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Music Producer

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Why collaboration is key

Almost every music producer will need to collaborate at least once in a while. Whether that’s because you work producing for artists or you produce your own music and need musicians or want to work together with other writers. Two heads are better than one after all.

You can give each other inspiration and feedback, making the best song possible.

Increase your exposure by gaining access to each others’ industry network/connections. This will open up more opportunities for you/find more people to collaborate with. Don’t be afraid to ask your partner if they know anyone who can help you with a particular project you may be planning. 

Find your perfect partner in crime through our global community and marketplace to elevate your music to new heights!

Georgia Box is a Music Gateway independent pop artist, shown sitting on a kitchen worktop listening to the radio
Recent work by Music Gateway

Sync licensing made easy

Here’s a small selection of recent projects and sync licensing placements with various companies including Netflix, YouTube Originals, NBC Universal, Sony Pictures, Vice and Universal Pictures.

Each project is unique with lots of moving parts, sometimes we are working directly with a Music Supervisor or directly with an indie filmmaker. Whatever your project, big or small, there’s always room to make things work, especially with super tight indie budgets – we’ve become accustomed to being as flexible as possible with an aim of getting the best results.

We don’t charge for our music searches or creative concierge, so it’s just a case of getting in touch and discussing your needs – the kettle’s always ready to roll, so let’s hook up for a chat.

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Film & TV Placements

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Music Licensing Showcase

Various

Our expansive catalogue of independent artists and tracks allows us to provide options for almost any brief and has given us the pleasure of licensing music to some of the most exciting productions across TV and Film.

New Balance

The Autumn/Winter 2020 range by New Balance for Kids Korea collaborated with Anthony Browne clothing to introduce a limited edition line of apparel.

This music-driven campaign required an upbeat popular production and catchy topline suitable for children that could also be re-recorded with children’s vocals.

Bamtone’s “Win The Day” had the perfect fun and youthful energy which the songwriters Scott Horton and Briand Melanson composed. Happy to collaborate with the creative team at New Balance and re-imagine the track with fun children’s vocals, the official song was appropriately re-recorded and released as “Dream Song”.

The Loss Adjuster

Pink Flamingo Films Christmas time black comedy film “The Loss Adjuster” stars Luke Goss, Joan Collins and Kym Marsh.

Hapless insurance loss adjuster Martin Dyer feels his life is spiralling out of control but discovers that even when you reach rock bottom, that some clouds really do have a silver lining. All music treatment for The Loss Adjuster was passionately curated by Music Gateway’s in-house Music Supervision and Sync Team.

Including the official theme song of the film “A Christmas Wish” by Beverley Knight, a modern Christmas bop with a classical feel.

Uniform Wares

UK-based watch brand Uniform Wares, known for their British design and Swiss craft geared up to unveil their new selection of watches through an online campaign.

Their vision was to create an advert that represents their modern and minimalist style and required a track to capture the attention of a young, vibrant and mixed audience.

South London-based producer Ch!mes’ ambient mid-tempo Electronic track “Apparent'' with its distinctive vocal chops paired perfectly with Uniform Wares’ campaign and successfully appealing to their target audience.

NCIS: Los Angeles

CBS

American TV Network CBS’ ongoing crime drama “NCIS: Los Angeles” starring LL Cool J, Chris O’Donnell and Daniela Ruah follows the Naval Crime Investigation Services team as they take on the toughest cases in LA.

Souluvmuziq’s multi-genre songwriter and producer MadD3E’s uplifting R&B track “Know Me Better” featuring vocalist Bluesforthehorn secured a seamless sync to begin episode 10 of season 11 on a high.

Bulletproof Season 2

Sky One

Sky One Sky One’s action-drama series “Bulletproof” follows undercover police duo and best friends Bishop played by Noel Clarke (Kidulthood, Adulthood) and Pike played by Ashley Walters (Top Boy) as they pair up to take down criminal gangs across Europe in the pursuit of justice. 5ive 9ine is a genre-bending team comprised of U K Rap pioneer Sway Dasafo and Producer Zagor who landed a Sync for the series’ multiple action-packed promotional trailers with their high-intensity Rap track “Born A King”.

