did dont delete coz [because?] someone else might like it
I like this though:
If u dont like a beat u did dont delete coz [because?] someone else might like it
Last edited:
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[F_or_DEAF]
New member
church...
Everything You need
Scott Storch Quotes
There is no formula. You have to stumble upon it. When your hair stands up "wow, this song makes me feel amazing" you know you've got it
I had to take a step back to take a step forward
Go hard and try to do the work of 10 men.
In the ninth grade, Storch dropped out of school to pursue a career in music. When he was sixteen, his parents kicked him out of the house. "My father didn't believe in my music," he says. "I don't blame him." From sixteen to nineteen, Storch was broke, sometimes struggling to eat. He worked at Pizza Hut, did construction and played keyboards wherever he could.
For a few more years he was broke, but he knocked on doors until he was producing songs for Capone-N-Noreaga and Busta Rhymes. Then his friend, Philly rapper Eve, introduced him to Dr. Dre -- his big break. "At the time, I saw Dr. Dre desperately needed something," Storch says. "He needed a fuel injection, and Dre utilized me as the nitrous oxide.
So I'd be on the keyboards, and Mike [Elizondo] was on the bass guitar, and Dre was on the drum machine, and we were like a band, and we'd go in there and make crazy beats every day
"The best musicians technically -- they make the least. A great jazz musician doesn't really ever sell huge amounts of copies. People want something they can understand, something they can break down in their head and understand the rhythms. There's more money in those little songs." Storch knows where the big money is. A brand-name producer gets four or five "points" (percentage of profits) for each song he produces on an album.
There's a lot of pressure. A lot of artists are expecting excellence and if you give them anything less than that, there's a lot of rejection
Red One Quotes
As for what the two will do next, RedOne isn't sharing. He wants to make sure no one ever knows what they will do next. "That I don't want to say because you always want to shock people," he explained. "And you don't want to let people know, so that when they hear it, [they go], 'Oh my God.' "
How do you write songs – do you work on your own or prefer to write with other people?
Every time you work with someone else, you will get something out of it and you always learn. It’s just a fun process to be open to other people and not go for the ego thing. Because you never know when the magic will happen - a person sings something or comes up with a lyric, and you compliment it and suddenly ‘boom!’
“You never know when the magic will happen - 1) a person sings something, 2) comes up with a lyric, and you 3) compliment it, and suddenly ‘boom!’”
How appropriate then that your song ‘Bamboo’ became the theme for the 2006 World Cup! How did that come about?
It is a Moroccan traditional chant that I always used to sing as a kid. So we were like, “what’s better than that for a World Cup?” I had a connection with someone at FIFA and the song was the first song submitted. After one and a half years of having hundreds of songs from Destiny’s Child and so on, they said there was no song better than the song they heard in the beginning. This was one of the few times where the decision was just about the song and not about politics.
What was your connection to FIFA?
They have a few people that are responsible for organising the music. I luckily knew one person who was looking for songs for their music programme. So when I played it to him. He was like, “oh my God, this is amazing I've got to play it in the next meeting!”
The funny thing is that Just Dance was written in one hour - it was magical.
Would you say you are now more a songwriter or producer?
I would say more a songwriter. Melody is so important to me and I always try to make the lyrics as good as possible. But I always paid attention to what was going on in the song - how the drums should do this and how the bass should do that. I always had a vision.
I want to make more hits, inspire people, work with big artists and break new artists. That is the best thing - if you can help someone become something bigger.
It’s hard. But you have to believe in yourself and see what you can bring to the table. Follow your heart and make it as perfect as possible, but don't over think things and don't doubt yourself too much.
After the World Cup I moved to the US, because I thought, it's now or never. So I moved to New York, and that was a struggle - it was so hard to get a cut. I was just about to go back - I broke down, I lost all my money and thought, this is not working here. And it was my wife who said, “you can always go back to Sweden - it's not the end of the world. But let's give it three more months.”
