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Meet Navneet Rao of LotC Studios in Hollywood

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Navneet Rao.

Navneet, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’m a musician, and audio engineer, based out of Los Angeles. I moved out here in September 2016 from Bangalore, India to further my music and audio engineering knowledge at Musicians Institute in Hollywood.

To go back to my roots: I truly started out my music journey at the age of 12, where I started playing Indian percussion in school. I was taught Mridangam (the South Indian cousin of the Tabla) as well as Konakol (South Indian vocal percussion and musical counting) under the tutelage of Vidwan Shri M Vasudeva Rao. It was during my first ever day at The Valley School, when he inadvertently gave me my first lesson by encouraging me to try my hand at the instrument alongside him at morning assembly. It was the first time I had ever played an instrument, let alone in front of a group of strangers, and it opened up the entire world of music to me. He is an inspiration and shaped me into the musician and person that I am today.

I didn’t come from a family of musicians, although we had an avid love for music. My mother felt that music opened our minds to empathy and creativity. She, much to my chagrin, put me in South Indian Classical vocal lessons as a young kid. Much later on, she put me in South Indian Carnatic violin classes, where I was taught by the renowned Vidwan Basavanagudi Sri G. Natraj. I did learn a lot, although I must admit that I didn’t appreciate it at the time.

My aunt was (and still is) really into 80s contemporary music, predominantly Classic Rock, Pop, and Motown. She moved to the U.S for college in the 80s and would diligently record mixtapes of songs on the radio. Every time we met, she would send me back with this mixtape, which I still cherish with all my heart. My family is a constant source of support and inspiration for me. Their drive, resilience, ability to adapt and learn, their unconditional, persevering love and kindness is something I will always strive towards.

Although I really started playing drums in high school, I really got into my stride during my years in engineering college: Manipal University on the West Coast of India, where I studied Electrical and Electronics Engineering. I performed at a few venues around the town of Manipal and along the West Coast. It’s here where I met musically-inclined people who helped me explore the world of Western Music and broadened my understanding of it. I joined a Church choir where I learned of the power of the human voice and explored percussion and guitar in that setting. I was constantly developing my vocabulary and expression on the drums in a few bands around town during this time as well.

My interests in electronics, as well as my passion for music sort of came together at this time through the world of digital audio recording and live sound production. I spent hours researching everything from software to microphones, techniques, musicality in recording, technical specifications, and the history of recording technology.

I went on to study drums and world percussion a few years after leaving Manipal, at a fairly new contemporary music school called Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music (SAM), near Pondicherry on the East Coast. This is where I met some amazing musicians, as well as my future (and present) bandmates. I studied drums and percussion extensively under Karina Colis, a fantastic drummer and Latin percussionist. I owe her and the fantastic teachers there such as Steve Zerlin, Arcoiris Sandoval, Prapancham Ravindran, Tom Brislin, Raphael Brochet, Phil Maturano, Alex Kautz, and others a great deal for their expertise and knowledge they imparted to me.

During this time, I assisted in live sound and audio recording duties under Johanson Prabhu Kumar. I gleaned a ton of real-world knowledge in that arena thanks to him. I later went on to work at SAM as an assistant to the production teacher Ed DeGenaro. With Ed’s mentoring and expertise, I gained valuable insight into time-tested production techniques, from both a technical, as well as an artistic and psychological perspective. He unlocked the world of vintage gear and gave me the hands-on knowledge that I feel no amount of researching on my part could have ever given me. I can unequivocally say that he made me the audio engineer I am today.

Musicians Institute was a fantastic experience for me. I got to study in a fast paced environment amongst music professionals and peers from all around the world. I had the privilege of studying drums, audio engineering, and audio post production, as well as bass guitar, vocals, and keys, from some of the best in the music industry. It help round out my music knowledge a great deal. I have to credit some of the most passionate teachers I have had: Albe Bonacci, Tim McIntyre, Tom Plumb, Gary Hess, Fred Dinkins, Richie Gajate Garcia, Kevin Stevens, Efa Etoroma, Ronan Gordon, Gianluca Palmieri, Stewart Jean, David Salinas, Steve Hong, Shawna Basick, Tita Hutchison, Alexx Daye, Maurizio “Otto” de Togni, Francis Buckley, Mikal Reid, Adam Kagan, Jason Way, Michael Binikos, Ed Towner, David Isaac, Zahari Shonov, Greg Hainer to name (quite) a few!

