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Imposter Syndrome Gets a Bad Rap.

We like to blame everything on that voice in our head telling us we’re not good enough.

But it hit me the other day that maybe we are so focused on ignoring any negative voices in our head that we are depriving ourselves of progress.

Lemme ‘splain

When I first started pitching my own songs to real professional opportunities for recording artists or publishing companies or to music supervisors, I got rejected. Over and over. Like….shut down, rejected. And it almost always had to do with my lyric writing. One of the gatekeepers suggested I do some homework and start learning how to write better songs. I was in shock! I had been writing songs since I was old enough to form sentences. I didn’t need to learn how to write songs! I already did!!

What happened next was that I got extreme writer’s block. I went from feeling like a confident songwriter who could simply say “I want to write a song right now” and out it would come. Someone who never had a shortage of new and unique melodies flow into her mind. Suddenly, it all stopped. The fear of writing something that would inevitably get rejected stopped my creativity completely. It was horrible and devastating.

And it lasted for six months

So, I bought some books and began studying “how” to write great songs.

What got me writing again was writing in a different way. Instead of allowing the melodies to flow, I started with a title. Instead of allowing the first rhyme that popped into my head to land on the paper, I purchased a rhyming dictionary (nowadays, you can just pull up rhyme sites online.)

But the most important thing that happened was I now knew where the bar was and my gut would tell me if I hadn’t reached it yet. Even now, my gut will tell me if something isn’t quite good enough. I’ve learned to listen to that little voice in my head that says, “There’s a better word out there. That melody doesn’t have quite the payoff you want. That’s close but not quite it. You can find a better way to say that.”

I’ve learned to really trust that gut feeling. It’s not meant to tell me I’m not good enough. It’s meant to tell me that writing something that has a better chance of connecting with other humans takes more effort. And it’s worth that extra effort!

We’ve become afraid to listen to that critical voice in our heads because we think it is there to hold us back, tear us down, make us feel like we can’t do it. But I propose that there are two different voices in our head (ok, maybe a LOT more than two for most of us but that’s a different conversation). One voice is actually realistic, non-judgemental but provides constructive criticism that helps us improve. The second IS that bad-guy voice that wants us to think we aren’t deserving or that we’ll never get to where we want to be.

What if we started listening to Voice One

Let’s call her/him/it  – Our Advocate. Our Mentor. Our Coach. Oh wait, hey, don’t we all need these in our lives to progress? Don’t we pay coaches and mentors money to keep us on track and nudge us out of our comfort zones? YES! Lucky us, I think we all have one of these coaches in our brain just waiting to help us be our best selves!

Our Coach will say

“I know there is something better in you, just keep digging”

“You are 100% capable of nailing this part, but you aren’t there yet. Keep at it”

“The world needs you in it. You provide value to others. Keep creating!”

Imposter Syndrome will say things like

“You’ll never be as good as…”

“You can’t do it, just give up”

“You shouldn’t even try, you don’t deserve to have success”

“How dare you think you could ever be as good as…”

Big. Difference

Learning to listen to the Coach in my head that motivated me to do better was a game-changer. Recognizing the difference between the Imposter and the Coach was critical to my moving forward and improving my skills.

So, yes, I think Imposter Syndrome IS bad. But in your head, you also have a voice that knows what you can do and can push you to be your best.

Listen to THAT voice!

 

Black Lives in Music Survey (BLiM) Findings

 

The results of the largest ever survey of data focused on the experiences of black musicians and industry professionals

Black Lives in Music (BLiM) organization have released the results and findings of their survey which set out to capture data on the experiences of music industry professionals and creators.

It found conclusive evidence supporting the long-held beliefs about racial discrimination and has illustrated disturbing experiences of systemic and institutionalized racism in the UK Music Industry.

Read the report here

The largest survey of black musicians and music industry professionals conducted in the UK, partnering with Opinium Research, revealed a majority of those who took part have experienced direct or indirect acts of racism in the music industry.

The survey provides real-life data in the wake of revelations made by artists such as Raye, Alexandra Burke, Little Mix’s Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Beverley Knight, Sugababes’ Keisha Buchanan, and Mis-Teeq’s Sabrina Washington who have all recently spoke out about the covert and overt ways race has been a hindrance to their careers.

Those surveyed reported a range of discriminatory acts and “sometimes hostile working environments.” All founded on factors including barriers to progression based on their ethnicity, the marked and particular ways black women are specifically affected, income inequalities, and more.

Additionally, the survey found black artists granted less studio time than their white counterparts, refused event performance opportunities, and being told to change the type of music they create. Furthermore, the widespread assumption that they are ‘urban artists’ despite whatever genre of music they make because of their race.

Black female artists in particular have been told by management companies and labels that they need to assimilate to white/euro-centric standards as they do not know how to market a black female artist.

Key findings include:

The results illuminate statements made by high-profile artists about their experience in the UK music industry. X-Factor winner Alexandra Burke revealed in a BBC documentary special hosted earlier this year by Little Mix’s Leigh-Anne Pinnock that she was told – “You need to bleach your skin because you won’t sell any records.”

Further highlighting the under-discussed realities of colorism, Beverley Knight told ITV News in 2020 that a record company digitally lightened her skin on the cover of her first album so she’d appear more presentable and acceptable to a non-black audience.

Keisha Buchanan, a founding member of Sugababes emotionally revealed that she went through a decade of therapy in the wake of her controversial departure from the group in 2009. She claims she was consistently labeled an “aggressive bully” and stereotypically portrayed as an “angry black woman”. Saying “I didn’t realize that I would be having to go through therapy to help me to cope with some of the trauma that I’ve experienced while being in the Sugababes, or being in the public eye”.

Raye has also opened up about the negative impacts to her mental health that she experienced while fighting with her record label who refused to release her album. She recently told The Guardian, “I am just beside myself about how the beautiful songwriters that I know, a lot of whom are women, and a lot of whom are women of color, are just hustling out here. I’m angry, I’m raging.”

The survey found some stark data identifying a link between this discrimination and mental wellbeing, especially among black women. 42% of black women surveyed said their mental health had worsened since starting a career in music and 16% had sought counseling due to racial abuse. Citing various reasons from the barriers to progression and overt racial discrimination, the report also found that black women earn 25% less on average than their white female colleagues, and 46% earn less than half their revenue from music (compared to) creating extra pressure to find other routes to supplement their income.