There was this producer Rami [Yacoub] (read the HitQuarters interview with Rami here), who later became Max Martin’s partner. I met him at a birthday party and we kept in touch. So when I decided to become a producer, I called him up and played him songs I had been writing and we decided to start writing together. He taught me about programming and how the software works.
Until I met Akon I was mainly working from home, but with him we had studios booked for us everywhere. Whatever you were doing, you always had the biggest studio booked from the label. I got my own studio when I decided to move to L.A. - all of my work was coming from there, mainly through Interscope. I got so much work from Martin_Kierszenbaum and Vince Herbert.
I was working from the moment I got up till I went to bed. A lot of my life has been work, work, and work. I always want to step up my game and just make quality music.
It varies from situation to situation. It doesn't take me long when it comes to production. When I hear something I know what I have to do. Doing the vocals takes me more time than making the track.
Do you sing on the demos yourself?
A lot of times, yes. Coming up with a good melody is what I'm good at. Outside the US or England people cannot deal with too many lyrics. They just want a nice melody and a smart catchy simple line, where they can sing along - the simpler the better, especially in the chorus. I would say for 90% of the songs I do the melody. Sometimes with Lady Gaga or Akon they come up with killer melodies.
As Akon works as producer as well, doesn't that ever clash?
No not at all. We just have fun - just like kids. Forget who you are and put your ego aside.
If he comes up with something good, why should I say, “no let's do it like this.” He might say, “can you do the bass drum like this?” And I'll try and sometimes it's better. With everything I do I try to look at it from the outside and not think of it as mine.
It is about creating something that makes you happy, and not complicating it too much
Even if I don't have the right sound I will just make it. Tweak, tweak, and tweak until a have the sound that I want to have. You don't have to use the sounds the way they are - if you tweak it suddenly it becomes yours.
Rami Quotes
Rami Yacoub, producer and songwriter for Britney Spears (US & UK No.1), Backstreet Boys (US & UK No.1), Westlife (UK, Norway & Sweden No.1) - August 10, 2009 You can’t have an ego if you’re going to write like that. It’s teamwork. Ultimately, you want this song to be as amazing as possible because obviously then you sell. the most important thing in working in a studio is to have fun However, as I said, there are no shortcuts. They have to stick at it, and not let go of whatever dream they have. You’ve just got to stay out there in the studio and work hard. Talent is always good to have, but if you’re a hard worker, it’ll come to you. It’s the creativity in how you use your tools that counts. You were in the studio last night until 6 in the morning. Are you more productive working into the early hours?
I think most producers are more creative working that way. I don’t think anybody working with music wakes up at 7 [laughs]. It’s the same question if you ask me, “Why are we so good at hockey?” We have a lot of great hockey players and lot of great producers. I think people sit in the studio and work a lot, just the great hockey players played a lot when they were kids.
There’s no shortcuts to becoming a great producer. It’s always great to have talent, but you got to stay focused and be on it all of the time. If you’re going to work with somebody they need to fill the spots you can’t fill yourself.
The good thing with me and Max was that I was more of the hook guy – I’d make hooks and beats and play the bass - and Max was more the keyboard guy, the harmony guy.
If I work with somebody I want to work with somebody that knows stuff that I can’t do, or is better than me in a certain area. Because if you have two people working and they’re great both at beats and nothing else, you’re not going to get **** out of it.
JR Rotem Quotes
We start a beat from the ground up. I’m very blessed, to be honest with you. When I look at my life, there isn’t anything that I’d rather be doing. I just want to continue doing what I’m doing, and get better at it. It’s an infinite craft and art, making hits. I love coming in here every day and creating Though J.R. is into making records, he realizes how strongly the market is currently geared towards singles. “These days, the whole way people are buying and listening to music — and even recording music — is completely different,” he says. “People’s attention spans are not what they were. Before, I remember buying an album, putting on headphones, zoning out for an hour — it was a day experience. Now, kids can just flip from one song to the next with iTunes. It’s definitely a singles game.” And it’s a game he plays better than most. “Nowadays, to be truthful with you, I’m not too excited about any song that doesn’t become a single because people are buying a lot less albums. So the album cuts and the continuity have become less and less important. Obviously, CDs are going to become extinct like cassette tapes are. The format is going to be files. It just makes more sense.”
