Premier Studios Hosts Sessions with Will.i.am, Amber Riley, Wiz Khalifa

Premier Studios in Midtown has seen a plethora of action recently, with its SSL J 9072-equipped Studio A, and SSL J 9000-equipped Studio B, plus writer studios E and F hosting a number of sessions. Projects at Premier have included:

Hollywood Records artist Demi Lovato was in on a project for Disney Pictures. The song was produced by superstar producer Sandy Vee, with piano overdubs played by Mikkel Eriksen from Stargate. The session was engineered by Sam Giannelli.

Geffen recording artist Will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas produced tracks for Lil Wayne. Engineered by Mike Cadahia with Kevin Geigel assisting.

DefJam artist Ace Hood, produced by DJ Khaled, recorded vocals and mixed. Engineered by Ben Diehl with Colin Rivers assisting.

EMI Artist MoZella, with producer Scyience, has been mixing with engineer Anthony Daniel.

DefJam artist DJ Khalid tracked and mixed with GRAMMY Award-winning engineer Chris Conway, with Colin Rivers assisting.

Cash Money artist Lil Wayne has been in doing several dates, writing and recording vocals. The sessions were engineered by Mike Cadahia, with Kevin Geigel assisting.

Atlantic Recording artist Wiz Khalifa has been in recording vocals, engineered by Josiah Hendler with Colin Rivers assisting.

Sony Epic Recording artist Oh Land recorded vocals with producer Dave McCracken. Engineered by Andros Rodriguez, with Sam Giannelli assisting.

Columbia Recording artist Amber Riley from GLEE cut vocals with producer Adam Black. Sam Giannelli engineered, and Chris Melendez assisted.

Warner Bros Recording Artist Rich Hill has been in Premier recording vocals and mixing with Engineer Ari Raskin. Kevin Geigel assisted.

Universal Motown artist Lil Twist came through to do vocals, with Ari Raskin engineering and Sam Giannelli assisting.

Sony Roc Nation artist J. Cole recorded vocals with producer Brian Kidd. Engineered by Mez, and Colin Rivers assisting.

Epic Recording artist Alice Smith mixed with Producer Scyience. The mix was engineered by Push Buttons, with Colin Rivers assisting.

Berklee College of Music visited with their Student Ensemble, directed by Eric Abreu. Engineered by Tony Black with Sam Giannelli assisting.

Shark Media GRB showed up with production team the Berman Bros. The mix was engineered by Christian Berman, with Sam Giannelli assisting.

Musical Arranger Douglas Gibson tracked a 16-piece Orchestra and Piano for an upcoming major film soundtrack. The session was engineered by Andros Rodriguez, and assisted by Sam Giannelli.

Last but certainly not least, Jamaican recording artist Joneal was in to mix. The sessions were produced by Phillip Forrestor, and the mix was engineered by Anthony Daniel.

Christina Aguilera, Beyonce, Tiësto, Chris Taylor’s CANT & More at Germano Studios

Time to check in with Germano Studios, whose rooms have abuzz with pop music production of late – from the radio hit-making to the avant-pop variety – hosting sessions with will.i.am, Christina Aguilera, Beyonce, Demi Lovato, Ne-Yo and Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor among others. Here’s what’s been going on:

Christina Aguilera was at Germano recording vocals for a duet with Maroon 5 – the song “Moves Like Jagger” – with Manny Marroquin (Kanye West, Alicia Keys) engineering. She’s also been writing and recording with producer/songwriter Sandy Vee in sessions engineered by Kevin Porter.

Vee – whose songwriting/producing credits include Katy Perry’s “Firework,” Rhianna’s “Only Girl in the World” – was also working at Germano with Disney ingenue Demi Lovato, and with pop artist/singer Dev, writing and recording new material with Porter engineering.

In other recent sessions…Beyonce was recording and editing with Danja producing and Marcella Araica engineering; will.i.am was recording for his new project — producing/engineering himself; Maxwell was at the studio working on his VH1 Storytellers special with Mike Pela mixing; Rock band The Kin were in cutting basics in Studio 1 with producer/engineer Thom Panunzio; DJ/producer/remixer Chew Fu was recording for his upcoming solo album; and Tiësto was in mixing with engineer Ben Chang.

Meanwhile, Chris Taylor (Grizzly Bear) brought his new solo project, CANT – featuring George Lewis Jr. of Twin Shadow – to Germano to mix with Jake Aron (Yeasayer, Jamie Lidell). The new album will be released September 13 via Taylor’s own Terrible Records.

Ne-Yo recently recorded vocals for a new release with engineer Moses Gallart. And Alexandra Lenas recorded in Germano Studio 1 with artist/producer Alexander Dexter-Jones producing and Kenta Yonesaka engineering.

