Today we’d like to introduce you to Vlad.
Hi Vlad, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born in Brooklyn, New York. I’ve been a musician ever since I was six years old. I started taking piano lessons weekly in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from age six until about eight. I don’t know why I was taking those lessons honestly. Maybe my parents or specifically my mom just knew that music was what I needed to be doing. I liked playing piano but those lessons were hard and I don’t remember much about the experience overall. I think I just didn’t understand why I was there back then. I regret not taking those lessons seriously because I could have been in a band or played at church and had fun with it.
Then it was the flute for a couple of years. The pastor at the local Haitian church I went to played one so my mom thought I should try it. At least that’s how I remembered it. It was fun to play but I don’t think I cared much for it. I think my parents got a kick out of seeing me play but I wasn’t in love with it. Half the time, I forget it was my first instrument.
Before my sixth grade year, me and my family moved to Powder Springs, GA. I’m 10 or 11 now. At the middle school, I went to they were having an open house for band. You walked around to see what instruments you wanted to play and signed up for band class after you picked your instrument. My mom tried to push to me to play the saxophone (growing up listening to jazz around the house that was probably why she pushed me to try it) but I wanted to play drums.
Looking back that was the best decision I ever made.
Fast forward to 2015 and I’ve been through middle and high school playing drum and played a little in college. I was in and out of 4 colleges with no degree still. I just didn’t have a plan and wasn’t sure where my life was headed. I’m at some dead-end warehouse job going on four years now. For whatever reason, one day I’m at the computer and I just start typing in things like “Music School” or “Music Degree”. SAE Institute of ATL popped up. They had a small ad with a sign up you can do for a tour. I filled it out and didn’t think twice about it. (I tired to go there in 2009 but they didn’t have financial aid). A week later I get a phone call and it was the school. Asking me if I wanted to go do a tour. I said yes because, at this point I had nothing to lose. A couple of months later and I’m in the first class and year after that, I’m starting my internship and soon to be graduating.
My main mission was just producing and making beats when I went to SAE. I never thought about being an audio/recording engineer and it wasn’t my dream. Producing and making beats was my dream. I was all completely wrong though. Engineering was the exact thing I needed to be doing.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It was extremely hard starting out at the studio. I didn’t know anyone in the industry outside of the people I graduated SAE Atlanta with. I didn’t know anything about recording music so I’m completely green. I was honestly thrown into it by just being at the studio so much and every now and then having to record for someone randomly. I didn’t have much money and had to work three jobs at first just to be able to take sessions. Plus, I have severe insomnia. I didn’t realize how bad that was until being in the studio night after night with no set schedule. I’ve almost died from it so many times but being aware of the triggers and setting limits helps me manage it much better.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a recording engineer at Bravo Ocean Studios, I specialize in vocals and even more so singers. That’s what most people know me for. It happened very organically too. More and more singers that needed to record kept getting referred to me and also, the reviews that the studio gets on google got me a lot of great work. I’m most proud of me being able to even get to this point of my career. I’m proud of the connections and friendships I’ve made and the gems I get every now and then from an extremely talented artist that trusts me with their vision coming to life. What sets me apart from others is my taste level, my ears and my ability t9 use all the things I’ve learned up until this point to make a song come to life.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Never assume you can’t learn from anyone regardless of where they are in life. Everyone has something to give even if you may not be able to see it.
Contact Info:
- Email: vlad@vladonthemix.com
- Phone: 404-863-2549
- Website: bravooceanstudios.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/viiiimusic
Image Credits
IG: papalee_music