The BLiM Survey makes several recommendations to address the issues and emphasizes collaboration across the UK music industry as key to addressing imbalances.

Transparency around and the gender and ethnic pay gap, training programs to increase diversity in middle and senior management in music organizations, and investment in grassroots music education are some of the key points. BLiM also calls on the music industry to create an anti-racism support service to support creators and professionals with a helpline available to Black creators and professionals who experience racism in the music industry. Also, providing referral and in-depth therapeutic support.

Join BLiM for a weekly series of webinars ‘Being Black In The UK Music Industry’ from October 13th – 3rd November, dissecting the report and what it means to be a Black creator or industry professional in the UK, co-sponsored by tunecore.  Register via www.guesthouslive.co.uk

Charisse Beaumont, Chief Executive, Black Lives in Music:

“You cannot change what you cannot measure. Nearly 2000 people responded to our survey on ‘The lived experience of Black music creators and industry professionals in the UK music industry. That is 2000 people hoping for genuine change. This is the first of its kind report which holds a mirror up to the UK music industry showing what it actually looks like. The disparities Black creators and industry professionals are faced with is rooted in traditionalism and systemic racism.  The report highlights racist culture and behaviors in the workplace, financial barriers, and lack of investment in Black music creators, and industry professionals unable to reach their career goals. The report also spotlights Black women being the most disadvantaged across all areas of the music industry and how all of these factors affect the mental health of Black creators and industry professionals. This is data, you cannot ignore it. The data clearly shows that change is needed across the entire music ecosystem from grass root education all the way up to record labels. I hope industry leaders read this report and hear the voice of those who spoke out. I hope this report evokes change in the way we do our music business which has greatly profited from Black talent. 

“We are looking forward to working with all music industry leaders to ensure that we can achieve change, together.”

Help Musicians – James Ainscough, CEO:

“Thanks to Black Lives in Music, the data in this report proves that the individual stories we hear from professional musicians cannot be explained away as rare, one-off incidents but are illustrative of significant, widespread problems that we must all work together to address. It is clear there is more that Help Musicians should do, collaboratively, to create lasting change within the music ecosystem and we look forward to engaging with the BLiM team to work out where we can be most impactful. It is a privilege to be a major funder of BLiM and we hope that the creation of this report will help us, and others, make a difference to improving the lives and careers of black musicians.” 

PRS Foundation – Joe Frankland, CEO:

“The UK music sector has a lot more work to do to tackle the anti-Black racism which prevents Black music creators and music professionals from fulfilling their potential and is therefore holding the whole industry back.

The Black Lives in Music Report 2021 lays out severe inequalities and differences in experiences in a way that makes it easy to see how underrepresented, marginalized and under-supported Black people in music are, and how urgently we must all address these issues.

The report has built a much clearer picture of the barriers we have been discussing through our POWER UP initiative launch and participant open call. A huge majority of Black music creators and industry professionals experience barriers to progression, with an unacceptable proportion of people experiencing direct and indirect racism. And these barriers have worsened as a result of the pandemic which is disproportionately impacting those already underrepresented. The situation for Black women in the survey is different and more pronounced, and an intersectionality lens needs to be applied to any work the sector does to improve things.

As CEO at PRS Foundation, I am more determined than ever to address the issues shown in the report, and through POWER UP we are proud to work closely with Charisse, Roger and the Black Lives in Music team, aligning approaches to achieve the meaningful change many survey respondents and those in the wider music community demand.”

Tunecore-  Faryal Khan-Thompson, VP of International:

Black Women Matter: We still need to identify, acknowledge, and tackle the problem of intersectional racism in the music industry that hits black women the worst. This report clearly highlights this, and it is so important to have research done that focuses specifically on the challenges black creators and industry professionals face because we know that much of the industry has and continues to profit off of black people and appropriates black culture, and yet they are the most disadvantaged community in the industry today. BLIM’s report should serve as a catalyst for industry-wide change. As a woman of South Asian descent, it’s important I recognize my various privileges but also solidarities with black communities, that lead naturally to developing an allyship with them, especially black women creators in the industry. There is a lot of work to be done, and I commend BLIM for their groundbreaking research study and will do whatever I can to support their mission.”

Leigh Morgan, Global Director of Editorial & Marketing, Believe:

In 2020 we stood in solidarity with the music industry and the community of black professionals, initially we participated in #BlackoutTuesday. Since then our teams have been building initiatives, strategies and finding leading partners to help break down the barriers of structural racism which are not only pervasive within the music industry but throughout society. At Believe we feel passionately that things need to change and this change is being sought by our people at every level. We have been extremely happy to have found and work with the team at BLiM here in the UK. We thank them for creating this first-of-a-kind report. The report makes for uncomfortable reading but we are fully supportive of it and its findings.”

Graham Davies, CEO of The Ivors Academy:

We fully support the report’s recommendations and are committed to playing our part to bring about transformative change in the music industry. Our thanks go to Black Lives in Music and all the respondents for providing details of their experiences. This report is an important step towards our shared goal of an inclusive industry that’s free of prejudice and discrimination, where there’s equal opportunity and treatment, and we create positive and lasting change for Black music creators.”

About Black Lives in Music

Talent is distributed evenly, opportunities are not! Black Lives in Music addresses the current inequality of opportunity for black people aspiring to be artists or professionals in the Jazz and Classical music industry. Black Lives in Music believes in real equality for Black people to learn musical instruments at a grassroots level and to allow them to pursue and realize their musical ambitions.

Black Lives in Music is made up of a number of partners who are all working towards the same goal: to dismantle structural racism in our industry. We aim to support the industry in providing better professional opportunities. We also want to achieve equality for Black professionals at all levels and in all areas of the UK Jazz and Classical industry. Representation matters, we need to take action together and create a level playing field for everyone to have an equal chance to succeed.

Black Lives in Music stands for equal opportunities – for Black people to be able to work successfully in the UK music industry without being the subject of discrimination.

 

Reaching Out 

This year I’ve written about a number of topics ranging from Fabfilter plugins to cover letters. While I wanted one of the last articles of the year to be a roundabout to my first on New York and its restoration from Covid-19, I realized it’s October.

For some of you that might be a “Why is the obvious being stated here?” But for high school seniors or college students, it’s more like “Wait it’s October?!”

Yes, it is that time of the year that you will rush to fill out your FAFSA, you might be already applying to colleges If you’re in high school, and now if all so suddenly you are becoming an adult and are expected in some way to know what you are supposed to be doing.

