Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Zachary Rippy. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Zachary , thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

My mission from the beginning has been to help my friends and artists I’m a fan of progress in their careers and goals. Im not the most creative person when Im given too much freedom. I really strive when given limitations or a predetermined goal and figure out my own way to get there. I’ve really enjoyed helping local bands get to that regional level or make something that they’re just proud of. I’ve also gotten to work with bands I grew upon being a fan of a help them at some point in their careers. A lot of full circle moments keep me going.

Zachary , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I got into music production while being in a band after my father passed away. The day he died I recorded my first record with a band I was playing in. From then on my life has been nothing but a hot pursuit of making that next record. On the journey I realized maybe being in the band isnt for me and have really settled into my role as engineer for a lot of very relevant bands in underground metal and hardcore. I’m most proud of my ability to be in this world and not feel like a salesman. I try to let me work do the talking for me. Its taken a very long time but, 9 years in, I think that it’s just now starting to happen.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

I was afforded the extremely lucky opportunity of not paying rent for 4 years when I first started. I inherited a large home in Fountain hills, Arizona and had inheritance money to pay for it for a small time. During that time I was able to focus and make a lot of mistakes learning how to engineer and mix records, not a 9 to 5 to pay bills. If it wasn’t for that I would have probably given up or moved on. Mixing in a professional sense is something that takes so much time to learn how to do. I only feel like just now Im able to almost do it.. I still have a lot to learn but I never would have gotten here if I wasn’t given the opportunity by my father. Like a lot of lucky people, I was just in the right place at the right time. The only thing I can give myself credit for is being aware of it and taking advantage of the situation.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

From the beginning I have felt the resistance to me accomplishing my goals in music. It’s no different than the resistance you meet in everyday life. I just chose to fight this fight and not let the problems come to me. Most peoples lives happen to them. Im out making mine happen. Through lots of tragedy I have always found a way to channel that into productivity. I can say that they things I have done have always been positive but I have always turned negativity into work I can complete and move on from. I lived on floors and couches for years, I moved from LA to NY over a weekend for a job, I’ve given people their money back after project didn’t go how I envisioned, I’ve done month+ long DIY tours for $0, I used to drive an hour each way to do diy shows for $50 and lived off it for 4 years. There was nothing that was going to stop me from getting to where I am today. Its been 11 years of pursuit and im only growing.

Contact Info:

• Website: soundsignalaudio.com
• Instagram: sound_signal_audio
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/soundsignalaudio
• Other: @zacharyrippy on instagram

Image Credits
Peter Caswell – Tremendous Visuals @tremendousvisuals