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Here are the job opportunities (or as we like to call them, Grind Opps) from this week's show.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #1
Position:
Social Video Editor
Industry: Film
Location: Nashville, TN
Description
Responsible for producing daily and editing social videos for professional football and basketball.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #2
Position:
Production Assistant
Industry: Film
Location: Stamford, CT
Description
Top TV Talk Show needs experienced PA.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #3
Position:
Afternoon On-Air Talent
Industry: Radio
Location: San Francisco, CA
Description
Popular San Francisco Alternative Rock Station is in need of talent for Afternoon Drive.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #4
Position:
Audio Engineer
Industry: Recording
Location: Oakland, CA
Description
Top Oakland studio in search of audio engineer.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #5
Position:
Production Coordinator
Industry: Film
Location: Hollywood, CA
Description
Hollywood production company seeks production coordinator for fast paced studio.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #7
Position:
Board Operator
Industry: Radio
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Description
Minneapolis station seeks enthusiastic on air announcer/ board operator.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #8
Position:
Live Audio Engineer
Industry: Recording
Location: Louisville, CO
Description
Live sound production company seeks experienced engineer for spoken word recording sessions.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #9
Position:
Sous Chef
Industry: Culinary
Location: Boston, MA
Description
High volume farm to table restaurant seeks passionate sous chef.
03/20/17
GRIND OPP #10
Position:
Program Director at Radio Station
Industry: Radio
Location: Houston, TX
Description
Popular contemporary station in Houston, Texas seeks Program Director.
Transcript
DJ IZ: Welcome to Connected. I am your host, Mr. DJ IZ with my lovely cohost, Ms. Cloie. Say what up, girl.
Cloie: What up, girl.
DJ IZ: Did you like my new kind of-
Cloie: I did, I liked the sing-songy-
DJ IZ: Same thing, like sing along.
Cloie: I do.
DJ IZ: Sing with it. I just feel good today, you know. I just came off of-
Cloie: Birthday week.
DJ IZ: Birthday week, and I’m happy to be here, and we are coming to you live from Los Angeles, California.
Cloie: Yeah, we are.
DJ IZ: We’re out here doing it once again as we do every Monday, 11:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.
Cloie: And this is a big show.
DJ IZ: This is a big, exciting show. We’ve got some things we’re going to be-
Cloie: Putting out in the world.
DJ IZ: Putting out in the world today. Positivity for those of you who did your due diligence and participated in our 10K scholarship.
Cloie: Might have money.
DJ IZ: Might have something.
Cloie: Yeah, there might be \$10,000.
DJ IZ: But we’ll get to that.
Cloie: Sure, I mean it’s not important.
DJ IZ: So Cloie, tell me about your week. I know my week was great because it was my birthday week, but tell me about your week. What did you have?
Cloie: My week has been great. I started preproduction on a film. I can’t say too much about it right now because I signed an NDA.
DJ IZ: Oh, tell them what an NDA is. Folks might not know what that is.
Cloie: A nondisclosure agreement, meaning things have to be approved before I can say it or post it as of right now, but there will be more information coming. So stay tuned, and if you want more information about what an NDA is or any of the terms that we use here, you’ve got to make sure you check out our vault. Check it out.
DJ IZ: Check it out.
Cloie: If you’re like watching it on our livestream, oh yeah, there’s the graphic right there.
DJ IZ: Bam, right at you.
Cloie: Our chat button in the upper right hand side of your screen, click on that if you’re watching it, because that’s real.
DJ IZ: Real-time.
Cloie: And we are doing a Q&A later, as we do.
DJ IZ: Yeah. As a matter of fact, get your questions ready. Get that going now, because you’re probably gonna want to dive into some really good questions once we get through a lot of this show.
Cloie: I’d like to dive into some really good answers.
DJ IZ: Yeah, well I think we always do that. What else do we have, Cloie? What do we need to be doing right now? While you’re sipping. Okay.
Cloie: Sorry. I’m sipping my Like A Boss juice. Well, I think that what people need in order to get connected and get started is to get your pens, get your devices to take notes if you use your thumbs for your iPad. If you don’t have thumbs, maybe you use your fingers.
DJ IZ: For the jobs. However, did we show our slideshow of our four finalists?
Cloie: Oh, we didn’t. We totally didn’t.
DJ IZ: So let’s do that real quick. These were our four finalists. We’ve got Cassandra, Katz, [SP] Doyie, [SP] and Alex, and today is the big day. We’re gonna be pretty much letting them know who won, but that’s towards the end of the show. We want to keep you-
Cloie: I’m already there. I got so excited. I’m like, let’s just go.
DJ IZ: You’re already there.
Cloie: I got excited.
DJ IZ: Cloie’s already there, guys. We’ve got to slow her down. So with that being said, now we can get into our grind ops, because this show is also about our jobs and what we make available for those of you who are aspiring to do what we do, whether it’s film, whether it’s music, whether it’s recording, whether it’s DJ.
Cloie: Whether it’s culinary.
DJ IZ: Exactly. We have this thing which we can now redo as far as what they need to have in place.
Cloie: Right, because I jumped the gun a little bit.
DJ IZ: Hey, it happens to me too. I do it all the time.
Cloie: I just get so excited and I just want to go. So take seven. What you’re gonna want to do, boys and girls, is grab your pens or devices, your texting thumbs or smoke signal, however you communicate and receive information, grab that. Make it work for you because life waits for no one, and we sure aren’t.
DJ IZ: We sure aren’t. So with that being said, first grind op of the day is in the field of social video editor in Nashville, Tennessee. Top studio looking for an experienced Assistant Engineer for North Hollywood area studio. Must have knowledge of professional sports, experience with Adobe Premier and Final Cut. Will be blasting content to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and other social media platforms. Interesting. So I’m assuming with this grind op you need to be at least very fluent on social media, right? Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and other social media platforms. Let me ask you this, Cloie. What are some of the other social media platforms that maybe the younger culture is really embracing right now?
Cloie: What? Because I’m not young?