Not mentioning the constant support which I have received from my peers would be a disservice. Whether in classes or in the studio or going out to catch a performance, they have been key to my musical journey. The endless discussions in the jam room or at the local pub; the concert experiences, the music listening sessions, and the studio sessions; they have all made me grow and learn from them.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The tough times make us tougher and have a lot of lessons to teach us, and all I can say is that I’ve had (and continue to have) my fair share of them.

Back in India, I grew up in an environment where being a performing artist wasn’t regarded as a “real job”. I don’t blame them for having that outlook. Having been through a formal education at a traditional University, I can understand the thought process going into this perception. When you take on a more traditional career path, you have a tried and tested roadmap laid out before you, with a certain definition of success at the “end”.

The reality of life is that there are certain basic needs that are to be met in order to live it. However, given the opportunity, we would be spending all our time either jamming, recording, and making music. While this mindset may give us happiness with every piece of music that makes its way out of us, there is a constant struggle which artists experience with uncertainty meted out to us because of our lifestyle, ever-changing goals, and being true to our art. There is a certain freedom in that, but there is also a lot of vulnerability, and compromise.

Getting my family to accept that they have a musician amongst them required a lot of growth and acceptance from everyone involved, and I am happy to say that, so far, I have prevailed. I am also privileged enough to be able to travel so much and have the opportunity to pursue this path and I will forever be grateful to my family for their acceptance, guidance, and support.

Another thing that struck me is the variety and variability in the music scenes both in India and in the USA, and adapting to the different methods of navigating the scene has been a lesson in humility, professionalism, and networking. The Los Angeles music scene is full of driven people doing what they do best. I have drawn so much inspiration from my peers in my time here, and feel the camaraderie that comes from the understanding that we are on this journey together, and support we offer each other. Los Angeles, in general, has been very welcoming, and I’m glad to say that my experience out here has been one filled with inspiration, kindness, understanding, and acceptance.

There have been plenty of times when I have struggled with my mental and physical health: I broke my leg in my first few months out here (during which I was introduced to the… interesting… medical system out here), and I suffer from a chronic respiratory illness. There are times where I have worried about cash flow; been through my share of heartbreaks; and struggled for motivation (coffee helps). At the end of the day, I wouldn’t have chosen any other life for myself, and I am thankful for the people in my life me who give me the strength to keep on pushing.

As a musician and audio engineer – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I create and perform music with a few bands out here in LA, as well as record, mix, master, and produce music with a few others.

The neo-soul band “Lace” is a sister project of the band we used to have back in India called “ChandBibi and the Waste Candidates” (the etymology of that name is a story for another time). Three out of the four bandmates came from India to LA at different times. Guitarist – Sidhant Jain – came here first to pursue his Bachelor’s at Musicians Institute, and inspired me to come out here a year later. Vocalist – Mana Contractor – came here around a year and a half later, to finish her Masters in Vocal Performance at CalArts. We have always loved making music together and started the neo-soul project “Lace” with me on the drums. We met the bassist Connor Coram – a TA at Musicians Institute, who fit right in with us. We recently released our debut EP titled “Liar’s Notebook” in collaboration with the fantastic percussionist Emi Desiré. I had the pleasure of recording the tracks alongside my friend (accomplished guitarist and audio engineer) Aditya Dutt at Musicians Institute in the impressive Studio C (featuring a beautiful API console), as well as my home studio (LotC Studios), and subsequently mixing and mastering the tracks for digital distribution on Bandcamp and other popular media platforms.

