How To Tell If You’d Be A Good Producer

(A producer of music, not a movie producer – who knows what the f*ck they do?*)

The guy behind the curtain

It’s pretty straightforward.

1. Do you, or have you ever, looked at songs like paintings, tapestries, puzzles?

3. Do you like writing? (It’s definitely not a prerequisite that you’re a writer yourself, but an understanding of the process is crucial.)

Godfrey Diamond and David Bronson during the preproduction of Questions, Perfect Mixes, Brooklyn

4. Is it relatively easy for you to see how different parts of a song work together?

7. Are you willing to do just about anything within your power to make sure not only that a project finishes but that each step and each role has been done to the very best of each team member’s abilities?

Godfrey Diamond directing rehearsals for Questions, CMS Brooklyn

8. Are you good at directing others, most importantly at working with artists and performers in ways that would elicit them to give you the very best that they’ve got?

GD running things at basic tracking, Mission Sound, Brooklyn

Checking in with The Alomars during background vocals

9. Do you think you have a natural ear for knowing when something’s good or not?
(This one is absolutely crucial, and obviously also the hardest (impossible, actually) to quantify. But “a great ear” – which, in this case, has nothing to do with pitch, and everything to do with sensing quality – is probably the single most important aspect, and the most telling indication as to whether or not this would be something you would be good at. As with most other things in life, if you (honestly) believe very strongly that this is a strength of yours, it probably is.)

GD and DB listening to playbacks during Questions postproduction.

10. DO YOU LOVE MUSIC MORE THAN JUST ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE ON THE PLANET??

GD getting down during a playback of “Task”

11. And also lastly, DO YOU WANT TO BE A MUSIC PRODUCER??

If the answer was yes to most or all of these, there’s a pretty good chance you could be a great one.

This is most definitely not everything that’s involved..

but after not only doing it myself, but from working with one of the great living producers over the course of multiple years and albums, these are the main things that come to mind (and probably the most critical ones).

All the other stuff you can learn (and in many cases, you never need to and shouldn’t anyway. That’s what engineers are for!).

Even before I knew what it was, the producing (and arranging) side of song and album creation was every bit as exciting to me as writing and performing the music, and it still is. Big time.

If you did say “yes” to all of these, you should probably be making music.

Go do it (if you’re not already). And feel free to link to some of your results in the comments below, we would love to listen to what you come up with.

And when you think of one of the million other things I’ve forgotten to mention please also leave them in the comments below! Maybe they’ll get added to the list.

Go make some amazing music,
David

*Also, many people know this, but at least as many don’t, so it’s worth mentioning that the producer in music is exactly analogous to the director in movies. That’s a good way to think about it.

I.e…

It’s a quintessentially creative role.

In fact, in many instances (like the pop or Electronic/EDM world) the producer can have way more of an influential role as to the finished product than the artist.

I once got in a heated debate with a young woman, a U2 fan, who literally got offended (she was pissed!) at my assertion that the producers, Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, of the band’s early seminal albums The Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby were at least as responsible for the sounds of those albums as the band itself.

Ah well, shows you what most people know.

Oh yeah, one last thing I forgot..

Producers gotta have cool shoes! ;)

The one and only Godfrey Diamond