DJ IZ: No, we both are, but I was just doing a career day at a high school, and I was like, Facebook, let me see your hands. And it was like-
Cloie: Nobody.
DJ IZ: And then there was some other platform, and I was like, okay, okay.
Cloie: They’re changing so far and so fast. I know Tumblr, then there’s all the in the world job stuff like Fiverr. Y’all, help us out. Pinterest. What are the kids using?
DJ IZ: Matter of fact, let’s make that part of our Q&A. Throw some in there for us if we’re missing anything. Let us know if there’s something bubbling that’s maybe-
Cloie: On the cusp of being good.
DJ IZ: On the cusp of being big and massive.
Cloie: There’s WhatsApp.
DJ IZ: Not necessarily talking about Tinder or anything like that.
Cloie: No, no, no.
DJ IZ: But let us know. If you guys are using platforms other than Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, let us know what those portals are so we can make sure we’re part of that experience.
Cloie: Also welcome to all of our people that are tuning into Connected for the first time.
DJ IZ: Oh yeah, absolutely.
Cloie: If this is your first time, if this is your millionth time, welcome, welcome, welcome. And if this is your first time, please pop a “1” into the comments and shout us out where you’re from.
DJ IZ: I like that. I like how you inserted that. It was very peaceful, which is great too because I always like to remind folks, especially for first-time viewers, what our show is about and the whole connectivity aspect and taking aspiring, like I said, whether it’s film or music or what have you in the arts. It’s a great way for you to connect. We also make opportunities available such as jobs and things like that, things of that nature, which is very special because not a lot of folks…What’s our job number today, Cloie? We’re at like, I’m gonna say a little past-
Cloie: Don’t look, don’t cheat.
DJ IZ: Four hundred, I won’t cheat.
Cloie: Okay, are you ready?
DJ IZ: I’m ready.
Cloie: These are jobs 381-390. That’s a lot of jobs. That’s a lot of opportunity.
DJ IZ: I love Obama, but I don’t think he’s got anything on us over here, you know. We’re keeping the pressure. So guys, those details for the first grind op, I mean that’s pretty much what it is, your aspiring video editor. Definitely apply for it.
Cloie: Don’t not apply.
DJ IZ: Today I’m not gonna spend a whole lot of time covering details on jobs because I feel like, bam, you’re taking it down, take the info down. You know best, you know what’s best for you as far as what your skill level is.
Cloie: [inaudible 00:09:00]
DJ IZ: However, we do want to let you know that if it’s a resume building thing or a cover letter building thing, we are here for that as well. So that all happens by means of you engaging with us and sending us your info.
Cloie: Yeah, and where you can do that is [email protected]. That’s where you want to send all of your goodies to us.
DJ IZ: There you go, bam. My man is quick on the dials today. I love it. Before we move onto grind op two, we have a student success story that we want to talk about.
Cloie: Oh man. So our student success story, yes. This is coming to you from Scott Johnson.
DJ IZ: My man is on the gear, look at that. Outboard gear.
Cloie: Look at you. Boston, Massachusetts. After graduating from his Bachelor’s and from his advanced programs he got a job with his mentor at Infinite Music, which is crazy.
DJ IZ: Which doesn’t surprise me.
Cloie: I mean, because why would it?
DJ IZ: Why would it?
Cloie: And he just worked on a project with Charlie XCX.
DJ IZ: Oh, dope. Well, man, congrats to you. Any time we get to see our former students out there making things happen in real time, that’s always something great for us. We want to make sure we acknowledge you guys who are on the ground doing things like that. The reason why I said it’s not surprising to me is because based on how our infrastructure works with people being more or less in the workplace than being in the classroom, I mean, you get those kinds of opportunities.
Cloie: You sure do.
DJ IZ: Especially when you’re working with incredible mentors like that. Those kinds of things happen. We get a lot of questions with people who want to know more about the RRFC and what that experience is.
Cloie: And how it functions.
DJ IZ: And this for me is a chance to show you all how it happens in real time and how these folks are able to solidify these kinds of opportunities. So we’ve got to make sure we keep pointing these out. We actually have this every week. We have a success story every week, which is great.
Cloie: It’s true, because people need to know, inquiring minds want to know. And if you want to find out more information on Scott, make sure you check out the newsletter that’s coming out this week.
DJ IZ: Yeah, and what’s great is that success story can also be you.
Cloie: It sure can.
DJ IZ: So you never know. You’ve got to hit the ground running and do the work.
Cloie: Mm-hmm. It’s already you if you just allow it in.
DJ IZ: Man, such healthy words today. With that being said, we’re gonna move onto grind op number two. Grind op number two is in the field of Production Assistant, Stanford, Connecticut. Top TV talk show needs experienced PA, booking act as liaison with guests who will appear on the show, assist the production team in all stages of production. Please have at least six months of experience in a television or film production company. Now, here we go. We have details where they’re asking you to at least have six months of experience.
Cloie: Which is fair.
DJ IZ: Absolutely. What do we always say, Cloie? You don’t want to get in there and do what?
Cloie: Underperform.
DJ IZ: Underperform, because we’re about hashtagging #overperform here on Connected. So you definitely don’t want to do that. Now, with this kind of grind op being your field, Cloie, is there anything you saw that kind of popped out? I mean the details are pretty straightforward.
Cloie: They are. No, just to highlight, yes, the six months of experience, and they tell you flat-out what you’re gonna be doing. You’re gonna be acting as a liaison between the worlds. So you’re like the person when you have people that are coming on the show, you’re gonna be the first person they meet in email and probably the first person they meet when they get on the ground to the location. So to have a great attitude is always helpful.
DJ IZ: Yeah, absolutely. I think it’s important too. I mean it’s something we shouldn’t have to say, but a lot of people don’t know how to engage with people and just kind of be really social. Those are some of the things that you definitely want to have locked in as far as your personality in those kind of environments, because when you become a liaison you have to know that posture, how to deal with people, how to not get emotional, you know what I’m saying? There are a lot of things that go into that, and you’ve really got to be business minded, too, with being a liaison. So those are some of the key things which I think having six months of experience in that particular role is crucial.
