We were lucky to catch up with Erik Pedersen recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Erik, thanks for joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
The biggest hurdle many people encounter when trying to go full time in an audio field of work is how to make a consistent living. I struggled with this same problem when I first moved to Atlanta in 2021. I had just graduated with my B.A. in Commercial Music and was eager to begin working in the professional studio environment. In August 2021, I started my internship at the legendary Tree Sound Studios while also serving at the local Taco Mac to make ends meet. As I progressed throughout my internship, I gained more and more hands on experience, and was able to secure a paid position at Tree Sound a few months later. Since then, I have pursued other avenues of audio work including live sound, mixing and mastering music, DJing, and earning a M.M. degree online. The most important lesson I’ve learned to support myself throughout this journey has been to diversify my work with multiple streams of income, all while still doing what I love.
Erik, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Like most music creatives, I’v been involved in music since a very young age; from playing recorder in elementary school to performing saxophone concertos at Florida State University. In my college studies, I realized my passion lied more in music technology than the traditional performance/education degree tracks that the FSU College of Music offered. I soon fostered a love for audio engineering and music production. To me, the most fascinating aspect of music technology is how it can be so technically savvy and utterly creative at the same time. There are endless ways to craft sounds using plugins in todays Digital Audio Workstation and yet be just as musical as the artist who wrote the song. As an audio creative, I offer engineering services such as recording, mixing, and mastering music in addition to beat-making and overall music production. In my work, I act as a catalyst for artists to bring the ideas in their imagination to fruition. I do this by offering an exceptionally high level of professionalism and technical knowledge from the perspective of an experienced musician. Having a B.A. and M.M. in Music Technology has allowed me to impart knowledge into the next wave of audio creatives through mentorship and teaching of interns. In my career, I’ve had the pleasure of working with many artists such as J. Cole, DaBaby, Dave, Earthgang, Smino, Nardo Wick, Doe Boy, Southside, Lil Gnar, NoCap, Lil Mama, Kevo Muney, Kodie Shane, Seddy Hendrinx, Homixide Gang, 24hrs, and many more.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Absolutely. With most aspiring audio creatives, the ideal place to start is relocating to a large music city if you don’t already live in one and securing an internship at the best studio in that area. This will make you the smallest fish in the pond and make the potential for growth exponential. Besides that, there are a few resources that will help along your journey such as Mix With The Masters (an online collection of informational videos on mixing and producing music), My Audio Academy (similar to MWTM, founded by one of my mentors Prizzie), and the Audio Engineering Society. Some technical books I recommend are the Recording/Mixing/Mastering Engineer’s Handbook by Bobby Owsinski, Modern Recording Techniques by David Miles Huber, the Sound Reinforcement Handbook by Gary Davis and Ralph Jones, and the Music Business Handbook and Career Guide by David Baskerville. Other career-related books include Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter by 50 cent, Anything You Want by Derek Divers, and The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferris.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
My mission is to help creatives transform their musical ideas into fully produced records. I want to be the bridge that connects artists to the rest of the world by aiding in the meticulous processes of recording, mixing, and mastering and overall production.
Contact Info:
- Website: eprecords.online
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/erikg_pedersen/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100007894546769
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/erik-pedersen-8a7638178