Professional Studies – Benjy Saia
Producer/business owner
This essay will discuss the profession of producing music and everything that it entails from different perspectives as well as going down many different avenues of discussion.
There are no qualifications required to be a producer, however producer-related degrees are helpful for adding credibility and authenticity from a customer perspective and potentially for record labels looking for record producers. On the other hand, customers and record labels value experience and evidence of work such as a portfolio or records that have had success. Producers who are starting a business may not have much experience and will not have a body of work to showcase themselves so having a degree will help in the beginning. While, having a degree in the field of producing is helpful it is not necessary. An example of a producer who has had success in the field of producing without a degree is Rick Rubin. Rick Rubin started his career in producing by founding the label ‘Def Jam Recordings’ with his friend Russell Simmons in the dorm of New York University. They took on artists who were overlooked by major labels which allowed them to gain a level of momentum. Their approach indicates that when entering this type of profession in the music industry you do not need a degree or experience for that matter. The skills that are required to enter this profession is the ability to produce to industry standard to ensure that customers will be satisfied with the product and to allow the price of a session to compare with competitors or if you’re a producer working for a label, it ensures that you will be used for future projects. Being able to market your business is a necessary skill that allows people to hear about your business and therefore find customers. As well as this, networking is important. This is because new opportunities can present themselves more often when you can network well, such as, working with artists who are more popular. A producer who works for themselves generally also need to be multifaceted in that they need to be able to produce, mix and master songs as well as being able to play on the tracks and come up with useful ideas for the arrangement if required.
On a day-to-day basis, a producer will generally work from around nine to five however this can change depending on what the artist desires. For example, the artist may only want to record a few demo recordings on that particular day meaning that only a half day is required. In terms of work being done on that day, the producer will typically have to set up and prepare anything that is being recorded or could be recorded on that day prior to the band coming into the studio. For example, the drum kit should be set up before hand as it can be costly timewise to set up during the session and could lead to a negative outlook on the session from the artists perspective if they feel that their time (and therefore money) is not being spent efficiently. Throughout the course of the session the producer will be tasked with making sure the artist and themselves are on the same page when it comes to deciding how to record something as it can massively affect the overall outcome of the track being recorded. That means that things like the microphones being used have to align with the artistic vision. For instance, an SM58 standard dynamic microphone may be more useful for artists recording in the style of something like indie-rock where the roughness and slight lack of clarity that the microphone picks up is actually what the artist may want in the recording. Some artists will only want to record a few parts of a track in one session, however for the most part artists will want to try and record a whole song in one day session. This means that once the recording has taken place, the producer then has to mix and then master the track.
There are many financial and legal factors that impact the profession. One of the main factors is the agreements between the producer and the artist. This should ideally be written in some form of contract as to ensure that any confusion regarding royalties, copyright, confidentiality, delivery deadlines, who is paid and what percentage is avoided. Written agreements may seem overly formal especially to a producer who is perhaps producing for a friend for example and may appear to disrupt the dynamic between the producer and the artist. However, it is necessary that a written agreement is prepared as a verbal agreement can result in complications and legal issues will arise as it can be difficult to provide evidence and proof of what was initially agreed. There are certain laws that apply to both musicians and producers. One of those being PRS and MCPS which allows and artist and producer to get paid for live performances, broadcasting and streaming. It is highly important that the artist is registered to these collection societies. If an artist does not register their music to these collection societies, then neither them nor the producer will claim any royalties.
When it comes to marketing, a producer who owns their own business will use many different styles of marketing to try and obtain new customers and reaching the target customers. The main method being social media as it is free and easy to reach people who could potentially be interested in your service and that are relatively close in terms of location. This is due to the algorithm which feeds people content that they are interested in to maintain their attention and therefore encourages them to continue using it. The downside is that it can be inconsistent in terms of reaching the desired target customers as well as it sometimes taking a lot of time and effort in building up a following. However, once a following is achieved it gives the business a high level of credibility meaning that people will be more likely to consider your business as it would be clear that other people were satisfied with your service making it reliable and trustworthy. Another marketing strategy that is beneficial for producers is to physically promote their business via newspapers, magazines, posters etc. This method is useful for gaining a local reputation and creating a level of “hype” around the business through word of mouth. However, the problem is that this method can be restrictive in that it can only reach a certain amount of people as the percentage of people who take the time to look at posters and magazines etc is very low. It is also expensive to be in something like a newspaper, so it may not seem like good value for money. Therefore, social media is generally the best option in terms of marketing and is the option that most producers take. Most operate their social media by posting clips of bands and artists recording their music in the studio as this can show off the equipment being used as well as the studio space and can be beneficial growth-wise if the artist in the video is well known.
There are a few intellectual and personal challenges presented by this profession. When looking at a producer who runs their own business intellectually speaking issues will arise almost every session as complex technology does not always operate smoothly. Therefore, a producer will often have to come up with solutions and solve problems quickly due to the artist wanting good value for money on the session meaning that the less efficiently problems are solved the less time there is to record. An example of problems that will occur are things like the connection between the lead and the audio interface and discovering whether the problem is in the faulty lead or the interface. The problem may not involve technical issues but may be in trying to establish the exact sound that the artist is trying to achieve. This can be difficult as most artists have little experience when it comes to producing so trying to decipher what it is they want may be difficult. An example of this would be if an artist says the song needs to lift more in the chorus. The producer would have several suggestions to try meet their goal. One being to strip back some of the elements in the other sections to enhance the impact of the chorus. Another being to remove the lower frequencies either one to four bars before the chorus or to double track the vocal.
There are also a few personal challenges that come with this profession. One being that if you are a producer who owns their own business you are responsible for the number of hours you work. Due to the nature of this profession, this may mean that a producer will generally take the majority of the work that is available to them. This is because there is far less financial stability compared to someone who works a nine to five and is under a full-time contract. This is because there is no guarantee that work will present itself therefore each month may look different financially speaking and may also result in increased stress. However, the benefit of working for yourself is having the freedom to choose how much time you take off for holidays as well as being able to negotiate with the artists what time of day to start and finish the session. Another personal challenge is having to always be the best version of yourself when in the studio with customers. This is because the more personable and sociable you are the more comfortable the customers are making them more likely to record with you again regardless of the outcome of the recording. However, this means that there is very little room for “bad days” or coming across in a negative way as it could impact the chances of the artist coming back to record. This could be overcome by employing another producer who takes half of the sessions or that you collectively do the sessions with as it means less pressure to appear a certain way all the time.
There are opportunities in terms of career-progression within this profession. If you are a producer who owns their own business, alongside the growth of your business and customers will be more revenue and therefore meaning putting some money into the development of your business by either upgrading your equipment or even going into a bigger studio. The benefit of this would be that the quality of sound acoustically would improve and a bigger studio with better equipment would also allow you to charge more per hour as the recordings would be better quality. This could also potentially lead to working with bigger artists which in turn could lead to more opportunities in a ripple effect type manner. The other possible avenue for career-progression that would occur if the business became very successful could be to open a second studio and then eventually have a franchise. This could potentially mean that there would be a transition from producing to being a managing member as in someone who owns the business and is a part of the daily running of the business. The drawback of this profession is that most self-employed producers remain relatively static in terms of their career progression due to the competitive nature of the industry with there being lots of competitors all fighting for a similar place in the market.
Word count – 1987
Bibliography
Producer And Musician Agreements: Legal Essentials For UK Creative Businesses | Sprintlaw UK
How Music Producers Work | HowStuffWorks
Understanding Audio Interfaces: You Need One For Music Production?
How to Make Your Chorus Sound Bigger: 6 Essential Production Tips