Cloie: You get used to it. People have needs.
DJ IZ: Yeah, absolutely.
Cloie: Everybody’s got different needs. IZ and I come on the show, he’s gonna have different needs than I. I’m gonna need trail mix.
DJ IZ: What are your needs? There you go. I was getting ready to ask what are your needs. I got you.
Cloie: I need some trail mix, and if it’s a nighttime show I might need champagne.
DJ IZ: Okay, see, that’s too much.
Cloie: Is that too much?
DJ IZ: I’m just kidding.
Cloie: Is that TMI? I got your TMI. Kidding. Back to where we were, business.
DJ IZ: Yes, so were those the only couple things that kind of popped out for you?
Cloie: Yeah. We’ve had PA jobs before, and luckily they all tend to fall into that same vein. This one spells it out pretty clearly.
DJ IZ: Absolutely. So before we move into grind op three, we also want to remind our viewers about our Facebook Connected App, which is on Messenger. There you go. Now guys, listen, we’ve made it pretty simple since the time we’ve started this show as far as connecting everybody, but this even makes it easier for you guys. You’ve just got to use it. It’s there, use it, it exists. And this app is in Messenger in Facebook, which allows you to connect with other creators, aspiring filmmakers, producers, engineers, songwriters, musicians, what have you. Get on it and use it.
Cloie: Work free fulltime, come on now.
DJ IZ: Yeah, and you can post your work, you can post your fee.
Cloie: All of it.
DJ IZ: It’s a great engaging tool for you guys to use, okay? Because it makes it even easier, and it ties into our jobs. I mean it’s there, right? What are you smiling about?
Cloie: You make me laugh sometimes. Whoa.
DJ IZ: Sorry, Cloie. Sorry.
Cloie: Guys, we’re live.
DJ IZ: Okay, so on that note, we’re gonna kick it over to grind op number three. I’m gonna let you have this one.
Cloie: I’m gonna take grind op number three.
DJ IZ: Go on and take that one.
Cloie: Great. Grind op number three, in the field of radio. It is for afternoon on-air talent in San Francisco, California. Popular San Francisco alternative rock station is in need of talent for afternoon drive. Assist Program Director in creating content, operate studio equipment, interview guest. Must submit air check if interested.
DJ IZ: Hmm, now when they say talent, I’m thinking is this for like a personality radio kind of thing?
Cloie: It sounds like a little bit of both, honestly, because it doesn’t sound like a straight up producer sort of gig. Well yeah, it is for on-air talent, but you would have to have an appreciation of the music in the station, for sure, but also in that you’re operating studio equipment. So in my mind that’s like switching maybe between, since it’s radio, interviews and songs. You’re not just straight up talent. There is a production element attached to this job. You’re in deep thought.
DJ IZ: No, I was thinking about radio personality or those various things, but I think at the end of the day, most importantly it’s really knowing that genre, which is rock.
Cloie: For sure.
DJ IZ: I’m assuming if you know that genre and you’ve done a little bit of homework, you know that that entails as far as being in an environment like that.
Cloie: For sure. And more than knowing it, you have to be a lover of alternative.
DJ IZ: Absolutely.
Cloie: Because that’s the other thing. This says it’s an on-air job, but it’s got a fair amount of producing because you’re also assisting with content, and if you don’t know that world or love or appreciate that world, you may not be able to source the strongest content or guests or whatnot.
DJ IZ: Very true. I totally agree with you. So that is grind op number three. Before we go into grind op number four, we’re gonna take this time-
Cloie: To go to a little bit of hard knocks, because you know guys, hard knocks are real. As in real good. We have this whole series that we do with IZ where we get to talk about life in the real world, be it on the set, but on the ground running as opposed to in the classroom. For this week we are talking about the requirements specifically geared towards RRFC, and I think we should listen to what you say.
DJ IZ: Let’s listen to what I say because I don’t remember what I said.
Cloie: [inaudible 00:17:46]
DJ IZ: [inaudible 00:17:50-00:17:55] creativity, if you’re already put a [inaudible 00:18:02] bottom line, because when you go at it like that, you’re driven by the wrong thing. It requires all of you. You have to die to it. I was told with music, just with music, look at music like this. Music, you give it all of your life. You give it your time, you give it your blood, your sweat. Meanwhile you have a family, you got mom, dad, you even might have a kid, but music’s getting all of you. And guess what, it might treat you right, and it might not. That’s the price.
Man: What do you mean by that? It might treat you right, it might not?
DJ IZ: You might be able to earn a coin. You might not. It might sustain your way of living. It might not. It might redeem the time you feel you’ve poured into it. It might not. And even if you look at the folks that it magically happened, it magically fell in their lap, how long did that last? About two years, three years? There’s no value in that. You didn’t have to go through that brutal process of maybe having to sleep in your car, not having food to eat, having to stay at your homie’s crib, having to sleep on the couch. If you look at anybody that’s done anything great in history, you’d be surprised at how much adversity and struggle they’ve had to truly take on in their journey.
[00:19:30]
[Silence]
[00:19:40]
Cloie: Well, sir.
DJ IZ: That might be one of my favorites of the school of hard knocks.
Cloie: Why?
DJ IZ: Because your perspective on things reminds you of how tough it is out there. Everybody’s got a story, and for those that didn’t have a story and became successful, like I said, I mean how long did it really last? There’s something to be said about adversity and struggle and being broke, not being able to really push forward with 110% because your mind is so much over here with just the daily living challenges. Some real ish in there.
Cloie: And having to just root and ground yourself in what you know to be true about yourself and your craft.
DJ IZ: Absolutely.
Cloie: And what you bring to the table to sustain you in those times when it gets real. Because anybody who’s been in the game for a minute knows it gets real. It’s cyclical, right?
DJ IZ: Yeah, and it’s really about weathering the storm, at the end of the day, because it’s seasonal. It’s just a season, but it’s always that breaking point of how much you can take and how much you can’t.
