July 18, 2024 • 9 mins
Travis discusses why he quit every staff engineering gig he had and how to know that you're ready to go freelance as a recording engineer, mixer, or producer.
⬇️ FREE 2025 PLANNING WORKSHOP ⬇️
https://www.travisference.com/2025plan
📺 WATCH THE SHOW ON YOUTUBE 📺
https://www.youtube.com/@progressionspod
Connect with Me:
📬 Newsletter: https://www.travisference.com/subscribe
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/progressionspod
🎵TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@progressionspod
🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/progressionspod
🌐 Website: https://www.travisference.com/
🙏 Leave a Review or Rating 🙏
Apple: https://www.progressionspodcast.com/apple
Spotify: https://www.progressionspodcast.com/spotify
📢 Our Sponsors 📢
Listen to Secret Sonics!
Sign Up for Complete Producer Network!
Credits:
Guest: N/A
Host: Travis Ference
Editor: Travis Ference
Theme Music: inter.ference
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
I want to make this video for. A while because I know how important going
freelance was for me. It absolutely changed my life. It could
change yours, too. And so because of that, I've bounced a lot of versions of
this around in my head, felt the pressure to make the perfect video.
But I think the reality is that I just need to share this because I
think it'll be valuable to somebody, even in an imperfect form.
(00:25):
Welcome back to the show. I'm Travis Farents, a Grammy nominated recording engineer and mixer.
And today we're talking about why I've quit every gig I've
ever had. So I spent almost six years as a staff engineer at
Capital Studios in Hollywood, an absolute, legendary, classic
recording studio. And I also worked on staff for several independent producers.
And don't get me wrong, all these gigs are dream gigs for
(00:48):
anybody, including me. And I did love them. But my goal was always
to be a freelance engineer and mixer, which I've now been fortunate enough to do
for. The last six years. So if that's your goal as well, stick with me,
because we're gonna talk about why I quit these gigs and how to know if
you're also ready. To make that jump to being a. Freelance engineer or
producer. But before we get into all this quitting. Right. Let's briefly talk about
(01:10):
why a staff engineer gig is such an amazing launching. Point for a
career. So when you're a staff engineer, you start at the bottom. You
are essentially assigned mentors because you get to work alongside people that
have. Done this for years, if not decades. A great
studio is great because of the staff, and those veterans
know that. So they are always ready to pass down their knowledge to you,
(01:32):
which is amazing. And you're not just going to learn from the staff.
A studio is a rotating door of people. You get the chance to work with.
So many different artists, engineers, producers. You'll get to see
different styles of production, different micing techniques, different
workflows. You'll probably work on everything from rock to pop
film scores to tv commercials. You'll see film shoots live in
(01:54):
studio performances. I mean, I could go on forever, obviously. You name it, it's
probably going to happen. If you work in one of these big rooms, the wide
range of things. That you'll be exposed to will help. You learn what you like
and what you don't like. And the more things you experience, the more options you
might see for your future. Right? You may have started in this business thinking you
wanted to record rock bands and then one day work on a film score and
(02:14):
realize that that's actually what you want to pursue now. That same wide
range of experiences that's helping you figure out what you want to do. It's
also shaping your sonic tastes. You'll pluck different tricks
from different sessions and different people, and over time,
you'll start to build that palette, that is your sonic
preferences, and that will give. You your own unique style. And finally, that
(02:36):
same rotating cast of characters I mentioned earlier, they will become your
client base. Because it's important, even as a staffer. To think of
the people you work. With as your clients. Having people
remember that they enjoyed working with you and to request to work. With you again
is one of the. First indications you'll get that you're doing something right,
something that could carry over. To a freelance career. So by now, you're
(02:59):
probably asking yourself, if being a staff engineer is so great,
why would you quit? Well, earlier I said that I had
quit working at Capital Studios, which was a little bit of a lie, because
I actually quit twice. And so I started my career
there. As a runner, the classic entry level position. Right?