Another artist I have the privilege of performing with is Kendall Rucks. We met at Musicians Institute when she was looking for a drummer her band to perform with her for the Musicians Institute Artist Development Showcase in the Fall of 2017. She had been making music for a while, and already had an impressive portfolio of tracks, with a mysterious blues rock and ambient pop/rock vibe, which was right up my alley. I fell in love her music from the instant I heard it. We have since performed around the greater LA area, playing twice at the legendary Viper Room; as well as the Okeechobee Festival of Music and Arts (Florida) in March 2020. As a part of her band, we have worked together on new music like “Blood Money” which released in 2019, and a couple of new tracks which are going to be available on popular media platforms in the very near future.

I have also had the privilege of playing bass guitar for the country rock artist Kylee Stone. Being fairly new to playing the bass guitar, I was fortunate enough to have her and her band trust me with her music. The first song which I was sent to learn was an early demo of “Tennessee Tells”. I was compelled to keep it on repeat, not because I had to learn the song, but because I fell in love with it. When she asked me to record my parts for her songs, I jumped at the chance! I’m happy to say that it was very recently released on all the popular music platforms, and it is a staple on my road-trip playlists.

The band “Charly and the Characters” has also been a big part of my music journey out here in LA. Having started out as a solo project by Marie Weill – aka Charly, it later incorporated the talents of producer, bassist, and backing vocalist Eric Reymond; guitarist, and backing vocalist Johann Lorber; and included me on the drums/percussion and backing vocals. We have been releasing music as a band since last year. With an indie folk-rock sound, and the lyrics reflecting on various topics ranging from mental health to sexuality, and life experiences. We have a few music videos out on YouTube, featuring cinematography of Zoe Pelloux, Guy Longstreet, and Fernanda Schein.

Some of the other artists I have performed with are Su and Sid (on percussion), Kruthi Singar (on bass guitar), Julia Jaye (on bass guitar) Anna Atwater (on guitar), Kevin Coppola – aka Cowboy Kevin (on guitar), Shay (on drums), Drew Zaragoza (on drums/percussion and backing vocals), and Juan Navia (on drums/percussion and backing vocals).

In the Audio Production realm, I am a part of the audio tech team at The Soraya – a theater located within the Cal State University in Northridge campus, Live House in Hollywood, and The Erwin House in NoHo. I do live sound mixing as a freelancer for various venues and bands in the LA area as well.

I have been recording artists ever since the days of working out of my home studio in India. More recently, I have recorded at the studios at Musicians Institute. My home studio in Hollywood serves as the place where I record at a smaller scale, as well as undertaking mixing, mastering, and production work under the name “LotC Studios”. I occasionally venture out of my habitat to record on-location with a streamlined portable recording setup. Some of the artists I have worked with on various aspects of the audio production process include Kruthi Singar, Sooraj Bishnoi, Su and Sid, Polymorph, Luciana Garcia, Illicit, Kruttika Sequeira, Matheus Granjeiro; as well as the bands I have been a part of, such as Lace, Kendall Rucks, and ChandBibi and the Waste Candidates.

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
To define a point at which I can say that I am successful would be a when I am traveling the world performing and producing music, and a part of a hard-working live audio and studio team. By creating music that resonates with people, and getting to a place where I can make opportunities for my peers to showcase their talents, skills, and creativity, I would say that I have reached a place where I am happy and successful.

I am very blessed to be around people who are talented, hard-working, loving, and supportive. Whatever success I have so far (and will hopefully have in the future) is because people have given me the opportunity and guidance to do so. Whether its family, friends, teachers, the musicians, or the audience, the opportunities for success comes from listening, empathizing, and lifting up the people around us, and I strive to return the favour. I don’t intend to sound preachy or disingenuous saying any of this. If I do, the blame for my overzealousness lies squarely in the amount of coffee I’ve consumed so far!

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Image Credit:
Musicians Institute, Guy Longstreet, Nariyal Paani, Jose “Chipi” Estrada, AyameFoto, House of Blues Anaheim, The Viper Room, Okeechobee Festival of Music and Arts, Whiskey a Go Go, Charly and the Characters, ChandBibi and the Waste Candidates, Kendall Rucks and the Zodiac Mafi, Anna Atwater.

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