Meet Matt Washburn of LedBelly Sound Studio

Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Washburn.

Matt, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
LedBelly Sound Studio began as an idea in my head when I was 14 years old (1982).

I had just discovered multi-track recording, and fell in love with the idea of owning/operating a recording studio. I built the first studio in my guest room in Southfield, Michigan in 1990. It had very few pieces of equipment, but I had the drive to figure it all out, and make it work. Moved to Canton, Georgia in 1995, and opened/licensed LedBelly Sound Studio a year later.

Word spread fast about a new, great little studio in North Georgia. Business started picking up, and I enjoyed a constant stream of musicians/bands throughout the late ’90’s and 2000’s. Moved the studio in 2010 to a beautiful spot in the North Georgia Mountains. 5 acres of wooded land, catfish pond, horses, fresh air, AND a brand new studio!

This one would be bigger, better, have more equipment, and more accommodations. So 35 years later, here we are: more experienced, more mature, more gear, more clients, and super busy. Life couldn’t be better!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Running your own business is like a roller coaster. There are ups and downs.

Sometimes it’s great, and sometimes it’s dead. I found that through hard work and honesty, you can maintain clients even through the worst of economic times.

Please tell us about LedBelly Sound Studio.
LedBelly Sound Studio is a full service, multi-room recording facility. We record all types of music, but have sort of become a mecca for heavy metal and stoner rock.

We specialize in being brutally honest with the clients. It’s better to perfect the songs/parts in the studio, than to have an outsider tell you later that your music sucks…..so I do that while the bands are here. lol

It takes some clients a little longer to drop their guard, and understand that I’m doing it to make the end product better, not to piss them off. I refuse to sit back and tell them it’s “solid gold”, when it’s not.

When Clients finish a session with a product they are proud of, it makes LedBelly proud to be a part of that.

What are your plans for the future? What are you looking forward to or planning for – any big changes?
Luckily, I’ve been doing this long enough, and had many different locations to improve upon the last one.

I’m very happy with where the business is right now.

Pricing:

• 8 hour day rate = $300.00
• $50.00 per hour

Contact Info:

• Address: 243 Hwy. 52 E.
  Dawsonville, GA 30534
• Website: www.ledbellysound.com
• Phone: 678-977-6045
• Email: ledbellysound@gmail.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/ledbellysound
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/LedBelly-Sound-Studio-163751533657882/?ref=bookmarks

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