If you are reading this on SoundGirls then you might have a clue that you want to have something within the music industry, and that’s awesome! Now the question on how you get to where you want to go, If you haven’t yet feel free to read my last blog on college ( and if mine isn’t enough some other amazing people have also touched on the subject ) it might help give you some idea of how to get to the place you need to be.

Now that’s that said and done, and I’m going to assume here that you are going through with whatever you settled on – the next step is reaching out.

 

Now you gotta send it out.

(The following steps are not in any particular order and can be read individually.)

Step One: Utilizing Social Media

KEEP IN MIND

Some have Instagram or Facebook for personal reasons only, they may not want to have work and family mix on these platforms. Be mindful of the pages that are private, check to see if the person you want to connect with has a LinkedIn account or business email before trying to contact a personal account. These guys and gals are just as human as the rest of us! So let them have privacy if it is clear it isn’t for public access.

Step Two: Email

While I would never recommend sending a cold turkey email to someone before being invited to do so, some may have emails set up for just that reason. If a label you want to reach out to for example has a new artist email or outreach for talent hires it could be a good move for you.  Make sure to attach the resume, cover letter, and reference sheet. Structure the email on Google Docs or Microsoft Word to avoid accidentally sending an unfinished email. Keep the email short but informative, mention something unique about yourself or the position.

Example Email

Dear New York City Recording,

I am interested in the available position of summer intern posted on LinkedIn. I have experience running an SSL 4048 and have a vast understanding of Universal Audio outboard equipment and in-the-box plugins. Within this email, I have included my cover letter, resume, references, and samples of work I’ve mixed during the last two years studying under John Smith at Iris Studio, located within the University of Sunderdale. If possible I would enjoy the pleasure of arranging an interview at your studio, famous for recording XX’s classic hit Cakewalk.

Sincerely,

Kimberlynn Ahlers

Step Three: Calling or Going Directly

It could be a long shot – you might definitely come across a lot of people saying no, but if you live in a city like ( but not limited to) Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Kyoto, Tokyo, New York, Miami, or Nashville you might have a shot. If people see you show up enough or call in enough on a certain position they might see it go two ways, You are either annoying or persistent. The next time someone moves jobs or gets fired – the persistent one often comes to mind as a quick fix to patch a gap. You might not get anywhere doing this, but you just might – if you really really want it.

So… congratulations! I hope that this helped you think of ways to reach out to those you are looking forward to meeting. I have nothing but a foam finger on my end – cheering you on!

More Tips and Resources

Tips for resumes and social media

Industry Directories – Get Yourself Listed

The Art of Preproduction

Ah recording, that bedrock of this thing we do, the capturing of the evanescent moment of vibrations shimmering in the air in both mellifluent and cacophonous fashion (knock it off with the big words, you damn English major). Whatever we do afterward, with our editing and our mixing and our mastering, and whatever we do before, with our writing and preproduction and planning, it all comes down to the fancy room with the red light. And the principal thing to remember about recording is that it costs money. Sometimes a lot of money. Even the cheaper studios will run you hundreds, and any decent-sized session is going to go into the thousands. With budgets being as stretched as they are, it’s important, then, to make the most out of the small amount of time you have to get things down and get them right. As producers and engineers, it is our job to respect our artist’s wallets. As artists, it’s our job to make sure we get the most for our dollar. Thus, we get to my producer’s perspective of what is probably the most consequential of parts of the whole recording process: the pre-production!

Pre-production is the term we use for everything leading up to a recording session

For me, this starts with that first coffee date where we get to know each other and talk grandiose plans for achieving our musical and artistic dreams. While the final results tend to come out completely different, it still provides a starting point for the direction the rest of the project ultimate heads. Which records inspire you? What’s the vibe you’re after? How many musicians and songs? What do you want out of life? What’s your budget range? The answer to all these questions will help point us in the direction that we need to head, in order to make the most out of the session. The inspirational records will tell us how to set up and mic and get tones for the instruments. The vibe will affect how we conduct the session. Is the record light and fun? Then we need a light and fun recording session. Is it heavy and brooding? Then we need to craft an environment that is conducive to that kind of introspection. And, of course, there’s a budget. The budget will tell us not only where we’re able to record, but how much time we’re able to spend on the recording. Do we need to power through 3-4 songs a day? Or can we take our time and overdub everyone’s part and add in as much nuance and ear candy as we please? I get a sense for all of this during that first meeting, before we even decide whether or not to work together. Getting a rough understanding of how the record will come together, how it will sound, helps me not only prepare for the session from the get-go but gives me a stronger pitch for the artists. After all, if I’m able to immediately give them a technical breakdown and creative approach, doesn’t that prove that I know what I’m doing?

Explaining the process of making a record

Next up, either before you decide to work with each other or after, is probably the most overlooked yet important part of the process, especially when working with newer artists: explaining the process of making a record. It’s not as simple as going into the studio and pressing record. It’s a long process beginning with what we’re talking about right now, then going on to recording, doing multiple takes (more than you expect), editing the takes you do (both comping and performance fixing), overdubbing multiple parts, mixing, and mastering. If the artist hasn’t made a record like this before, they’re not going to necessarily know everything that goes into it when done at a professional level. I had an artist once reach out to me wanting to make an LP. He wanted to do a pop/indie rock record, full-band instrumentation, recording every part himself, and expected to be finished with it all in 1-2 days. This is not possible. When I told him what to expect when it comes to making a record, he ghosted, which is fine. He now knows what goes into making a record and we didn’t spend too much time talking things out only for it all to fall apart when everything slowly was revealed to him. On the flip side, I’ve laid everything out for an artist and not only did I land the gig, but the thoroughness of the process energized them and helped them jump in with the attitude of making something incredible. Educating your artist on how to make the record is beneficial to everyone. You’re all on the same page when it comes to what to expect, weed out those who aren’t ready for this level of commitment and get those that are ready to dive in.

