Today we’d like to introduce you to Randy Crenshaw.
Hi Randy, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I graduated from Berklee College of Music in Boston, then moved out to L.A. in the early ’80’s, hoping for a career in the music industry as a trumpet player and music arranger/orchestrator. While I waited for my “big break”, I did all kinds of odd jobs, including temping as a filing clerk on the 70th floor of the Arco Towers downtown.
My wife was working as a traveling music teacher in the L.A. Unified School District, teaching K through 6 general and choral music in East LA, so I also ended up working as her assistant for a couple of years, arranging music for her choral music programs. Eventually, I started getting called to do recording sessions as a trumpet player and orchestrator or arranger for television and film composers. On one of my recording sessions, one of the male singers didn’t show up, so I stepped in and sang the vocal part he was supposed to have sung, which of course I knew, having written the arrangement! And that was the start of me working in the music/entertainment industry as a singer and vocal arranger.
Over the years, I’ve been blessed to have worked on hundreds of films, television programs, television and radio commercials, record album projects, music for theme parks and cruise lines, etc. Most musicians and singers in our business tend to be specialists and do a few sounds or styles very well. I’ve managed to make a career out of being more of a “jack-of-all-trades”, where I’m called on to do various different sounds and styles well. My work is almost never boring!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No, it’s been challenging at times, as musical trends and economic downturns come and go over the years. For instance, I used to sing on lots of television and radio commercials in my early years in the music industry, but the trend more recently has been to use less singers in commercials, especially vocal groups. Also, though I’ve sung background vocals for many record albums over the years, that type of work has really diminished from the ’80’s until now, so I don’t work on artist recordings so much these days… Similarly, music for television has tended to use less singers in recent years than back in the ’80’s or ’90’s, so that work has also decreased.
On the other hand, I’ve had the chance to record vocals for lots of theme park music in recent years, as more and more theme parks spring up worldwide! Also, cruise lines do elaborate onboard music shows, so that’s opened up lots of opportunities for me to do pre-recorded vocals for those types of shows, as well as vocal arranging.
And because I had sung as a “character singer” for animated projects, I began getting more work as a voice actor or voiceover artist. That’s probably about 1/4 of the work I do these days…
When the COVID pandemic hit in early 2020, that also forced most recording to be done in home studios, rather than in our usual large commercial recording studios, so most musicians and singers were forced into becoming amateur recording engineers, with mixed results!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
So these days, I’m the “utility infielder” in the game of music in the greater Los Angeles area! I’m known as the guy you hire when you need someone to sing in an unusual language or style, or when you want some authentic-sounding recreation of the sound of a singer from another era. And I’m having lots of enjoyment now offering my vocal arrangements and original compositions for sale to the general public through my website, www.randycrenshaw.com, and also through online publishers like iJazzMusic.com.
I’m still having a great time most days of my life, doing a wild variety of recording work!
What do you like and dislike about the city?
I love the cultural opportunities in LA (for live theater, opera, museums, etc.), and the amazing professional sporting events you can attend. And I love the variety of different cuisines and ethnic groups found in LA! It’s the ultimate “salad bowl”… I dislike the traffic congestion since I live northwest of the San Fernando Valley and have to commute to get most places in LA. And currently, Los Angeles is struggling madly to cope with a huge homeless problem, so it looks in certain areas more like a third-world combat zone, not a major metropolitan city.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.randycrenshaw.com
