Today we’d like to introduce you to JoJo Centineo.
Hi JoJo, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’m JoJo Centineo — An American Record Producer, Mixer, and Songwriter based in LA. Driven by the belief that true art emerges when an artist can express their most authentic selves. I try to carve an ever changing line between alternative rock and modern pop in every song I bring to life. Somewhere along the way I realized I wasn’t just producing records — I was helping artists find the version of themselves they didn’t know yet.
My job is to emotionally undress the artist — to pull off every layer that isn’t real so what’s left is the truth. The microphone is basically a camera that captures sound instead of images, and I want it to capture who they really are. I produce by putting a mirror in front of the artist, figuratively. I keep moving that mirror, shifting it, adjusting it — until they finally see themselves. Not the version they think they have to be, but the version that’s the most honest, the most vulnerable, the most them. That’s what I want the mic to record. Their real self. Their soul showing.
I came up as a kid through the grind in my hometown of Arlington, Texas — playing in bands, playing Warped Tour, shooting music videos, writing music. I lived that life for a while and somewhere in the middle of it, the production bug bit me. My old bands producer loaded me up with a handful of plugins and some EQ & COMP presets and i was off to the races. Eventually my band got signed and I was enjoying that while also getting pulled deeper into recording local bands, writing with them, and helping them shape their sound. I built a studio back home and spent my early twenties finding my sound and figuring out who I was as a producer — one session at a time. That’s where I found my style and learned how I wanted to guide artists. Long nights and an empty bank account. That journey shaped the workflow I use today in Los Angeles as I produce with and amongst some of the greats — my process revolves around searching for what makes an artist uniquely them, and then build an entire world around that truth.
Today I work between pop, rock, and alt-rock, producing records for both emerging and established artists. I wrote and produced Kami Kehoe’s breakout single “Sleep When I’m Dead,” which surpassed 30 million streams and helped land her a major label deal. I also collaborated with international French artist Yseult — co-writing and producing her single “MTV,” and mixing and mastering her latest album Mental, a project she brought to Jimmy Fallon and performed at the Olympic closing ceremony in France.
I also serve as executive producer and A&R for international pop star Jules Liesl. Together, we built her catalog from zero to over a hundred songs — including a global hit that reached #17 on Billboard and #3 on the UK charts. With credits spanning from the alternative rock world (Amira Elfeky) and Pop Acts (Alex O’aiza)
I’m an artist forward producer, and I specialize in songwriting, artist development, and leading creative teams. I approach every project like a culture — something bigger than just a song.
My story is simple: I built my career by taking raw truth and shaping it into something powerful enough to move people. And I want young producers, engineers, and artists to know this — you don’t need permission, perfect gear, or the “right” moment. You can start with whatever you have, wherever you are. If you stay obsessed, stay curious, and keep showing up, the work will take you further than you ever imagined.
That’s why I do what I do every day. Music expresses what we haven’t yet learned to say out loud.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
One of the biggest challenges in my career was leaving the city i came up in. I had so much momentum there — I was a go-to producer, constantly working, surrounded by artists I believed in. but it was a place that i felt, at the time, didn’t have the caliber of opportunity that i was after. The skill level… well texas is the best….that place is a breeding ground for talent; the skill level was never the issue. It was the lack of opportunity. The hardest part was walking away from it and ny community of friends.
“I had success in Texas. I had a community. Leaving all that behind to rebuild my name from scratch in Los Angeles was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.”
when i moved to LA the cost of living hit hard, and the pressure to compete was unreal. It was so uncomfortable, and super lonely at times, and honestly… full of moments where I questioned whether I had made the right decision.
But that leap as time showed changed everything.
My life has transformed in ways I couldn’t even imagined. It was worth the struggle.
The transition wasn’t instant, but it sharpened my craft, expanded your world, and brought you into rooms with people i looked up to and opportunities i had dreamed of.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
What I do, at the core, is build worlds around artists. I’m a producer, mixer, and songwriter, but the real work sits underneath all of that — it’s understanding who an artist is at the deepest level and then translating that into sound. I’m obsessed with clarity of identity. Every texture is there to support the truth of who the artist is. I specialize in long-form development. Some producers jump in for a single song — I love stepping into an artist’s universe and helping shape the entire landscape. I’m involved in the writing, the production choices, the creative direction, the arrangement, the mix — all the way to the final master.
What I’m proud of is the trust artists give me. I don’t take that lightly. Its special that someone trusts me into their inner world, to help them sift through there voice, wether its insecure or ambitious or somewhere in between. One thing i always say. It’s not about how big a song gets, the numbers or the accolades. Those things aren’t the number 1 priory here. the number one priority – the most important part – is what the artist goes through while immersed in the process of creating the art itself,
What sets me apart is my ability to bring someone’s truth out. I can feel when something is real — when an artist is finally tapping into the part of themselves they usually hide — and my energy naturally pulls that forward. I’ll sit with a single vocal line for an hour if that’s what it takes for it to feel vulnerable and alive. I’m not afraid to step away from the board and just talk. Sometimes the best thing I can do for a record is give someone space to regulate their nervous system — to slow down, be human, and let the guard drop. A wise man once told me “in every moment you are collecting the pieces of your next artistic release” Moments that open the door to deeper honesty, are priceless and worth more that a million ‘perfect takes” its where the real magic comes from.
The world we create, the emotional safety in the room, the mindset we build together — all of that matters just as much as the production itself. That’s the part of the process I’m obsessed with, and that’s what separates me. I also work fast, but intentionally. I don’t wait around for inspiration — I create the conditions for it. I love the pressure of deadlines, the intensity of creative problem-solving, and the challenge of making something that feels both emotionally honest and sonically massive.
More than anything, I’m committed to the idea that music should reveal something true — not just about the artist, but about the listener. When someone hears a record we made and says, “That’s exactly how I feel,” that’s when I know I did my job.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5VJ0zEi3rNGL8IjzZaUpNG?si=2a96991f7cba4408
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jojocentineo/
- Other: https://genius.com/artists/Jojo-centineo