Equally important to explaining the technical steps is to explain the emotional and creative ones

I made the mistake of neglecting this, thinking that since the artist had released an EP before that they’d be familiar with the ins and outs of making a record. While I did make sure to explain things from a functional and cost basis, I neglected to explain things from a personal and creative basis. This led to us dragging out the completion of the record, unable to settle on a sound, with everything sounding worse as the process continued. This is why the recommendation for everything is to work quickly. When you get stuck in the weeds of second-guessing and fine-tuning, you lose perspective, and suddenly everything sounds wrong. When that happens, it’s time to step back and not listen to the record for a while. A day? A week? A year? I don’t know. Long enough that you come back with fresh ears. This is partially why I try and keep my mix numbers to three. The first one I do, the second one after artist notes, the third one after another round of notes. Now, I allow the artists to keep making adjustments, but I make sure to tell them that that process is what’s to be expected. It puts in their minds that we’re supposed to get things done in that span of time, that my skills as a mixer are at the level of completing things that quickly (so they better trust my results), and keeps them from falling into that trap of endless revisions. Look at us talking about mixing before we even get to actual pre-production sessions.

When it comes to recording, newer artists will go into the studio expecting to knock out each song in 1-2 takes and have it all done and ready to release. While we’ve gone over the post-production with them, we do need to talk about what the actual recording session is going to be like. I find it best to just go in order. Artists used to live shows will assume that the setup is as quick as that. A few mics, plus a quick soundcheck, and then ready to go! A lack of understanding of the actual time that goes into setting up can really hurt their confidence in you as an engineer, so conveying exactly why it takes as long as it does is important. Depending on the length of time we have, I’ll take upwards of a day to get things set up, instruments fine-tuned, tones dialed in, headphones made exactly perfect, session template put together, and whatever else I can think of. All that time is worth the effort, of course. Unlike with live audio, we don’t have the sound coming from the stage to help augment what we’re micing, so we really need to go a bit overboard to get the coverage we need. Plus, we have fancier gear, so we’d better use it! When the artist knows that this time commitment is standard, and most importantly why it takes so long, that boosts their confidence in you, rather than hindering it. You go from someone who is struggling to get things going to someone who knows and cares enough to make them sound their very best. All with a little education.

So that’s what I do with new artists, and what you should do with them too. If you are working with more experienced artists, it’s good to do a little refresher anyway, just so they can understand any idiosyncrasies of your process and cover any gaps they may still have in their experience. Maybe they’ve only worked with engineers who put up four drum mics and call it good (this is not enough drum mics). Maybe they’ve always done one instrument at a time and are new to whole band recording. Regardless, make sure everyone is on the same page as to what to expect before moving forward with the project.

Preproduction: getting everything ready for the recording session

Now that we’ve talked about everything that goes into making a record, we can finally get to what we actually think of when we think of preproduction: getting everything ready for the recording session. I start with the songs. In a perfect world, the artist would present me with demos for twice as many songs as they want to record. Why twice as many? Well, you never know which song is going to be your breakout hit. Is it song 2? Is it song 17? Is it song 154? Maybe 154 is going overboard. I like 20ish songs for an LP because it allows us to choose the best half of the songs an artist writes, but also gives us enough material to craft a balanced and cohesive record. Not every song that gets cut is a bad song. Sometimes the songs don’t fit the style of the artist, sometimes they don’t fit the style of the record. Anecdote time! I was working on a record with an artist who, like a lot of artists, came to me with exactly as many songs as he wanted to have on the record, no more or less. While I have my double song rule, it’s a soft rule. I’m not going to push the artist for more songs if they’re set on what they want. The problem with this record is that there was one song that stood out, and not in a good way. It was funky, while the rest of the songs were indie rock. The vocal performance was falsetto when the rest of the songs were head voice. It simply didn’t fit, and its inclusion would have made the record worse. So, after some pushing, I was able to convince him to cut the song and write a new one. The new one he wrote was not only in the style of the rest of the record but also ended up being one of the best songs on the record. Turns out song 15 was great, despite the record only having 13 tracks. Write more songs.

After you have too many songs it’s time to demo them. Demos can range from single-take live recordings in a proper studio to something recorded on your phone. As long as you can hear the chords, melody, and lyrics you’re set. The idea is to get a sense of the songs and to be able to refer back to them as you go through your song preproduction. That’s why you record demos instead of just listening to the artists play live. Plus, with the way audio technology is becoming available to everyone, you can easily make something that sounds quite good with a single microphone and some clever placement (if you want to record live) or doing one part at a time.

Once you have your demos recorded it’s time to send them off to everyone. If you have the budget, you’re going to professionally produce every track you’ve written and then decide which ones go on the record. If you don’t have the budget, now is the time to choose the songs, and your chance to experiment. Put things in order, get a feel for the flow of the record, and figure out your single candidates. Once you have your collection of songs, you can get a sense of which ones sound radio-worthy, which ones are going to be latched onto by the fans. The ones with the catchy choruses and the lyrics that speak to basic human truths. The ones that stay with you and want you to go back for more. For an LP, I try and find four of these, and then build the rest of the record around them. When it comes to album flow, like everything in music it’s about contrast. You want to build up your listeners over the course of the record, but also don’t want to fatigue them with everything being high energy. I like starting with something fun and engaging, kicking it up for song two, bringing it down for song three, pushing it up again for song four, and really feeling it out to avoid lulls and too much energy. Do this and, while the order can and likely should change as you get closer to completion, you’ll have not only a collection of songs but a sense for the record as a whole.

Now that you have your songs, it’s time to workshop

Workshopping is the term we use in the creative arts for going through and revising the work we have, specifically in a group or collaborative setting. What we do for a record is we go through every song that we’re going to record and make notes about what we like and what we don’t like. Always make sure there’s a balance between the two. Focusing on what we don’t like will help us improve the songs. Focusing on what we do like will help inform how we improve the songs and makes the artists feel good. Always make your artists feel good. I was working on a song, and it was a good song, a radio-worthy song, but it also was too long. Too long for radio, and too long for listening. The problem was the chorus. There’s a reason most pop songs have two choruses at the end. It’s to etch that hook in your brain, but also leave you wanting more. Put too many of them in (like this song had) and you leave feeling satisfied, but also not interested in going back and listening to the song again. We ended up cutting the extraneous choruses and the song came out incredible. And balanced feeling. And fit for radio. In addition to structure, you need to look at the lyrics. I have the artists give me typed-out lyrics so I can make notes and read back while listening to the songs. I’m looking for multiple things when workshopping lyrics. I want to see if I can understand what the artist is going for. I want to see if the lyrics are singable and the chorus is catchy. I want to make sure there are no instances where the rhythm feels lopsided and like the words are crammed in. Like smoothing out the structure (and melody, and rhythm, and chord progression) I want to smooth out the lyrics. As a producer, my role is to add an alternative perspective, one coming from experience and one that’s outside the artist’s creative process. Unless I’m writing with them, the artist has the final say. That doesn’t mean I won’t push if I have to, but in the end, it’s up to me to convince them of what I think, and up to them to make the final decision.

