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Tech Sessions #21

Sound Advice
First off, thanks to this column, I was recently cited as an authority on sampling for someone's college law paper which tripped me out. I guess dude was getting his Google on and came across the article and voila, I'm having a discussion with a complete stranger about how certain court decisions could change how we make music forever. So all of us who make this site go, especially Ray, should look at something like that and say 'damn that's pretty hot.'

Now,on with this show. This Tech Sessions is a mixture of a lot of things. I want to pass along something first and foremost that another producer recently passed along to me during a vibe session the other night that was passed along to him by a true legend. I figure advice coming from this man can help just about anybody.

I was working on a part, nothing major just a little something, but it was feeling a little stiff. This producer has worked on a few platinum records so I of course am trying to write an on the spot "hit."

Anyway, dude stops me and goes 'you know what Stevie Wonder told me? Music is something that you have to feel. You can't try to make it something that it's not.. It was around long before us when cave men used to beat on walls for sound. It's the essence of man."

Now on paper it may sound a bit corny but for myself I got to thinking a bit. Now, we've talked about in the past how this has played with a creator's psyche when it comes to having writer's block but what about overall output?

Yes, it is very possible to get caught in the grind of what I call the delivery zone where you're so concerned with getting whoever shops/pitches your tracks for you the kind of shit that they are asking for that you forget to do you. Not always but… if you have x amount of time to do x amount of fast food tracks that doesn't leave much time to sit in the kitchen and cook up some real soul food if you know what I'm saying.

There is an argument that states it could be worse, we could not have any shots at all. This is true but let me ask you this. When you love something so much would you rather be like Stevie or would you rather be around for a second and then be back at mama's in two years?

All of this rambling is all about to come together. And this is real talk for the new beatmakers, producers and songwriters who read this space.

If you don't have a have a manager or rep and you don't have placements yet don't get one. Spend all of your time either developing your sound our grinding.

For real, real talk. PM Me through the site and I'll turn you on to some books. Find a lawyer and grind yourself. Once you have work then you have something to manage. But if you feel like you have to have somebody to give you a direction upon which way to go. Make sure you find somebody that meets every single one of these needs and a few more.

1) They love what you already do. Anybody that wants you to change to be like the next cat is somebody you will end up hating. I'm not saying you can't be open to compromise nobody likes a diva or a dick, especially not in a producer, but if you are coming with a West Coast flavor and your manager keeps bugging you on some I need some dirty south beats ya'll will have issues son.

2) They respect your business and creative vision. Now more than ever we as producers aspire to brand ourselves as much as artists do. Anyone who is unwilling to laughs at or scoffs at most of your ideas from day one is not the right cat.

3) They are young and hungry with a rock solid plan and their only focus is you and only you or the situation is such to where you will literally be getting paid to be in the studio tomorrow because they simply got it like that.

There's a few more but I only have so much space. Everything about you is different so bring that to your tracks and when the time is right get that rep who will bring that to the negotiating table.

Message Glover and tell him what you think

Glover

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