Even so, Rotem holds out hope for the album’s survival as an artistic format. “I hope that it does endure, because the albums that I like, even as a producer, are the ones that have continuity,” he says. “For instance, Quincy Jones doing all of Thriller or George Martin producing an entire Beatles album. I love that. That’s why the type of artists that I sign to my label, like Sean Kingston — I wasn’t interested in making a lot of money off him, or producing just two songs on the album and delegating the rest of it to other people. For me, it was like, ‘I love this, I’m inspired by it, and I’m doing the entire album.’ So I love the concept of the cohesive album. There are intros on [Sean Kingston’s] album and continuity. Is it as appreciated as it would have been ten years ago? No. It’s tough to know where it’s going to go.” One of the most important things I learned from production is to not have all your sounds come from one keyboard,” he says. “One of the ways to get things to sound big is to combine sources. Yamaha has a certain kind of texture to it, Korg has a different one, Roland has another one. I never like to have everything come from one keyboard. However, having said that, I would say that [the Motif] has a lot of stuff. The pianos are incredibly realistic. The electric pianos are great. The organs are amazing. It has a lot of synth-type sounds that I use that I can’t find in other things. One of the patches from the Motif that I can’t beat it is called Sweet Flute. It’s an amazing sound.” Rotem also recently purchased a Roland V-Synth GT in a quest for new sounds. “For me, new patches are just essential to be inspired when making new tracks,” he says. “I’ve always needed a steady supply of new sounds, because that’s probably the most inspirational thing for me when I compose. Korg MS2000
There’s this one sound — I have to admit one of the songs of recent times that really influenced me was Justin Timberlake’s ‘My Love.’ So I found [the synth sound featured on that song] on here. I probably use it way too much. It’s called Visualizer. I use it for leads, basses, and things like that.” When he started producing, he relied on his own performance skills to perform tracks and thought he’d never have a reason to sample. But as it turns out, two of his biggest hits — “S.O.S.” by Rhianna and “Beautiful Girls” by Sean Kingston — are both based on prominent samples. So what does Rotem think about sampling now?
“When I made the transition to truly being a producer, which to me means giving the artist, label, and public a hit record, I started thinking less from the ego standpoint of, ‘I have to compose it and I have to play it. Let me show you my chops on keyboard!’” he says. “It was more like, ‘Okay, what would make for the ultimate hit?’” Rotem replayed the keyboard hook on “S.O.S.” himself using a Roland Juno-60, rather than keeping the original, however. it actually took a lot of trial and error
I just try to put 110% into every beat I don't drink and don't do any drugs if you don’t talk big, you don’t win
J.R :Yamaha Motif ES, Korg Triton Extreme, Roland Fantom XR, Akai MPC 2000XL, Korg MS2000B, Proteus 2000, Emu Mo Phatt, Cakewalk Sonar 3, Stylus Hip Hop Galaxy : When you sit down to make a beat, what’s the first thing that you do ?
J.R :It varies. Sometimes I will just start playing keys, and come up with an idea which I loop up, and add drums and the rest of the sounds. Other times, I will start with a percussive loop from an old record, and I will add the rest of the drums to that. Then I add the music. Othertimes, a writer or rapper will give me a hook, concept or idea, and I will play keys to that. Once I have something, I will build the drums and the rest around that. I try to switch up the process and look for new ways to make beats, because otherwise, one can fall into a mundane routine.
Hip Hop Galaxy : How do you make the perfect Beat ?