Once the songs are workshopped it’s time to decide how you’re going to record. This involves whether or not you’re going to do live takes or layer the individual parts one by one. If you’re going to record with a click or not. Whether or not you’re going to tune the drums to be in the key of the song (snare and kick are fine if they sound good, but for the love of Apollo tune your toms!). How many layers do you think you’ll need. What extra instruments do you want? While this may seem like it takes away spontaneity and creativity from the actual session, it doesn’t. It gives you a starting point, a road map, something to do when you can’t think of what else to do. It gives you a chance to be creative without concern for budget and time. Instead of deciding whether or not you want a shaker on a track while recording, you can already have that shaker track done and can always cut it later. Got a fun technique you want to try? Write it down so you won’t forget later. Or worse, know you wanted something but forget how to do it. And if you are going to record to a click, please please please figure out your tempo now and practice to one. I had a record not even be released because the performances were so shaky because the band wanted to record to a click but didn’t practice to one. Should I have canceled the session as soon as I heard they weren’t ready? Yes. But preparation, ultimately, is on the artist.

You also use this time to really finalize the vibe. Listen to the reference mixes and reverse engineer how to make your record sound like them. Artists can figure out how to play and prepare their instruments, engineers can figure out how to record, and producers can figure out how to layer and arrange. Take notes. Even if they are brief. Even if they get thrown out the window when you get to actually doing the thing. Don’t assume you’ll remember everything you talk about. And taking notes gives the artist more confidence in you like you care and take things seriously. After all, sometimes giving their best comes from an artist trusting you completely.

Now, engineering preparation

I do a lot of this. I want to know sometimes days beforehand what I’m going to do when I get into the studio. I’ll look up a studio’s mic list and create an input list based on the type of approach I want to take for recording, and the equipment I have available. I do this so that I don’t waste time in the session trying to decide how I’m going to record (remember, respect your artist’s money), but also so I have the chance to imagine how something is going to come out. With enough experience, you know what different mics sound like on different sources, and how they interact with each other. I choose my mics based on both and do what I view as mixing with microphones. I’m micing with the final mix in mind, not simply with what sounds the coolest on any one source (though I also take that into account). This also means that I can print out several copies of my input list to make sure that not only do the assistants have their own copy but that I can leave ones lying around in case anyone (usually me) misplaces their copy. I’ll have a copy on the mixing desk, a copy by the microphones, a copy by the drums, and a copy in the guitar room, really anywhere where I might end up wanting to know what goes where. I can’t do this if I’m making things up on the day. Granted, there is the issue of having to change what I’m doing, and adjusting my input lists, but that disadvantage is minor compared to what I gain from making sure I come in prepared. And it shows the artists that I’m taking things seriously.

After all that, we’re ready for our recording session! The artists know exactly what goes into making a record, we’ve picked out the best songs and made them even better, we’ve made sure we have an idea as to what we want the record to sound like and how we’re going to get there, we have a plan in place to tackle our recording session, and we’ve all prepared in our own way (seriously, artists, practice) to make the most out of what we’re about to do! The more preparation we do, the easier the session goes. The less time (and money) we have to spend fixing things and getting unsatisfying results, and the more time we have for creativity and for fun. Because that’s what we’re all after, creative expression and fun. And preproduction is fun too! It’s fun to talk about music and to play around and experiment and get excited as you imagine and dream about what the actual recording process is going to be like. The more you do, the better your record is going to be, as is the experience of making it.

(Oh, and make sure you get a good night’s sleep and eat a healthy breakfast and drink lots of water and take your vitamins (especially B12) and remember to be compassionate with each other and listen to your producer and that we’re all here to have fun.)

 

 

Britney Spears Wins Conservatorship Battle

The autumn of 2021 has brought a mix of news addressing the abuse of women in the music industry. The world saw R. Kelly found guilty of sexual abuse after a 25+ year string of horrific ongoing allegations. In the following week, UK pop singer Sophie Ellis Bextor and model Emily Ratajkowski shared in their upcoming respective autobiographies their stories of abuse – Ellis Bextor of being raped by a prominent musician when she was aged 17, and Ratajkowski of being groped by Robin Thicke while filming the Blurred Lines music video. It highlights a huge amount of work still to be done when it comes to protecting women and girls, and across these stories from recent times it’s quite unbelievable that there are even discussions – or legal battles – about what is and what isn’t acceptable when it comes to the physical, sexual abuse, extortion, coercive control and manipulation of human beings.

The #FreeBritney Campaign

Following the Britney Spears legal battle progress since the summer of 2021, it’s been some consolation to see the publicity around the case work in the singer’s favour, and to observe the end of the conservatorship from her father Jamie Spears. At the same time, it’s been bittersweet as more details have been revealed about the singer’s life over the last 13 years and the effect this has had on her.

Britney recently claimed her father had abused the conservatorship and that he had “ruined her life”. In July, her newly appointed lawyer Mathew Rosengart, (who Spears had hired herself) began the process to remove Jamie Spears. By September this finally came to pass, with Jamie Spears relinquishing the conservatorship and dropping his request to extract a multi-million-dollar settlement in doing so.

Judge Brenda Penny has assigned a new, temporary conservatorship over Britney Spears’ estate and financial affairs in accountant John Zabel, who was chosen by Britney and her legal team. This temporary measure is undoubtedly a huge win for the singer, who has had no say or control over her finances in 13 years.

What happens next?

Britney Spears’ legal team then submitted a request to have a new hearing take place that would address ending the conservatorship completely. This is scheduled for 12th November. It will be interesting to see what transpires from this request, as a ruling on either side will raise significant questions once more about the ethics of the singer’s ongoing situation; if Spears is ruled as capable and not in need of a conservator then it will beg the question of why this situation continued for so many years without opposition, and conversely, if she is ruled as incapable and in need of a conservator then we must ask whether it’s morally acceptable to expect someone to work without control of their payments.

Additionally, the technical details of this ruling from Judge Penny mean that Jamie Spears is ‘suspended’ and not ‘terminated’ from the conservatorship which is an important detail – by suspending him, means the courts can investigate further details from the case relating to allegations of his coercion and extortion. Most notably, these claims were highlighted in the recent documentary Controlling Britney Spears, outlining the information that the singer was bugged, monitored, and surveilled around the clock by a security company hired by Jamie, and that anyone close to her was obliged to sign a non-disclosure agreement. There are rumours circulating that Britney’s lawyer will pursue action against both Jamie Spears and the team behind the scenes who benefited from her work over these years.