Close

Piccadilly Pictures / Netflix Originals

Actress Noomi Rapace (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Prometheus) leads the action-packed Netflix thriller “Close” as a deadly bodyguard hired to protect a troubled heiress. Directed & written by Vicky Jewson.

Working with Music Supervisor Claire Freeman we secured two placements with tracks “Kerbela” from artist Orlando Lanzini and “Middle” from JP.

BROS: After the Screaming Stops

Fulwell 73

BAFTA award winning documentary following the reunion of brothers Matt & Luke Goss from the 80s pop band “Bros”. Watch how their journey to resolve past issues & deliver long-awaited shows at sold-out London O2 Arena gigs.

We secured a sync for Jess & James 60’s pop track “Move” through working directly with established Music Supervisor, Michelle De Vries.

The Terror

AMC

Ridley Scott’s “The Terror” airing on AMC is a 10-part horror anthology series based on the bestselling novel by Dan Simmons.

With a catalogue full of nostalgic & vintage tracks suitable for period dramas, working with music supervisor Natasha Duprey we placed “Candy” by Jack Kluger & Jay Clever and his Orchestra.

The Capture

The BBC

The BBC drama “The Capture” was a huge hit. A 6-part mini-series about a persistent young detective who begins to discover a multi-layered conspiracy when handling the case of a British soldier who is charged with murder.

We placed a techno track for a specific club scene through Music Supervisor Michelle De Vries for this brief, which featured producer Politis’ track “Gravity” within the fifth episode.

The Marvelous Mrs Maisel

Amazon Prime Original

“The Marvelous Mrs Maisel” is an Amazon original comedy/drama set in 1950s Manhattan following the life of Miriam “Midge” Maisel who is refinding purpose through stand up comedy after her husband leaves her for another woman.

We secured a sync for artist Lily Chao, whose track “Picking Tea Leaves and Catching Butterflies” was placed by Reel Music’s Robin Urdang.

Moffie

Portobello Productions

“Moffie”, 2019 London Film Festival’s Best Film category nominee is a British South African LGBT biographical war drama written & directed by Oliver Hermanus. The film is based on an autobiographical novel by Andre Carl van der Merwe.

Working with Music Supervisor Jack Sidey led to us securing 4 amazing sync placements by 3 separate artists for this film including artists Denny Leroux, Structure and Steve Swindells.

Bloodline

Sony Pictures / Netflix Originals

Critically acclaimed Netflix Original series “Bloodline” is a drama/thriller based in the Florida Keys following the well-off Rayburn family (Kyle Chandler, Linda Cardellini) who has a dark past which slowly unravels leading to an uncertain future.

A sync placement was secured for the final season with “Never Been Good at Goodbyes” by Mike Goudreau & The Boppin’ Blues Band by experienced US Music Supervisor Mark Wike.

American Soul

BET

Biographical drama “American Soul” is a series on BET based on the ambitious story of Soul Train show creator and host Don Cornelius. Set in 1970’s Los Angeles, this is a series filled with iconic music, dancing & fashion.

We secured 60s soul group Bud Ross & Pals with their lively track “Do Your Own Thing” working directly with Music Supervisor, Ashley Neumeister.

Ashes In The Snow

Sorrento Productions / Lithuania's Tauras Films

“Ashes In The Snow” is a historical drama film based on true events starring Bel Powley (Diary of a Teenage Girl) & Sophie Cookson (Kingsman: The Secret Service). Set in 1941 during Stalin’s brutal dismantling of the Baltic region, Lina, a young aspiring artist and her family get deported to Siberia.

Our trailer placement was via LA advertising agency Soda Creative syncing independent artist NEVERGONE’s track “Motion”.

Honey

Universal Pictures

Def Jam signed artist & dancer Teyana Taylor stars in Universal Pictures’ “Honey: Rise Up and Dance”. Skyler joins a dance crew to compete for a college scholarship. Discouraged by her family & friends, she tirelessly practices amongst Atlanta’s underground dance scene.