Energy, directness, simplicity, and a new flavor are important ingredients. Most of the sounds he uses come directly from the keyboards rather than soft synths. “I’m just more comfortable on keyboards,” Rotem says. “I like scrolling through the sounds. They’re not buggy. Coming from the jazz world and classical piano, I can still feel the latency on soft synths, even though it’s small.” Rotem’s operation isn’t hardware only, though. “I might start getting inspired playing,” he says. “I’ll pull up a piano sound and if it’s a pop ballad with a very exposed piano, I might then either layer or replace the sound with a soft synth.” It wasn’t so long ago that Rotem played piano for a living, albeit a meager one. Years ago before he was a producer, he played at a Nordstrom’s, which taught him a lesson or two in humility. “That was really not a fun gig,” he says. “I had to wear a tuxedo. I had to play there for very low pay. The thing that was the most morally humiliating — I’m a very creative person, and they obviously want you to play at a very low volume level. Not even just volume, but the type of chords that you use. It’s a very corporate kind of environment. I would have a crowd of people around me listening, but my manager would tell me, ‘You really need to tone it down.’ So it squashes your creativity. I understand where they’re coming from. They’re hiring you for an ambiance and not necessarily for the art of it. But for me, that was tough.” Rotem also had a stint playing piano on a Carnival cruise line right out of Berklee. “That really sucked,” he says. “I thought, ‘I’m going to get on a cruise ship and I’m going to get good food and all this stuff,’ but they treat the musicians like third-class citizens. You’re playing very bad versions of Broadway shows and things like that. That was not a fun gig.”
Let me know if you guys have any interviews from other producers. Remember, depth, not breadth is the name of the game. Let's keep this thread alive by putting out good ****. Excellence is a habit.
Scott Storch Quotes
There is no formula. You have to stumble upon it. When your hair stands up "wow, this song makes me feel amazing" you know you've got it
I had to take a step back to take a step forward
Go hard and try to do the work of 10 men.
In the ninth grade, Storch dropped out of school to pursue a career in music. When he was sixteen, his parents kicked him out of the house. "My father didn't believe in my music," he says. "I don't blame him." From sixteen to nineteen, Storch was broke, sometimes struggling to eat. He worked at Pizza Hut, did construction and played keyboards wherever he could.
For a few more years he was broke, but he knocked on doors until he was producing songs for Capone-N-Noreaga and Busta Rhymes. Then his friend, Philly rapper Eve, introduced him to Dr. Dre -- his big break. "At the time, I saw Dr. Dre desperately needed something," Storch says. "He needed a fuel injection, and Dre utilized me as the nitrous oxide.
So I'd be on the keyboards, and Mike [Elizondo] was on the bass guitar, and Dre was on the drum machine, and we were like a band, and we'd go in there and make crazy beats every day
"The best musicians technically -- they make the least. A great jazz musician doesn't really ever sell huge amounts of copies. People want something they can understand, something they can break down in their head and understand the rhythms. There's more money in those little songs." Storch knows where the big money is. A brand-name producer gets four or five "points" (percentage of profits) for each song he produces on an album.
There's a lot of pressure. A lot of artists are expecting excellence and if you give them anything less than that, there's a lot of rejection
Red One Quotes
As for what the two will do next, RedOne isn't sharing. He wants to make sure no one ever knows what they will do next. "That I don't want to say because you always want to shock people," he explained. "And you don't want to let people know, so that when they hear it, [they go], 'Oh my God.' "
How do you write songs – do you work on your own or prefer to write with other people?
Every time you work with someone else, you will get something out of it and you always learn. It’s just a fun process to be open to other people and not go for the ego thing. Because you never know when the magic will happen - a person sings something or comes up with a lyric, and you compliment it and suddenly ‘boom!’
“You never know when the magic will happen - 1) a person sings something, 2) comes up with a lyric, and you 3) compliment it, and suddenly ‘boom!’”
How appropriate then that your song ‘Bamboo’ became the theme for the 2006 World Cup! How did that come about?
