Houston Recording Connection mentor John Stephens

John Stephens of Studio 713 in Houston, Texas has been teaching students the ins and outs of the music industry for a few years now. Lately, he’s been really pushing that students should focus on the creative side of the industry and develop strong audio engineering chops and people skills. Do that and you’ll find much of business stuff just sorts itself out.

When you’re first starting out, everyone thinks of the payday. But you have to learn to walk before you can run. “Once that light bulb goes off and they understand the way that all these frequencies relate, how to get the most out of the kick drum, how to get the most out of sub bass, everything changes.”

After students have fully mastered that side of the equation, then it’s time to start thinking about cultivating a professional network. Not before. Making sure that you have a solid, skilled foundation is the key to really pushing your career ahead. You’ll meet people, you’ll gain real world experience in the program, but if you’re not already skilled enough to handle the work, what’s the point? The Recording Connection will help you gain the experience you need by having you work side-by-side with the pros. And inevitably while doing so you’ll make connections and you’ll earn trust from exactly the right people, the people who get you working.

Apply yourself, learn hard, work hard and just be ready the moment that phone starts ringing.