As the next legal installment is prepared in the coming weeks, it’s safe to say that Britney is pleased with the progress thus far – the singer shared a video while taking a flying lesson on Instagram after her win, saying that she was “on cloud 9 right now”. The public reception to the news from fans and celeb friends alike has been overwhelmingly supportive. We hope the next November hearing has a positive outcome for the singer and will prove to be a step in the right direction in supporting women who are fighting for autonomy that rightfully belongs to them.

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Gullfoss – Sound Theory Raffle

Gullfoss is an easy-to-use tool for everyone from amateur musicians to professional mastering engineers. Its clean user interface offers a set of basic parameters that can be adjusted to improve the clarity, detail, spatiality, and balance of a mix or recording in a matter of seconds.

Gullfoss is providing three licenses to members of SoundGirls. The license includes Gullfoss original, Gullfoss Live, and Gullfoss Master. All are coming in the same License! SO it’s some sort of 3 in one plugin. SoundGirls is raffling these licenses and you can enter here.

Raffle will take place on October 31st.

Gullfoss, Gullfoss original, Gullfoss Live and Gullfoss Master. All are coming in the same License! SO it’s some sort of 3 in one plugin.

Expanding and Building Your Creativity

 

For many of us in the creative industry, our passion and drive for creating new art can come and go. It is therefore important to give yourself the space and time to recharge and reset before returning to your practice. If you are stuck and looking for new ideas, however, I have created a list of a few things that can help break you out of a creative block and perhaps challenge you to think and work differently.

Find a Loop

Do you ever find yourself playing the same chord patterns or reaching for that same instrument? Using a Loop or sample can help break this pattern and allow you to build upon something that perhaps you wouldn’t have created before. Obviously, make sure to get the correct permissions to use the samples especially if you’re going to be releasing your new work. You could always take a song you’ve previously worked on and rework it, chop it up, speed it up, etc. The options are limitless!

Word Generator

If you’re stuck for song inspiration or just need some lyrical ideas, try a word generator. If you want more of a challenge, try setting a timer for five minutes and writing everything you associate with the word you’ve been given. You can then create a song using only the words you’ve written down during the exercise.  It can be very freeing and even if you don’t like the full song you’ve made, you are most likely going to have some words or phrases you can use in another track.

Sample Your Surroundings

If you produce and write a lot of music, it can get very mundane using the same sounds and sample libraries all the time. So why not create your own! This not only aids your recording skills but it can help grow your library. It also provides your tracks with unique and interesting sounds that have never been heard before.

Using effects

Another great tip to spice up your sound is to use different effects on your instruments and vocals. Perhaps pitch down and reverse a guitar, distort and warp an acapella recording, add reverb to drum sounds, and loop the reverb tail. It’s up to you how creative you want to get with this tip, but from my experience, the crazier the better!

Use your voice

If you’re struggling to find lyrical ideas, words or just don’t know where to start. Try using your voice. Hum or sing whatever comes to your head in that moment. If you want to, you can record it and play it back and find a mix of melodies you like and then build something from there. Bonus if you chop and sample the vocal recording and add it into the production!

I hope these tips can help you break out of a creative funk or at least let you expand your ideas and try something new in the future. Just remember that stepping out of your comfort zone isn’t always a bad thing and you never know what you might create!

DFTs, FFTs, IFTs…Oh My!

 

The real-time analyzer (RTA) has long been a familiar tool in the audio engineer’s arsenal. Often the RTA is seen in the wild set up as a measurement microphone into an audio interface. This way the engineer can look at the frequency response of the signal received by the measurement mic. A long-time favorite application among engineers of the RTA has been for identifying frequency values for audible problems like feedback. Yet the albatross of the RTA is that it measures a single input signal with no comparison of input versus output. As one of my mentors Jamie Anderson used to say, the RTA is the “system that best correlates to our hearing”.

You can find a RTA in many platforms from mobile apps (Such as this screenshot from the Spectrum app) to car stereos to measurement analysis software

In one aspect, the RTA mic acts like your ears taking the input signal and displaying the frequency response. It can be viewed over a logarithmic scale similar to how we, as humans, perceive sound and loudness logarithmically. Yet even this analogy is a bit misleading because, without us realizing it, our ears themselves do a bit of signal processing by comparing what we hear to some reference in our memory. Does this kick drum sound like what we remember a kick drum to sound like? Our brain performs transfer functions with the input from our ears to tell us subjective information about what is happening in the world around us. It is through this “analog” signal processing that we process data collected from our hearing. Similarly, the RTA may seem to tell us visually about what we may be hearing, but it doesn’t tell us what the system is actually doing compared to what we put in it. This is where the value of the transfer function comes into play.

The Transfer Function and The Fourier Transform:

Standing at FOH in front of a loudspeaker system, you play your virtual soundcheck or favorite playback music and notice that there seems to be a change in the tonality of a certain frequency range that was not present in the original source. There could be any number of reasons why this change has occurred anywhere in the signal chain: from the computer/device playing back the content to the loudspeaker transducers reproducing it. With a single-channel analysis tool such as an RTA, one can see what is happening in the response, but not why. For example, the RTA can tell us there is a bump of +6dB at 250Hz, but just that it exists. When we take the output of a system and compare it with reference to the input of a system, then we are taking what is called a transfer function of what is happening inside that system from input to output.

A transfer function allows for comparison of what is happening inside the system

The term “transfer function” often comes up in live sound when talking about comparing a loudspeaker system’s output with data gathered from a measurement mic versus the input signal into a processor (or output of a console, or other points picked in the signal chain). Yet a “transfer function” refers to the ratio between output and input. In fact, we can take a transfer function of all kinds of systems. For example, we can measure two electrical signals of a circuit and look at the output compared to the input. The secret to understanding how transfer functions help us in live sound lies in understanding Fourier transforms.

In my blog on Acoustics, I talked about how in 1807 [1], Jean-Baptiste Fourier published his discovery that complex waveforms can be broken down into their many component sine waves. Conversely, these sine waves can be combined back together to form the original complex waveform. These component sine and cosine waves comprise what is known as a Fourier series (recognize the name?). A Fourier series is a mathematical series that is composed of sine and cosine functions, as well as coefficients, that when added to infinity will replicate the original complex waveform. It’s not magic, it’s just advanced mathematics! If you really want to know the exact math behind this, check out Brilliant.org’s blog here [2]. In fact, the Fourier series was originally discovered in relation to describing the behavior of heat and thermal dynamics, not sound!