It is a Moroccan traditional chant that I always used to sing as a kid. So we were like, “what’s better than that for a World Cup?” I had a connection with someone at FIFA and the song was the first song submitted. After one and a half years of having hundreds of songs from Destiny’s Child and so on, they said there was no song better than the song they heard in the beginning. This was one of the few times where the decision was just about the song and not about politics.
What was your connection to FIFA?
They have a few people that are responsible for organising the music. I luckily knew one person who was looking for songs for their music programme. So when I played it to him. He was like, “oh my God, this is amazing I've got to play it in the next meeting!”
The funny thing is that Just Dance was written in one hour - it was magical.
Would you say you are now more a songwriter or producer?
I would say more a songwriter. Melody is so important to me and I always try to make the lyrics as good as possible. But I always paid attention to what was going on in the song - how the drums should do this and how the bass should do that. I always had a vision.
I want to make more hits, inspire people, work with big artists and break new artists. That is the best thing - if you can help someone become something bigger.
It’s hard. But you have to believe in yourself and see what you can bring to the table. Follow your heart and make it as perfect as possible, but don't over think things and don't doubt yourself too much.
After the World Cup I moved to the US, because I thought, it's now or never. So I moved to New York, and that was a struggle - it was so hard to get a cut. I was just about to go back - I broke down, I lost all my money and thought, this is not working here. And it was my wife who said, “you can always go back to Sweden - it's not the end of the world. But let's give it three more months.”
There was this producer Rami [Yacoub] (read the HitQuarters interview with Rami here), who later became Max Martin’s partner. I met him at a birthday party and we kept in touch. So when I decided to become a producer, I called him up and played him songs I had been writing and we decided to start writing together. He taught me about programming and how the software works.
Until I met Akon I was mainly working from home, but with him we had studios booked for us everywhere. Whatever you were doing, you always had the biggest studio booked from the label. I got my own studio when I decided to move to L.A. - all of my work was coming from there, mainly through Interscope. I got so much work from Martin_Kierszenbaum and Vince Herbert.
I was working from the moment I got up till I went to bed. A lot of my life has been work, work, and work. I always want to step up my game and just make quality music.
It varies from situation to situation. It doesn't take me long when it comes to production. When I hear something I know what I have to do. Doing the vocals takes me more time than making the track.
Do you sing on the demos yourself?
A lot of times, yes. Coming up with a good melody is what I'm good at. Outside the US or England people cannot deal with too many lyrics. They just want a nice melody and a smart catchy simple line, where they can sing along - the simpler the better, especially in the chorus. I would say for 90% of the songs I do the melody. Sometimes with Lady Gaga or Akon they come up with killer melodies.
As Akon works as producer as well, doesn't that ever clash?
No not at all. We just have fun - just like kids. Forget who you are and put your ego aside.
If he comes up with something good, why should I say, “no let's do it like this.” He might say, “can you do the bass drum like this?” And I'll try and sometimes it's better. With everything I do I try to look at it from the outside and not think of it as mine.
It is about creating something that makes you happy, and not complicating it too much
Even if I don't have the right sound I will just make it. Tweak, tweak, and tweak until a have the sound that I want to have. You don't have to use the sounds the way they are - if you tweak it suddenly it becomes yours.
Rami Quotes
Rami Yacoub, producer and songwriter for Britney Spears (US & UK No.1), Backstreet Boys (US & UK No.1), Westlife (UK, Norway & Sweden No.1) - August 10, 2009 You can’t have an ego if you’re going to write like that. It’s teamwork. Ultimately, you want this song to be as amazing as possible because obviously then you sell. the most important thing in working in a studio is to have fun However, as I said, there are no shortcuts. They have to stick at it, and not let go of whatever dream they have. You’ve just got to stay out there in the studio and work hard. Talent is always good to have, but if you’re a hard worker, it’ll come to you. It’s the creativity in how you use your tools that counts. You were in the studio last night until 6 in the morning. Are you more productive working into the early hours?
