Site Updates

So, if anyone has been poking around, you might notice that i made about a dozen site updates over the last couple days. It was long overdue so i finally did it. My credits are pretty much up to date, i revamped alot of the text, and I replaced half of my "LISTEN" section with new stuff. So, the LISTEN section now has an album sampler i put together for "Small Town Sleeper", a pop rock group from Urbana, Ohio that i developed, produced, and got a record deal for, then produced and mixed the album for Upper 11 / Fontana Records. The first single "Backseat" just went to radio. Hopefully you'll be hearing it soon. Small Town Sleeper also toured with Chris Daughtry last summer, which was a perfect pairing as far as musical styles and potential fan base. The album is called "Conversations" and is available on itunes, even though the album isnt officially released yet. Their single "Backseat" is also available for purchase on their website, smalltownsleeper.com.

I also put together a compilation of Houston, Texas modern rockers "Glass Intrepid" who's album i produced and mixed for In De Goot Records last summer. Glass Intrepid has been busy playing a ton of shows including the Warped Tour as well as opening slots for the likes of Fallout Boy, Finger Eleven and a bunch more.

and of course i put up the same urban sampler that was on my last blog post. I thought it was a good representative cross section of my work in that genre.

If you havent taken notice by now, I also bought an SSL mixing console recently and have been crankin out the hot mixes with it. that board sounds amazing! and on that note, i'm gonna walk back over to it and finish up my latest mix at 2:41am on a Friday night. take care.
-Ken Lewis

iStandard Beat Battle Judge

A big congratulations goes out to producer "PYRO" for winning last night's iStandard Beat Battle at Don Hill's in New york City. Honorable Mention to producer "Clams Casino" who was actually my pick for winner by a point over Pyro. Both were unbelievable, and all ten producers really brought some heat. They should all be very proud. Once again iStandard put on a great event, thanks to iStandards's Don Di Napoli and J Hatch, two of the finest promoters and people i know. They gave me a little spotlight time last night because i was judging and asked me to put together a 5 minute reel of some of my work. Here's an MP3 of the reel if you care to listen. Enjoy!


Ken Lewis Urban Reel.mp3

-Ken Lewis

BMV Chart Update

So, BMV (Icelandic pop rock artist I'm producing) is now charting his single "Endlessly" in Iceland, Bali, Kosovo, and Lithuania! While they are all small markets, i find it fascinating where this song takes hold. I mean talk about 4 completely different cross sections of listeners, it doesnt get more diverse than that! BMV's last single charted in 9 countries.
-Ken

Billboard #1 Spot!

Danity Kane's new album "Welcome To The Dollhouse", released last Tuesday, will debut at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums Charts this week! This is my 23rd #1 album of my career. I mixed 5 songs on the album including "Damaged", "Ecstasy", "Poetry", "Is Anybody Listening", "Picture This". Big congrats to Danity Kane, everyone at Bad Boy, and everyone involved in making this album. Thanks so much to you all for making me a part of it!

Today, the self titled debut album from "Day 26" hits stores. Maybe with some luck, I'll have another #1 under my belt in seven more days. I mixed 5 songs on the Day 26 album including "Got Me Going", "If It Wasn't For You", "Silly Love", "Come With Me", "What It Feels Like".

Also today, the debut first single "Take U There" from Bad Boy solo artist Donnie Klang hits itunes. I mixed it. What a week!!!

-Ken Lewis

Making the Band Season Finale - "TAKE U THERE"!

So, the 2 hour Season finale of MTV's Making the Band was tonight. i think i got about 15 seconds total of camera time sitting on the couch in the background while Donnie Klang cut vocals to "Take U There". A couple weeks after that footage was shot, I mixed the song and it will be available on itunes on Tuesday, along with the debut album from "Day 26". I've heard the whole album, its amazing.

