The Grammys always get me thinking. I remember years ago when there were so many great albums produced and the majority of the artists who made the albums all had one thing in common. No matter what kind of music it was there was usually an excellent producer behind it. You had to really have the experience to understand the dynamic of the studio, the artist and the whole scenario. it took experience and at the end of the day really showed by having excellent song, production value and overall confidence that the artist was in good hands with the producer. It does seem like now anybody can be a producer with all of tools available to them. There are instant excellent presets on Instruments, processing and mastering tools and of course plugins to make the project sound professional-even though one may not know what they are doing. The problem is over time all of the minuses will start to show themselves. I believe it takes years to develop that ear and instinct that separates the great producers from the OK ones. So many of the pop productions I hear all have the same dynamic. They are smashed to wall with sound,no room for space or to breath.This is the formula. So wat is the answer.? if you truly want to dedicate yourself to being a great producer you have to do lots of reading,Know the history of music and the genres you work in and perfect them. Then knowing about music and understanding the craft of songwriting as well. incase you are missing it-It takes alot of time and effort to truly get to that place. I paid dues for many years learning under the best before I was ready to go out on my own. Oh yeah-you can produce and get by for awhile but it will catch up to you.
I just finished 2 wonderful albums-my Group Global Noize-Sly Reimagined-The Music of Sly and the Family Stone and Singer Amy Hanaialii-Ever Changing. Both have character attitude and are totally different for each other. It took years to understand and be confident and fearless in my production decisions. it shows. Now this isn't an ego statement,it's a statement that making music to a producer should be like breathing. it always is with you. So to all the artists who want to make albums and think it's so easy-I'm telling you it's not-It requires patience.confidence in your talent and a great producer to get you there. it is true when you hear the cliched question-how do you get to Carnegie Hall-The answer is obvious and real Peace, jason