On this episode WLPWR and Brian Onrea speak with Producer, artist, electronic musician, composer, DJ, remixer, and two-time Grammy nominee Carmen Rizzo. Carmen has had a very eclectic career, from writing, engineering and programming on Seal’s classic album Seal 2 to producing and writing for Paul Oakenfold’s Bunka album, and from collaborating with Tuvan throat singers Huun Huur Tu to co-founding the groundbreaking world music/electronic act Niyaz (whose three albums all debuted at #1 on the iTunes world music chart). Carmen is a frequent fixture in album credits, working with such artists as Coldplay, Seal, Perry Farrell, Alanis Morissette, Dido, Jem, AR Rahman, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Khaled, Michael Nyman, and Pete Townshend, as well as with record producers Trevor Horn, Rob Cavallo, David Foster and Marius De Vries. He has recorded all over the world, from Abbey Road studios (UK) and Studio Plus XXX (Paris) to Record Plant (L.A.) and Studio 301 (Australia), among others. As a composer, he is represented by the William Morris Agency. In addition to scoring films for acclaimed director Michael Apted, he composed the score for the forthcoming film Perfect Sisters with Oscar-nominated actress Abigail Breslin and Oscar-winner Mira Sorvino, as well as the end title for the acclaimed videogame Uncharted 2.As a member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS – the Grammys), Carmen has served on the board of Governors & Trustees and on the Producer & Engineering Advisory Board. In 2005, he co-wrote and introduced the new category Best Electronic Album, as well as writing technical Grammys for Apple and Roger Linn. Carmen has lectured and spoken about music at such institutions as a TED convention, the Berklee School of Music, USC, UCLA, Los Angeles Film School, and the University of Audiovisual Arts – European Film Academy ESRA, in Skopje, Macedonia.On this episode he discussesGrowing up in California and his musical influencesLearning production and audio engineering at night while being a janitor in a music studio during the dayHow he developed relationships with artists like Coldplay, Alanis Morissette and SealHow he initially got into electronic and world musicHow he got into DJ’ingReleasing his own successful solo albums as a way to promote his productionForming the group Niyaz and traveling the world performing with themHis experience being on the board at the Grammys and what his thought are on the current music industry and awards processHis advice for up and coming producers and engineersWhat’s next for Carmen RizzoKeep up with Carmen Rizzo!www.carmenrizzo.com@carmenrizzoAlso discussed this week:The death of Roland founder and TR-808 creator Ikutaro KakehasiRIP to West Coast hip hop pioneer LA DreNew music released from Kendrick Lamar, Kodak Black, Young Dolph and Freddie GibbsKanye West’s The Life of Pablo being the first streaming only release be certified platinum by the RIAAUniversal Music Group and Spotify reach a long term dealThis weeks podcast also includes a Vybe Tec segment with Multi Platinum engineer Matt Hayes. For more information on engineering courses offered by Matt, look him up at:www.udemy.com Follow us:@FreeGamePodcast@WLPWR@BrianOnrea@MillionDollarMateo
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