IYOUWE Universe

Rich Keller is a 3x Grammy Award nominated mixer & producer earning 27 Platinum albums with over 75 million albums sold to date.

Mixing for DMX, Nas, Jay Z, Alicia Keys, P Diddy, Swizz Beatz, Notorious BIG, Lil Wayne, Mariah Carey, Method Man, Jada Kiss, Snoop Dogg, Chris Brown, Rick Ross, Ja Rule and many others, Rich’s career spans the breadth of hip hop since 1992, earning him official “OG” status.

Rich has held down recording and mixing duties for classic artist/producers and labels, such as the Beatnuts, KMD, Onyx, RZA, Ruff Ryders, Bad Boy, to recent acts like Dave East, Nipsey Hustle, Payroll and Cardo and Ljay Currie.

Rich attended North Texas State University and the City College of New York where he studied jazz bass with legendary bassist Ron Carter.

As CEO of the DIY Media Group, the parent company of Disc Makers, Book Baby, and Merchly, Tony van Veen has spent over 30 years helping independent artists release, distribute, and promote their own music globally. As a global leader in self-publishing DIY Media Group works with Fortune 500 companies as well as first-time authors, and anyone in between.

A former drummer in a punk rock band, Tony offers a truly unique perspective on the music industry from the vantage points of both artist and industry professional.

I sat down with Tony (and for the first time, my podcast producer Chris Beaudry) at the DIY Media Group factory in Pennsauken, New Jersey to talk all things indie!
Check out the DIY Media Group’s outstanding products and services for independent musicians:
DIY Media Group: www.diymediagroup.com

Disc Makers: www.discmakers.com

Merchly: www.merch.ly

Early in his career Billy Hart performed in Washington, D.C. with soul artists such as Otis Redding and Sam and Dave, and then later with Buck Hill and Shirley Horn, and was a sideman with the Montgomery Brothers (1961), Jimmy Smith (1964–1966), and Wes Montgomery (1966–1968). Hart moved to New York in 1968, where he recorded with McCoy Tyner, Wayne Shorter, and Joe Zawinul, and played with Eddie Harris, Pharoah Sanders, and Marian McPartland.

Hart was a member of Herbie Hancock’s sextet (1969–1973), and played with McCoy Tyner (1973–1974), Stan Getz (1974–1977), and Quest (1980s), in addition to extensive freelance playing (including recording with Miles Davis on 1972’s On the Corner).

At age 78, Billy Hart continues to work steadily and teaches widely. Since the early 1990s, Hart spends considerable time at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and is adjunct faculty at the New England Conservatory of Music and Western Michigan University. He also conducts private lessons through The New School and New York University. Hart often contributes to the Stokes Forest Music Camp and the Dworp Summer Jazz Clinic in Belgium.

Hart leads his band, the Billy Hart Quartet with Mark Turner, Ethan Iverson, and Ben Street, which has released two albums on ECM Records.

John Scofield’s guitar work has influenced jazz since the late 70’s and is going strong today. Possessor of a very distinctive sound and stylistic diversity, Scofield is a masterful jazz improviser whose music generally falls somewhere between post-bop, funk edged jazz, and R & B.

Born in Ohio and raised in suburban Connecticut, Scofield took up the guitar at age 11, inspired by both rock and blues players. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. After a debut recording with Gerry Mulligan and Chet Baker, Scofield was a member of the Billy Cobham-George Duke band for two years. In 1977 he recorded with Charles Mingus, and joined the Gary Burton quartet. He began his international career as a bandleader and recording artist in 1978. From 1982–1985, Scofield toured and recorded with Miles Davis. His Davis stint placed him firmly in the foreground of jazz consciousness as a player and composer.

Since that time he has prominently led his own groups in the international Jazz scene, recorded over 30 albums as a leader (many already classics) including collaborations with contemporary favorites like Pat Metheny, Charlie Haden, Eddie Harris, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Bill Frisell, Brad Mehldau, Mavis Staples, Government Mule, Jack DeJohnette, Joe Lovano and Phil Lesh. He’s played and recorded with Tony Williams, Jim Hall, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Dave Holland, Terumasa Hino among many jazz legends. Throughout his career Scofield has punctuated his traditional jazz offerings with funk-oriented electric music. All along, the guitarist has kept an open musical mind.

Touring the world approximately 200 days per year with his own groups, he is an Adjunct Professor of Music at New York University, a husband, and father of two.