Cloie: And also figure out, not for nothing, I won’t go too lala, spirity land, however I think there’s something to be said about how we as people get into our own ways, too.
DJ IZ: Absolutely.
Cloie: I’m just gonna lightly tap on that and leave it.
DJ IZ: You lightly tap on it.
Cloie: And then we’re done. That’s all I’m gonna say.
DJ IZ: Well, I’m gonna lightly tap on this grind op number four like this. Bam.
Cloie: Like a Monday.
DJ IZ: Grind op number four. Oh, Audio Engineer, which is in Oakland, California. Top Oakland studio in search of audio engineer. Must live in the Bay Area. That’s not a bad thing. I love the Bay. Set up and tear down equipment for recording sessions, record and mix audio tracks, knowledge of Pro Tools is a must.
Cloie: Not a suggestion.
DJ IZ: Yeah, not a suggestion, but a must. It’s another grind op that I actually love for engineers, because this is very much to the point for engineers. Most engineers will say, “Okay, where’s the studio at? What studio is it?” Well, it’s a well-known studio in Oakland. “What am I gonna be doing?” You’re gonna be holding down sessions, tearing down stuff. The usual. It’s pretty basic, but a great opportunity because it did mention it’s a well-known studio in Oakland, and engineers are always looking to be at a well-known studio because it’s where the most traffic is, which then leads to other opportunities and other jobs. So again folks, that’s in Oakland, California, and that is engineering.
Cloie: Love it. I just want to say quickly before I move into our next thing, make sure you get your Q&A in before we launch into our Q&A. We are launching all the way in, but before we do, guys-
DJ IZ: Before we do that, we’ve got some big news for the show, which I’m gonna go ahead and get this right now, because we have our winner.
Cloie: For our first ever 10K scholarship contest, RRFC, the Radio Recording Film Connection. In this envelope we have the name of our winner.
DJ IZ: We have a winner. Not a wiener, but a winner. And this ain’t the Oscars. So we ain’t gonna fumble and be like, “Oh wait a minute, he didn’t win.”
Cloie: We’re not gonna Price Waterhouse this.
DJ IZ: So since I’ve been holding it, Cloie, I’m gonna let you do the honors of pulling the card out, honey. Pull the card out. I should have had some music ready.
Cloie: It’s not too late. It’s probably too late. Oh, it’s like lovely lined. And the winner-
DJ IZ: For the 2017 10K scholarship through Connected-
Cloie: Oh wait a minute. Hold on. Wait a minute. This has to be a mistake.
DJ IZ: Uh-oh. Did the Russians have something to do with this?
Cloie: So okay, guys. Here’s a slight curveball.
DJ IZ: The suspense is real for our viewers, Cloie.
Cloie: Is it real? Okay.
DJ IZ: Let’s kick it off.
Cloie: I’m so sorry. I hate to do this to you, but we couldn’t pick one winner. So we picked two. So guys, we’re giving out two \$10,000 scholarships. In Film we are giving one scholarship to Katz Carter. In Recording we are giving one to Doyie Lee. Woohoo. I promise you this is actually what this says. This is legitimate.
DJ IZ: It’s real. Shout out to my man, Katz Carter. Shout out to my girl, Doyie.
Cloie: Guys, congratulations. Thank you to everybody that submitted, that applied, that voted, that voted again, that shouted us out. This was a really hard contest.
DJ IZ: It was extremely hard, and I think one of the main reasons why it was really hard is because everybody did such a great job with their presentation. I was gauging it on who really put in the world, who tried to make it really cool, who wasn’t just sitting in front of their phone and saying, “This is why I think I should get it.” You know, there are some cats that really put a lot of work into it. One thing I loved about Katz is that he’s been one of the cats that was like our first-time viewer from the first show, and just to see him grow. And then we had Doyie who off the gate had 600 people voting for her. So I was like, yo.
Cloie: She sure did.
DJ IZ: But I definitely want to congratulate you guys, and also for our Q&A let us know how many folks would actually love to see one of our winners on the show maybe next week and just talk and maybe hear their story and how they went into it and what their thought process was behind everything.
Cloie: And also let us just say, especially since this is a total surprise and since we are giving out two scholarships instead of one, we as Connected hosts and also as just this whole Connected world, really want to know about your journey. So please, we want to be able to check in with you from time to time to see how you are progressing in the program, how you are progressing in your careers, and just to really be able to chronicle it from start to finish because we are rooting for all of you guys.
DJ IZ: Absolutely.
Cloie: And we want to see how you make the scholarship work.
DJ IZ: Yeah, and we want to really dive into your process and what that looks like for you, what that journey is for you, because that becomes so inspiring for everyone. Because everyone tends to have that question of, what is it, what does it come down to? Is it this, is it that, is it who I knew, or did you do it this way? And at the end of the day, like I said for our winners it was really just the presentation, the time, the effort, how well they kind of pointed out details and took the time, really, to put a great presentation together. So yeah, absolutely.
Cloie: And we got a real sense of who they are, which is the core of the scholarship mention, like you find out how this money would help and enhance your experience as an artist. So thank you guys and congratulations.
DJ IZ: Congratulations, my man Katz, my girl Doyie. Thank you guys.
Cloie: I wish I had confetti right now. Imagine that we had confetti.
DJ IZ: I’m sure they’ve got it cracking. So we’re gonna move onto our last grind op of the day.
Cloie: But to also mention, and we’ll tap on this in a moment, we do have five additional grind opps that are on our website. I know, it’s crazy, right? So technically we’re giving out 10 jobs a week.
DJ IZ: Ten, been doing it. Here we go.
Cloie: Holla.
DJ IZ: Fifth grind opp of the day is in the field of Production Coordinator, Hollywood, California.
Cloie: Backyard.
DJ IZ: Hollywood production company seeks production coordinator for fast-paced studio. Coordinate with Producer to ensure all tasks are covered, meet with editors and get them any elements they may need, graphics, VO/VF effects, etc., coordinate with music department to pull or help any requests. Okay, now Connected team, here we go again. I do have somebody who’s great for this job. So let’s make sure we reach out and connect the dots. That’s pretty much it with those details. It’s pretty self-explanatory.
