I
interviewed is Kia Shavon, who is an audio engineer specializing in recording,
mixing, audio restoration and live sound. She is currently the head audio
engineer at Brook Brovaz Studio, one of the fastest growing multimedia
facilities in NYC. As an engineer her duties include recording, editing and
mixing songs for numerous artists, underground and major. Since graduating from
Hampton University in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Music Engineering
Technology, she has worked with Bernard "Pretty" Purdie (world's most
recorded drummer),Majek Fashek (African reggae legend), major hip hop artists,
Cassidy, Stalley, Peedi Crakk, Smif N Wessun, and many underground artists
worldwide. She is also a part of the NBA Entertainment Crew where she assists
with the live sound setup and production for commercials and special events.
When
asked how she separates the people from the problem she replied, “It is very
rare that I come across clients that I can’t stand. I believe that’s happened
to me twice throughout my career so far. I’ve built the reputation of being, as
my clients call it “about my business” and artists who approach me get a sense
of that early on. So long as they respect what I do as a business, we have no
problems and that’s usually the case. There was one arrogant and obnoxious
client I had to work with earlier in my career, but I had to put my personal
feelings to the side and maintain a professional attitude throughout all of our
interactions because as a professional you have to learn how to not let your
emotions interfere with your business obligations. However, I also used that
situation to motivate me to work harder to become one of the best in my field
so I would no longer feel the need to have to work with every artist. This is
why my second interaction with a disagreeable artist led to me letting him know
that we simply could no longer do business together. I get along with all
different types of personalities. The only thing that would make me really not
like an artist is disrespect, which no amount of money will make me tolerate.”
When
asked how objective criteria effects her decisions she responded by explaining
how she used industry standards, “Determining rates was a challenge initially.
I did plenty of research on what other engineers were charging, which I found
varies greatly. There is no standard rate based on skill level/ experience or
location. But I was able to figure out how to separate my services into
different packages based on industry standards. For example, when I first started
I gave everyone the “Deluxe Package” (unlimited revisions, final mix, master,
radio edit, clean version, Acappella, Instrumental Only versions) for what
apparently should have been the “Basic Package” (finite number of revisions,
final mix) rate. I’ve since adjusted my packages and rates accordingly.”
When
asked how her services is a mutual benefit for both her and her clients she
said, “I come to a reasonable, competitive rate that’s not higher than what I
know people at my level of expertise are charging, but not low enough to the
point where I feel like I’m being counterproductive and have to accept a huge
amount of projects to make a living. I benefit because by charging a relatively
low rate, I’m able to amass a decent amount of clients because there are a
greater number of artists who can afford my service. The client benefits because
they can’t get a better quality service at the rate I charge from anywhere
else.”
