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The 412 is CP ’s music feature where you can get local band/musician updates and fun, random tidbits of information all in one. This 412 has been edited for space, see DeMichiei’s full answers at pghcitypaper.com.
QUESTIONS ABOUT WORK-LIFE PHOTO: HEATHER MULL
Lauren DeMichiei
.MUSIC.
UNSUNG HERO BY JORDAN SNOWDEN // JSNOWDEN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
M
OTOWN LEGEND Berry Gordy
shaped the careers of acts like Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Gladys Knight. Sam Phillips played a fundamental role in Elvis Presley becoming the King of Rock and Roll. Linda Perry is the woman behind Christina Aguilera’s “Beautiful” and Pink’s “Get the Party Started.” Producers are the unsung heroes of music, but recently, bands and musicians have started to move away from using them in the studio. Musician-turned-producer Lauren DeMichiei hopes her project, Cite Your Sources, will show local acts the benefits of collaborating with a producer.
SHAYMUSIC.COM “When people hear producer, they think of [a] beat maker,” says DeMichiei. “Like someone who’s working with [Logic Pro] or Reason, different [audio] programs, synthesizers, but really if you look at a rock and roll producer from the ’70s, ’80s, or even ’90s, they don’t do that. They are in the studio with artists getting the best possible performances, working with the engineers to get the best possible sound.” DeMichiei began working on Cite Your Sources, a collection of mini EPs, about two years ago when she decided
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to stop performing as an artist. Working with 26 collaborators from Pittsburgh, New York, and L.A., DeMichiei stripped down, cut up, and produced songs she’s performed over the years. The goal was to have a solid example of what she can do for artists across different genres as a producer. “It’s really hard to get artists to trust you and work on their stuff,” says DeMichiei. “They don’t see the benefit of having a producer on their tracks. A lot of times, bands go into the studio and just want to get something out so they can get gigs. They’re not really thinking about the songcraft.” Unlike an engineer, producers typically manage the project and take on tasks like catering the space to the artist and making creative decisions about instrumentation. They even manage budgets. “You set aside $5,000 for your recording. If you have a producer, they [are] going to make sure that $5,000 gets you what you’re looking for,” says DeMichiei. “Engineers can wear many hats, but the work often suffers if they are wearing too many.” The final track for DeMichiei’s Cite Your Sources project is set to drop this year after she makes a music video for the song with a local puppeteer. After that, her goal is to write and produce tracks not released under her name, becoming an unsung hero in the Pittsburgh music scene.
ARE YOU A MESSY OR CLEAN DESK TYPE OF PERSON? Totally [a] clean-desk person here. If I didn’t stay super organized, I wouldn’t be able to do all that I do.
WHAT MAKES YOUR WORKSPACE FEEL THE MOST COMFORTING? Artwork. I have pieces from Danielle Robinson, Lex Covato, Gabe Felice, Teenie Harris, and Karl Mullen.
WOULD YOU RATHER WORK IN A CUBICLE OR AN OPEN-PLAN OFFICE? I’d rather not be restricted to work in any one place. Technology and planning allow us to be productive almost anywhere.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHTIME MEAL? I am digging on the cauliflower crust pizza and power greens for lunch.
QUESTION ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS WHAT’S THE WORST DATE YOU’VE EVER BEEN ON? I suppose the worst date I was ever on was the date I didn’t know I was on.
QUESTIONS ABOUT MUSIC IF YOU COULD GO ANYWHERE TO BE ALONE AND WORK ON MUSIC, WHERE WOULD IT BE? I would love to work on music solo deep in the desert of maybe Arizona or New Mexico.
BEST MOVIE OR TELEVISION SOUNDTRACK? Currently, I am vibing on Hildur Guðnadóttir’s work. •