Sound Business with Akash Thakkar

#94: My guest today is Chris Bolte, who is a technical sound designer and audio implementer based out of Massachusetts. Chris has built a wide-ranging library of sound effects used by creatives all over the world, co-wrote the book Elevate Your Audio Production with REAPER, and is most known for his work on the hit game Ghost of Yotei, where he implemented and designed sound across tens of thousands of assets at Sucker Punch Productions. In this interview, Chris talks about how he pivoted out of a music career in 2022 and decided to go all in on game audio, how he learned his game audio skills so quickly with zero prior experience, how he landed the job at Sucker Punch working on Ghost of Yotei, and so much more. Find Chris here: Website: https://bolttracks.com/ Portfolio: https://christopherbolte.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopherbolte/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/christopherbolte Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/bolttracks.bsky.social Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bolt.wav/ Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#93: My guest today is Virginia Leo, who is a composer, sound designer, and pianist based out of Austin, Texas. Virginia has worked on projects like Wobbly Life, had her work played by orchestras around the US, and is most known for her work on the hit game, The Baby In Yellow, which has hit over 300 million downloads to date. In this interview, Virginia talks about her shift into video game music & sound after a classical music upbringing, starting out in game audio by doing game jams, how she landed the huge project The Baby In Yellow, how she keeps her career fun, sustainable, and interesting, and so much more.   Find Virginia here: Website: https://www.virginia-leo.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ginxel/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIzhERvVB_ChM7GIOKGduVQ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1V7owLSpwbwiLVmSmpV2m5 Bandcamp: https://virginialeo.bandcamp.com/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#92: My guest today is Kevin Senzaki, who is a sound supervisor and sound designer based in Los Angeles. He has an incredibly diverse background starting first as a visual artists but then transitioned into sound during his college days. He got his career started during the early 2010s when he staretd working with YouTube Creators who would become massive like RocketJump and Corridor Digital.   Since then, he has worked with clients like Netflix, Apple, Electronic Arts, Square Enix, HBO, Adobe, and Dolby across a huge amount of projects across pretty much every medium from film to TV to video games. Kevin has won four Emmys for his work and was most recently nominated for two Emmys for his work on the HBO documentary 100 Foot Wave.   In this episode, we talk about how Kevin managed to get his first gigs with those early day YouTubers, how he managed to keep working during an economic crash, his minimalist approach to sound design, and so much more.   Find Kevin here: Website: https://senzaki.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevinsenzaki/ IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3339978/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#91: My guest today is Beatrix Moersch, sound designer based out of Montreal, Canada. She has worked on projects including Dead By Daylight, Gears 5: Hivebusters, Museum of Symmetry, Stories: The Path of Destinies, and is currently the audio lead at Don’t Nod Montreal, most recently working on Lost Records: Bloom & Rage.    In this episode, we talk Beatrix’s transition from wanting to work in film and sound design and then game audio specifically, how she started her career in quality assurance and did freelanced in game audio on the side, and how sound designers can find paid work in the game industry, and so much more.   Find Beatrix here: Don’t Nod: https://dont-nod.com/en/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beatrixmoersch/?originalSubdomain=ca   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro    

#90: My guest today is Noa Beazley, who is a composer and music educator baed out of Boston, Massachusetts. She has composed for projects like Protodroid DeLTA, A Token War, and Phosfi working across a huge variety of genres all the way to dark folk music and everything in between. She’s also an assistant professor at the Berklee College of Music teaching game scoring. She’s also on the Board of Directors of the Boston Game Dev community and is also an organizer for the Boston Game Audio community.   In this episode, we talk about Noa’s classical music upbringing, how she rebelled against her roots, an instead went on to study jazz vocals, arranging, and media composition, how she managed to find her first bits of work, negotiates for projects, balances teaching, composing, and community organizing, and so much more.   Find Noa here: Website: https://www.noabeazley.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noa-beazley-b74a7620a/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noabeazley/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#89: My guest today is Alejandro Pérez Heinze who is a composer, Flamenco guitarist, audio engineer, Kontakt instrument producer, and audio educator based in Mexico. He has worked on a wide variety of projects including Kontakt instrument production on Kena: Bridge of Spirits, also working with Austin Wintory on projects such as Thai Cave Rescue, and composing on games such as Frogreign.   