Today we’d like to introduce you to Yáng Tan.
Hi Yáng, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
10 years ago, I moved from Beijing, China, where I went to college, to Los Angeles, California. I’m after a music dream. Now I’m a Grammy-nominated Engineer, and music producer who is passionate about helping artists to make their visions come to life.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There have always been struggles and obstacles along the way, being a foreigner learning how the music industry works, it takes time, trial, and error. And the most important thing is to perfect my craft and win trust over countless projects and work.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m a music producer-engineer. I record vocalists and instrumentalists, and I also mix records and film scoring (Mixing is to make the music more refined; like a chef, I mix all of the ingredients in a song or a piece of scoring music, put in my sauce and flavor to make it more presentable). I’ve been producing and writing more music lately; I help artists make the music part of the song and also help them write lyrics or melody when needed in a music writing session. I also have my first music project in the pipeline for release.
I’m most known for my engineering work for Janelle Monáe “The Age of Pleasure.” I engineered vocals and instruments (strings, horns, keys, guitars, and bass, etc). The album was nominated for the 66th Grammy Awards in the category “Album of the Year”. Other credits include Yessie by Jessie Reyez, KOD by J. Cole, Asha’s Awakening by Raveena, and more.
I’m very proud of my mixing work for artists like Emel, Samantha Margret, Brooke Alexx, and Eva Snyder because all of those projects are led by mostly women or women/nonbinary teams. The artists are very conscious about choosing whom they work with. The Spotify streams reflected how successful those choices were. I feel like we’re building an invincible community.
I’m also very proud of my production and writing work for artists like Margø, Flyanna Boss, Morganne, Mykel, and more.
What sets me apart is the ability to push the limit of one’s talents; I always want to make their vocal sound phenomenal at all costs.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
I wish I knew not to worry too much; I should have utilized the time to work towards the projects I’ve always wanted to do instead of worrying about if I’m good enough/qualified to do so.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://amerecords.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yangelectricat/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@yangtanproduces6531
