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Sed ut perspiciatis unde.
SubscribeWe’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Coleman Sutton. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Coleman below.
Hi Coleman , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
Ever since the age of 10 or 11 I was writing poetry. I never knew it would evolve to become what it is today. At 18, rapping and getting into making beats was just a way to escape, but as time moved forward and I met other likeminded creatives, the idea for this to become a full time thing became my dream.
At 21 I dropped out of college and lived at home in the basement. My family was kind enough to let me turn half of the garage into my music studio. From there, the dream really began to shape itself.
From there, Jordan Xx and I would move in together and run a studio out of our living room. Only 2 short years after that, AB Eastwood and I would open up Shangri-La. A studio that has become not only a staple in the city for the hip hop, pop and R&B scene, but is clearly inspiring others to do the same and pursue opening their own studios. It’s a beautiful cycle and I’m glad to have helped push the envelope.
Most recently I was onboarded with MixedByAli’s company, EngineEars, as a mix and mastering engineer. It’s an incredible platform for engineers and artists alike to get the best possible quality of mixing and mastering, as well as service. I’m very grateful to have had this full circle moment.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?
I still wake up most days shocked at the idea that I work in the music industry. In my world, it’s not a conventional job. My office is a music studio, and my clients are producers and artists. I didn’t even realize I was in the music industry until I began to run Shangri-La. It was then that the jargon and conversations outside of the studio, would let me see and understand my place here.
As far as what I do and what sets me apart, I am an artist, who happened to get really good at producing, mixing and mastering. I see the music from an artist and producer stand point. It took a while for me to see and understand that, but once I did, the music not only got sonically better, but artists who did come work with me, would leave feeling fulfilled because they know I’m looking out for their art first.
Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?
My favorite book of all time is The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho. It’s a story of a young shepherd who is compelled by a recurring dream to travel to The Great Pyramids of Egypt to find a treasure. The amount of lessons in this book about life seem to be never ending. I’ve read the book at least 6 times and each time I find new things I missed to take with me.
An honorable mention would have to be The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. In short, this book teaches you how to be present with and without the ego.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
First let me say, I think everyone is a creative of some kind. Whether or not they choose to take the plunge to make their creativity their career, is a different story.
Secondly, I believe that the biggest thing that creatives in their career field face that people with regular jobs don’t face, and seem to have a lack of understanding, is that yes, sometimes working for free, working for cheap, at the beginning, is 100% necessary and very common. I remember when I first started and I would do mixing for free and record for free, and I’d be telling my grandparents about how many hours I’m in the studio and they’d ask if I’m getting paid and I’d say no. The look on the face of confusion was amusing at the time. They’ve since come 180 degrees and are without a doubt in full support, but I know that a lot of creatives face that. Do the ground work and you’ll be able to charge whatever you want eventually.
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1. @98hues 2/3 @_koncept 4. 303jac 5. @reauxmarquez
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