Meet Trey Lander of Fantasy Lane Studios

Today we’d like to introduce you to Trey Lander.

Hi Trey, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I initially got into music around the age of 12, eventually doing it as a professional musician full-time at the age of 18, performing shows, recording, etc. I had my 10,000 hrs in by the time I was 21 or so averaging around 300-325 shows a year in Buffalo, NY. Ranging from cover shows to blues shows and original bands in between.

At age 22, I attended the Atlanta Institute of Music and received a degree in jazzy Theory/Composition. Throughout my 20s, I continued performing shows, became a session musician for Interscope Records at ZAC studios (Currently Astro) in Atlanta, and taught private listens on bass guitar, drums, and guitar. I performed and recorded from a wide range of artists, from small local acts to major artists.

Where my career really took a turn and began to flourish around the pandemic. During that period, I was forced to stop performing and build my own home studio from the ground up. Not your average speakers and a desk, but a fully functioning studio with a control room, vocal booth and live room, etc. I then turned my 20 years + experience into of arranging and learning music into honing in my producer skills and traits. My roommate Georgii Kovalenko was a master engineer and acoustic with an education, which he shared with me daily, ultimately making me into the engineer I am today.

Fast forward a few years, and through that career transition, my studio, Fantasy Lane Studios, has brought in many artists and allowed me to mix, produce, write, and build my accolades to where they are today. I have worked with, produced, and co-produced with artists such as Baby Rose, Luke James, Summer Walker, Kanii, Payton Moore, and Storm Ford, and I currently have upcoming projects being released in 2024 with a fair amount of Major artists I can’t yet mention.

I am currently Grammy Nominated for RnB Album of the Year for my works on Summer Walker’s Clear Soft 2 EP for the track “Pull Up” alongside Jay Versace, Tim Maxey, Dos Dias, Cody Matlock, and TAuseef Adam. Currently, I am fortunate enough to work with my closest friends and amazing producers/writers in Atlanta on a weekly basis at Fantasy Lane Studios, i.e., Tane Runo, Childish Major, Tim Maxey, Hollywood Cole, Dos Dias, Daijah, “NAJ” Travis Ross to name a few. I consider these a part of a creative circle we are building here in Atlanta, with each person contributing more than the next.

My current goal is to turn Fantasy Lane Studios into an upcoming creative hub in Atlanta, GA. Being housed inside of Madison Records allows me room to grow and continue building this journey and career I am on. I am very grateful I never gave up and continued pushing on through this wild, ever-changing music industry. 2024 is on track to be the best year of my life so far.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
As with any story with the music industry, it has not been a smooth ride, lol. Throughout however, I have never lost my love for music, etc. The biggest struggle has always been the monetary return never matches the amount of work you put into it. Short term speaking, over time, it is beginning to make sense, and certain things are beginning to flourish. But I personally feel with music essentially being free to streamers, payouts of DSPS essentially being zero from a product that can cost us 10’s of thousands can make it hard to continue on.

As I have gotten older, my priorities have begun to shift, and it is a lot harder for me to do things that can seem fun or self-fulfilling when real-life things come as they do with age.

All in all, the hardest part I believe for me has been the over-saturation of music, the constant changes from year to year in the way the music industry functions or presents itself, the quick and easy shortcut route social media has provided, how accessible everything can be, etc., it is harder and harder to make a dent when millions are at the same goal. However, I am very blessed to have made it on top to some degree and worked my ass off to finally be where I want to be. Sometimes, it can be good timing or luck, but for me, it was about hard work and never giving up, even when I wanted to more than once.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Fantasy Lane Studios is a commercial professional recording studio located inside Madison Records in Atlanta, GA. It was officially launched in this location January 1, 2024 and proud to house some of the best and most talented producers and writers in Atlanta.

My goal is to bridge the gap of professional “get work done” studios with fast turnarounds but also create an environment that breeds laid-back creativity.

We offer:
– Professional vocal recording with a booth and outboard gear.
– Professional mix and mastering services
– Hosting Songwriting and Production Camps for Labels
– Room Rentals
– Multi-instrument tracking with Live Room

This dream started in my basement and has now flourished into what it is today.

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
The biggest advice I would give is to stay consistent with your dream and seriously don’t give up on small things or let a single “negative event” stifle your journey. Opportunities will continually come and go if you are active and present.

Contact Info:

• Website: fantasylanestudios.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/treylandermusic

Image Credits
Erica Glass Tane Runo