Singer, Songwriter Tyler Shamy scored a major sync with “Work You Out” performed by Spencer Sutherland. Thanks to established Music Supervisor, Adele Ho.

Little Drummer Girl

The BBC

An amazing 6-part BBC mini-series “The Little Drummer Girl” is based on John Le Carre’s best-selling novel. Actress and idealist Charlie gets drawn into high-stakes espionage. Starring Florence Pugh, Alexander Skarsgard & Michael Shannon.

Working with Air-Edel music supervisor Matt Biffa, we secured three sync placements for authentic Greek copyright music productions played during the opening scenes set in Greece.

Private Eyes

ION Television

eOne Entertainment’s “Private Eyes” is a crime-solving comedy/drama TV Series based in Toronto, Canada. It follows an ex-hockey player and private investigator who form an unlikely partnership.

The soulful R&B track “You Wreck Me” by Artists Kaki & Eddy Smith was placed in the opening scene of EP 9,, S3 through Canadian Music Supervisor, Dondrea Erauw.

Girlfriends Guide To Divorce

Bravo / NBC Universal

Produced by NBC Universal “Girlfriends’ Guide To Divorce” is a TV series following a self-help book author who is recently separated and is navigating her life in Los Angeles as a single woman in her 40s.

Working with NBC in-house music supervisor Kerri Drootin, we secured a sync licensefor Artist Sounds Like Moving’s track “Away”.

Friends From College

Stoller Global Solutions / Netflix Originals

Netflix original comedy series “Friends From College” stars Keegan-Michael Key (Key & Peele, Keanu) & Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother, Avengers). Experiencing nostalgia from their time at Harvard together, a group of friends try to manage their complicated lives whilst entering their 40s.

Music Supervisor Manish Ravel licensed a selection of Polish club music frok us for a nightclub scene featuring Weekend’s tracks “Ona Tanczy Dla Mnie” & “Dalem Ci Kwiaty”.

Destination Dewsbury

Independent

British Indie comedy film “Destination: Dewsbury” based almost entirely in West Yorkshire, follows 4 old friends on a mission to see their dying friend Frank for the very last time. The BBC reported that this made director Jack Spring the youngest feature film director at the time.

A song sync opportunity within the trailer was secured here through Music Supervisor Will Smith using rock band The Great Cynics’ energising track “Whatever You Want”.

Music Licensing

Music Licensing

New Balance

New Balance

Loss Adjuster

Loss Adjuster

Uniform Wares

Uniform Wares

NCIS: Los Angeles

NCIS: Los Angeles

Bulletproof 2

Bulletproof 2

Close

Close

Bros

Bros

The Terror

The Terror

The Capture

The Capture

The Marvelous Mrs Maisel

The Marvelous Mrs Maisel

Moffie

Moffie

Bloodline

Bloodline

American Soul

American Soul

Ashes In The Snow

Ashes In The Snow

Rise Up & Dance

Rise Up & Dance

Little Drummer Girl

Little Drummer Girl

Private Eyes

Private Eyes

Guide To Divorce

Guide To Divorce

Friends From College

Friends From College

Destination Dewsbury

Destination Dewsbury

Get opportunities

Sync, record labels, collaboration in our global community

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Sync Licensing

Through our sync portal, make the most of our sync placement postings and get your original music played in film, TV, games, and advertisements (see previous sync placement successes).

Record Labels

Through our demo submissions tool, submit your music, songs and demos directly to record labels and publishers, and boost your chance of getting signed!

Collaboration

You can create your own projects to find collaborators from all over the world!

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Manage your assets
Manage your assets

We understand it’s crucial that you keep track of your projects, catalogue and metadata, as well as the professional network that you have invested so much time into creating. Manage all of your master recordings (Wav files) and assets securely in one solution.

Keep all your rights information in one handy place and easily use it to get sync opportunities and more. Our inclusive audio library search tool gives you full flexibility to manage your audio and add files to the integrated playlist creator, allowing you to create professional playlists to send off to industry contacts, such as music producers, and get you opportunities.

