Sound Business with Akash Thakkar

#89: My guest today is Alejandro Pérez Heinze who is a composer, Flamenco guitarist, audio engineer, Kontakt instrument producer, and audio educator based in Mexico. He has worked on a wide variety of projects including Kontakt instrument production on Kena: Bridge of Spirits, also working with Austin Wintory on projects such as Thai Cave Rescue, and composing on games such as Frogreign.   In this episode, we talk about Alejandro’s extremely broad career path, starting off as an electric guitarist, switching over to Flamenco guitar, going to college for Biotech, and switching to audio production and engineering. We also talk about his unique skillset and how it landed him work in the game audio industry, and so much more.   Find Alejandro here: Website: https://www.alejandrophz.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alejandrophz/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alejandro.phz/ SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/alejandrophz   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#88: My guest today is Venus Theory, who is a music producer and Youtuber based out of Nashville, Tennessee. Venus Theory is known not only for his lush electronic music, but also his massive YouTube channel. He also recently finished writing the soundtrack for the hit game Avowed by Obsidian Entertainment.   In this episode, we dive into Venus Theory’s rise as a musician due to YouTube, how he landed the Avowed project, how he bounces his many creative outlets, and so much more.   Find Venus Theory here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/venustheory Website: https://venustheory.com/home Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/venustheory/?hl=en   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#87: My guest today is Jamie Brindle, who’s actually our first ever non-audio guest for the podcast! Some of you may already be familiar with Jamie and his work on social media, where he helps out freelancers across all industries, focusing on aspects around pricing, dealing with client pushback, finding quality clients, and much more.   In this episode, Jamie and I talk about the skills, mindsets, and experiences that freelancers need to develop to make sure that their career in audio thrives.   Find Jamie here: Website: https://jamiebrindle.io/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejamiebrindle/?hl=en TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thejamiebrindle?lang=en LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiebrindle/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#86: My guest today is Alexander Brandon, a game audio designer based out of Seattle, Washington. He has had an incredibly diverse and impactful career, starting off in the early ages of game audio working on projects like Unreal, Thief, and Deus Ex. He also contributed to projects such as Skyrim, Job Simulator, and so so many others.   In this episode, we dive deep into Alexander’s initial start in game audio, and how he got started in the field before it was considered “cool”, his views on starting and building a business as an artist, how he transitioned from working on games to eventually leading teams, and so much more.   Find Alexander here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexander-brandon-b84272/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AlexCBrandon/videos IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0999472/ Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/funkyrustic.bsky.social   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro

#85: My guest today is Radhika Vekaria, a musician and recording artist born in the UK and based out of Los Angeles. Radhika is known for creating the album WARRIORS OF LIGHT, which was recently nominated for a Grammy in the Best New Age Ambient and Chant category.   In this episode, we dive deep into Radhika’s Indian music upbringing, how she became a mantra-based artist in the first place, the challenges she faced as she transitioned from writing music under pseudonyms to finally writing under her own name, and so much more.   Find Radhika here: Website: https://www.radhikavekaria.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/radhikavekaria_ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/radhikavekaria Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6IuevEa6Y34J29zrVYD9Ie?si=54-42qwPSayDLahrQWjWGA   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

#84: My guest today is Devendra Cleary, a production sound mixer based in Los Angeles. He got his start working as a boom mic operator in college and eventually got his first big break working on the TV show Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Since then, he’s worked on projects such as Firefly, Anchorman, Sex and the City, and, recently, Twisters and Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.   In this episode, we talk about a production sound mixer even does, how Devendra got started in film sound, how he grew his career after landing a big break project, his work on Twisters recording actors in huge windstorms, and so much more.   Find Devendra here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/devendracleary IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0165837/   Get info on The Game Industry Professional, my flagship course that teaches you how to make a great living in game audio here: bit.ly/gameindustrypro  

Alda Agustiano, known as Chong The Nomad, is a Seattle-based music producer and DJ recognized for her debut album and work with Marvel on 'Shang-Chi'. In this conversation, she shares her journey from piano lessons to music production, revealing how early tech access fueled her passion. Alda discusses the balance between creativity and the business side of music, the importance of self-discovery amidst family expectations, and her evolving understanding of success versus artistic authenticity. A must-listen for aspiring musicians!

#82: My guest today is Mikey J, a composer, producer, and dancer based in the United Kingdom. He has worked on a huge variety of projects from Danny Boyle’s Free Your Mind Matrix Adaptation, scoring and music directing the 2024 revival of Romeo & Juliet starring Tom Holland, founding the award winning dance company Boy Blue, and is even a member of the Order of the British Empire for his work in hip-hop and dance music.   In this episode, we talk Mikey’s musical upbringing as a child of African immigrants in the United Kingdom, how he started as a mixing engineer and producer working for the tiny sum of five pounds an hour for his work, his recent work on the movie Kneecap which celebrates Irish hiphop and cultural preservation, and so much more.   Find Mikey here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikeyjdotnet/?hl=en SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/michael-mikey-j-asante IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4647621/     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#81: My guest today is Dror Mohar, a sound designer and engineer based out of Los Angeles. He has worked on an insane number of projects, including Inglorious Basterds, DJ Hero, Fable III, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, and more recently, Lady in the Lake on Apple TV.   In this episode, we talk about how Dror grew up in Africa, ended up in the UK, and then moved to the US to truly start his career. We also talk about he started playing in bands as a guitarist and vocalist and then trained transitioned to becoming a mixing engineer and roadie, how he then transitioned from mixing into sound design in Hollywood, and so much more.   Find Dror here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drormohar/ IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3346677/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drormohar/   And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod

#80: My guest today is Andy Martin, a sound designer and nature recordist based out of Seattle, Washington. Andy’s had an incredibly long and varied career in the world of sound design, working on projects such as Grim Fandango, all of the games in the inFAMOUS series, Medal of Honor, and has even worked with Skywalker Sound as a virtual reality sound designer on projects like Vader Immortal. He also has extensive experience in nature field recording as a part of the project NorthWest Soundscapes.   In this episode, we talk about how the winding path Andy took into the world of professional audio, why it’s okay to change your career goals and pivot, building a career while having ADHD, Andy’s love of nature recording and how’s he’s turned it into a business, and so much more.   Find Andy here: Website: https://soundeziner.com/andy-martin/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/northwestsoundscapes Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andymartinnaturesound     And if you're interested in making music and sound for games, I have a newsletter and free courses that will get you started, and help you find paying work in games. Just go to http://www.bit.ly/soundbizpod