In this episode, we talk about Alejandro’s extremely broad career path, starting off as an electric guitarist, switching over to Flamenco guitar, going to college for Biotech, and switching to audio production and engineering. We also talk about his unique skillset and how it landed him work in the game audio industry, and so much more.   Find Alejandro here: Website: https://www.alejandrophz.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alejandrophz/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alejandro.phz/ SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/alejandrophz   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#88: My guest today is Venus Theory, who is a music producer and Youtuber based out of Nashville, Tennessee. Venus Theory is known not only for his lush electronic music, but also his massive YouTube channel. He also recently finished writing the soundtrack for the hit game Avowed by Obsidian Entertainment.   In this episode, we dive into Venus Theory’s rise as a musician due to YouTube, how he landed the Avowed project, how he bounces his many creative outlets, and so much more.   Find Venus Theory here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/venustheory Website: https://venustheory.com/home Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/venustheory/?hl=en   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#87: My guest today is Jamie Brindle, who’s actually our first ever non-audio guest for the podcast! Some of you may already be familiar with Jamie and his work on social media, where he helps out freelancers across all industries, focusing on aspects around pricing, dealing with client pushback, finding quality clients, and much more.   In this episode, Jamie and I talk about the skills, mindsets, and experiences that freelancers need to develop to make sure that their career in audio thrives.   Find Jamie here: Website: https://jamiebrindle.io/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejamiebrindle/?hl=en TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thejamiebrindle?lang=en LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiebrindle/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#86: My guest today is Alexander Brandon, a game audio designer based out of Seattle, Washington. He has had an incredibly diverse and impactful career, starting off in the early ages of game audio working on projects like Unreal, Thief, and Deus Ex. He also contributed to projects such as Skyrim, Job Simulator, and so so many others.   In this episode, we dive deep into Alexander’s initial start in game audio, and how he got started in the field before it was considered “cool”, his views on starting and building a business as an artist, how he transitioned from working on games to eventually leading teams, and so much more.   Find Alexander here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexander-brandon-b84272/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AlexCBrandon/videos IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0999472/ Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/funkyrustic.bsky.social   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#85: My guest today is Radhika Vekaria, a musician and recording artist born in the UK and based out of Los Angeles. Radhika is known for creating the album WARRIORS OF LIGHT, which was recently nominated for a Grammy in the Best New Age Ambient and Chant category.   In this episode, we dive deep into Radhika’s Indian music upbringing, how she became a mantra-based artist in the first place, the challenges she faced as she transitioned from writing music under pseudonyms to finally writing under her own name, and so much more.   Find Radhika here: Website: https://www.radhikavekaria.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/radhikavekaria_ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/radhikavekaria Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6IuevEa6Y34J29zrVYD9Ie?si=54-42qwPSayDLahrQWjWGA   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#84: My guest today is Devendra Cleary, a production sound mixer based in Los Angeles. He got his start working as a boom mic operator in college and eventually got his first big break working on the TV show Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Since then, he’s worked on projects such as Firefly, Anchorman, Sex and the City, and, recently, Twisters and Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.   In this episode, we talk about a production sound mixer even does, how Devendra got started in film sound, how he grew his career after landing a big break project, his work on Twisters recording actors in huge windstorms, and so much more.   Find Devendra here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/devendracleary IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0165837/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#83: My guest today is Alda Agustiano, also known as Chong The Nomad, who is a music producer and DJ based in Seattle, Washington. Alda has been producing music for well over a decade now, recently releasing her debut album titled “Do We Make Of This?” and also working on projects such as Marvel's Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings, and getting music sync spots with companies like Singapore Airlines, Apple, Universal Audio, and Nike. She has also opened for artists like Odesza and Death Cab for Cutie.   