Collaborate in our cloud storage space 24/7 from any location, with the flexibility to manage your roster, creators and suppliers all within one tidy, innovative space.

Take a look at how this all works more in-depth below.

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Showcases

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How To Be A Successful Music Producer

Music producers play an essential role in the music-making process, although at times the producers themselves remain fairly invisible and out of the public eye. In recent years, there have been a number of popular music producers releasing music under their own name featuring collaborations with famous singers. Producers such as Mark Ronson, Calvin Harris and David Guetta have all brought the role of music producer into the spotlight.

Music producers can have one of the most varied and creative jobs in the business, working on all sorts of project management with a wide array of artists. Most producers will work freelance and although it may seem glamorous, sitting in a recording studio with top-selling artists, it is also a business that you must constantly manage. We’re going to examine the role of a producer and everything involved in their career.

Job Description

As a music producer, it’s your job to master and record tracks for recording artists or for your own projects. A good music producer will do more than simply produce the music, but works closely to help develop the artists’ sound and create symmetry throughout their records. Sometimes you’ll also help develop the compositions, play on the track and engineer the music.

Music Producer Education And Training

For a number of careers in the music industry, traditional training and education may not be necessary as long as you have a solid understanding of the technical aspects of your field or practical experience. For music production, however, higher education is advised. As record producers could work with any number of genres and musical styles throughout their careers, an in-depth education in the production process can greatly assist in your future work.

A broad skill set and a sound understanding of music theory and recording techniques – as well as the use of pro tools for creative and technical execution of your role – can set you apart from other music producers and will enable you to adapt to technological advancements and changes within the music industry. As you’ll be running your own business, any training in music business practices and a broader knowledge of industry procedures will only aid your success.

Finding Employment As A Music Producer

Music Producer

When you start your musicproducing career, you’ll likely begin in an improvised home studio. You’ll begin small and freelance until you prove your worth and ability, then maybe secure a permanent position in a recording studio, or set one up yourself, where you write arrange and execute every step of the recording process.

Many producers start their careers as interns or apprentices to sound engineers and other music producers as a way of acquiring practical experience and learning the ropes. You can come by music production work through online advertisements, connections in the industry or your local music scene or by meeting with emerging artists at shows and advertising your services.

As you build your repertoire and develop your portfolio, you can start charging more for your services and move on to produce larger projects with higher-selling artists. You may be promoted within the studio you were working at or catch the eye of record labels. As with any career, hard work, skill and perseverance are the keys to success. A music producer’s career path should always be moving up.

Most music producers working on a freelance basis are constantly fighting for the biggest projects to further their business. Their studios will go from bedroom setups to more professional-looking studios with more equipment and better tech.

If you are working as a freelancer, you’ll also spend a considerable amount of time networking, ensuring your equipment works, managing your calendar, handling your accounts and marketing your business. As you develop your business into a lucrative and successful enterprise, you can take on more staff who can assist you with these elements, enabling you to concentrate on music creation.

Networking And Self-Promotion

Networking

The music industry is very much about who you know. Connections can help you find work, introduce you to more players in the industry and advise you on your career. Attending networking and industry events, like conferences and union meetings, can be great for meeting new people and potential clients.

You should always be prepared with business cards and a short concise pitch about your work so that when people ask, you can tell them what you do and why you’re different.

Connections you make across the industry can bring in business and lead to opportunities for career development. Everyone wants to work with people they like. If you make a good impression and maintain a strong relationship with someone they are likely to turn to you first for upcoming projects.

When you’re starting out and looking for work, connections can be the ones to alert you to job openings and introduce you to other professionals looking for an extra pair of capable hands.

As a music producer, the most valuable people to you are your customers. You should go to gigs constantly, not just to approach bands and ask them to record with you but also to get inspiration for your own music mastering and keep ahead of the curve. Approach bands and artists and tell them what you can offer, make a good impression so they might consider working with you.

