Ep. 230: Cirkut | The Secrets of a Pop Super Producer
And The Writer Is...with Ross Golan
Unexpected success: creating 'Unholy'
Cirkut tells the Jamaica writing camp story where 'Unholy' emerged collaboratively and later became a major hit.
Today’s guest is the producer behind some of the biggest songs of the last 15 years — from “Wrecking Ball,” “Timber,” and “Dark Horse” to early records with The Weeknd and Britney Spears.
From teaching himself production on cracked software and vinyl turntables… to going on a run of genre-defining hits.
And the writer is… Cirkut!
In this episode, he opens up about his early grind, the moment Britney cut his beat, his first sessions in LA, working alongside Max Martin and Dr. Luke, and the mindset that helped him go from unknown kid with an MPC to one of the most important producers in modern pop.
A special thank you to our sponsors...
Our lead sponsor, NMPA aka the National Music Publisher's Association.
Your support means the world to us!
And @splice -- the best sample library on the market, period.
00:00 — Intro: Who is Cirkut?
00:04:37 — Early music influences: hip-hop, DJ culture
00:05:49 — Discovering DJ gear & beat manipulation
00:07:55 — First exposure to FruityLoops & early production
00:10:24 — DJ’ing pep rallies with vinyl
00:12:36 — Applying early skills later for Lady Gaga
00:14:14 — Skipping audio classes to make beats
00:16:46 — Early Drake encounter in Toronto
00:18:40 — How the name “Cirkut” was born
00:21:35 — How a CD of his beats got to Britney Spears
00:22:10 — First big cut: Britney’s “Papi”
00:23:01 — Discovering electronic music & the blog era
00:23:49 — Learning from Masterkraft (the MySpace era)
00:33:00 — Working with The Weeknd on “High For This”
00:33:57 — Recognizing Abel’s early greatness
00:35:06 — Moving to LA & hustling through the rat race
00:38:49 — What finally got him out of the rat race
00:39:33 — The call from Dr. Luke
00:41:11 — The Flo Rida / Levels / Good Feeling near-miss
00:42:37 — Losing a big cut overnight
00:43:19 — When the hits start stacking: “Where Have You Been,” “Wrecking Ball,” “Timber”
00:44:48 — The thing he brought that cut through the noise
00:47:18 — What it’s like creating with Max Martin
00:49:36 — Winning Producer of the Year (Junos)
00:50:17 — When Cirkut realized he belonged at the top
00:52:04 — Why his ego is different
00:53:15 — His quiet superpower in the room
00:55:45 — Ad: NMPA + @splice
00:57:00 — The importance of speed
00:59:00 — Secret sauce... Knowing his sounds and blind listening
01:02:00 — Keeping production organic
01:03:57 — The Weeknd
01:12:10 — Ross' funny Pitbull / Cirkut story
01:13:03 — Cirkut's secret to success
01:14:00 — 'Unholy' Sam Smith
01:18:54 — Jung Kook, 'Seven' with Jon Bellion / Theron Thomas
01:21:00 — Charli XCX
01:22:00 — 'APT' and Bruno's 'Stank'
01:30:56 — Lady Gaga + Watt
01:42:30 — Production advice. Figure out what you're great at
Hosted by Ross Golan
Produced by Joe London and Jad Saad
Watercolor by Michael White
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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