Today being an artist goes beyond singing well. On the one hand, because there are currently dozens of tools (not just the famous autotune) that improve, embellish and accompany the voice of singers, whether or not they have great vocal ability. On the other hand, because, depending on the musical genre in which one immerses oneself, the lyrics – deep and honest, which tell stories with which one can identify – have become more and more important.
All this, of course, encompassed under the music production, which is one of the key phases when creating a song. It’s the way to get the most out of a project and make a letter, with its melody and voice, a success.
A lot of times the producers are the forgotten greats of the music industry. They work more in the shadows and their work doesn’t get as much recognition as it deserves. Actually, Rosalía dedicated part of her speech after winning the award Billboard Women in Music 2023 Producer of the Year for this subject. “A producer’s job is shadow work, it’s not much fun…it’s 15 hours a day working on a sound. It comes from love and obsession and that’s why you stay in this little windowless room while everyone else is living life and doing normal things,” the artist explained.
Fortunately, in recent times, the figure of the music producer is increasingly taken into account. In addition, some have obtained a greater visibility after making the decision to go to the other side of the studio and face the microphone.
Here are some examples of artists who, in addition to producing, sing and compose their songs.
Alizz
The producer became known for his work in the early stages of great singers such as Rosalia or C. Tangana. If he was already making his own songs since 2012, when he released his first EP, it was a few years later that the Catalan started to get noticed with his own songs. So his popularity increased with songs like I don’t feel anything anymore oh The encounternext to Amaia.
In 2021 he publishes his first album (and only one to date), there must be something else. The producer’s most recent work is boycott, a five-song EP that he released in early February.
Pablo Rouss
Pablo Rouss is, in part, largely responsible for the successes of the most current pop stars, such as Belén Aguilera or Sebastian Yatra —with whom he also won a Latin Grammy for Red pumps—, at least in the melodic part. As a producer, he assured us in LOS40 that indeed, “it’s ghost work, but I felt very good in this position for a long time.”. In the same way, he considers that “producers should be better recognized because are a crucial part of the songs”because “without them these songs would not exist”.
But Rouss is above all a musician (in the broadest sense of the term). Not only because he took part in the last tour of Hens as a guitarist, but because, for some time, this young Navarrese has also embarked on song, integrating the two visions of which he speaks – “that of the artist and that of the producer, which make a whole” – , in the same figure. On March 24, he presented Cycleshis first album full of collaborations with Alvaro de Luna, Walls, Aleesha and other young people from the emerging new wave of talent that is making its way to our country.
black panda
Blackpanda, the artistic duo of Marta Marlo and Andrés Lim, have teamed up in the wake of the pandemic. The perfect tandem they have formed has allowed them both to produce for others, but also i want to burnthe candidacy of Agony for Benidorm Fest; how to create your own themes with a unique style.
For them the best thing about being a producer “It’s sharing study time with people who have the same passion as you”; while “perhaps the worst is that there are times of stress, crazy deadlines and the like”. And as artists, they are clear: “the best thing is creative freedom and being able to connect with so many people, the worst are slowdowns that can hit you along the way.”
Sebastien Cortes
The man from Madrid is another of the artists who lives halfway between his facets of producer, composer, singer and musician. A “360” artist, one might say. In addition to composing and producing works by other colleagues, Sebastián Cortés released his first album in 2021 and has just released his second, Everything has changed forever.
As characterizes the artists of the so-called new wave, the Madrid native has several collaborations with singers of his same generation such as Alba Reche, Delgao or Yareaamong others.
Kickbombo and D3llano
Although they do not sing as such in their respective projects, it is worth highlighting the work of this group of producers who, like the previous ones, They get more and more visibility and recognition.
Such KickBombo as D3llano They are a clear example of the evolution of the figure of the producer in Spain. His degree of involvement in the songs is such that appear in the credits at the same level as the main performers; they are too. Without going any further, Kickbombo has just been released I have nothingan EP with Yarea; there D3llano collaborates on various subjects with Samurai, Enol, Delgao (also singer and producer).
Ultimately, they are considered one more artist with the same weight on the creation of the project, something that was already happening with DJs like David Guetta or Calvin Harris on a more international level; and more recently with Latin American producers like Bizarrap, Tainy or Ovy on the Drums.
All these names are just a few of the many artists who dare to sing in addition to producing their songs. ODDLIQUOR, Xavibo or Carlos Ares are other names to remember because they are going very strong.