David Kater shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
David , it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
This is a fantastic question. For myself, being in the studio creating music, writing a tv or film project treatment, or diving into writing a script and bringing characters to life is definitely a time warp. So many things in life try and take us away from creating or pursuing our passion. Creating content is a big part of who I am and getting to sit still and create without interruption brings me back to who I am and allows me to find myself again. If I go too long without creating, I feel off track.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is David Kater and I am so grateful to be asked back again for another quick feature with Voyage Content Partners. Thank you so much for the support! For those who are new to me and what I do, I am a professional music producer, songwriter, screen writer, and content creator. I was born and raised in Southern California and I am a proud Angeleno. Say what you like, but California is an amazing collage of rich cultures, creative ingenuity, amazing landscape, phenomenal food, diversity, and beauty.
Naturally, being raised 35 minutes East of Los Angeles and with Hollywood being in my back yard, I realized earlier on that I wanted to pursue a career in entertainment. I first started as a young dancer and sort of fell into singing and music. After that first audition singing “Tomorrow” from Annie, I am so grateful to have been allowed to use the gift I’ve been granted to build a long and successful career in the arts.
I am still very much in the “biz” with music and vocal features in countless television and movie projects on several networks including, ABC, CBS, Netflix, TLC, Lifetime, HBO, Amazon, Disney, and more. I’ve written songs for other artists with hit singles in Asia and abroad as well as writing scripted content for TV and Film with creative cohorts Manny “Streetz” Guevara (Ryan Seacrest in the Morning, Disney, and Nickelodeon) as well as long time friend and director Courtney Miller Jr. (Michael Jackson, Beyonce, Bounce TV, and more.)
I am currently developing and creating music with the ultra-talented platinum selling songwriting and production duo Tricia Battani ( Aespa, Giselle, Itzy, StayC and more) and G’harah “PK” Degeddingseze (Chris Brown, Aespa, NCT Dream, and more). I am also currently in the studio with the talented Tawnie “Kiyone” Shorter creating with her for her debut EP coming soon in 2025/26 as well as music for tv/film licensing and synch. I am also happy to be back in the studio creating a new EP with “EnVogue’s” Rhona Bennett who also happens to be my cast-mate from the 90’s Mickey Mouse Club and long time friend.
Also coming up is my Christmas song “Please Santa” being featured on a new Christmas movie airing on Netflix during the Christmas season, which is written, produced, and performed my myself and also co-written by Manny “Streetz” Guevara.
Keep up with news and details on www.dkater.com
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
There have been so many eye opening moments living on this planet. Earliest one as a kid would be understanding that not everyone is treated fairly, equally, and with dignity. When I was a kid, I would perform at places that truly made me start to think. Places like juvenile detention centers, state hospitals for the mentally challenged, and convalescent homes. I realized there was something a bit broken in the world. I was not sure what it was then, but now I can see that being exposed to the real world earlier on began to shape my mind and I started to become more altruistic as I got older and understanding that not everything is so binary.
A more positive moment that has forever shaped me and my entire life, is the birth of my daughter. My world has changed drastically. I have learned to have much more patience with everything. I have learned that the world, with all it’s faults, is still beautiful. Through the eyes of my own, I see hope, so much love, and light.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Wow, this one here. Have there been times I’ve wanted to throw in the towel and give up? Oh yea! Most of the reasons have been exterior, meaning outside elements infiltrating my realm and messing with my psyche. One that is a constant challenge and an obstacle that is more internal is being deaf in my left ear.
The deafness came about due to suffering meningitis as a baby, causing me to have sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) as well as auditory nerve damage. Having a non-apparent disability has been a challenge in life but has also come with some benefits as a singer.
As a music producer however, it’s been quite a journey and complete with its own set of hurdles. First off, never truly hearing in stereo. What kind of producer or mix engineer can’t hear in stereo!?! Of course, hearing audio depth as well. Overly booming bass and drums, not catching recording errors until mixing, and just mixing in general were all things I had to really focus on. It’s definitely something I’ve had to finesse and overly train my one good ear.
After many horrible mixes, audio abuse, and tips and tricks from masters of the craft, one day it thankfully clicked and my one good ear began to hear music and mixes differently. I have also had the opportunity to learn and be in the room with some legends. Having access to ask questions and be mentored by close friend and industry brother Claudio Cueni (LilSimz, 2Pac, BoyzIIMen, and more) as well as be in the room with legendary producer Christopher “Tricky” Stewart (Britney, Beyonce, Rihanna) while signed to his label back in the day has made all the difference.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
Those closest to me would most likely say that family, friends, and authentic connections matter to me the most. I’ve had career ups, downs, lulls, and resurgences. It doesn’t matter at all if you can’t be around people you love and trust. My values are also quite simple and that is try everyday. Try to treat people kindly, without judgement, be mindful of other’s life and feelings, and try to be the better version of yourself at any point of the day.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I like this question. I struggled with this very question for a number of years. When I first started in entertainment, I was 7 or 8 years old. I saw a kid around my age tap dancing on T.V. and said to my mom, “I can do that.” I truly in my heart wanted to dance and once started, couldn’t stop. However, once it went from merely taking class a couple times a week, to pursuing it as a career, things shifted a lot. While I was doing it for the love, my mother began to manage my career and became more militant, competitive, and aggressive with aspects of it. It wasn’t fun anymore.
As I got older and was able to part ways with my mother managing my career, I’d ask myself often as an adult if it was even something I still wanted to do, or am I just doing it so I don’t let my mother down or seem like a complete failure. It was a ton of pressure I had put on myself. Although I continued to pursue entertainment and was still successful, I often wanted to quit and go off-grid.
I stopped pursuing entertainment for a few years and fell into real estate and lending. One day I got home from the job and heard one of my favorite ole-skool songs and started singing along with it. I ended up sitting on the couch in tears missing being in the arts. It’s then I realized that this…music, singing, and being creative, was something I was born to do.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dkater.com
- Instagram: @davidkateroffical
Image Credits
Photo Credits:
Abbas Sulliman
Jamal Smith Bayette – Jamal SB Photography
