Balancing work, life and music production: Ben Tucker’s advice for busy artists and producers

Balancing life and music can be impossible and is probably the biggest factor why producers give up on their dream of making music a serious part of their long-term lives.

Because most producers enter the profession early in life when they have plenty of free time, but over the years, as their skills improve, the demand for their time increases, work, life , relationships, etc., accumulate. Soon the music may slowly drift into backburn.

Ben Tucker has managed to defy the odds and create some of the best music of his career while juggling work, international moves, life, and more. So to celebrate the release of his latest remix, we sat down with Ben to find out his secrets for making music an important part of your life while keeping a fantastic job and more.

Steam Ben Tucker’s Remix Below

Ben Tucker’s latest release is a remix for an artist named Breno Mos and was recently released on David Hohme’s imprint – Where The Heart Is Records.

The track is an organic, airy house melody that takes the listener on a listed journey from start to finish. The new version of Ben Tucker brings a little more festive and dancing atmosphere to the original mix.

Buy Ben’s remix on Beatport here


How do you find the energy for music after finishing work at your 9-5?

For me, it’s about taking care of myself. I changed a lot of things in my lifestyle to balance everything I love to do, with a focus on my health.

The healthier you feel, the more energy you have and everything else falls into place! This is going to sound like a cliché, but I’m an early riser, and it makes a huge difference to me. I usually get up at 5:45 a.m. every morning, listen to all the tracks I currently have on my way to work, work out at lunchtime, and spend 2 hours in the studio a day once I get home. home.

However, if I don’t feel it, it doesn’t matter!

On weekends, I spend half the day in the studio and the other half having fun. Balance, balance, balance.

Do you have any tips for prioritizing and deciding what to sacrifice to make music a part of life?

All your unhealthy habits.

But seriously, I don’t think you should feel like you’re sacrificing anything. If you like what you do, go for it, whether it’s music or not. Inspiration and creativity come naturally to me in the flow, and I am what I feel.

When I say no to going to a party or hanging out with friends (which some would call a sacrifice), I choose what I want to do while being disciplined with my routine.

I’m a firm believer in the fact that you can’t tip the balance too much towards flow or a strict routine. You have to mix and follow your heart while having a strategy, a plan for your direction in life.

This way, nothing feels like a sacrifice to me, and I can always find time for the things I love, balancing music, work, and an active social life with fitness. If you only spend a few hours in the studio a week, that’s fine, as long as you find your mindset when it suits you. And if sometimes life gets in the way, you get caught up in other priorities, and you don’t do anything in the studio, that’s fine too! Creativity and flow won’t work if you force it.

How important is a community to balance production and life?

Connection is one of my most important values ​​and one of the reasons I love releasing music. there’s nothing more rewarding than seeing others connect with the music you’ve put your heart and soul into.

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Having a team or community to balance everything helps – sharing ideas, discussing challenges and getting feedback, it’s all better with a team that can support you while pointing out potential blind spots you might miss as an army. only one man. I’m all for a collab or two and have some in the works right now; a fun way to explore different talents, strengths and styles.

Saying all that, I also love my solo time when it comes to all things creative. However, much of the inspiration is drawn from experiences and relationships with others. It is then my interpretation of these experiences that emerges from my traces.

Share some tips for staying inspired while spending time away from music

I don’t think it’s about “staying inspired”.

Inspiration always comes and goes.

You can’t be inspired 24/7. Spending time away from them also helps me focus on my productions. It seems counter-intuitive, but it allows me to be more present with other life experiences to draw on, and it also creates a unique space for the time I set aside to refine my productions and express my ideas.

There were times when for weeks I just didn’t feel any inspiration at all. I used to try to force it in the past, but I was surprised! It did not work.

I have never been happy with these songs. So I started taking it as a sign to step back and focus on other things in life. And oddly enough, after taking the pressure off and giving myself some time, every time I come back to it with a fresh head, even just a weekend in the studio is usually full of ideas, and I can finish 2-3 pieces in a few days!

Do you have any life hacking techniques to help you manage life and music production?

Daily exercise and meditation help me find balance within myself for whatever comes my way. Meditation brings me back to center and exercise releases all tension so I can stay fresh and healthy to have the energy to balance life and music. There’s a lot of magic in setting aside time just to be quiet and go for a run to clear your mind.

However, the most important life hack I’ve learned in the past six months is the importance of getting enough sleep.

Until last year, I used to push myself to accomplish more in a day and usually functioned with only 4-6 hours of sleep. It was something I used to compromise on. But, since changing my sleep routine to a non-negotiable 7-8 hours per night, I have found that I have more consistent energy and inspiration throughout the day. I no longer believe in exhaustion.

My studio layout is also designed to shield me from distractions and fuel creativity. A clear space helps to have a clear mind, so it is essential for me not to clutter my studio space.

How do you personally work smarter and not harder?

Keeping samples organized is a must. I also tend to save chains of effects, presets, etc.

If I can feel exactly what vibe I’m looking for with a song, I start with a template with the number of tracks and instrument types ready to go. It never ends up being a “template” track, but I find it a great building block for quickly fleshing out ideas.

Even little things like creating notes for each track when it comes to ideas are also helpful. These impulsive inspirations can easily be forgotten if you don’t write them down. The notes app on my phone is a real workout, and I’ll even admit voice memos if I have melodic ideas

Talk about some time management tips you wish you had learned ten years ago.

Two things – calendars and to-do lists.

That’s it.

I used to avoid structuring and organizing things like this in the past because I wanted to “go with the flow”.

However, things are very different now – blocking time into my schedule, whether to brainstorm track ideas or more technical aspects of production like mixing, really allows more freedom in the process. As this quote from Aristotle says, “Through discipline comes freedom”, it’s ironic, but it’s true.

We can choose to create more flow in our lives by giving it structure. A state of flux is where the real magic of music production lives.

Planning my time this way allowed me to feel accomplished and productive while ticking off a realistic list rather than continually being distracted and working aimlessly, exhausting myself.

About Shirley A. Tamayo

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