In this episode, we talk Alda’s musical upbringing—transitioning from piano lessons to music production in high school, her choice to go to music school and how she made the most of it, her struggles and realizations with the business side of her music career. and so much more.   Find Alda here: Website: https://www.chongthenomad.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chongthenomad/?hl=en Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1TCIxnDm8SASkB6dTMrFCy?utm_medium=share&utm_source=linktree SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/chongsongs     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#82: My guest today is Mikey J, a composer, producer, and dancer based in the United Kingdom. He has worked on a huge variety of projects from Danny Boyle’s Free Your Mind Matrix Adaptation, scoring and music directing the 2024 revival of Romeo & Juliet starring Tom Holland, founding the award winning dance company Boy Blue, and is even a member of the Order of the British Empire for his work in hip-hop and dance music.   In this episode, we talk Mikey’s musical upbringing as a child of African immigrants in the United Kingdom, how he started as a mixing engineer and producer working for the tiny sum of five pounds an hour for his work, his recent work on the movie Kneecap which celebrates Irish hiphop and cultural preservation, and so much more.   Find Mikey here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikeyjdotnet/?hl=en SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/michael-mikey-j-asante IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4647621/     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#81: My guest today is Dror Mohar, a sound designer and engineer based out of Los Angeles. He has worked on an insane number of projects, including Inglorious Basterds, DJ Hero, Fable III, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, and more recently, Lady in the Lake on Apple TV.   In this episode, we talk about how Dror grew up in Africa, ended up in the UK, and then moved to the US to truly start his career. We also talk about he started playing in bands as a guitarist and vocalist and then trained transitioned to becoming a mixing engineer and roadie, how he then transitioned from mixing into sound design in Hollywood, and so much more.   Find Dror here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drormohar/ IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3346677/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drormohar/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#80: My guest today is Andy Martin, a sound designer and nature recordist based out of Seattle, Washington. Andy’s had an incredibly long and varied career in the world of sound design, working on projects such as Grim Fandango, all of the games in the inFAMOUS series, Medal of Honor, and has even worked with Skywalker Sound as a virtual reality sound designer on projects like Vader Immortal. He also has extensive experience in nature field recording as a part of the project NorthWest Soundscapes.   In this episode, we talk about how the winding path Andy took into the world of professional audio, why it’s okay to change your career goals and pivot, building a career while having ADHD, Andy’s love of nature recording and how’s he’s turned it into a business, and so much more.   Find Andy here: Website: https://soundeziner.com/andy-martin/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/northwestsoundscapes Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andymartinnaturesound     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#79: My guest today is Rob Pearsall, a composer and sound designer based out of Seattle, Washington. He has had a career in game audio spanning over 20 years and dove into game audio for the first time at 46 years old. Since beginning his career he has worked on Halo: Reach, Halo 4, Destiny, République, BattleTech, Falcon Age, The Lamplighters League, and many others.   In this episode, we talk about how Rob broke into the game audio world before it was “cool”, the extreme importance of networking, how he dealt with the industry in his 40s, and much more.   Find Rob here: Website: https://www.robpearsall.com/ IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7111207/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7MKfJOI5YFJfr8K4Ur1nVJ     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#78: My guest today is Raison Varner, a voice actor, sound designer, composer, videographer, and writer. He’s had a very broad and varied career, starting in 2006 as an intern on the original Prey game, then working as a composer, sound designer, voice actor, and writer for the Borderlands games for 12 years. He has also  worked as an art director for Obsidian Entertainment.   In this episode, we talk about Raison’s wide array of interests and skills, how to stand out as someone who’s interested in working across multiple disciplines, the deep psychology of working as a team in gave development, and so much more.   Find Raison here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raison-varner/ IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1770713/ Twitter / X: https://x.com/raisonvarner?lang=en SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/rvarner     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#77: My guest today is James Thatcher, a sound designer and nature recordist based out of Seattle, Washington. He has had an incredibly diverse set of experiences before getting into the world of pro audio, most notably working in Michelin Star restaurants in France before making his way into the world of game audio years later. He has released approximately 17 sound packs, with the most recent titled, “Firearm Mechanics and Handling”.   