Today we’d like to introduce you to Drew Mantia.
Hi Drew, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
On the first day, I brought home my beginner acoustic guitar, I recorded my first open strings song on cassette tape. In the 20+ years since writing and performing music has been inextricably tied to recording and mixing it for me. I played in Rock bands throughout high school and learned just enough about Jazz to gain acceptance to Webster University in my hometown of St. Louis.
I began my Bachelor of Music degree in 2005 and began playing my first paid gigs that same year. I bought my first copy of Pro Tools for home recording and enrolled all my elective credits at Webster U in audio recording classes, gaining me access to Webster’s studio full of classic mics and outboard gear. As I grew in the skills of creating recordings of my own songs and showing them to other musicians, they began offering to hire me for their recordings.
By graduation in 2009, I was teaching guitars lessons, playing gigs, and producing recordings. I was fronting my own band, cleverly titled Drew Mantia Band, which was booked at several of St. Louis’ largest venues in opening slots for acts like Slightly Stoopid and Flobots. In 2010, I made a move to Kansas City for what would end up being only one semester of grad school. In 2011, took on an internship at Chapman Recording, a longtime studio home of Tech N9ne and his Strange Music label.
Throughout 2011 and 2012, I also collaborated with Kansas City choreographers to compose music for modern and hip-hop dance. A particular highlight was my composition “Suffering in Dm” being performed by 40 dancers at the Kaufman Center in KC, choreographed by DeeAnna Hiett. By 2011, I was engineering and producing home recordings as a full-time freelancer. I made a successful move to Chicago in 2012 and become a full-time subcontractor at CarterCo Recording (2005-2015).
I became a Hip-hop specialist in the exploding Chicago Hip Hop scene from 2012 to 2015, where I began work with artists that would receive millions of plays and views, sell thousands of albums and perform slots at large festivals. Some projects of note from this Chicago era include ProbCause “LSD” featuring Chance the Rapper (produced, mixed, mastered), The Palmer Squares “FINNA” (mixed, mastered, debuted #8 on iTunes hip hop chart), and my own collaboration with Saba, “Down” (produced, recorded, mixed, mastered).
Other production and mixing work in Chicago led to collaborations with more notable artists such as Twista, CYN, Gangsta Boo from Three 6 Mafia, Lil Dicky, Griz, Gramatik, and more. I also did some runs of touring with artists I produced for from 2014 to 2017, some highlights including Festival dates behind ProbCause at Summercamp and Hulaween, Running Wild Tour opening for Grieves, and a Canadian run with The Palmer Squares. I worked in Chicago until 2019 when I moved back to St. Louis and found a renewed passion for my craft in my hometown.
I have still been working closely with Chicago artists, taking up work with STL locals, and more than ever I am doing remote mixing, mastering, selling beats, and custom production online. In 2021, I opened Feel Good Music Recordings based in the Benton Park neighborhood of St. Louis, MO. Throughout my music career, I’ve been told many times “You make that feel-good music!” I was so pleased that I was having that effect on people that I made feel-good vibes the cornerstone of what I do.
I have a production album series called “Feel Good Music” and when the opportunity came to take over someone else’s already built-out studio space, it was a no-brainer what I would call it. So far business is great and I’ve taken on a new specialty in R&B and Gospel that has been fun and fulfilling.
2021 also saw success in a newer area for me, sync licensing, leading to song placements in TV, ads, and film.
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?
My biggest struggle has been the balance of being creative with becoming a businessperson.
I initially got into music as a profession to avoid the rigidity and financial focus of being a Nine-to-Fiver, so it was tough for me to accept the reality that being a Musician and Audio Engineer requires discipline and freelance business skills.
I went from floating in the wind to being a constant study of practices and systems to better myself as both a musician and freelancer. I still struggle with the balance, it’s constantly evolving.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Feel Good Music Recordings?
My name’s Drew Mantia, owner, and operator of Feel Good Music Recordings, and I produce & mix Feel Good Music. If you make soulful music that makes people smile or has the emotional depth to make them cry, I want to be your guy. R&B, Lyrical Hip Hop, Soul, Funk, Pop, House, Gospel/Worship. Live instrumentation, beats, or (my favorite) a hybrid of both. Online and in-studio. St. Louis, the Midwest, and worldwide I want to help you spread the good vibes in broadcast quality.
I help singer/songwriters, bands and rappers create songs from the ground up or turn songs they’ve written into fully realized records. This can be as hands-off as selling a beat or a full-service experience where we write the material together and see it all the way through to a mastered final product. I use electric and acoustic guitars, basses, and a drum kit in combination with VSTs in Pro Tools and sample chopping via Native Instrument’s Maschine to create hybrid live/digital productions.
I also have access to a network of fantastic session musicians on almost any instrument when needed. My recording setup is catered directly to my production workflow, making us able to capture ideas as we have them. My instruments are ready to record at all times with no soundcheck, wasting no time on the technical aspects. It’s always straight to the music here.
I’m both a musician like you and a skilled audio engineer. I understand your needs, and the artist lifestyle and I understand the disappointment of bad studio sessions and wack mixes. In my younger days, I found myself in the studio as an artist with engineers which made me think “I can do this better.” Turns out, I was correct and I use my skills to keep other artists from having to express their art in front of apathetic, unskilled, and musically uneducated technicians. I provide a positive, patient, energetic, and fun atmosphere in-session and I bring an understanding of musicianship and emotional connection to mixes.
Feel-good music is the mantra every step of the way. If I take on your project, I’m invested in making it sound great and I’ve never flaked on a commitment or missed a deadline. It’s not a feel-good vibe when you’re dealing with an unprofessional workflow and lack of communication. Once we’ve got the vibe right and your recording captured, my mixing and mastering skills will leave you with a final product that balances your unique sound with a sound competitive with top-charting songs and albums.
I know my methods can work for you because my productions and mixes have garnered millions of streams & video views worldwide, have charted on iTunes & Bandcamp stores, been broadcast on TV (The CW, VH1, BET), and have been covered by outlets like MTV, Complex, XXL, Pigeons & Planes, Chicago Sun-Times and more. My productions and backing track work have been performed at festivals & venues across the US and Canada.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
Jamie Carter, owner of CarterCo Recordings Chicago (2005-2015).
Jamie created a studio with an aesthetic, vibe, and philosophy that I wanted to recreate. I spent a few years working at CarterCo and I’ll always be fond of those times. Jamie left the studio game after a decade but still advises me on Feel Good Music Recordings. He’s a continuing source of knowledge and support.
Ryan Marquez is my closest musical collaborator, so he is the most frequent regular at my studio. We have a band together, The Belief Cycle, through which we release music, play shows and compose music for sync licensing. Ryan also records his solo songs at FGMR.
We’ve enjoyed many successes together.
Contact Info:
- Email: feelgoodmusicrecordings@gmail.com
- Website: feelgoodmusicrecordings.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/drewmantia
- Facebook: facebook.com/drewmantia
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/drewmantia