For more information on Germano’s SSL Duality + Pro Tools HD5-equipped Studios with corresponding live tracking rooms – visit www.germanostudios.com.

Recording Sweet Spot: KMA Music

Facility Name: KMA Music

Website: www.kmamusic.com

Location: The Brill Building, Midtown, Manhattan

Neighborhood Advantages: There are amazing views of Times Square here, a great selection of food, and our studio is located in a landmark building.

Date of Birth: 2007

Facility Focus: Tracking and mixing!

Mission Statement: “Bringing the music back to the Brill.”

Clients/Credits: 50 Cent, Alicia Keys, Birdman, Black Thought, Bow Wow, Bravo TV, Britney Spears, Cash Money Records, Claude Kelly, Clipse, DJ Clue, DJ Khaled, DJ Swivel, David Cook, David Foster, Demi Lovato, Duro, Eric Hudson, Estelle, Eve, Fabolous, Fantasia, Flo Rida, G-Unit, G-Unit Records, Geffen Records, George Clinton, Ghostface Killah, Gloria Gaynor, Gym Class Heroes, Honor Society, Ice Cube, Interscope Geffen A&M, Island Def Jam Music Group, J Records, J-Cole, J-Lo, Jamie Foxx, Jay Sean, Jay-Z, Jazmine Sullivan, Jennifer Hudson, Jeremih, John Legend, Jonas Brothers, Jordin Sparks, Joss Stone, Justin Bieber, Kelly Rowland, Kristin Chenoweth, LMFAO, Little Steven, Lil Wayne, Ludacris, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Michael Jackson, Mos Def, Nas, Nelly, Nick Cannon, Paul Simon, Phil Ramone, Rihanna, Roc Nation, Sean Paul, Sesame Street, Shaggy, Snoop Dogg, Sony Music, Sting, Swizz Beatz, T.I., The Neptunes, Tiesto, Twista, Universal Motown, Universal Republic Records, Warner Bros. Records, Whitney Houston, Wyclef Jean, Yung Joc

Some of our recent credits include: Mixed: “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z ft. Alicia Keys from The Blueprint 3, “Do You Remember” by Jay Sean ft. Sean Paul & Lil Jon from All or Nothing,  “Throw It In The Bag” & “My Time” by Fabolous from Loso’s Way,”Baby” by Ghostface Killah from Ghostdini: Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City, “Bittersweet” by Fantasia, “Work Hard Play Hard” by DJ Tiesto, “Who Dat” by J. Cole, 12 out of 16 tracks on Fabolous’ Loso’s Ways, 11 out of 14 tracks on Jay Sean’s All or Nothing. Recorded and Produced “Worth It” by Whitney Houston from I Look To You.

Key Personnel: David “Roz” Rosner – Studio Manager , James M. Spano – Asst. Studio Manager, Casey R. Flynn – Chief of Operations

System Highlights: We have a lot on hand, including AKG C12 VR, API 3124, Avalon 737, Digidesign Control 24, Digidesign Icon, Focusrite Red 7, Griffin G 1.5, Griffin LFE 18”, Lexicon 960L, Logic Pro 9, Neumann U87, Pro Tools HD 8.0, SSL XLogic E Signature Channel, SSL XLogic SuperAnalogue, Sony C-800G, Tube-Tech MP-1A, Teletronix LA-2A,, Universal Audio 1176, Yamaha Disclavier 6 Grand Piano

Distinguishing Characteristics: We are a boutique studio with a vibe like no other.  Our entire facility has panoramic views of Times Square.  KMA was designed by famed studio designer, Fran Manzella (The Palms Studio, The Barber Shop Studios, Sterling Sound) who built our flagship A room around his very own Griffin monitors.  This is why clients such as Duro and DJ Swivel (Jay-Z, Jay Sean, Nas, Mariah Carey, Fabolous, Mary J. Blige, T.I., Britney Spears, The Neptunes, Ludacris, The Beastie Boys, Diddy, Ashanti and Will Smith, etc.) choose to record and mix their projects in our extremely quiet and sonically accurate rooms.

The building is on fire, you only have time to grab ONE thing to save, what is it? Our tech, Casey R Flynn haha… and the hard drives!

Rave Reviews: Our sound, our service, our staff, the views of Times Square, the vibe and the stripper pole (always a conversation piece!).

Most Memorable Session Ever: We’ve had many memorable sessions at KMA, but probably the most notable session was with the legendary Paul Simon and Phil Ramone while recording Paul’s single “Questions for the Angels.”

Session You’d Like to Forget: N/A!

Dream Session: We can’t narrow it down, so pick one for us: The Rat Pack, Michael Jackson,
Van Halen, U2, Johnny Cash. [SonicScoop selects ALL OF THE ABOVE laying down a slammin’ version of “We Want the Funk”.]

– David “Roz” Rosner, Studio Manager KMA Studios