A Fourier series defines a periodic function, so one would think that since any complex wave can be broken down into its component sine and cosine waveforms over a defined period of time, then one should be able to write a Fourier series for any complex waveform…right? Well, as contributors Matt DeCross, Steve The Philosophist, and Jimin Khim point out in the Brilliant.org blog, “For arbitrary functions over the entire real line which are not necessarily periodic, no Fourier series will be everywhere convergent” [2]. This essentially means that for non-periodic functions, the Fourier series won’t always come down to a periodic, or same recurring, value. Basically, this can be extrapolated to apply to the most complex waveforms in music. The Fourier transform helps us analyze these complex waveforms.

In a PhysicsWorld video interview with Professor Carola-Bibiane Schönlieb of the University of Cambridge in the UK, she describes how the Fourier transform is a mathematical process (think multiple steps of mathematical equations here) that takes functions in the time domain and “transforms” them into the frequency domain. The important part here is that she notes how the transform function “encodes how much of every frequency, so how much of each sinusoid, of a particular frequency is present in the signal” [3]. Let’s go back to the intro of this section where we imagined sitting at FOH listening to playback and hearing a difference between the original content and the reproduced content. Conceptually, by using Fourier transforms of the output of the PA versus the input signal, one can compare how much of each frequency is in the output signal compared to the input! Before we get too excited, there are a couple of things we have to be clear about here.

Let’s take a few conceptual steps back and briefly discuss what we really mean when we talk about “analog” versus “digital” signals. Without going into an entire blog on the topic, we can find some resolve by defining an analog signal as a continuous range of values in time, whereas digital signal processing takes discrete values of a signal sampled over some interval of time [4]. In order for us to make use of a Fourier transform in the world of digital signal processing and to transform discrete values into the frequency domain, there must be discrete values in the time domain. This seems like a rhetorical statement, but the point here is that ideally, we want our system to behave linearly so that the sum of the outputs is the same as the sum of the inputs, or rather there is some proportionality to the behavior of the output versus the input. Non-linear behavior leads to things like intermodulation distortion, which may or may not be desired in your system. It also leads to inaccurate correlations between data. In systems with linear characteristics on the output versus input in the time domain, we can perform processing with predictable, calculable responses in the frequency domain.

The DFT and The IFT

In Understanding Digital Signal Processing, Richard G. Lyons unveils that with linear time-invariant systems (so systems where the same time offset exists on the output as the input), if we know the unit impulse response (IR), we can also know the frequency response of the system using a discrete Fourier transform (DFT). Lyons defines the impulse response as “the system’s time-domain output sequence when the input is a single unity-valued sample (unit impulse) preceded and followed by zero-valued samples […]” [5]. To make a loose analogy to terms in acoustics, we can think of an impulse signal as a gunshot fired in an empty room: there is the initial amplitude of signal followed by the decay or reverberant trail of the signal heard in the room. You can imagine a unit impulse response as a version of that gunshot with no decay or reverberance and just the initial impulse, or a value like a one (as opposed to zero) over a sample of time. Lyons unveils that if we know the “unit impulse response” of the system, we can determine “the system’s output sequence for any input sequence because the output is equal to the convolution of the input sequence and the system’s impulse response […] we can find the system’s frequency response by taking the Fourier transform in the form of a discrete Fourier transform of that impulse response” [6]. If you have used a convolution reverb, you are already familiar with a similar process. The convolution reverb takes an impulse response from a beautiful cathedral or concert hall and convolves it with the input signal to create an output signal that “combines” the frequency response of the IR with the input signal. We can determine the frequency response of the system through a DFT of the impulse response, and it works both ways. By performing an inverse Fourier transform, we can take the frequency domain data and return it to the time domain and deconvolve the impulse response. The impulse response becomes the key to it all!

Example of an impulse response from data captured and viewed in L-Acoustics M1 software

Back when computers were less efficient, it took a lot of time to crunch these numbers for the DFT, and thus the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) was developed to run numbers through the Fourier transform quicker. Basically, the FFT is a different algorithm (the most popular being the radix-2 FFT algorithm) that reduces the number of data points that need to be calculated [7]. Even though FFTs are still the most popular form of Fourier transform, the development of more efficient and more affordable computers allows us to crunch numbers much faster so this need for extra efficiency is less important than it used to be.

An important concept to also remember when discussing FFTs is that we are talking about digital audio and so the relationship between time and frequency becomes important in regards to frequency resolution. In my last blog “It’s Not Just a Phase,” I talk about the inverse relationship between frequency and the period of a wave. Longer wavelengths at lower frequencies take a longer period of time to complete one cycle, whereas higher frequencies with shorter wavelengths have shorter periods in time. Paul D. Henderson points out in his article, “The Fundamentals of FFT-Based Audio Measurements in SmaartLive®” that in a perfect world, one would need an infinite amount of time to reproduce the entire complex signal from a Fourier series, but this is not practical for real-world applications. Instead, we use windowing in digital signal processing to take a chunk of sampled data over a given time (called the time constant) to determine the time record of the FFT size [8]. Much like the inverse relationship between frequency and the period of a wave, the relationship between frequency resolution of the FFT is inversely proportional to the time constant. What this means is that a longer time constant results in an increase in frequency resolution, and thus lower frequencies require greater time constants. Higher frequencies require smaller time constants to get the same frequency resolution.

The first thing one may think is that longer time constants are the best way to optimize a measurement. In the days where computers were less efficient, running large FFT sizes for greater frequency resolution in low frequencies required a lot of number crunching and processing. This isn’t a problem with modern computers, but it’s also not a very efficient use of computing power. Some programs such as SMAARTv8 from Rational Acoustics offer the option to use multi-time window FFT sizes in order to optimize the time constants to provide adequate frequency resolution for different bandwidths in the frequency spectrum. For example, using a longer time constant and larger FFT size in the lower frequency range and a shorter time constant and smaller FFT size for higher frequency bandpasses.

