From Ed Sheeran and Lady Gaga to Paloma Faith and the Libertines, many of UK music’s most popular artists have had their tracks enhanced by the skills of producer and songwriter Jake Gosling.
As part of IMSTA Fest held at our London campus, Jake joined a number of industry experts, including Jonny Amos and Andrew Scheps, to share his industry insights and advice.
Check out the latest tips from Jake in our blog below.
If you’re interested in learning more about our Audio Production courses, then get in touch with our team now.
Be open to different sounds and experiences
I was brought up with music, my dad was in various bands as a singer and keyboardist.
I went to uni in Salford and did a course in media to learn more about its relationship with music, and the importance of promotion. It was the time of MySpace, I was gigging a lot around Manchester in various bands, exploring different musical styles and genres. It was the folk scene, I loved the storytelling approach to it, then a funk band, then more indie and sampling sounds. It was a really broad beginning for me.
A career as a songwriter or producer is more than just knowing music
I went to university to study media in Salford, then did some work experience at Virgin Records in marketing.
It showed me that when you’re looking to launch a music career, you need to know about the multiple angles surrounding the industry. As a songwriter or producer, you can become very focused on creating music but there are plenty of other things to consider too.
Try not to obsess over gear
You have to try and make it work with whatever gear you have. It’s not just about having the best gear, The Beatles only had access to two tracks when they were recording.
I don’t think there’s any right or wrong way to approach it with your equipment – you just have to utilise what you have.
Work quickly
As a producer, you have labels, artists, management on your back. So you need to be able to work quickly, produce and make sure it can sound as good as it can by the end of day one.
I’m pretty much writing a song a day and each day I could be working with someone different. You have to focus on staying creative if possible.
Keeping your songs simple can be best
For me, many of the best songs are pretty simple. If you listen to artists like the Police or the Red Hot Chili Peppers for example, there aren’t too many elements in many of their best moments. Usually, vocals, great sounding drums – the unifying factor is that whatever is there is recorded well and sounds brilliant. Whatever you include, make it sound good.
Thinking Out Loud is so simple. It was recorded at the end of sessions for Ed Sheeran’s album X and came together so fast. Ed called me and told me he had this song he’d written with Amy Wadge, sent me a voice note. We recorded it in about four hours.
A human element can make your music more relatable
I compare making music to sketching and think there’s something beautiful about making something slightly imperfect.
With music, I often like it when the track is slightly off, perhaps with the timing or the vocals aren’t always in tune. That’s more human to me and is more relatable when compared with a track that is perfectly processed.
Don’t be afraid to mix up styles, sonics and genres
With Ed, he’s a songwriter who really likes hip hop, and having that kind of kick drum or snare. I had plenty of samples and we’d try and inject his songwriting with them, then layer the acoustic guitar and vocals on top. We wanted something that wasn’t straightforward, that was more weighty and hip hop sounding.
Don’t chase hits
When you have a hit, you can’t let it impact your music-making too much. Just stay focused on your next project as you’re only as good as your last release. As a musician or artist, I don’t think you go to the studio thinking: ‘I’m going to make so much money from this track’.
I’m more about forging connections with my collaborators.
Producers shouldn’t try to dominate the artist
As a producer, your role is to help, support and nurture rather than stamp your influence all over a piece of music.
With Shawn Mendez, I worked on his album Illuminate and the songs were already written. I spent time going through the songs and chose the songs I could relate to the most. It meant that my heart was really in it. We did the record in New York and working on it was a joy.
Songwriting is about building relationships
With songwriting, I like to build a relationship quickly, it’s all about that. From there, you will talk about everything. I’ll have my phone there and if someone says a certain phrase or line, or talks about something that has recently happened to them, I’ll note this down as it could spark inspiration.
Soak up knowledge whenever you can
When I was in bands, I would learn from the different producers we worked with. I remember we worked with this German producer called Yak Bondy. He was very methodical in terms of how we would manage the different elements of a track.
I worked with Nellee Hooper, when I was working on Paloma Faith’s music, and he worked on Sinead O’Connor’s Nothing Compares 2 U. His approach was all about ‘feel’, and finding the right people to contribute to a record.
Collaborating can be a great way to beat any creative blocks
I try not to think too hard about getting stuck on my music.
I’m co-writing a lot of the time and collaborating and I think working with different people, influences and styles really helps. The collaborator will always do something that you’re not going to do and push your creativity into something new.
Connect with new talent
That’s how my relationship with Ed Sheeran started.
I remember when we first met, he’d just moved to London and was living above a pub at the time. We just really got on although we were different ages. But his pace of writing was crazy, I couldn’t record him fast enough.
He was going out gigging all the time as neither of us had much money, he’d make CDs and sell them at gigs – he would go around the bar, talk to people, and would sell them which gave him money to live. We started off together.
Network!
As a producer and songwriter, I was out a lot, meeting people, going into London all the time to different gigs, music events and shows, to see where creative people were hanging out.
I’d meet people, we’d write and record – I wouldn’t charge too much or work out a price that we could all afford.
Ultimately, you need to get out there. If you’ve got songs, they’re no good just hitting on your hard drive.
Study Audio production at SAE
At SAE, our Audio Production Degree can help students learn the latest production skills and techniques to further their careers.
Our course encourages students to adopt a future-facing mindset where they are keen to understand more about how innovation and technology will shape the industry and their work.
Get in touch with our team to find out more.
Photo credits: IMSTA team
