
Adam Blackstone on The Voice. Photo from tv.msn.com
Adam Blackstone, a man with a multi-layered music career, turned this week’s Pop Music Forum into an interactive discussion session.
“Feel free to open your minds,” he said to the students, encouraging them to ask as many questions as they wanted.
Blackstone is a bass player, producer and music director who has worked for numerous big named artists in the industry. Some of those names include Kanye West, Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Eminem, Demi Lovato, Janet Jackson and the list goes on.
According to him, being musically opinionated has always allowed him to have a knack for being a music director, also known as MD.
Whether he’s working as a MD, musician or producer, Blackstone still suggests changes he believes will improve an artist’s song.
Blackstone said most people don’t realize a lot of MDs stay on call 24/7 and sometimes put together a whole song without an artist even stepping near a rehearsal.
He told the students that when working on a song, it is great to always have a transcriber around in case changes in an arrangement need to happen at any time.
Some of the students were interested in how Blackstone deals with artists during times when they are insecure about their work. He said the best way to approach those situations is to put a smile on, act positively and keep all bad outside vibes out of the work environment.
He also said politely suggesting changes instead of outright telling the artist they have a bad idea is a way to avoid drama. Being on time and knowing the music is another thing to aim for.
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Adam is a rad man. Check out my blog post about him!