After a few years, I realized that because it was such a great
(03:21):
gig, there was not a lot of movement, people were not leaving anytime
soon, and I wasn't going to wish death upon any of my buddies. So when
an opportunity to go work for an independent producer came up, I took it. Now,
I was grossly underqualified for the job at the time,
but I was. Good enough to get by. And I think the guy saw an
opportunity to shape a young engineer to do things the way that he
(03:43):
wanted them done. So we did a lot of music for film and tv, a
few big Disney projects, and a whole slew of songwriting sessions, all mostly
pop. And I was constantly given
new responsibilities, and if I handled those well, then he would just give
me more. And so it got to the point. Where I was recording, editing, and
mixing every project we did, unless the label wanted a fancy name
(04:04):
mixer. And it was great. I loved all of it. It was
amazing. Until I started to feel
unchallenged. We had such a routine in the way that we
worked that every day started to feel the same. Every EQ move started to
feel the same. The guitar sounds were the same, the vocal chain was the same.
Everything was the same. And when I felt
(04:25):
like I was starting to just go through the motions, I started to think that
maybe it was time for a change. Because careers are about growth,
and growth. Comes from being challenged. I'm a big believer that when you.
Stop learning and you stop being challenged, you start to get
frustrated, and you may not identify exactly why you're feeling that
way, but it's because you're not growing. And this
(04:48):
is why I left capital the first time. I saw more potential for growth by
leaving, so I did. And when I felt that growth start to slow down,
I started looking for other opportunities. So if you're feeling this in your career
right now, I encourage you to look for a way to grow. Maybe that growth
is from moving on to be freelance, or maybe it's not quite time yet, because
it is a big jump. And in my case, it was
(05:10):
not quite time. It was instead time to go back to
capital. So I leveraged my years of pop vocal recording and mixing to get
rehired, but this time as a staff engineer. So they were expanding
the facility to have a few rooms dedicated to vocals and overdubs, and
hence were hiring more people. So it was perfect. It gave me the growth and
challenge I was looking for, and it put me back in the mix of different
(05:31):
experiences and different people. But over those
next six years, I'd find that there was something else that was missing that would
eventually drive me to quit again. I think it's safe to say that
what drew most of us into music to begin with was the
ability to express ourselves. For me, it was playing what I thought was cool
on guitar in my bedroom all night. Just turns out that I was a horrible
(05:53):
guitar player. But in the studio, I can still have that creative
expression, especially when I'm mixing. And that's what I
lost when I returned to capital. I was engineering great sessions, but I wasn't
mixing. And most of the engineering I was doing was the same one
mic, one player overdub engineering that I had been doing before. Now
I was for sure being challenged. The stakes were often higher. The artists
(06:15):
were usually bigger. But because of that, I didn't have the
freedom to always do what I wanted. Nor did I have the freedom to choose
the projects I wanted to do or to work the way I wanted. And these
things didn't bother me at first. I knew the gig I was taking when I
took it, and I loved it. But as I grew more and I got
better at my craft, I started to crave that choice.
(06:36):
I wanted to develop my own sound and build my own credit list with. The
artists that I wanted to work. With, things that every engineer
wants to do right, but they're also things that are generally out of your control
if you're on staff somewhere. So if you feel like
you've grown your skills to the point that you want to be making records your
way with the people you love working with, then
(06:59):
you're right where I was at this point. And I think this is one of
the biggest telltale signs that you might be ready to be
freelance. Because this feeling of not having the freedom to do what you
want, it's rooted in the fact that you've developed your musical
identity to the point that you have to live it. And it's that kind of
confidence that you need to be a freelancer. So what did I do?
(07:21):
I quit. I quit capital again. But yet
again, it was not to go freelance, which, looking back on, was
a mistake. I should have made the plunge, but I had to do one
more gig. And learn one more lesson. So, like a broken record, I
left capital to work for a producer. I was hired to run his label, Studios,
which on paper was an amazing gig, but in reality, it was not what I
(07:43):
wanted to do at all. And so I ended up doing this little side quest
for, like, six or eight months before finally realizing it was time to be
working for myself. Because despite the fact that I was running two rooms
and managing small staff, I somehow still felt unchallenged in this
gig. And even though I was in charge of the studios, I still
felt a lack of freedom. And this is when I realized that the true
(08:05):
core of my frustrations, the thing that had been festering behind the scenes,
is that I'd lost sight of my goals. That first time I quit
capital was the only time I was working towards the goal I mentioned in the
beginning of being a freelance engineer and mixer. All the
other choices I made after that were based on chasing credits or making
money. I was trying to gig hop into bigger records and waiting
(08:27):
for those credits to miraculously get me mix work, even though they were
engineering credits. Id mixed for years on the side. But when
youre on staff, you only have so much free time. And yes, I was making
a living working in music, but I was not working towards the things I wanted
to work towards. And that realization that I had been out of
alignment with my goal for. So many years was the final catalyst in going
(08:50):
freelance. So if you're still watching and you feel these things, you feel
that you are unchallenged and not growing and that you don't have the freedom to
be who you want to be artistically and that what you're doing is not in
alignment with your goals, then I encourage you to change that. And
it might be that going freelance. Could be the answer. You're looking for.