I think most producers are more creative working that way. I don’t think anybody working with music wakes up at 7 [laughs]. It’s the same question if you ask me, “Why are we so good at hockey?” We have a lot of great hockey players and lot of great producers. I think people sit in the studio and work a lot, just the great hockey players played a lot when they were kids.
There’s no shortcuts to becoming a great producer. It’s always great to have talent, but you got to stay focused and be on it all of the time. If you’re going to work with somebody they need to fill the spots you can’t fill yourself.
The good thing with me and Max was that I was more of the hook guy – I’d make hooks and beats and play the bass - and Max was more the keyboard guy, the harmony guy.
If I work with somebody I want to work with somebody that knows stuff that I can’t do, or is better than me in a certain area. Because if you have two people working and they’re great both at beats and nothing else, you’re not going to get **** out of it.
JR Rotem Quotes
We start a beat from the ground up. I’m very blessed, to be honest with you. When I look at my life, there isn’t anything that I’d rather be doing. I just want to continue doing what I’m doing, and get better at it. It’s an infinite craft and art, making hits. I love coming in here every day and creating Though J.R. is into making records, he realizes how strongly the market is currently geared towards singles. “These days, the whole way people are buying and listening to music — and even recording music — is completely different,” he says. “People’s attention spans are not what they were. Before, I remember buying an album, putting on headphones, zoning out for an hour — it was a day experience. Now, kids can just flip from one song to the next with iTunes. It’s definitely a singles game.” And it’s a game he plays better than most. “Nowadays, to be truthful with you, I’m not too excited about any song that doesn’t become a single because people are buying a lot less albums. So the album cuts and the continuity have become less and less important. Obviously, CDs are going to become extinct like cassette tapes are. The format is going to be files. It just makes more sense.”
Even so, Rotem holds out hope for the album’s survival as an artistic format. “I hope that it does endure, because the albums that I like, even as a producer, are the ones that have continuity,” he says. “For instance, Quincy Jones doing all of Thriller or George Martin producing an entire Beatles album. I love that. That’s why the type of artists that I sign to my label, like Sean Kingston — I wasn’t interested in making a lot of money off him, or producing just two songs on the album and delegating the rest of it to other people. For me, it was like, ‘I love this, I’m inspired by it, and I’m doing the entire album.’ So I love the concept of the cohesive album. There are intros on [Sean Kingston’s] album and continuity. Is it as appreciated as it would have been ten years ago? No. It’s tough to know where it’s going to go.” One of the most important things I learned from production is to not have all your sounds come from one keyboard,” he says. “One of the ways to get things to sound big is to combine sources. Yamaha has a certain kind of texture to it, Korg has a different one, Roland has another one. I never like to have everything come from one keyboard. However, having said that, I would say that [the Motif] has a lot of stuff. The pianos are incredibly realistic. The electric pianos are great. The organs are amazing. It has a lot of synth-type sounds that I use that I can’t find in other things. One of the patches from the Motif that I can’t beat it is called Sweet Flute. It’s an amazing sound.” Rotem also recently purchased a Roland V-Synth GT in a quest for new sounds. “For me, new patches are just essential to be inspired when making new tracks,” he says. “I’ve always needed a steady supply of new sounds, because that’s probably the most inspirational thing for me when I compose. Korg MS2000
There’s this one sound — I have to admit one of the songs of recent times that really influenced me was Justin Timberlake’s ‘My Love.’ So I found [the synth sound featured on that song] on here. I probably use it way too much. It’s called Visualizer. I use it for leads, basses, and things like that.” When he started producing, he relied on his own performance skills to perform tracks and thought he’d never have a reason to sample. But as it turns out, two of his biggest hits — “S.O.S.” by Rhianna and “Beautiful Girls” by Sean Kingston — are both based on prominent samples. So what does Rotem think about sampling now?