Cloie: Mm-hmm. I don’t know. If you’re in this world, this is what you do, you know what we’re talking about. Right?
DJ IZ: Mm-hmm. Send a resume, send a cover letter. Let us see what you got for this.
Cloie: Yeah, you’re the umbrella that keeps all the other parts dry and connects all those dots. So connect those dots.
DJ IZ: Great analogy.
Cloie: Sometimes I’m on it. Thank you. [inaudible 00:28:38]
DJ IZ: I like that.
Cloie: Sometimes I’m on it. It’s my heart shirt, guys.
DJ IZ: So real quick let’s cover, real briefly, the five additional grind opps we have on our website. So for grind opp number six, it’s in the field of film. Camera operator in Chicago, Illinois. Grind opp number seven, radio board operator, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Cloie, you want to chime in on some of these?
Cloie: Sure, number eight, recording. A live engineer in Louisville, Colorado. Culinary, we got a sous chef in Boston, Massachusetts. And in radio we’ve got a program director in Houston, Texas.
DJ IZ: All right, mechanical bull it out there. I was out in Texas a couple weeks ago for South By Southwest, and you’d be surprised how many mechanical bulls I saw in these bars.
Cloie: Like as in they were there, or they put them in for South By Southwest?
DJ IZ: No, they were in there.
Cloie: As a fixture.
DJ IZ: Like bolted to the ground.
Cloie: Like, this is the bathroom, this is the bar.
DJ IZ: It’s huge out there. It’s a sport out there.
Cloie: It’s good core work, not for nothing.
DJ IZ: I wouldn’t know because I just can’t. I’ve never been on a mechanical bull.
Cloie: I would try it. I’ve never done it before. I’ll do it.
DJ IZ: I’m sure you’ll probably handle that bull.
Cloie: Listen, if we go to Texas or something or someplace where there is a mechanical bull, oh we could take a Recording Connection field trip to Hollywood and I’ll ride that mechanical bull.
DJ IZ: I love the idea of having a Connected field trip.
Cloie: I think we should for sure have one. Guys, what do you feel about a Connected field trip? Where should we go?
DJ IZ: Let us know. With that being said, we’re now gonna kick it to our Q&A, our questions. Let’s go. Let’s see what we got. Hold on, let me get on my cell.
Cloie: Our team says, “Questions starting now.” Here we go, a question from Lusaka, Zambia. Nanseku Nangande [SP] says, “I’m business oriented but I’m still fighting for capital. I want to create a radio station in my country. How should I start? Or would a podcast make more sense?”
DJ IZ: You know, actually I would say start with a podcast and build your audience, and get your infrastructure kind of dialed in.
Cloie: Because if you did a podcast-
DJ IZ: Yeah, it’s gonna require some personnel and I think that’s a great way to test the waters, which is a tall glass to me, which is your own radio station for your area.
Cloie: That’s like towers.
DJ IZ: Because I think when you get into that you’ve got to really understand your demographic and what your core folks are gonna want as far as their musical appetite and what you’re gonna offer. There are a lot of things that go into it. I would say start with a podcast, which can be Google Play or iTunes.
Cloie: And another thing about a podcast is all you really need is internet, and at least the way the whole world is set up now, that’s gonna reach far more people than a radio tower will. So there’s that.
DJ IZ: Now, Sam from Wichita, Kansas City. “As an actress, do you work on your speaking voice? Do you have to train to get it down? If so, what do you do?”
Cloie: Sam, can you clarify just a little bit? When you say work on speaking voice, what do you mean, and what also do you mean when you say to get it down? I can say that I have a natural sort of…Oh, wants to improve his voice for radio broadcasting. Sure. So you want to get it into your lower register? If you do, yes, there are exercises that you can do.
DJ IZ: He wants to improve his voice for radio broadcasting.
Cloie: To make it more resonant, I’m gathering is what he means. There are vocal exercises that you can do in order to be able to access your lower…I’m really gonna do it? Great.
DJ IZ: Get it done.
Cloie: So you stretch all the way up and then drop your hands and shake and you’re like “Ah,” and pound into here.
DJ IZ: It doesn’t hurt.
Cloie: It doesn’t hurt. I’m an Amazon. But to like drop in, because yeah, you figure for a radio voice that’s easy to listen to, you want it to be a well-rounded sound, because if I was all up here you wouldn’t want to talk to me all day.
DJ IZ: Uh-uh.
Cloie: So I would say also even if you don’t sing, singing helps. I am a singer, and I think that also plays its way into it, because you are trained to use more of your different registers. So there’s that. Is that helpful? Let me know. Maybe I’ll do an instructional video, some stretching and breathing. I mean I could do it.
DJ IZ: You’re so down. I love it.
Cloie: I’m down. Always down.
DJ IZ: So we got Mia Z. from Lewis, Delaware. “If someone wants to be the new Imogen Heap, what should they do?”
Cloie: Oh, that’s like electronica world.
DJ IZ: Which tech should they master?
Cloie: Well, hold on. I’m gonna say this to you, I’m gonna pull up some Imogen Heap so you can hear what it sounds like, but I’ll say that it definitely lives in that world of electronica. So from that perspective, like to create that sound.
DJ IZ: Yeah, the thing is if you want to be the new someone of anybody, you’ve got to be able to do what they do, and then do it better. I’m just gonna say, with that being said, man, you just got to put in the time and the work. If it’s a creative thing, then you’ve got to get your gear together, get all those things together that are gonna allow you to create what that…Yeah.
[00:34:23]
[Music]
[00:34:25]
Cloie: That’s Imogen Heap, that sound.
DJ IZ: Now, what I love about that is that’s like what we would call vocoder. So in order to be better than that you’ve got to be able to play those chords. The great thing is you don’t have to be so much like a person that has great pitch or can sing. It’s really gonna come down to your playing and how well of chords you have that give you that vibe. To be better than that, man, you better be ready to put in some work.
