Phil Ramone – HuffPost 2.14.12

Mike Ragogna: Phil, what advice would you have for new artists?

Phil Ramone: You have to do what’s all in your history is available. You can go on iTunes and spend a week and go listen. For me, I ask them to send me the best seven to ten things they heard. It’s not about how famous they became, what’s good about that voice? You can be Adele, but you have to grow from something to be Adele. I’ve worked with a lot of young artists, and they’re much quicker. The learning process is quicker because you can play them more things. You say, “Here, this is what this is, study it, imitate it, it’s okay because you’re not going to sing like that.” I think you’re seeing it on any of the reality talent shows, there’s a lot of terrific talent. It’s scary, because if you had a big record industry right now, they would all be signed. That’s been the duty of record companies for years. The age level is dropping. You would see a pianist at 10 years old and it would scare the hell out of you or a girl singing opera at 11 years. What inspired it? How did it get there? We have to have a device that stores your music and performances. The big large building of twenty stories of marketing will be different, it’s already different. As long as we keep making good music, then our standards won’t change. Rihanna was on the show a couple years back. She has a phenomenal career. A lot of people are like that, Taylor Swift for instance. They learn through the process, they become so famous. Novelty is over at a certain age too, when you lose your cuteness, whatever that is. Having spent a few months with George Michael on the road? Wham! was as big an act as you could have in the early ’80s and George is loved. He’s still part of Wham! in one way, and here’s this great songwriter and here’s this great performer.

MR: What advice would you give young Phil Ramone?

PR: Take all challenges, and even if you’re great in the studio, get yourself out of the studio to understand. Stand amongst ten thousand people that are screaming and try to mix. I say to everybody this is the standard. It’s not going to be easier, I wish there was a second level that would be below a thousand people. I grew up where you went to clubs and there were ten tables, that’s how rock ‘n’ roll was administered to people.

MR: Any last words of wisdom?

PR: The minute you shut off and start to read your reviews from the past, you start to get in trouble.