In this episode, we talk about James navigated the past starting off as a cook and then transitioning into audio much later, how he transitioned from working on Halo Infinite to going out into nature and recording, how he releases, edits, and sells as many sound libraries, and so much more.   Find James Thatcher here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skyriversound/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-thatcher-6871469a/ Sound Library: https://www.asoundeffect.com/sounddesigner/sky-river-sound/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAab3LSvQIIpzQ0N-WH-_6lBny6T3EQQEGjRV4F-d9bsfJYrlFuAffv75YMU_aem_5nMgdxQ-UOp1vXWIKTv6fw   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#76: My guests today are Steve “Major” Giammaria & Evan Benjamin, who are re-recording mixers and dialogue editors based out of the audio production house Sound Lounge in New York City.   In this episode, we dive into their recent work on the hit series The Bear, their process for creating and enhancing the soundscape for such a tense and dramatic show, the realities and life of working in post-production sound, and so much more.   Find Evan Benjamin here: IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0071301/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evan-benjamin-a6aa304/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fortytwofortypost/   Find Steve Giammaria here: IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2652377/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hearsmajor/ Twitter: https://x.com/hearsmajor?lang=en     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#75: Today's guest is Nainita Desai, an award-winning composer based out of London, England. She has worked with dozens of high profile clients including Peter Gabriel and A24, as well as documentaries, film, game, TV, and game projects such as Immortality, American Murder, Call of Duty, and Tales of Kenzera: Zau.   In this episode, we talk about Nainita’s upbringing as a sound designer first and how she transitioned her career into composition, learned tons of compositional and scoring skills—mostly on her own—the importance of saying “no” to great opportunities, why we should advocate for our art, and so much more.   Find Nainita Desai here: Website: https://nainitadesai.com/ IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0220831/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nainita_desai/?hl=en Twitter: https://x.com/nainitadesai?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#74: Today's guest is Nathan Moody, a composer, sound designer, mastering engineer, and interaction designer based out of California. He has worked on an insane variety of projects ranging from The Callisto Protocol, Pentiment, to MLK: Now Is The Time.  He has also created sound effects for World War II Battleships, and is even currently working with Skywalker Sound.   In this episode, we talk about the benefits of being a generalist in the world of professional audio, how Nathan started his full-time sound career after the age of 40, how he built his skillset and network over a huge period of time, how to stand out in an industry where audio is becoming more commoditized, and so much more.   Find Nathan Moody here: Shipscape Website: https://noisejockey.net/main/project/shipscape/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/n4th4nm00dy/?hl=en Twitter: https://x.com/noisejockey?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor IMBD: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11708054/     Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#73: Today's guest is Ariel Gross, a game audio veteran based out of Texas with over 20 years of experience in the game industry. He started his career on PC and Game Boy Advance games in the late 90s and early 2000s, and eventually ended up as an audio lead—working on titles like Saints Row, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and so many more. Ariel is now the founder of Team Audio, a team of approximately 30 audio professionals working across dozens of projects in the gaming industry. In this interview, we dive deep into how Ariel got into game audio long before it was “cool”, working on small projects as a teenager to becoming an audio director on AAA games, how he founded Team Audio in the first place, and so much more.   Find Ariel Gross here: Twitter: https://x.com/arielgross LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arielgross/ Team Audio: https://teamaud.io/about/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#72: Today's guest is Aaron Brown, a video game composer, sound designer, and audio director based out of Austin, Texas. He has worked in the game industry for over 20 years now and has worked on projects such as Call Of Duty, Uncharted, Redfall, Donkey Kong: Country Tropical Freeze, and so many others.   In this episode, Aaron and I talk about how to make your own path into the game audio world, how he’s been dealing with countless layoffs and studio closings, how people should network and make friends within the game industry, and so much more.   