If you are like me, you are a music junkie, just love to consume it, create it, dissect and understand it. When I watch shows like this I am interested in the back stories, who worked on that song or album, who wrote those lyrics, what is the formula for that hit record and why does it connect with an audience, why did it connect with me?
This years Grammy’s however broke some age old rules and norms in our industry. For the first time and in a big way, where music is created doesn’t matter as much. What matters is how that music makes us feel, how it sonically touches us where we are.
When you have an artist like Billie Eilish walk away with 5 of the 6 Grammy’s she was nominated for and win, Song, Record, Album, Best New Artist and Pop Vocal Album and come to understand that the entire album was written, produced and recorded in their bedroom studio, it changes the game.
For many decades music was known to be created and nurtured in multi-million dollar studios, with some of the best platinum recording artist, producers, mix and mastering engineers with equipment that left you in awe with their lights flickering among the endless racks lining the wall. But here you have a brother a sister duo in a tight bedroom space, no vocal booth creating music in Logic Pro without a care in the world, just creating music that moves them. Resulting in an album that rivals the rest in a big way, 5 Grammy’s way!
Now lets not be naive here, this has been happening for many years now and more and more producers and engineers have moved to the home studio, cutting overhead costs and finding intimacy in a new private and controlled setting, it works and has resulted in amazing work. Old heads will still argue, especially in markets like LA and Nashville that the big studio is still king, well I guess thats now up for discussion, cause is it really still? Lil Nas X who also went home with a few trophies has a similar story, leased a beat from www.BeatStars.com, recorded a demo in his bedroom and the rest is history.
At the end of the day, it still takes talent and a HUGE amount of luck to find the success that Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X have found, its not easy and likely wont happen for you or me, but the most inspiring part about it, is that it’s possible! So keep making music that matters to you, that connects and maybe we’ll be celebrating sooner than we think.