Cloie: Sure. Because that’s like a sound that, it also sounds like, on this side of it, there are just so many things happening in that one . . .
DJ IZ: So she says she’s a singer who loops her vocals. Advice learning to loop.
Cloie: Oh, okay. Got it.
DJ IZ: I would say that kind of stuff is driven by an instrument. So it really is gonna come down to how good you are on your instrument, whether it’s a guitar, keyboard, or piano. You’ve got to be incredible.
Cloie: For that, yeah.
DJ IZ: Cedric from Brooklyn, New York. “If I come into a studio with cash, tell them I’m ready to drop a few bills right then just to get my music down, they will cut me a deal, right? If they’re not busy and I pay cash I can lay down some tracks for not a lot of money, right? People have been telling me to do this.”
Cloie: Cedric, this question just made my day.
DJ IZ: Well, I’m gonna tell you what’s cool about what Cedric is saying is at the end of the day cash is king. You’ve got to remember studios aren’t getting the work they used to get. They like to think they’re getting it, but trust me, all these studios are just dying for traffic to come through because everybody’s just recording at their crib on their laptop. So if you do come in there with cash, yeah, they should work you an incredible deal. Absolutely.
Cloie: Meaning you come in there with the upper hand.
DJ IZ: Yeah, they should be able to give you some great rates on the hours and block out rates.
Cloie: Cedric, I just have a visual of you with sunglasses at 7:00 p.m. coming in there to the front desk and being like, “Ha, where’s my,” like just making it rain.
DJ IZ: Like, “Hey, listen man, I got this cash. Man, is Studio A available? And if so, I need to lay down these funky tracks.”
Cloie: What kind of deal?
DJ IZ: But I need a deal. That’s a great question, though, because it just is what it is. It’s like, “I’ve got some cash. I need to get in here and drop these beats, but I need a great rate. Bam, what can you do?”
Cloie: What can you do for me?
DJ IZ: Easy.
Cloie: Ala Janet Jackson. That’s actually “What Have You Done For Me Lately?” That would more like be a repeat [inaudible 00:37:02]
DJ IZ: Mario from San Diego, California. “Hey, I didn’t see you guys at Nam [SP] but saw Stevie Wonder, wanted to go say hi and introduce myself, but chickened out. How do you go up to someone you really admire and just introduce yourself without sounding stupid?” Man, you just keep it-
Cloie: You can’t think about it. Just do it.
DJ IZ: When you put too much thought into it, then it becomes corny. Just, “Hey, man, look. I’m such and such, you’ve inspired me in music, and it’s an honor and blessing to just be here and shake your hand,” and such and such, and go about your business. Don’t be a lurker, you know what I’m saying?
Cloie: What are you doing? [inaudible 00:37:47]
DJ IZ: Don’t be walking by him like, you know what I’m saying? The world has moved past that. You’ve got to learn how to just keep it cool, walk up to somebody, and say, “Hey, I don’t want to bother you.” You’ve got to tell a quick, brief story of how they’ve inspired you, shake their hand, and photo op if you can. If you can’t, cool, but some people really get-
Cloie: Just get all tongue tied. That’s ego, too, where it’s like, oh my god, blah, blah, blah. I met Kathy Griffin not too long ago. We were in the same space and she was right there, and I was like, this woman is the funniest thing to me. I went up to her, and she’s itty-bitty, just teeny-tiny, and she was talking to somebody. So I do this, “I’m so sorry, I just need to let you know,” that’s what I did. “I’m so sorry, I just need to let you know how much I love you, how funny you are, you made me laugh so hard,” blah, blah, blah. “That’s all, goodbye,” and that was it, and she was lovely. That’s all, you tap and go. Nobody’s really mad at a compliment.
DJ IZ: What’s our next question, Cloie?
Cloie: Let’s see. Ghost from Austin, Texas. “I know I need to do something creative and not in an office. That would kill me. I’m really into movies, watch them, sketch, have tons of story ideas, and I make music on Pro Tools. Interested in both music and film. I’m 21 and feel like I should make up my mind. How do you really know your thing is it for you? Do you just have to pick at some point in time?”
DJ IZ: You know, I would say honestly to that, ask yourself which one could you live without in your life? Could you live without the film aspect? Could you live without the music? Because it comes down to you finding out what you love and what you’re passionate about. You know, to kind of just throw it against the wall and see what sticks, I don’t ever recommend that. I would say pick one that you love and go for it. Go ahead.
Cloie: The other great thing is that when you excel in one world, the other things will naturally fall into line or opportunity for that. So if you are like, hey, film, and you just go after film like a beast, an opportunity will present itself for you to be able to tie into music.
DJ IZ: Yeah, and I feel like at some point you do have to be honest with yourself in knowing what you’re good at. If it’s a film thing, know what you’re good at in film. If it’s a music thing, know what you’re good at in music, and focus in those areas. A lot of times people come into this with a completely blank canvas because the look of it looks fun, and it doesn’t feel like it’s an office gig. But at some point you have to figure out what your skill is in these fields. That’s so key for you guys, because it’s the difference between an acquired talent, which means something you work at, you work at, you work at, and it’s not really a natural given gift. And there are other things that are naturally given to you that you’ve got to be able to assess and understand what those things are.
Cloie: Mm-hmm.
DJ IZ: She gave me the church, “Mm-hmm.” Isaac from Van Nuys, California. “Honestly I’ve been around lots of musicians and actors for a few years, now, and kind of sick of everyone just saying, ‘Fake it ’til you make it and just believe.’ I think hard work and skepticism go way farther than all this wishful thinking. So what’s your take?” Man, I totally agree, bro. You know, the fake it ’til you make it, at some point those tires are gonna meet the road and you’re gonna have to deliver. So why not be prepared for that moment? You know, I like to think a lot of the younger generation of today is faking it ’til they make it. They’re not really great at anything, they’re just confident. But at some point all those aspects come to meet, and you’ve got to be able to deliver in an intense environment and pressure, and faking it ’til you make it can’t deliver under pressure because you’ve never been there before. You haven’t prepared yourself for it.