Find Aaron Brown here: Website: https://www.aaronbrownsound.com/ E-mail: [email protected] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@aaronbrownsound   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#71: Today's guest is Philomène Gatien, a composer and orchestrator based out of Montreal, Canada. She has worked on films like My Salinger Year and theatrical plays such as Thank You For Coming, and even game-specific software such as Wwise in her theater performances.   In this episode, we talk about how Philomène started as a composer, how she started at a later stage than so many others, how she got her first gigs by being in touch with fellow musicians, how to develop a unique voice as a composer, and so much more.   Find Philomène Gatien here: Website: https://philomenegatien.ca/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philomenegatien   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#70: Today's guest is Carla Patullo, Grammy-winning songwriter and composer based out of Los Angeles. She has worked on projects such as Maxine on Disney Plus, films like The Ignition, and more recently her personal project and Grammy-winning album, So She Howls.    In this episode, we talk about how Carla's career as a songwriter and composer, how she likes to experiment in her day-to-day work, the importance of slowing down, her fight with breast cancer, and so much more.    Find Carla here: Website: https://www.carlapatullo.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carlapatullo/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#69: Today's guest is Aaron Cherof, a composer based in Seattle. He has been composing for indie games for well over a decade and has most recently worked on two games that have become huge hits, such as Cobalt Core and Minecraft.    In this episode, we talk about how Aaron has spent 15 years as a composer before he was able to go full-time. We also talk about the importance of creating work, even when you're not getting hired to work on projects, how to find your own musical voice as a composer, and so much more.    Find Aaron Cherof here: Website: https://www.cherof.com/ Bandcamp: https://cherof.bandcamp.com/album/cobalt-core-original-soundtrack   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#68: Today's guest is Zach Heyde, a composer based out of Los Angeles. He has worked on a ton of different projects with clients like Disney, Dreamworks, Roblox, and many others. He also runs an online course called "The Composing Career Bootcamp" where he teaches composers how to build a full-time career.    In this episode, Zach and I talk about the importance of being uncomfortable, the types of opportunities there are in the world of composition, how to start networking as an introvert, success as a content creator on YouTube, and so much more.    Find Zach Heyde here: Composing Career Bootcamp: https://www.zachheyde.com/composing-career-bootcamp Website: https://www.zachheyde.com/    Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#67: Today's guest is Kian How, a composer, sound designer, and music performer based out of Shanghai, China. Kian has worked on a ton of different projects, such as games like Spec Ops The Line, Dishonored, and Marvel: Heroes Unite. He has also worked with clients such as Huawei and is also a player of the Egyptian oud, which is similar to a lute.    In this episode, we talk about Kian's start in Boston and how he ended up moving to China after college, the truth of what a sound designer does in their job, the importance of learning new skills for fun, and so much more.    Find Kian here: Website: https://www.kianhow.com/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#66: Today's guest is James Landino, a composer and DJ based out of Tokyo, Japan. He has worked on a variety of projects including Battlegrounds Mobile, No Straight Roads, Tower of God, Roblox, and many, many others.    In this episode, we talk about how James developed his iconic electronic music style, what upcoming composers can do to stand out in a saturated industry, what's next for James now that he's been composing for 20 years, and so much more.     Find James Landino here: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/jameslandino  Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6xMMOflXnoIA3grU3seMjh  Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/JamesLandino    And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#65: Today's guest is Jett Galindo, a mixing and mastering engineer and soprano singer based in Los Angeles. She has worked on countless high-profile projects such as the soundtracks for La La Land, Chicory: A Colorful Tale, and has worked with artists such as Pink Floyd, Towa Bird, and countless others. In this episode, we talk about Jett's journey from the Philippines to the U.S., how she got into music mastering in the first place, how she faced overt sexism in the industry she wanted to be a part of, and so much more.    Find Jett Galindo here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jettgalindo/?hl=en    Find The Bakery here: Spotify: https://www.instagram.com/bakerymastering/?hl=en Website: https://thebakery.la/    And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#64: Today's guest is Bastian Gerner, a Foley artist based out of Düsseldorf, Germany. He has worked in the film and game industries as a Foley artist for decades and, most recently, worked as a full-time senior Foley artist for Ubisoft. Nowadays, on top of his freelancing business, he also coaches up and coming sound designers on breaking into the film and game industry, as well as how to record high quality using a home setup.    