And if it is, and the thing that's holding you back is not knowing
(09:12):
what to charge, then check out this video I did about how to set your
rates.
I want to make this video for. A while because I know how important going
freelance was for me. It absolutely changed my life. It could
change yours, too. And so because of that, I've bounced a lot of versions of
this around in my head, felt the pressure to make the perfect video.
But I think the reality is that I just need to share this because I
think it'll be valuable to somebody, even in an imperfect form.
(00:25):
Welcome back to the show. I'm Travis Farents, a Grammy nominated recording engineer and mixer.
And today we're talking about why I've quit every gig I've
ever had. So I spent almost six years as a staff engineer at
Capital Studios in Hollywood, an absolute, legendary, classic
recording studio. And I also worked on staff for several independent producers.
And don't get me wrong, all these gigs are dream gigs for
(00:48):
anybody, including me. And I did love them. But my goal was always
to be a freelance engineer and mixer, which I've now been fortunate enough to do
for. The last six years. So if that's your goal as well, stick with me,
because we're gonna talk about why I quit these gigs and how to know if
you're also ready. To make that jump to being a. Freelance engineer or
producer. But before we get into all this quitting. Right. Let's briefly talk about
(01:10):
why a staff engineer gig is such an amazing launching. Point for a
career. So when you're a staff engineer, you start at the bottom. You
are essentially assigned mentors because you get to work alongside people that
have. Done this for years, if not decades. A great
studio is great because of the staff, and those veterans
know that. So they are always ready to pass down their knowledge to you,
(01:32):
which is amazing. And you're not just going to learn from the staff.
A studio is a rotating door of people. You get the chance to work with.
So many different artists, engineers, producers. You'll get to see
different styles of production, different micing techniques, different
workflows. You'll probably work on everything from rock to pop
film scores to tv commercials. You'll see film shoots live in
(01:54):
studio performances. I mean, I could go on forever, obviously. You name it, it's
probably going to happen. If you work in one of these big rooms, the wide
range of things. That you'll be exposed to will help. You learn what you like
and what you don't like. And the more things you experience, the more options you
might see for your future. Right? You may have started in this business thinking you
wanted to record rock bands and then one day work on a film score and
(02:14):
realize that that's actually what you want to pursue now. That same wide
range of experiences that's helping you figure out what you want to do. It's
also shaping your sonic tastes. You'll pluck different tricks
from different sessions and different people, and over time,
you'll start to build that palette, that is your sonic
preferences, and that will give. You your own unique style. And finally, that
(02:36):
same rotating cast of characters I mentioned earlier, they will become your
client base. Because it's important, even as a staffer. To think of
the people you work. With as your clients. Having people
remember that they enjoyed working with you and to request to work. With you again
is one of the. First indications you'll get that you're doing something right,
something that could carry over. To a freelance career. So by now, you're
(02:59):
probably asking yourself, if being a staff engineer is so great,
why would you quit? Well, earlier I said that I had
quit working at Capital Studios, which was a little bit of a lie, because
I actually quit twice. And so I started my career
there. As a runner, the classic entry level position. Right?
After a few years, I realized that because it was such a great
(03:21):
gig, there was not a lot of movement, people were not leaving anytime
soon, and I wasn't going to wish death upon any of my buddies. So when
an opportunity to go work for an independent producer came up, I took it. Now,
I was grossly underqualified for the job at the time,
but I was. Good enough to get by. And I think the guy saw an
opportunity to shape a young engineer to do things the way that he
(03:43):
wanted them done. So we did a lot of music for film and tv, a
few big Disney projects, and a whole slew of songwriting sessions, all mostly
pop. And I was constantly given
new responsibilities, and if I handled those well, then he would just give
me more. And so it got to the point. Where I was recording, editing, and
mixing every project we did, unless the label wanted a fancy name
(04:04):
mixer. And it was great. I loved all of it. It was
amazing. Until I started to feel
unchallenged. We had such a routine in the way that we
worked that every day started to feel the same. Every EQ move started to
feel the same. The guitar sounds were the same, the vocal chain was the same.