So, i seem to be on a nice roll right now. I just mixed Joe Budden's single yesterday (not Bad Boy related). I mixed all three first singles from Danity Kane, Day 26, and Donnie Klang, as well as 5 songs on each of the Danity Kane and Day 26 albums! I should be mixing some more of Donnie's record in the next week or two. Big huge thank you to super songwriter, super vocal producer Mary Brown. Mary and i have been good friends for over ten years, and she recommended to Bad Boy that they should bring me in as a mixer for MTB. Mary has been involved deeply with the MTB artists as a songwriter and vocal producer, having penned at least a half dozen songs for them and done a ton of great vocal production. My relationship with Bad Boy goes back to 1993 when i engineered many times for Puffy. I think the first time i ever engineered for Puffy was on Usher's first album. How's that for going back!!! I've also made a ton of records for Bad Boy over the years and also for Harve Pierre over the years, but i hadn't done anything for Bad Boy in a few years now. Out of sight, out of mind you know. When i walked thru the doors at Bad Boy for the mixes, it was like a reunion. Oh yeah, i used to work with Mario Winans all the time too. I swear, the stuff i've heard him producing lately i think puts him in league with Kanye, Just Blaze, Neptunes, etc... his musicality and sense of rhythm is amazing.

Let me reminisce for a moment on all of the Bad Boy artists I've worked with over the years as well as Bad Boy productions.... Faith Evans, Total, 112, Lil Cease, Lil Kim, Fuzzbubble, Mase, The Lox, Carl Thomas, Mario Winans, Shyne, Notorious BIG, Danity Kane, Day 26, Donnie Klang, Puffy, Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Diddy, and many more i cant remember. Damn, thanks for the memories Bad Boy!

Anyway, sorry, i'm going on and on. Its just that the show finale is a culmination of ALOT of very hard work and very long hours and it feels good to sit and write about it all again after seeing it all come together. And on that note, I'm gonna go relax and enjoy the rest of my Easter Sunday. Goodnight.
-Ken Lewis

Big In Bali

My production partner, Brent Kolatalo, and i are producing Icelandic Pop rock artist BMV right now, and his current single, "Endlessly" is charting, in of all places, the island of "Bali" (population 3.1 million). BMV is charting #26, just behind Madonna & Justin Timberlake, and just in front of One Republic, Jonas Brothers, and Rihanna. How's that for impact. Here's the chart. You never know where your work is going to take hold!
-Ken Lewis

Mixing Joe Budden tonight

All Joe Budden fans, please raise your hand. Mine is held high right now. I had the privilege of mixing 3 songs on the first Joe Budden album that he put out several years ago on Def Jam. Joe and i have kept loosely in touch ever since then, working together on several things, and recently developing VH1 White Rapper "Sullee" from Boston. (Sullee is crazy talented).

Anyway, Joe called today and asked if i could mix a single for him. So, as Bad Boy Records has been quite for a minute i said "Get that song here ASAP and I'll get it done" (my apologies to any other clients i should be working on tonight, but at least you got bumped for Joe Budden). So i've been mixing a song called "Touch n Go" all evening. I think i'm about to wrap it up early and enjoy the waning moments of my Good Friday, and I'll come back fresh and finish this mix tomorrow on better Saturday. So far though, this mix is THUMPING! I think Joe is gonna love it.

This will be released independently from Joe on his WEBSITE

Stay tuned. I'll try to remember to let ya'll know when the song is available for sale and streaming. By the way, for the record, i think Joe Budden is one of the best lyricists walking the face of the Earth. If you dig into all of his stuff, the boy can put together words like few others. And he can do crazy club joints too, which is what i'm mixing tonight.

-Ken Lewis

Empty Shelves at Best Buy

So, i was in Best Buy today, Thursday. (for you non-Americans, "Best Buy" is a BIG store here that sells almost everything, including CD's). The Danity Kane album "Welcome to the Dollhouse" hit the shelves on Tuesday, and today, there was not a single copy left in the store. I can't say i was shocked, but definitely pleasantly surprised! Even more surprising, was that the new "Flo Rida" CD out on Tuesday as well still had plenty of copies on the shelves. I kind of assumed that since Flo Rida has a HUGE hit single on the charts that his album would reign supreme on 1st week sales, but at this point, I'm kinda thinking that Danity Kane is going to bitch slap Flo Rida out of the #1 spot. :-) We'll see as the week shapes up how sales are doing. Keep your fingers crossed for me, I mixed 5 songs on the Sanity Kane album including thefirst single "Damaged" and a #1 debut would be HUGE for me! Hope your all doing well!

- Ken Lewis

Beautiful SSL Mixing console

Right now I am printing final passes on a song called "All We Want" that i am producing for NYC indie rockers "Man On Earth". Right now i feel like Babe Ruth stepping to the plate and pointing towards the right field cheap seats, this one is a home run!! I'm sure it will be posted soon and I'll link it then so you can check it out if you'd like.