Cloie: What I will say to that, and I agree, is I also believe that you have to believe in something, because when you know what hits the road and the fan, it hits the fan and the road, I do believe it’s important to have something that you can root in and ground yourself that’s outside of you. So I think there is something to be said, whatever you call that, everybody calls it something different, but I do believe it’s not wishful thinking, I don’t think. Because I do also think that that’s that same energy that will keep you grounded when you do blow up, and that’s gonna keep you, whether it’s your family, whether it’s your friends, whether it’s whatever, I do think that skepticism is a very fine line between being a skeptic and then becoming this self-fulfilling prophecy of failure.
DJ IZ: Right, I agree.
Cloie: And sometimes that’s how opportunity passes us by, because it’s like, “No, I don’t believe this.” So that’s all I have to say about that, actually.
DJ IZ: Okay, well we’ve got Walt from Louisiana. “How do you know whether you want to be an engineer or producer?” Again, I would say pick something you love. Are you passionate about being an engineer or about being a producer? Are you passionate about doing both? Those things, you’ve got to decide and figure out what you’re great at and what you love. I can’t tell you how to decide that for yourself other than what are you passionate about? What drives you the most? As someone would say, if you couldn’t live without something being in your life, what would it be? Would it be engineering or producing? Michael from Madison, “If I want to make it in film, is it best to move to LA, and why or where?” Cloie?
Cloie: I would say neither one of those. If you want to get your feet really wet, I’d move to someplace like Atlanta or with a much smaller market because New York and LA are so oversaturated with performers and actors. If you’re jumping right in as a small fish in a big pond, you will be eaten alive. So make your bone someplace outside of it, I think. You know what I mean?
DJ IZ: I like that.
Cloie: Even Chicago. That’s still a big city, and that’s close to you because you’re in Wisconsin. So there’s Chicago. If you’ve never been on stage before, that’s great for the Chicago stage thing, too, to get your feet wet. I’d start in a much smaller market than LA or New York. But at the end of the day you do what’s right for you. This is just what I would do.
DJ IZ: Matthew from Houston. “I’m doing it, directing my own short film. How do you direct actors without hurting their feelings? Since I got everyone working for free, I feel like I have less authority, and no, I’ve never acted before.”
Cloie: So when the project is done, and this is great for this opportunity, I would say run, do not walk, and enroll in an acting class so that you can see what we do. Because if you’re worried about hurting people’s feelings, and granted, we as actors and also as musicians, can be a very sensitive breed and can be very highly strung. So I respect and understand you wanting to be delicate, but at the end of the day you’ve got to make your project. So there are a bunch of different ways that you can work, maybe sometimes with those sorts of things, substitution, having them take whatever’s happening in your short film and apply it to…Use something from their own life is often an easy way around that. There’s no right or wrong approach, but I also do understand feeling like they’re doing you a solid, but at the end of the day they’re showing up, and one hand washes the other. They’re there and you’re giving them an opportunity. So remind them maybe that you’re all working together for the greater good. And there’s always recasting if it gets real bad.
DJ IZ: Brad from Scottsdale, Arizona. Where do you guys get your success stories in the newsletter from?
Cloie: Oh, they’re people that have gone through the program, people we know, friends, family, mentors, cohosts.
DJ IZ: He would also like to know, are they real?
Cloie: Yes, they’re real.
DJ IZ: Interviews various students who have had successes, and she and Jeff, the cowriter/coeditor write the story. Yes.
Cloie: They’re real.
DJ IZ: They’re very much real. Matter of fact, we have our personnel which is Lia, who actually covers those stories, and they’re very much real. That’s why we say-
Cloie: And Brian, our creator, also sources the stories.
DJ IZ: And that’s another thing, that’s a reason why I always make it a point to help you guys understand the process of what we do here with the RRFC, because it’s so unconventional that it leads to success stories like this. You know, cats are coming in, going through this process, and having real success, real opportunities that they’re able to engage in, and we’re able to then come around on the back end and tell the story.
Cloie: Yeah, for sure. We missed on, sorry. Nigel from Burbank wanted to know, “For grind opp three, it asks for a live air check. Is that similar to a highlight reel? Can you explain what that is?” Yeah, that’s the best way to say it. Think of it for like recording. It’s like your demo for sound and what have you, and they often use it or keep it on file for legal purposes and what have you, but yeah, air check is the same thing. They also call it sometimes an air check when you have somebody source that footage for you. It can also be called an air check on this side of it.
DJ IZ: Marvin from Mount Edina, California. “Ever suffer from I-don’t-believe-in-myself syndrome? How do you come back from it?”
Cloie: See this is what I was talking about a second ago.
DJ IZ: Absolutely. At some point everybody doubts their own path, their own journey, or their own self. That’s human nature. That’s how we’re wired. The way you get through that is, one, if you have great people in your corner and you cling to them. If you don’t have that, if you have just a go-to person, maybe it’s somebody in your family, maybe it’s your grandma, you find sources to reassure you that you’re on the right path, that what you love is valid. I think it comes down to really understanding how important it is for you to pursue what it is you’re most connected to. It’s okay to do that. First of all, it’s okay to fail.
Cloie: [inaudible 00:48:55]
DJ IZ: When you have the understanding of what’s gonna come your way, which is that you’re gonna lose, man, you’re gonna get kicked down, you’re gonna get doubt. All of that is the perfect concoction or remedy for success. You need that. You need to doubt yourself. You need to know what you’re made of. You only find out what you’re made out of by doubting yourself and then coming back and getting back on your feet. It’s the necessary process for success.
Cloie: And nothing makes a better story than when you’ve been down and out and you fight your way back. And to the point of what we were saying before, I’m gonna say the F-word here. Not the typical one, and I’m gonna say it in a very specific way. I am not in any way, shape, or form religious. That’s just not me at all, but I do believe in faith, and when I say rooted into something bigger than you, that could be a mountain. You could go for a hike and you see, oh, right, my problems are small compared to what really exists. But the ability to take a step outside of yourself as an exercise in perspective. That’s all.
