Making a Scene Presents

Making a Scene Presents - What the Hell Is an AI Agent and How can you Use it for your Music Business

Let’s strip the mystery away right now. An AI Agent is not a robot. It’s not a sci-fi brain. It’s not some Silicon Valley thing meant for billion-dollar companies. An AI Agent is simply a digital helper that can think through tasks, make decisions, and take action for you, without you babysitting every step.

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Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Johnny "V" Vernazza

Johnny “V” Vernazza was born in San Francisco and raised in Daly City, right in the middle of one of the most explosive music scenes in American history. In the 1960s, the Bay Area wasn’t just alive with music, it was overflowing. Clubs were everywhere, and it was normal to jam at four or five spots in a single night. Add legendary rooms like the Fillmore, the Avalon Ball...

Making a Scene Presents Gerry Casey's Interview with Laura Rain

Detroit is a city built on grit. After decades of being written off, it is rebuilding itself as a powerful center of ideas, art, and creation. The city is once again attracting artists, innovators, and dreamers who bring new energy and purpose to the Motor City. Detroit didn’t lose its soul. It was just waiting for the right moment to rise again.

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Making a Scene Presents - Why the Music Industry Middle Class Matters More Than Superstars
The Lie We Were All Sold

From the very beginning, most musicians are taught the same story, whether anyone ever says it out loud or not. If you work hard enough, sacrifice enough, and stick it out long enough, someone with power will eventually notice you. A label. A manager. A gatekeeper of some kind. That moment, we’re told, is when your real...

Making a Scene Presents - The Power of Reference Tracks: Learning to Mix by Listening

If you want your mixes to sound more “pro” without buying more gear or plugins, this is the shortcut nobody talks about enough. Reference tracks. Not copying. Not stealing ideas. Just listening smarter.

Most indie artists think mixing is about twisting knobs until things sound good. That’s half true. The real skill is knowing what “good” even sounds...

Making a Scene Presents - Record Labels Should Be Terrified: Artists Are Building Their Own Economies

For most of music history, there was one road. If you wanted a career, you went through a major label. They had the money, the power, the distribution, and the connections. Artists were told this was the only way. Sign the deal. Give up ownership. Wait to get paid later. Maybe. That story is breaking down fast. Today, artists are qu...

Making a Scene Presents - Web3 Sync Licensing: Decentralizing the Music-to-Media Pipeline
The Old Sync Game Is Rigged (And Indie Artists Know It)

If you are an independent artist, you already know the truth about sync licensing, even if nobody ever said it out loud. The system is closed. The gates are tall. The same names show up again and again in film, TV, and video games. Music supervisors pull from trusted libraries, pre-cleared ...

Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Murali Coryell

Murali Coryell’s story is one of deep roots, hard-earned growth, and a lifelong connection to music that runs far deeper than a famous last name. His journey started before he could walk. He was held as a baby by Jimi Hendrix, lived with Carlos Santana, and grew up around dinner tables shared with Miles Davis. Music wasn’t something he chose later in life. It was the air he br...

Making a Scene Presents an interview with Robert Top Thomas

Robert “Top” Thomas comes straight out of the Florida backroads, where the air is thick, the nights are loud, and the blues still mean something. He’s a swamp blues musician in the truest sense, pulling his sound from muddy rhythms, raw guitar tones, and stories that feel lived in, not written for show. When Top sings, it sounds like a late-night confession on a screened-in...

Making a Scene Presents Ace Studio 2.0 Artist Edition: The Deep-Dive Review Every Indie Musician Needs

The walls of the old music industry are falling, and indie artists are finally getting the tools they deserve. For years, only big studios and big budgets had access to high-end vocal production, full instrument libraries, and teams of session singers ready to jump in at any moment. But now there’s Ace Studio 2.0 Artist Edition, a ...

Making a Scene Presents - Decentralized Touring & Ticketing: Taking Control of Live Revenue

If you’re an independent artist, you already know the truth. Touring is the lifeline. It’s the one place where you can still earn real money, meet real fans, and feel like you have a shot at building something that actually belongs to you. But the moment you step onto the traditional touring path, you slam headfirst into the same old walls th...

Making a Scene Presents - How to Use AI Art to Build a Visual Brand Fans Remember

How indie artists can use Midjourney, Ideogram, and Leonardo.ai to create a powerful, consistent visual world

When people talk about branding in the music industry, it usually sounds like something only major labels can afford. Big agencies. Big budgets. Big teams deciding what your album art should look like or what colors fit your vibe. But that world...

Making a Scene Presents - The American Music Fairness Act: What It Really Means for Indie Artists in a World Where Radio Isn’t King Anymore

For years the music business has danced around the same old question. Who gets paid when radio spins a song? If you think the artist gets a piece of that pie, you’re giving the system more credit than it deserves. The truth is, in the United States, the performer and the owner of the recording s...

Making a Scene Presents Gerry Casey's Interview with Claudia Cane

Claudia Cane has been a force in the music scene for almost 25 years. German audiences first got to know her as the voice behind several SAT.1 TV theme songs, including the tracks for Benzin im Blut with Sonja Kirchberger, 36 Stunden Angst, and Die rote Meile. Her distinctive, raspy voice stood out right away. After spending five years in London completing professiona...

Making a Scene Presents - The Secret Power of Sidechains: How They Shape Modern Mixes

If you’ve ever looked at a compressor or a gate and wondered what the little “Sidechain” button does, you’re not alone. Most beginners skip right past it because it looks like something made for scientists, not indie musicians working in a home studio. But the truth is simple. A sidechain is just a way to let one sound control what happens to anoth...

Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Paul Filipowicz

He has been playing the blues for more than 40 years, all while working full-time in construction and roofing to make a living. This year, worn-out knees and elbows finally pushed him into retirement from the heavy labor. Even so, he hasn’t slowed down. He’s now building a cabin near Tomahawk using timber he harvested from his own 70-acre property.

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Making a Scene Presents - What Is Latency? And How to Record Without Losing Your Groove

Written for indie musicians who just want their tracks to sound right without fighting their gear

If you’ve ever tried to record vocals or guitar and felt like your timing was weird, or you couldn’t stay in the pocket no matter how hard you focused, you’ve already met the enemy. That enemy is latency. Latency is one of those home-studio problems t...