In this episode, we talk about Bastian's career and how he started with Foley in the first place, how he teaches sound designers the skills they need to succeed, why he decided to freelance instead of being a full-time employee forever, and so much more.    Find Bastian Gerner here: IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5588918/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_foley_teacher/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCES-9zV4CV9_BIGrqczAwLA   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#63: Today's guest is Nicolas Gasparini, also known as Myuu. Nicolas is a long-time pianist and composer who's been uploading dark piano horror music since 2006 and has built a huge following in that time with over 300,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, and another 300,000 subscribers on YouTube. He's also worked on short films and video games and is currently working on the upcoming horror game Post Trauma. In this episode we talk about finding your niche as a composer and how important it is to dive deep into your interests. We also talk about how Nicolas started writing horror music in the first place, why he releases music for free, and what up and coming composers can do to get out there, and so much more.     Find Myuu here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Myuu  Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5sP3ci0jwrXUBo76t8pGTF?si=sVFG_WI_TVuUVIUYudUwhQ Website: https://www.thedarkpiano.com/bio Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/myuusic/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#62: Today's guest is Joy Ngiaw, an award-winning composer based in Los Angeles. Joy has worked on a ton of projects including the animated short Blush, Disney's experimental short series Short Circuit, Cobra Kai, What Remains of Edith Finch, and many others.    In this episode, we talk about how she grew up in rural Malaysia, made her way to Shanghai, China, and eventually Boston to study at the Berklee College of Music. We also talk about how she got into composition from her early days as a classical pianist, how her first gigs came about, and much more.    Find Joy Ngiaw here: Website: https://www.joyngiaw.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joyngiaw/ IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7267486/?ref_=rvi_nm Twitter: https://twitter.com/joyngiaw    And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#61: Today's guest is ZW Buckley, a musician, producer, and composer based in Seattle writing in a broad variety of genres and styles for a ton of different projects. His work includes writing a pop soundtrack for Barbie: You Can Be A Fashion Designer VR, teaching music production at Point Blank Music School and running the game audio co-op, Plant Based Audio.    In this episode, ZW and I talk about how to join and be a part of the game dev community quickly, how to find your first projects, how to learn and practice the skill of music production, getting over the fear of jumping in and becoming a full-time artist, and so much more.    Find ZW Buckley here: Website: https://www.zwbuckley.com/  Newsletter: https://zwbuckley.substack.com/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#60: Today's guest is Christian Büttner A.K.A. TheFatRat, who is a producer, DJ, and musician based mainly out of Germany. Chris has millions of listeners from all over the world, and has accumulated billions of plays so far. He did this without a major record label, all while giving his music away for free.    In this episode, we talk about how he started in the world of classical music and transitioned into electronic music much later. We also go into how he taught himself electric music production skills, why he releases basically all of his music for free and lets people use his music, why he steers artists away from signing with major labels, and much more.    Find TheFatRat here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCa_UMppcMsHIzb5LDx1u9zQ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3OKg7YbOIatODzkRIbLJR4 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefatratofficial/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#59: Today's guest is Henri Sorvali, a musician and composer based in Finland. He started off his career has a classical and jazz pianist who ended up starting two successful Finnish black metal bands, Moonsorrow and Finntroll. He is also a full-time game composer working in-house at Rovio Entertainment, the company most famously known for The Angry Birds games.    In this episode, we talk about how why Henri stopped his life of being a touring musician in front of thousands of screaming fans to instead focus on video game composition, how he ended up in the world of metal music, and how he made the transition from heavy metal music to making lighter-hearted video game music, and much more.    Find Henri Sorvali here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/trollhornmusic Website: http://www.trollhorn.com/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#58: Today's guest is Nuno Fonseca, founder of the company Sound Particles. Sound Particles started off their journey by making a piece of software with the same name, which allows anyone to create immersive 3D audio. Since their founding, Sound Particles has gone on to be used in countless movies, TV shows, and video games such as Oppenheimer, Assassin's Creed Origins, Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, and many others.     