DJ IZ: Love it. What have we got? What’s next?
Cloie: I’m being so meta today, I feel. It’s something in the air. It’s the first day of spring. Perhaps that is it.
DJ IZ: We have Clark from Mesa, Arizona. “What’s the easiest way to sample old vinyl and bring it into Pro Tools?” I would say the easiest way is to get your turntable running through a mixer and then run your mixer directly into your rig or your audio interface. That’s the easiest way to do it. Ube [SP] from Monrovia, California. “IZ, when did you know you were going to make it, as in get paid doing what you love to do? How many years did it take?” Well, I tell you what, I had no idea when I was gonna make it. I just knew at some point, please god, at some point, please god. And how many years did it take? It probably took me about 15 years, and thankfully I started doing it when I was a kid. So by the time I was 27 it just kind of started to, a little light at the end of the tunnel. A little light. Not a big light, a little light. So it took me a really long time, man. So I always tell people, even when you come out of high school, if you’re 21 and you start pursuing what it is you love, even if you win within 10 years, you’re doing way better than I did. So it’s never too late. However, you don’t want to wait.
Cloie: I also want to say, though, everybody’s journey looks different. So who is this? Ube? You can’t judge your journey by IZ’s journey. I can’t judge my journey by IZ’s journey. Everybody just put your blinders on and run your race. Wait, Isabel from Hampton, Virginia. “Do either of you have a social life? How much do you work really?” All the time.
DJ IZ: All the time.
Cloie: I didn’t make it to his birthday party because I was on my grind.
DJ IZ: Sure didn’t.
Cloie: But I definitely have a social life. I very much have a social life. I would say IZ has a social life.
DJ IZ: I do. You have to build it into what you’re doing. This is the last question and then I’m closing this out. Mike from Detroit. “Either of you ever been social outcasts? Help. I’m talented, a musician, but too goofy for school. Short white boy alert.”
Cloie: Yes to outcasts, yes, yes, and yes. Were you an outcast? Or were you an “incast”?
DJ IZ: I was always an outcast. I’m just different.
Cloie: Yeah. Embracing that. When I was little I used to get beat up, kids would chase me around the playground and call me Bucky O’Hare.
DJ IZ: Cloie got beat up?
Cloie: It was rough coming up. Yeah. They would chase me around and call me Bucky O’Hare because of my teeth.
DJ IZ: Your teeth? You’ve got a perfect smile.
Cloie: Thank you. There was a point where my teeth had not caught up to the rest of my head. So there was that. I also grew up…This goes into the whole race thing, but I was raised in a very diverse world, and sometimes I would encounter people saying I was not white enough for the white people but not black enough for the black people.
DJ IZ: I get that all the time. I’m not Mexican enough for Mexicans, but hey, it didn’t stop me.
Cloie: No, don’t let it stop you. Embrace that, embrace your difference, whatever that is, and repurpose it and make it work for you. Make it rock.
DJ IZ: Because I think, too, at the end of the day, the great thing with being different is it’s the one element you hold onto that makes you special. I don’t want to be like everybody else. I don’t. I don’t want to conform to what people may consider to be the usual, the mainstream, what’s familiar. That stifles what I do as a creator.
Cloie: Absolutely.
DJ IZ: I think it’s important for you guys to understand how insanely important it is for you to hold onto your identity as it pertains to what you love. It’s so important for you to hold onto that and what that means for you, because that at the end of the day is what’s gonna make you special, what’s gonna make you you. That is your identify. It’s so important to not lose that. And trust me, they would love to have you lose that along the way, and you don’t want to, because again that’s your DNA, that’s your code.
Cloie: And you can’t run from it.
DJ IZ: You can’t run from it. Embrace it. It’s like those things, kind of what we were talking about earlier, when there’s a certain template that you need to fall into to be taken seriously. I remember when Serena Williams was coming into the game. It’s like, no, she’s built, and this. But she’s smashing.
Cloie: Look at her now.
DJ IZ: And then you have that famous, the ballerina dancer.
Cloie: Misty Kova.
DJ IZ: Yeah. So you have all these things that are from the typical outline of what that needs to be, but you know what, the world has changed, the world is changing, and it’s okay to be you and be successful. Look at Adele. She’s not your usual, you know, in order to be a pop icon for a female, she’s not the usual image of what they want people to be, but her songs are undeniable, her voice is undeniable. You can’t stop greatness.
Cloie: And not for nothing, she’s actually a perfect example, because that is a woman who is true to who she is. You go to any of her concerts or watch any interview, but the trash that flies out of her mouth is amazing. It is just so authentically her. I believe who she is one place is who she is everywhere.
DJ IZ: Absolutely. So just something for you to hold onto. We’re gonna close this out as we move forward for the rest of the week. So get out there and get on your grind. Shout out to our team who helps constantly make this possible. Shout out to Mike, Howie, Leah, Brian, Jay, Jimmie-
Cloie: Michael.
DJ IZ: And on that note we also want to let folks know where they can follow us. I’m gonna let you finish that out.
Cloie: By all means. Do you want to shout out…Well, you’ll find IZ. You can find me, too. You can find us at IZConnected across social media. On the email, that’s where you want to send us your resumes, your demos, all of that good stuff, [email protected]. To sign up for RRFC and all that good stuff you can go to RRFEDU.com/connected. Make sure you check out our Messenger app, that’s rrfedu.com.connected/app. Next slide, please. You can apply for jobs. Connected/latest. That’s rrfedu.com/connected/latest. Then for all of our resources, like air checks and talking about NDA’s it’s rrfedu.com/connected/vault. And of course we do have our newsletter. You can find that at rrfedu.com/weeklyreport. Stay tuned later because we’re gonna have in our weekly report info about Scott Johnson. So shout out again to Scott Johnson and to our team. Without further ado, I think IZ is gonna play.
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