Sound Business with Akash Thakkar

#13: Doug Rogers is the founder and CEO of EastWest, one of the largest virtual instrument companies in the world. Their plug-ins have given musicians of all sorts access to higher-quality, incredibly well-produced sounds at a moment's notice.    If you're a composer of any sort, odds are you've used or lusted after the products that EastWest makes, and if you've watched a movie, played a game, or listened to any music at all in the passed couple decades, you've absolutely heard EastWest's virtual instruments at work.    In this interview we talk about how EastWest came to be a dominant force in the music industry, their philosophy when it comes to making new products, how Doug and his team make sure what they do will succeed over the long term, and so much more.    Find EastWest at:   Website: http://www.soundsonline.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eastwestsounds/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/EWQLTutorials Twitter: https://twitter.com/eastwestsounds   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#12: Jason Poss is a wildly prolific orchestrator, arranger, music transcriber, and music preparation expert who has worked on projects like Lord of the Rings, Coco, Frozen, Star Wars Visions, and SO many others.    In this podcast, we talk about everything from the countless alternate music paths there are out there, what it's like to work at the top of the Hollywood music scene, and the importance of being a well rounded human while pushing toward a career in music.    Find Jason Poss at:   IMDB: Jason Poss   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#11: Dot (aka Kate Ellwanger) is a producer, online educator, DJ, and entrepreneur who is also now touring the world opening for acts such as The Glitch Mob and Zedd. Dot has also worked with The Oprah Winfrey network, Nike, and has even made music for virtual reality installations for the Los Angeles Times.    Dot also runs Unspeakable Records, an artist-focused music production company that focuses and supports female and producers of marginalized genders.    In this podcast, we talk about everything from dealing with the myths of creativity - and how we must "grind" to get where we need to go, how to show up to get the opportunities we want, and transitioning from musical path to others.   Find Dot and Unspeakable Records at:   Instagram: @dotofficial Spotify: Dot Website: https://www.unspeakable-records.com/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#10: DiViNCi (aka Glen Valencia) is a producer, world-class finger drummer, and creative coach who has toured with acts such as Ms. Lauryn Hill, The Soliloquists of Sound, The Fugees, and so many more.    DiViNCi also runs Studio Sensei, where he coaches creative of all types to create freely, without shame, while following their intuition. I've worked with DiViNCi before and he's rocketed my career and life to insane levels while spending a whole lot less time stressing or overworking.    In this podcast, we talk about everything from fighting through down-points in our lives and careers, how every creative can follow their intuition and get into the flow daily, and how we should not only love the practice, but how we must practice loving the practice.    Find DiViNCi and Studio Sensei at:   Instagram: @divinci | @studiosensei YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/studiosensei Websites: https://studiosensei.com/ Studio Sensei Discord: https://studiosensei.com/dojo   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#9: Jason Cushing is a sound designer, entrepreneur, and founder of both SoundMorph and Sinematic. SoundMorph is a premiere sound effects library company that serves sound designers from all over the world, and odds are you've heard their sound effects in some of the biggest games, TV shows, and movies in the world. Jason's newest company, Sinematic, is a repository of some of the highest-end curated sound effects that are out there - simply search for what you need and use it in your project. In this episode, we talk about building a team, what someone who wants to bolster their income with sound effects libraries should be thinking of, how Jason pivoted from focusing on a 9-5 game audio job to building his own company from scratch, and much more.  Find Jason, Soundmorph, and Sinematic at: Instagram: @soundmorph  Twitter: @soundmorph Websites: http://www.soundmorph.com | https://www.sinematic.com/ And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#8: Sydney Kjerstad is a pianist, entrepreneur, and founder of Smart Game Piano, an online piano teaching site that teaches musicians of all levels how to play piano through incredibly well-produced video game music tutorials. To date, Sydney has created *over 550* piano arrangements and tutorials for Smart Game Piano and shows no signs of slowing down.    In this episode, we talk about the myth of talent in the world of professional music, the mental health swings all creatives deal with, the impostor syndrome that we all feel, the birth of Smart Game Piano, building a team, how none of us can do anything entirely on our own, and so much more.    Find Sydney and Smart Game Piano at:   Instagram: @smartgamepiano Twitter: @smartgamepiano YouTube: Smart Game Piano Website: www.smartgamepiano.com   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#7: Ivo Ivanov is a sound designer, modular synth artist, circuit bender, and is the Founder and CEO of Glitchmachines - a company that makes incredibly unique, sound-design-focused plugins for audio designers. On top of all of this, Ivo has been a full-time touring keyboardist, and has created custom instruments for the likes of Trent Reznor and Richard Devine.    In this episode we talk about the ins-and-outs of starting (and sustaining) a business, what it's like to create plug-ins, how to thrive in the world of audio without a formal education, and how a true professional should behave when working in the field.  Find Ivo at: Instagram: @ivanov_sound | @glitchmachines Twitter: @Glitchmachines Website: www.ivanovsound.com | www.glitchmachines.com   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#6: Jason LaRocca is a producer, mixing engineer, scoring mixer, and punk rocker based out of Los Angeles. After forming and touring with his successful punk band, The Briggs, Jason is now focused on being an engineer and scoring mixer on big name projects like Bad Boys for Life, God of War: Ragnarok, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Fortnite, and so many other huge hits. In this episode we talk about what it was like transitioning from being a touring musician to becoming an engineer, how Jason looks for new clients, and how people new to the audio can get their foot in the door. Find Jason at: Instagram: @jason_larocca IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1103924/  Website: https://www.jasonlarocca.com/ And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#5: Laura Escudé is a touring musician, violinist, show designer, and entrepreneur who has worked with people such as Kanye West, The Weeknd, Cirque Du Soleil, Porter Robinson, Bonobo and many others. She also runs the Transmute Academy, an online academy that teaches musicians how to design their shows and play their music both live and over streaming platforms.  In this episode, Laura and I chat about wanting to do everything, FOMO, running an online course and education platform, burnout, taking care of ourselves, and so much more. You can find Laura and the Transmute Academy at: Twitter: @thelauraescude Instagram: @lauraescude | @thetransmuteacademy Website: https://lauraescude.com/the-transmute-academy-links/ And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#4: Austin Wintory is an award winning concert, film, and video game composer who's worked on video games such as Journey, Abzu, The Banner Saga, Assassin's Creed, and countless others. In this interview we talk all about pitching for work, building a full-time composition career, working in film, games, and concert music, being rejected for projects, and much more.  Find Austin at: Twitter: @awintory Instagram: @a.wintory Bandcamp: https://austinwintory.bandcamp.com/ Website: https://www.austinwintory.com/ And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to www.bit.ly/soundbizpod