In this episode, we talk about how Nuno got started in the world of creating audio software, what it was like promoting Sound Particles in the beginning, what he believes the future of audio is, and much more.    Find Nuno Fonseca and Sound Particles here: Website: https://soundparticles.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soundparticles/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoundParticles Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sound.particles     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#57: Today's guest is Katherine Tole, a voice actor and dialogue editor based in Seattle. She's a dialogue editor at Jackbox Games and is working on the soon-to-be released Jackbox Party Pack 10. She's also teaching courses on how to get jobs as a voice actor, especially through the voiceover marketplace Voice123. She's currently working on some exciting top-secret projects as well.    In this episode, we talk about how Katherine transitioned from being a full-time engineer in Silicon Valley to becoming a voice actor, how she got her first gigs in the world of voiceover, how to stand out in a sea of thousands of other voice actors, and much more.    Find Katherine Tole here: Website: https://katherinetole.com/ Video Game Audio Collective: https://plantbasedaud.io/ Jackbox Games: https://www.jackboxgames.com/     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#56: Today's guest is Dawn M. Bennett, a voice actor based in Los Angeles. Dawn has been a professional voice actor for almost ten years, and has voiced hundreds of characters across games, movies, and anime. She's worked on iconic franchises such as Dragon Ball Super, World of Warcraft, Street Fighter VI, Monster Hunter, Diablo IV, Pokemon, and Attack on Titan, among many others.    In this episode, we talk about Dawn's rise to voice acting success considering she didn't go to theater or acting school, her advice for up and coming voice actors, how she made the move to Los Angeles and thrived there, and many more.    Find Dawn M. Bennett here: Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/DawnMBennettVA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dawnmbennettva/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DawnMBennettVA   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#55: Today's guest is Amit May Cohen, a composer based in Los Angeles. Amit has worked on projects such as Zombies 2 and 3, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, The Dreamlife of Georgie Stone, and many others.   In this episode, we talk about her journey into becoming a film composer in L.A., her growth as a musician over the years, how she recommends new composers break into the industry and Hollywood scene, and so much more.    Find Amit May Cohen here: Website: http://www.amitmaycohen.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amitmaycohen_composer/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0XmtL3Aq8d8KtOoqb77MKV?si=htVO1smWRw6n4uK2OeS8Hw   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#54: Today's guest is Chris Parker, a freelance sound designer based in Seattle. He has worked on games such as Shadows Over Loathing, Wizard with a Gun, Beast Breaker, and is also the wonderful editor of this podcast.    In this episode, we talk about how I met Chris years ago at a PAX Conference in Seattle. Since moving from Seattle, Chris has gone from being a budding sound designer to a being a full-time pro. We also talk about his journey on becoming a full-time sound designer knowing especially that he did not go to college for it.    Find Chris Parker here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/CpSqueaks Website: https://www.chrisparker.audio/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#53: Today's guests are Adam Lukas and James Everingham, composers based out of Los Angeles and working in Hans Zimmer's collective known as Bleeding Fingers Music. Adam and James have worked on tons of film and TV projects over their careers and have recently written music for the document Frozen Planet II, alongside Hans Zimmer.     In this episode we talk about how there's quite a lot of opportunity for film composers and how you have to be willing to look for it and why these composers decided to work within a composers' collective. We also talk about working on insanely short timelines in Hollywood, what to do if you're not working in Los Angeles, and so much more.    Find Adam and James here: Frozen Planet II on Spotify and Apple Music: https://open.spotify.com/album/6sUYeUEUvgvnMIff7pTNnJ https://music.apple.com/id/album/frozen-planet-ii-original-television-soundtrack/1641264317   Adam's Website: https://www.adam-lukas.com/ Adam's Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/adamlukasmusic/?hl=en -- James' Website: https://www.jameseveringham.com/ James' Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jameseveringham/ James' Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2gn4jnqcC9yMXt6433gleQ   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#52: Today's guest is Nathan Ruyle. He is a sound designer and founder of the company This Is Sound Design.   In this episode, we talk about Nathan's climb in the industry, why he decided to start a sound design company that focuses on more creative and independent projects over the big Hollywood blockbusters, the identity crisis that sound for film is currently going through, and much more.   