Steve Foggin at 35th St. Studios

Steve Foggin loves hosting apprentices at 35th Street Studios in Chicago, allowing the students to come in and observe sessions. During their sessions both on and off the clock, Steve’s students get to work on a lot of hands-on projects using the equipment in the studio. After their apprenticeship, Steve often brings graduates back in for the opportunity to be technical advisors; his studio is truly a home for engineers to “find a playground” to get comfortable in.

On making a demo:
“You have to do your best with what you have. If you can get a producer past the first part of the song and into the chorus, your track will go into the good pile. It must sound, at least, “basic but good”, good enough to get the track through the door. They [the artists] shouldn’t be working with any materials less than top-notch — and of course, always showcase their best songs and material first.

“In the world we live in today, you can make $2,000 go a long way — much farther than previously. [Back] then, it would cost you $2,000 just for recording quality tapes to get you in the front door. We cater to budget projects here. For example, a rap demo can be made for as little as $200. You can see our venue and do a video tour at BunkerOP.com, and see the difference. See why you truly need a good engineer.”

35th Street Studios recently landed an East African Gospel project and a classical Latino ballad project.

“In my day, it was all ‘learn as you go’ — it’s a changing world, and you have to be really dedicated,” Steve says.

Steve has been all over Europe and Scandinavia in his life and travels, but he really enjoys working with up-and-coming artists who want to learn the business.