“When I made the transition to truly being a producer, which to me means giving the artist, label, and public a hit record, I started thinking less from the ego standpoint of, ‘I have to compose it and I have to play it. Let me show you my chops on keyboard!’” he says. “It was more like, ‘Okay, what would make for the ultimate hit?’” Rotem replayed the keyboard hook on “S.O.S.” himself using a Roland Juno-60, rather than keeping the original, however. it actually took a lot of trial and error
I just try to put 110% into every beat I don't drink and don't do any drugs if you don’t talk big, you don’t win
J.R :Yamaha Motif ES, Korg Triton Extreme, Roland Fantom XR, Akai MPC 2000XL, Korg MS2000B, Proteus 2000, Emu Mo Phatt, Cakewalk Sonar 3, Stylus Hip Hop Galaxy : When you sit down to make a beat, what’s the first thing that you do ?
J.R :It varies. Sometimes I will just start playing keys, and come up with an idea which I loop up, and add drums and the rest of the sounds. Other times, I will start with a percussive loop from an old record, and I will add the rest of the drums to that. Then I add the music. Othertimes, a writer or rapper will give me a hook, concept or idea, and I will play keys to that. Once I have something, I will build the drums and the rest around that. I try to switch up the process and look for new ways to make beats, because otherwise, one can fall into a mundane routine.
Hip Hop Galaxy : How do you make the perfect Beat ?
Energy, directness, simplicity, and a new flavor are important ingredients. Most of the sounds he uses come directly from the keyboards rather than soft synths. “I’m just more comfortable on keyboards,” Rotem says. “I like scrolling through the sounds. They’re not buggy. Coming from the jazz world and classical piano, I can still feel the latency on soft synths, even though it’s small.” Rotem’s operation isn’t hardware only, though. “I might start getting inspired playing,” he says. “I’ll pull up a piano sound and if it’s a pop ballad with a very exposed piano, I might then either layer or replace the sound with a soft synth.” It wasn’t so long ago that Rotem played piano for a living, albeit a meager one. Years ago before he was a producer, he played at a Nordstrom’s, which taught him a lesson or two in humility. “That was really not a fun gig,” he says. “I had to wear a tuxedo. I had to play there for very low pay. The thing that was the most morally humiliating — I’m a very creative person, and they obviously want you to play at a very low volume level. Not even just volume, but the type of chords that you use. It’s a very corporate kind of environment. I would have a crowd of people around me listening, but my manager would tell me, ‘You really need to tone it down.’ So it squashes your creativity. I understand where they’re coming from. They’re hiring you for an ambiance and not necessarily for the art of it. But for me, that was tough.” Rotem also had a stint playing piano on a Carnival cruise line right out of Berklee. “That really sucked,” he says. “I thought, ‘I’m going to get on a cruise ship and I’m going to get good food and all this stuff,’ but they treat the musicians like third-class citizens. You’re playing very bad versions of Broadway shows and things like that. That was not a fun gig.”
Let me know if you guys have any interviews from other producers. Remember, depth, not breadth is the name of the game. Let's keep this thread alive by putting out good ****. Excellence is a habit.
[F_or_DEAF]
New member
solid post!
[F_or_DEAF]
New member
[F_or_DEAF]
New member
sometimes it is worthwhile to isolate yourself from listening to the genre you produce, as listening within the genre you produce tends to influence, even on a subconscious level; hence 'trends' of music. While it is so easy to follow trends; to create them; to create fresh. new ideas is what every true artist should aspires for. Innovate, DO NOT imitate (despite what others say)
Peace
Peace
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[F_or_DEAF]
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church...
FINCH BEATS
"keep it up"
T
THENUMBERTOO
Guest
Don't stop, keep goin'.
Krisstyles
New member
Get away from your music after you make it, then come back to it later and critique, that way you can have a clear 3rd person point of view. Then adjust anything you don't like right away and do this process again until the final result is a master piece.
Peace
Peace
DjSwivet
New member
i agree
FINCH BEATS
"keep it up"
FINCH BEATS
"keep it up"
what exactly do you wanna do?
J
J Gardner
Guest
get it how you live
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