Find Nathan Ruyle here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tisdstudios/ Facebook: https://tisd.tv/ Website: https://tisd.tv/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#51: Today's guest is Philip White, a composer who has worked on video game, TV, and film projects such as Agent Carter, The Sims 3, and Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3. He has composed for over 142 episodes of Supernatural and is also currently composing for Supernatural's pre-sequel, The Winchesters.  In this episode, we talk about how what it's like to compose for hundreds of episodes of the same TV show, how he stays fresh creatively between projects, and how he started as a drama major before transitioning into the music world, and so much more.    Find Philip White here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philipwhitemusic YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@philipwhite9905 Email: [email protected] Personal Website: http://www.philipwhitemusic.com   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#50: Today's guest is Tony Manfredonia, who is a composer and singer-songwriter based in rural Michigan. He's worked on projects such as Kharon's Crypt and Call of Saregnar. He is also a concert composer who teaches composition students online.  In this episode, we talk about how Tony manages to make a living in music online while living in a rural town, how he handled low points in his career, and how balancing work and life is one of the best decisions he has ever made, among many other things.    Find Tony Manfredonia here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tony_manfredonia/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TonyManfredonia TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tonymanfredonia YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tonymanfredoniamusic Personal Website: https://www.manfredoniamusic.com/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#49: Today's guest is Mason Lieberman, a composer for games, TV,  film, and anime. He has worked on a huge variety of projects including RWBY, Beyblade, Gundam, Apex Legends, and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG).   In this episode, we talk about how Mason grew such a successful career in a short amount of time, how he learned to write in so many musical styles, how he networks with people around the world, and so much more.    Find Mason Lieberman here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mason.lieberman/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/MasonLieberman Personal Website: https://www.masonlieberman.com/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#48: Today's guest is Troupe Gammage, a composer, voice actor, and sound designer who's currently travelling the world and not staying in one place for very long.     In this episode, we talk about Troupe's work on games such as Solar Ash and Lord of the Rings Online, how he learned the skills of both music and sound design, and how he got into voice acting and voicing multiple characters. We also talk about his days touring with his bands SPEAK, RAC, and The Chain Gang of 1974 and how he's managing his work as a frequent traveller.    Find Troupe Gammage here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/troupegammage/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/troupegammage Personal Website: https://www.troupegammage.com/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#47: Today's guest is Joel Corelitz, who is a composer for film and games based in Chicago. He has worked on a large number of projects such as Hyper Light Breaker, Halo Infinite, Solar Ash, Death Stranding, The Unfinished Swan, and many others.   In this episode, we talk about Joel's creative process, how he ended up working on such huge projects despite his distance from LA, what he does when feeling a creative block, and so much more.    Find Joel Corelitz here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joelcorelitz/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/joelcorelitz Personal Website: https://joelcorelitz.com/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#46: Our guest today is Bill Lacey, a grammy-award winning sound designer,  re-recording mixer, and mastering engineer based in New York City. He has worked on countless projects including Major League Baseball, the Halo TV series, Showtime, and much more.    In this episode, we talk about the industry changes Bill has seen in his time in the audio field and how he broke into doing such a varied amount of projects. We also talk about his teaching work and how he brings up the next generation of audio students, and why he's still pushing himself to learn new things such as game audio even with an established career in the world of TV, film, and advertising.    Find Bill Lacey here: Twitter: https://twitter.com/protoolsmixer LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-lacey/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod  

#45: Our guest today is Adam Kallibjian, who is a composer and music editor based in Los Angeles. He has worked on projects such as The Last of Us 2, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and much more.    In this episode, we talk about what a music editor does, how to break into this field, and how there are countless different ways to get to the career of your dreams in music or sound.    Find Adam Kallibjian here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamkallibjian/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/adamkallibjian   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod