We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dana Jae Labrecque a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Dana Jae, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?
I started working in audio in my early 20s after deciding not to pursue a career in law. During my Junior year at UC Berkeley, I went to a large music festival and saw U2. From that moment on, I knew that music was the avenue to change the world and make people feel good, not being a lawyer or a politician, which I had dreamed of since I was 8.
I started singing lead in a band and playing guitar. My songs were mainly political in an attempt to address societal ills. I started playing in top 40 cover bands to make more money as a musician. After a couple of years, I became an assistant purchasing agent for Leo’s Audio. This is where my career began, as I used much of the money I made there to buy a PA system and audio gear for a home studio. DCJ Productions was in operation from 1987 to 2012. I provided sound for most Bay Area non-profits and employed some friends.
My business grew not from a website nor any social media as this was well before those avenues came into being. It was word of mouth and a pager to return calls from clients that kept work coming in. I am a reliable and focused worker and people spread the word.
In 1991, I worked sound at a newly formed nightclub, Bottom of the Hill. This was where I developed serious sound chops working 4 nights a week for three bands a night. In 1993, I toured for a year with the band Medicine from Los Angeles. We toured the U.S. twice and Europe once. I continued to run DCJ Productions and work at the club when I stopped traveling.
In 1998, I partnered with someone in a recording studio business and formed a record label in 1999. I didn’t have a great experience being with a partner who spent more money than he brought in, so I left in 2004. But, along the way, a friend of mine who was teaching at City College of San Francisco called me to ask if I’d be interested in being a lab teacher for an audio production class. I informed her I didn’t have a teaching credential or a degree in audio; mine is in Humanities. Well, she said Career Tech Education at California Community Colleges required years of experience, which I had plenty of, so I went in to watch her give a lecture. I’ve been there ever since..
I have taught at the college since 2001, going from part-time faculty to full-time in 2009 and taking over the audio program in 2011 to run it. The Department Chair at the time encouraged me to write a new course curriculum in live sound and other specialty areas of audio. So, during my time at CCSF, I developed a complete audio production and post-production program. I have been the Department Chair of Broadcast Electronic Media Arts (BEMA), served on the Academic Senate as First Vice President and Secretary (different years), and served as the Curriculum Committee Co-Chair and tech lead.
Last year, two of my advanced students asked me to start a sound company with them! At first, I balked because the one time I had a partner, it didn’t work out. But I realized these two are fantastic women whom I trust. Both led lives with other careers until they decided to learn audio production in 2021.
I love everything about sound. Our hearing is incredibly special. The best part about teaching what I love is seeing my students move forward in careers they love, too!
It’s been a fantastic journey.
Dana Jae, 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?
I answered how I got into the industry in the opener, so I’ll move right on to Dana Jae Audio Collective. We formed in 2024 with Casey Hudson and Maüxe Madden enticing me to start another audio production company. I ran DCJ Productions from the late 1980s until 2012, and I stopped operating because I was teaching full-time at CCSF, and it was too much work with little rest.
The Dana Jae Audio Collective offers services in live sound event production, studio recording and mixing, podcast recording and editing, film sound production and post-production (including sound editing, design, and mixing), and consultation on sound system installation. Dana has 38 years of experience in all aspects of audio except radio production and broadcast network engineering. Casey and Maüxe are newer and have 4 years of experience, but also bring years of storytelling magic from their past and present.
We are a women & queer-owned business providing sound services to the Bay Area.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
Being an artist and creative person in an industry where your main job is serving other creatives is one of the most amazing careers anyone can have. It is a fantastic feeling to build an entire PA system (including speakers, monitors, mixing console, microphones, and all the related accessories) and make the magic of sound happen both for the musical artist(s) and the audience. It brings such joy to do something like this that touches so many people in a community. Sound is magic, and people love being part of a musical happening, whether outdoors in the beauty of nature or at an indoor venue.
The ability to help a musical artist record themselves and bring their songwriting ideas into a form everyone can hear is unmatched in most other types of work. It is a very focused type of work and requires thinking fast and troubleshooting various technical issues that may come up. It also includes dealing with creative humans on a psychological level that enables them to trust you with their stories.
It’s also a great feeling to work with independent filmmakers to help bring the world of sound to their projects. Recording dialogue on set and then turning that into an entire soundtrack, music, and sound effects to bolster the storytelling is an invaluable skillset. You’re helping them give birth to their creative baby!
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
We have a simple web page, danajaeaudiocollective.com, to share our services and general vibe. At every event, we record our work in photos and video, sharing them on social media to inform everyone of our work. Much of our work thus far has been repeat customers. A happy clientele is the best way to keep the work coming, as they share what you do with others. So, some of this is word-of-mouth as well.
It’s important to document all work activity, showing each of us partners and our audio collective members working audio in some capacity or another. We’ve learned to take more exciting, active photos of each of us out in the field working with artists.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://danajaeaudiocollective.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danajaeaudiocollective/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/reel/729787879504651
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dana-jae-audio-collective-18a780314/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/dana-jae-audio-collective-san-francisco?osq=Dana+Jae+Audio+Collective
Image Credits
Hugh H. Lovell
Maüxe Madden