No Time to Waste: A Recent High School Grad Gets Going in Audio

We recently connected with Recording Connection grad Shamar Kuteyi, who, in his own words says he went from “not knowing anything about audio engineering and production” to being “ready to go” in less than one year thanks to our Audio Engineering & Music Production program and the hands-on externship training he received with mentor Josh Gleave, producer/engineer at The Cave in Nashville, Tennessee.

Why did you choose Recording Connection?

“Music has always been in my life, but when it came to actually composing music and then production, I didn’t really start getting serious until about September last year [2017]…I was doing a whole bunch of research online, looking up good schools, and then I came across Recording Connection. I really wanted a school that was not like a traditional school, like learning in the classroom. I wanted to do things hands-on because that’s the way I learn best…and I found out that’s what Recording Connection does.”

What was it like working with Josh as your mentor?

“Working with Josh was awesome…I wouldn’t have chosen anyone different. He pretty much taught me how to mix properly and gave me all of his tricks and tips. He has a professional studio out in Nashville off of Music Row. We got so close that he just decided to give me the keys…Then he told me I could come in and work whenever I want…So he pretty much taught me mic placement, the ins and outs of production, and just every key aspect that you would need to know to get started…

I came straight out of high school…I knew I wanted to become a producer, and [that] I wanted to do audio engineering. I wanted to just be in the field…I came into this program not knowing anything about audio engineering and production, and within maybe five, six months, I was up and ready to go.”

Where are you at now in your career?

“I’m working with a ton of different artists, some locally, some internationally. I started off making hip-hop beats and selling those to local artists in Nashville, and then from there, from word of mouth and from marketing myself, it spread into this bigger kind of thing. So now I’m working on two albums and one EP. Yeah, it’s just been awesome…Honestly, it’s almost like a dream come true.”

What can Recording Connection students do to make the most of the time they spend training with their mentors?

“Just be prepared to learn and soak all of it in…You can always learn something. For me just watching Josh, even if I wasn’t basically doing anything and I was just watching, I would always learn something. To see his tricks and how he does things has really impacted how I create and do things musically today.”

What are your long term goals?

“I’m hoping to get my own label one day. That’s all the way down the road, where I want to end up, but I don’t want to just cover music. I want to cover all aspects of just entertainment, whether that be film and television, whether that be dance, anything creative…I love being hands-on, being able to just connect with people because there’s something about having an idea and bouncing that idea off somebody else and then bringing it to life. Just that feeling, that energy, I thrive off of it.”

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