Interview with Multi-Platinum Vocal Producer, Mixer and Engineer Brandon Buttner

Meet Brandon Buttner – the amazing Vocal Producer, Mixer and Engineer behind Multi-Platinum pop hits from artists like Halsey and FLETCHER.

Here, Brandon chats us through being blown by these artists' phenomenal vocals, his proudest credits to date, and more.

Brandon first met Halsey via her collaboration "Be Kind" with Marshmello. Since then, they both have gone from strength to strength working on her hit records like 'Manic' and 'If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power'. 

"The first time I worked with Halsey was on the song ‘Be Kind’, a collaboration with Marshmello that was later included on the re-release or extended edition of ‘Manic'. I remember being a little nervous for that session because Halsey was one of the biggest names in music at the time. Once we got to into cutting the record, the nerves went away.

 

Halsey is a real pro on the mic. She has one of the most powerful voices that I record on a regular basis, but also one of the most dynamic. I remember there was such a sense of collaboration between the four of us during that session (Halsey, her manager Anthony, Marshmello, and myself). We probably spent just as much time connecting over all the bands we grew up listening to as we did actually recording. At the end of an incredible session, I realized this was another team that I wanted to keep working with. Thankfully Halsey felt the same way and I got the call to keep working on more music.

 

A lot of ‘If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power’ had already been cut when I was starting to work more and more with Halsey, but I got a call at the 11th hour to wrap up a couple loose ends vocally on 'The Lighthouse'. I was also able to help with some recording for the film that accompanies the album."

His Halsey credits opened more doors to working with various artists from dance-floor king Calvin Harris on 'Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2' to beloved rapper Juice WRLD on 'Legends Never Die'.

"One of the great things about working with an artist like Halsey is that I get asked to work on a lot of different and sometimes random projects. For both of theses records, I was brought in to help take the vocals over the finish line. For ‘Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2’ it was to help track and tidy up some last minute vocal production on 'Stay With Me’. I knew it was going to be a Calvin Harris collaboration ahead of time, but it was really cool opening up the project for the first time and also hearing Pharrell and JT’s vocals. For ‘Legends Never Die’, it was a similar story. The album was a posthumous release so the record we worked on was mostly complete. Halsey was asked to do some additional vocals on ‘I Want It’, so I got the call to help out with that record as well."

Another star who blew Brandon away with her vocals was FLETCHER, who he became good friends with while working on her debut album 'Girl Of My Dreams'.

"I was originally introduced to FLETCHER through Marshmello, who produced the song 'Conversations' on the ‘Girl Of My Dreams' album. I was doing a lot of vocal production for him at the time, so he linked us together to cut that song. We met for the first time at the studio. It was just the two of us and we got into recording right away. I remember being legitimately blown away by her vocals (which says a lot being a vocal producer), her work ethic to get the performance right, and her ear for the details. To this day, I don’t know if I’ve ever worked with another artist that really just hears music the same way I do as FLETCHER. We've joked a lot about how often we are thinking what the other person is saying in the studio or constantly gravitating towards the same performance choices. Since that first session, I’ve been very fortunate to keep working with FLETCHER on a lot of music over the years."

We asked Brandon if there are any records he worked on that he is really proud of. It is no surprise to us to see how appreciated he is in the biz with these killer achievements!

"Sort of a random one, but I’m really proud to be credited on ’The Family Business’ by the Jonas Brothers. It’s a compilation album of hits over the years from the band and some of their side/solo projects. I was the vocal producer on 'Leave Before You Love Me’, a collaboration of theirs with Marshmello that was included on the album. I was hit up by Marshmello the day before the session asking if I wanted to do a record with the Jonas Brothers. We went into Henson the next day, I met the guys and we cut all of Nick’s vocals. Him and I locked in a workflow together really quick and were done with his parts in just a couple hours. The next day we went to NRG and cut all of Joe’s vocals. All the guys were so great to work with – all extreme pros in the studio. It made those sessions very memorable to me. We also had a really tight timeline for the record. I had about a day to turn around the vocal production and hand it back off to Marshmello. I believe it was mixed the next day and came out the following week."

Brandon also shared his fave record, outside of his own work, with us!

"I have to shout out Tyler Zanon and Tim Creviston for their work on Youth Fountain’s ‘Keepsakes & Reminders’. It has by far been one of my most spun albums over the past year or so. I think the songwriting and production is just incredible. The first time I heard the record it had such a nostalgic feel to me. And the lyrics must have hit me at a point in life that I could connect to everything."

Last but not least, he chats about why vinyl is the coolest way to listen to music (we agree with you there, Brandon!) and the joy of flipping through the liner notes.

"I got into making records because I really enjoyed the idea of an album as its own art form. More than just being a collection of songs, its should work as a whole, greater than the sum of its parts. I think thats why vinyl as a format is so cool. Artists put a lot of work into little details like the flow of an album, transitions/interludes, etc. and vinyl really showcases that and forces you to take those things into consideration."

(Photo: Supplied)