Recording Connection graduate Michael Gevaza starts label Electric Giant!

The Recording Connection loves to foster an entrepreneurial environment for its students. We pair young and aspiring professionals with established veterans and do our best to enable them to succeed. Michael Gevaza is one of the people who excelled in our program and has really taken to heart the entrepreneurial mindset.

Upon enrolling in the Recording Connection Michael was paired with accomplished producer and engineer Steve Addabbo of Shelter Island Sound in New York, New York. Michael then took the skills and craft that he leaned from Steve and started Continental Recording in Long Island City.

When asked how he first got into music creation and audio engineering Michael replied, “When I was 14 or 15 … my band recorded on Long Island with a guy named… Mike Mulieri. I fell in love with it and I just wanted to do it. And so I started, you know, I got my own little standalone recorder, a little Tascam port-a-studio, and some microphones. So I started messing around with it and recorded my own band.”

Michael continued to self-produce all through high school. When he was around 22 he opted for an apprenticeship with Steve Addobbo as opposed to a traditional college route because he wanted the hands on, real world education. As he went through the program with Steve he started gaining skills and other bands in his rehearsal space wanted him to record and produce for them.

“People were hearing I was doing other bands in our practice space and then it just blossomed from there. Now I actually have a studio in Long Island City that I run that came directly from that.”

Michael’s hard work and diligence paid off. Before he had even graduated from the Recording Connection his career was taking shape. People were flocking to him and asking him to produce and engineer their work. He was able to take that money and leverage it into starting his own recording studio. This is especially impressive considering the year was 2008 and the financial crisis had hit everyone hard. Nevertheless, Michael was able to stay afloat. “At first, it was definitely a struggle, as running a business always is in the beginning. But then eventually, you know, everything really got moving…I met a Recording Connection student [Phil Chaikin] and he ended up becoming part of the team at Continental Recording Studio as well.

Now, Michael is working  primarily with hip-hop and rock acts from Brooklyn, Queens and environs. But that’s not all. He and brother Matt Gevaza have started  record label Electric Giant. They just put out an EP by Butchers Blind called A Place In America, and the works gaining traction, recently featured in Huffington Post. Michael is a shining example of what happens when you work hard, stay committed and don’t cut corners. Keep success in your sight Mike!