This is maybe the tenth or so mix I've done on my new SSL AWS 900+ mixing console, and this thing is a MONSTER! It sounds beautiful and powerful, open and defined, aggressive and easy to get what i want out of. Mixing feels effortless on this console. So, Manny Marroquin called me today, he might have some work for me (not mix work, he's the best, the dude mixed Kanye's "Jesus Walks" and "Stronger"!!! holy cow!!), anyway, Manny and i were catching up with each other and got to talking about the SSL AWS EQ's, which i've been thinking since i started mixing on this board that they are better than the SSL 9000 series consoles. I also figured i believed that because i own one now and i wanted it to be true, but Manny, who has mixed alot on both the AWS and the 9000 Series SSL, confirmed the same belief to me (and i REALLY trust his ears). The EQ's are so good, that i am barely using any of my amazing EQ's. My GML, Avalon, Neumann PEV's, Oram HD-EQ, Lang PEQ2 arent getting much action at all lately. On this mix in fact, the only outboard i am using is the Manley Vari-Mu limiter on the mix buss insert, followed by my Sontec Stereo EQ, which is unreal. I'm also using the SSL stereo buss compressor and lots of channel EQ's on the board. Anyway, DAMN i love this console. it really sounds great and makes mixing that much more fun for me.

I am so happy with the way this production came out. Its been a labor of love, a long time coming and its finally done. Cant wait to let you hear it.

-Ken Lewis

Welcome to the Dollhouse - In Stores Today

At long last, Danity Kane's sophomore album "Welcome to the Dollhouse" is in stores TODAY!!! I will be going to buy my copy, and maybe one for my Dad too.

I mixed 5 songs on the album including the first single "Damaged". I also mixed "Poetry", "Is Anybody Listening", "Picture This", and I was also mis-credited on a song called "Ecstacy", which i mixed, but the credit was given to someone else. Ugh.

Here's a link to their music video for "Damaged". Enjoy!

Danity Kane - Damaged Video

-Ken Lewis

Session with Seven Aurelius

I just got back from the most amazing recording session with producer, Seven Aurelius. So, it was 11pm on Sunday night. I was in my studio pulling up a "Man On Earth" song i'm producing and was just starting the mix (sorry guys, I'll mix it tomorrow) when the phone rang. Matt, one of the very talented tracking engineers for Bad Boy, was on the line asking me if i'd like to come to the studio and play guitar for Seven Aurelius, whom i've never worked with until tonight but had always heard amazing things about. By Midnight i arrived at Bad Boy HQ and was hauling all my gear in. I brought my Line 6 Variax electric guitar, a nylon string acoustic (that i played "All Falls Down" with), my steel string acoustic, and a high strung 12 string acoustic. my Fender tube combo amp and all of my stomp pedals. in other words, i brought the kitchen sink, you never know what you'll need and i used some of my real esoteric stuff tonight.

I actually love when i'm called to work just as a session guitarist and i can focus all my energy on my guitar, the song and music, and not have to split my brain into creative and technical. Matt is a very skilled engineer so i didnt have to worry about anything technical all night, thanks so much Matt. Sooooo, I've heard alot about Seven, how he's very spiritual, works very much on vibe, and is quite a unique guy, so i really had no idea what to expect, but when i got there the vibe was instantly positive, creative and it felt like we immediately clicked. Oh yeah, not to mention that he is an INCREDIBLE producer.

So, i plugged in, started discussing the song with Seven, which had been spinning on loop since i walked in. he told me his vision, i switched up a few stomp pedals and started playing along. the room felt charged with energy, everything felt so creative and the music just flowed out of me effortlessly. i threw down a few different vibes and approaches for him, we picked the choice moments, then he asked for a couple alternated approaches on different parts, and after about 45 minutes of jamming, I was done, he was very happy and so was i.

So, after that, he played me this new song he's working on for Donnie called "Rolling Stone". 3 words. OH MY GOD. that song is amazing, that song is adjectives i cant come up with right now.

So, i gotta say i relearned something important about music tonight. Often i talk about the vibe of music, the vibe of a session, etc... but Seven really lives that mantra to the fullest and it shows in the quality of his music. I have a reawakened appreciation for "vibe" and how important it can be to the creative process. So, i'm back at my studio now, lights are dim, lava lamp is rockin, music is playing low, i'm sipping a beer and about to chill for a few, watch some tivo of Making the Band, and call it a night. I hope your day went as well as mine. That was the funnest session I've done in a long time.