Earnings – Fees And Royalties

Royalties

When you’re starting out you need as much work as you can find to begin your portfolio of recorded music. Work with anyone and everyone, you might not get paid the first few times but it can lead to more work later down the line.

Once you’ve got a good catalogue of songs in your back pocket, then you can start charging more for your services. You will have to invest your earnings into your production setup, you can’t charge professional fees if you’re still recording songs out of your bedroom. Set your prices relative to your operating scale, and the success of your clients.

When writing and producing music, there will always be a delegation of rights to the copyright. This needs to be discussed at the time of recording and agreed upon by all parties involved. The way in which the copyright is split should depend upon each party’s contribution to the writing and mastering of the song.

When a song is recorded, there exists master rights and compositional copyrights. The master belongs to the owner and producer of the track, the compositional right belongs to the parties involved in the writing of the lyrics and melody. Usually, the producer or record label producing the sound recording will own the master recording unless the recording artist has had a hand in it too.

Understanding Music Rights

The compositional rights will belong to anyone stated to have contributed to either the lyrics or the melody. Any co-writers or music producers who have also had a hand in the composition may argue their case for a portion of the compositional rights.

From a business point of view, have templates of contracts drawn up before you embark on a project with someone. Hire a lawyer for their time to help you draw up easy-to-adapt contracts that you can alter on a per-client basis. It’s important to have written and binding contracts to your rights so that you can be paid correctly and any disputes of copyright can be backed up on paper.

Once you’ve recorded a track, sit down with all the parties involved and discuss the delegation of rights. If you’ve helped write the music for their track, your claim to the compositional rights can help bring in more revenue for your business and needs to be formally agreed upon.

Skills Of A Music Producer

Music production

We’ve touched on the skills needed to have a successful producing career, but there are so many involved in this field. You’ll have to be competent at all of them if you want to build a profitable career.

Business skills are a must for anyone working for themselves. You must understand all the legalities involved in your work, what insurance you need, how to manage your accounts and how to conduct your customer relationships. If you’re going to employ anyone you need to understand all the rights they have and fair business practices for your employees.

As you’ll be interacting with lots of different people throughout your career, you’ll need to be able to comfortably communicate and engage with anyone. When working with clients, a music producer will need to communicate clearly with them about their music, offer direction and criticism without causing offence and navigate the relationships within their team.

When it comes to networking and promoting your production services you’ll need to make a memorable, favourable impression and maintain that relationship if you want to benefit from it. It doesn’t matter if you’re having a bad day; if you go to an event and you’re not promoting a good image of your work ethic or personal character you won’t see any interest in your business.

Writing and production skills go without saying, but the more ability you have can draw people towards your business. If you can offer creative direction, extra accompaniment, lyrics and songwriting guidance and the sound engineering, these are all marketing factors you can use to attract business. It especially helps to be a one-person show when starting out, as you and your clients don’t need to bring in extra pairs of hands and can keep costs down.

Trade Unions

The Music Producers Guild is there to offer support to producers and their teams, offering memberships for producers, mixers, recording engineers and programmers. They not only link you to a wide group of other professionals in your field but host networking events for their members and provide access to industry resources. Unions can provide backing should you have any business issues or disputes and act as a supportive force for your cause.

Successful Music Producers

One of the most successful music producers of the last century is still relatively unknown within the public view but has written or co-written 22 Billboard number 1s. Swedish-born Max Martin is a producer, songwriter and singer who began his work with high-profile artists in the 90s, working on tracks such as Britney Spears’s …Baby One More Time.

In 2017, his net worth was believed to be around $260 million. More recently, Martin’s worked with some of the most iconic artists in pop, such as Ariana Grande on her fifth studio album, Thank U, Next, as well as with P!nk and Taylor Swift. What makes Max Martin such a record-breaking producer is his ability to craft melodies and lyrics for the mass market.

His work is contemporary and on-trend, tailored to the music market at that given time and appropriate to the artist. Although all his music falls within a pop sphere, his style is highly versatile.

If you’re considering starting your own music business as a producer, check out our music jobs listings.