The Importance Of The Dual-channel FFT

Now that we have a little background on what a Fourier transform is and how we got to the FFT, we can return to the topic of the transfer function mentioned earlier to discover how we can apply all this to help our situation in the FOH example earlier in this blog. With an FFT of a single source signal, we can take our impulse response and the input sequence in the time domain and convolve them to evaluate the response in the frequency domain. Let’s stop here for a second and notice that something sounds familiar. This is in fact how we can get a spectrum measurement of a single channel measurement such as that viewed in an RTA! We can see how much of each frequency is present in the original waveform, just as Carola-Bibiane Schönlieb pointed out. But what do we do if we want to see the transfer function between two signals such as the output of the PA and the input that we are feeding it? This is where we take the FFT one step further by utilizing dual-channel FFT measurements to compare the two signals and view the magnitude and phase response between them.

We can take the transfer function of our FOH example with the “output” of our system being the data gathered by measurement mic, and the “input” being the output of our console (or processor or wherever you decide to pick as the point in your signal chain). We then take a FFT of these two signals with the input being the reference and can plot out the difference in amplitude of the frequencies for different sinusoids as the magnitude response. We can also plot the offset in time between the two signals in terms of relative phase as the phase response. For more information on understanding what phase actually means, check out my last blog on phase. Many software programs utilize dual-channel FFTs to run transfer functions and show these plots so that the operator can interpret data about the system. Some examples of these programs are SMAART by Rational Acoustics, M1 by L-Acoustics, the now discontinued SIM3 by Meyer Sound, SysTune by AFMG, among others.

Phase (top) and magnitude (bottom) response of a loudspeaker system compared to the reference signal viewed in Rational Acoustics SMAARTv8 software

The basis of all these programs relies on the use of transfer functions to display this data. The value of these programs in aiding the engineer to troubleshoot problems in a system comes down to asking oneself what are you trying to achieve. What question are you asking of the system?

So The Question Is: What Are You Asking?

The reality of the situation is that, especially in the world of audio, and particularly in music, there is rarely a “right” or “wrong” answer. There are better solutions to solve the problem, but I would venture to say that most folks who have been on a job site or sat in the “hot seat” at a gig would argue that the answer to a problem is the one that gets the job done at the end of the day without anyone dying or getting hurt. Instead of trying to frame the discussion of the RTA versus the dual-channel FFT as a “right” or “wrong” means to an end, I want to invite the reader to ask themselves when they are troubleshooting, “What is the question I am asking? What am I trying to achieve?”. This is a point of view I learned from Jamie Anderson. If the question you are asking is “What is the frequency that correlates to what I’m hearing?” For example, in a feedback scenario, maybe the RTA is the right tool for the job. If the question is, “What is different about the output of this system versus what I put into it?” Then tools utilizing dual-channel FFTs tell you that information by comparing those signals in order to answer the question. There is no “right” or “wrong” answer, but some tools are better at answering certain questions and other tools are better at answering other questions. The beauty of the technical aspects of the audio engineering industry is that you get the opportunity to marry the creative parts of your mind with your technical knowledge and tools at your disposal. At the end of the day, all these tools are there to help you in the effort to create an experience for the audience and to realize the artists’ vision.

References:

[1] https://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/201003/physicshistory.cfm

[2] https://brilliant.org/wiki/fourier-series/

[3] https://physicsworld.com/a/what-is-a-fourier-transform/

[4] (pg. 2) Lyons, R.G. (2011). Understanding Digital Signal Processing. 3rd ed. Prentice-Hall: Pearson Education

[5] (pg. 19) Lyons, R.G. (2011). Understanding Digital Signal Processing. 3rd ed. Prentice-Hall: Pearson Education

[6] (pg. 19) Lyons, R.G. (2011). Understanding Digital Signal Processing. 3rd ed. Prentice-Hall: Pearson Education

[7] (pg. 136) Lyons, R.G. (2011). Understanding Digital Signal Processing. 3rd ed. Prentice-Hall: Pearson Education

[8] (pg. 2) Henderson, P. (n.d.). The Fundamentals of FFT-Based Audio Measurements in SmaartLive®.

Resources:

American Physical Society. (2010, March). This Month in Physics History March 21, 1768: Birth of Jean-Baptiste Joseph Fourier. APS News. https://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/201003/physicshistory.cfm

Cheever, E. (n.d.) Introduction to the Fourier Transform. Swarthmore College. https://lpsa.swarthmore.edu/Fourier/Xforms/FXformIntro.html

Brilliant.org. (n.d.) Fourier Series. https://brilliant.org/wiki/fourier-series/

Hardesty, L. (2012). The faster-than-fast Fourier transform. MIT News. https://news.mit.edu/2012/faster-fourier-transforms-0118

Henderson, P. (n.d.). The Fundamentals of FFT-Based Audio Measurements in SmaartLive®.

Lyons, R.G. (2011). Understanding Digital Signal Processing. 3rd ed. Prentice-Hall: Pearson Education.

PhysicsWorld. (2014) What is a Fourier transform? [Video]. https://physicsworld.com/a/what-is-a-fourier-transform/

Schönlieb, C. (n.d.). Carola-Bibiane Schönlieb. http://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/cbs31/Home.html

Also check out the training available from the folks at Rational Acoustics! www.rationalacoustics.com

 

Herizon Music Foundation Grants

Herizon Music Foundation has made a generous donation to SoundGirls, with Herizon Music’s support we are able to provide 20 All-Access Passes to the SoundGirls Virtual Conference.

These will be awarded to applicants who can demonstrate financial need and why they wish to pursue a career in audio.

Applications are now open until Oct. 31st. Winners will be notified the first week of November.

Apply Here

“We’re honored to partner with SoundGirls.org and their programs supporting women who make music so magical for fans,” said Herizon Music president Thea Wood. “The SoundGirls Virtual Conference promises to bring the knowledge, tools, and skills for sound engineers and producers to succeed, and we are excited to help get more women involved who may not otherwise be able to participate.”

“When Thea Wood and I first talked about Herizon Music Foundation in 2019, we both agreed that ‘back in our day’ women didn’t even know audio engineering and producing jobs were available to them. Now, our organizations are opening doors so the next generation can not only explore but succeed in these careers.” Karrie Keyes, SoundGirls Executive Director

Herizon Music Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit on a mission to uplift the next-gen of women in music through education, work experience, and role-modeling programs (including the podcast Backstage Chats with Women in Music). We envision a music industry where women can succeed based on merit, no matter their age, appearance, familial status, or orientation.

Other Financial Assistance

If you need financial assistance in the form of a discount apply here

Asian and Pacific Islander Grants (for people residing outside of the United States)

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