-Ken Lewis

Please Read This

Whatever your political inclinations might be, I strongly encourage you to take 10 very well spent minutes of your life to read this entire article.

Thanks for Reading -Ken

Please feel free to drop a comment, anonymous or otherwise. Or feel free to post a URL to an article you find important on any of the three Candidates. I like to stay well informed and base my views on information and not hairstyle, rhetoric, or media spin.

For those of conservative views who may think I'm some music industry liberal, you might like to know that i strongly supported Republican Ron Paul and donated heavily to his campaign. Ron Paul was possibly the most conservative Republican running for President (based on a very consistent voting record since 1974). I listened to EVERYTHING Ron Paul had to say, and while i strongly disagreed with many things he said, he spoke openly to Americans in highly intelligent, honest, and informed way that no other candidate has done. And i agree strongly with many of Mr Paul's views on fiscal conservatism, defense of the Constitution, and other issues.

After absorbing a very broad range of information about all of the current Candidates, I am strongly supporting Barack Obama for President. I usually dont speak openly about Political views on a music industry blog, but i feel this is the most important election that I have seen in my lifetime and i have never in my life felt so strongly in favor of a candidate as i do in Barack Obama. Please take a moment to find out if you see what i see.

Thank you

Ken Lewis

I am now Damaged

Anyone following along knows i recently mixed the new Danity Kane single "Damaged". I think its on its way to becoming a big hit. The new video just got finished, if you google it - Danity Kane Damaged video - you'll probably find it.

BUT........ I found something WAY better (Thanks Kristen!)

Many of you might be familiar with the slightly imbalanced internet "celebrity" Chris Crocker. If your not yet, boy are you in for a treat. Here is Chris Crocker on YouTube performing his own routine to the music of Danity Kane "Damaged".

"Chris Crocker is DAMAGED"

I am now officially scarred for life. My retina's are crying and I'm laughing. The most amazing thing is that this has been viewed over 900,000 times already! How does this happen?

-Ken Lewis

Day In the Life of a Mogul

So, i'm not gonna get into all the little details because i dont think its my place to talk about Diddy's personal or professional behind the scenes life, but i'm around it a little bit, and i just gotta say, damn, it must be nice to be a mogul. And i dont say that in a derogatory or flippant way. I say that in the way of "damn, that seems like a great life". I gotta hand it to Puffy, he's a self made man who started in the mail room and worked himself up the ladder to mogul. Thats saying something. I don't have my own designs on being a mogul, but i would love to rule the world. ok, maybe just a little slice of it. I'm in a comfortable place in my career right now and I've got alot of great accomplishments to rest on, but i am not resting for a second. This is going to be a banner year for me, a breakout year for me, an over the top, next level year for me. Puff, i'm comin after the #1 spot! Thanks for the inspiration.
-Ken Lewis

MTV TRL VOTE!!!!

Please take 5 seconds, go to MTV.com Here's the direct link

TRL VOTE

Scroll down to about the 25th entry and VOTE!

Danity Kane "Damaged"

I mixed it. Thanks so much for helping me and Danity Kane. I really appreciate it!

-Ken Lewis

Good Evening from Daddy's House

Good evening from Daddy's House Studios, NYC. Home of Bad Boy Records. I got a call at 12:15am tonight asking me how quickly i could get down to the studio to finish a song we've been working on for a few days. I got here at 1am. i was FLYING down the NJ Turnpike, not because i HAD to get here fast, moreso just because i like to drive fast. I kept it under 100mph, the ticket cant cost me more than i'm making on the session, but fortunately, no ticket tonight.

So, I'm here now working on the first single for the new MTV Making The Band solo artist "Donnie J". Right now Diddy is here doin his thing, Cassie is here hangin out, alot of the Bad Boy crew is around tonight. There's good energy in the room, the vibe is really positive and creative. The mix is pretty much done, we're just recutting some vocals and doing some last little touch ups and hopefully this is off to mastering tomorrow. More updates as there are good things to tell. Hopefully i will leave the studio before the sun rises. we'll see how that works out. Have a good night.

-Ken Lewis