FAQ Section

Q: What music producers do?

A music producer has many roles that may include, but are not limited to, gathering ideas for the project, composing the music for the project, selecting songs or session musicians, proposing changes to the song arrangements, coaching the artist and musicians in the studio, controlling the recording sessions, and supervising

Q: Who are the best music producers?

Here is a list of the best music producers of all time.

  • Rick Rubin
  • Dr Dre (Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, NWA)
  • George Martin (The Beatles)
  • Quincy Jones (Michael Jackson – Thriller, Frank Sinatra)
  • Brian Eno (Roxy Music, U2, Damon Albarn)
  • Berry Gordy (Motown)

Q: How much does a music producer make a year?

Most professional producers working fulltime for a studio will be on a salary basis and are either employed or paid by a record label. According to labour statistics, the average salary for a music producer is around $55,000 per year.

Q: How do you get a record company to notice you?

Here is a list of how best to get your music heard by record labels executives and A&R

  • Write a great bio. 
  • Create great demos or finished recordings
  • Get researching online to find who are the best people to approach at the labels.
  • Be original, but balance that with being relevant if your vision or being original doesn’t gravitate towards anyone in the public, EG fans
  • Think like the person receiving your demo at the label, would you sign yourself?
  • Make an approach, in a personal, polite manner and give some context to that approach, maybe you reference an artist on their existing roster for example.
  • Submit a demo through a trusted source, A&R platform, such as Music Gateway

Q: How do I get my music noticed?

There is a lot of competition in the market, to get your music noticed and traction on streaming platforms such as Spotify and iTunes. Here are the top ways to get music noticed.

  • Develop and grow your own social media presence
  • Make meaningful connections within the music industry (networking)
  • Conduct yourself professionally at all times
  • Engage with your audience and give them access into your career, including exclusive content through social media
  • Build relationships with influencers and playlist curators on streaming platforms
  • Get yourself a PR or Music Promotions agent, such as Music Gateway

Q: How much do music producers make per song?

Record labels will pay advances when signing a recording. These are called recording advances. Producers will earn royalties on the sales of the record and the royalty advance is normally recouped as part of the agreement.

Producers can simply be hired for a fee and can sometimes negotiate royalty points on the record, but only if they are well established. Some producers will get involved in the writing and therefore have a % of the publishing rights. Fees can range widely depending on the quality of the producer and can receive between nothing and $3,000 per song.

Higher-level producers can charge upwards of $7,500 per song. Famous produces can negotiate much larger fees.

Q: What skills do you need to be a music producer?

Producing music on a professional level involves numerous skills which include using a DAW such as AVID, Logic Pro or Cubase, managing other creatives in your team, collaboration, communication skills, budgeting, scheduling, time management and tons of technology and software for production, producing, engineering, mixing engineer, recording, monitoring and arranging the music. Marketing as a music producer is also a valuable tool.

Q: Who has produced the most songs?

Here is a list of some of the hardest-working artists in the music industry. 

  • The Fall
  • Frank Zappa
  • Johnny Cash
  • Buckethead
  • Elvis Presley
  • Merzbow
  • Nana Mouskouri
  • Tom Jones
  • The Beatles

Q: How do you become a record producer?

Start off with a simple home recording set up, which simply includes a PC, DAW software, a set of monitors or headphones, a microphone and a midi keyword and off you go.

The best way to become a professional record producer is to have the dedication and desire to understand the art of music production. Built-up your own recording studio or secure a job working in a recording studio, which will help you grow your skills and work with different artists and clients. 

Q: What qualifications do I need to be a music producer?

There isn’t a standard level of education needed to become a music producer like there is with being a DR or Lawyer, so really your credentials are all about your music, productions and past clients.

If you are looking to start a career in music, as a record producer, then we recommend you check out the various colleges and specialise companies such as Berklee, BIMM, ACM, Access to music that provides music production programs at bachelor degree level. These degrees range from 2-year to 4-year courses, covering a broad range of experience and learning recording arts technology and the music business as a whole.


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