Everything was the same. And when I felt
(04:25):
like I was starting to just go through the motions, I started to think that
maybe it was time for a change. Because careers are about growth,
and growth. Comes from being challenged. I'm a big believer that when you.
Stop learning and you stop being challenged, you start to get
frustrated, and you may not identify exactly why you're feeling that
way, but it's because you're not growing. And this
(04:48):
is why I left capital the first time. I saw more potential for growth by
leaving, so I did. And when I felt that growth start to slow down,
I started looking for other opportunities. So if you're feeling this in your career
right now, I encourage you to look for a way to grow. Maybe that growth
is from moving on to be freelance, or maybe it's not quite time yet, because
it is a big jump. And in my case, it was
(05:10):
not quite time. It was instead time to go back to
capital. So I leveraged my years of pop vocal recording and mixing to get
rehired, but this time as a staff engineer. So they were expanding
the facility to have a few rooms dedicated to vocals and overdubs, and
hence were hiring more people. So it was perfect. It gave me the growth and
challenge I was looking for, and it put me back in the mix of different
(05:31):
experiences and different people. But over those
next six years, I'd find that there was something else that was missing that would
eventually drive me to quit again. I think it's safe to say that
what drew most of us into music to begin with was the
ability to express ourselves. For me, it was playing what I thought was cool
on guitar in my bedroom all night. Just turns out that I was a horrible
(05:53):
guitar player. But in the studio, I can still have that creative
expression, especially when I'm mixing. And that's what I
lost when I returned to capital. I was engineering great sessions, but I wasn't
mixing. And most of the engineering I was doing was the same one
mic, one player overdub engineering that I had been doing before. Now
I was for sure being challenged. The stakes were often higher. The artists
(06:15):
were usually bigger. But because of that, I didn't have the
freedom to always do what I wanted. Nor did I have the freedom to choose
the projects I wanted to do or to work the way I wanted. And these
things didn't bother me at first. I knew the gig I was taking when I
took it, and I loved it. But as I grew more and I got
better at my craft, I started to crave that choice.
(06:36):
I wanted to develop my own sound and build my own credit list with. The
artists that I wanted to work. With, things that every engineer
wants to do right, but they're also things that are generally out of your control
if you're on staff somewhere. So if you feel like
you've grown your skills to the point that you want to be making records your
way with the people you love working with, then
(06:59):
you're right where I was at this point. And I think this is one of
the biggest telltale signs that you might be ready to be
freelance. Because this feeling of not having the freedom to do what you
want, it's rooted in the fact that you've developed your musical
identity to the point that you have to live it. And it's that kind of
confidence that you need to be a freelancer. So what did I do?
(07:21):
I quit. I quit capital again. But yet
again, it was not to go freelance, which, looking back on, was
a mistake. I should have made the plunge, but I had to do one
more gig. And learn one more lesson. So, like a broken record, I
left capital to work for a producer. I was hired to run his label, Studios,
which on paper was an amazing gig, but in reality, it was not what I
(07:43):
wanted to do at all. And so I ended up doing this little side quest
for, like, six or eight months before finally realizing it was time to be
working for myself. Because despite the fact that I was running two rooms
and managing small staff, I somehow still felt unchallenged in this
gig. And even though I was in charge of the studios, I still
felt a lack of freedom. And this is when I realized that the true
(08:05):
core of my frustrations, the thing that had been festering behind the scenes,
is that I'd lost sight of my goals. That first time I quit
capital was the only time I was working towards the goal I mentioned in the
beginning of being a freelance engineer and mixer. All the
other choices I made after that were based on chasing credits or making
money. I was trying to gig hop into bigger records and waiting
(08:27):
for those credits to miraculously get me mix work, even though they were
engineering credits. Id mixed for years on the side. But when
youre on staff, you only have so much free time. And yes, I was making
a living working in music, but I was not working towards the things I wanted
to work towards. And that realization that I had been out of
alignment with my goal for. So many years was the final catalyst in going
(08:50):
freelance. So if you're still watching and you feel these things, you feel
that you are unchallenged and not growing and that you don't have the freedom to
be who you want to be artistically and that what you're doing is not in
alignment with your goals, then I encourage you to change that. And
it might be that going freelance. Could be the answer. You're looking for.
And if it is, and the thing that's holding you back is not knowing
(09:12):
what to charge, then check out this video I did about how to set your
rates.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!