JIM JANIK

Jim's unique combination of personality, experience, knowledge and creativity pushed him to the top tiers of the industry. Award winning projects including: 6 Grammy Nominations (incl: Marc Anthony – "Marc Anthony", Faith Evans – "Faithfully"), 2 Grammy Awards (Béla Fleck – "Perpetual Motion"), 4 Latin Grammy Nominations (incl: Marc Anthony – "Marc Anthony"), 1 Latin Grammy Award (Ojos De Brujo – "Techarí")

Working with internationally renowned artists and producers including:

Jennifer Lopez, Puff Daddy, R. Kelly, Notorious B.I.G., Marc Anthony, Béla Fleck, David Bowie, Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, Tricky, Cee-lo Green, Enrique Iglesias, Don Henley (see discography). And hit producers like: Robert Sadin, Trent Reznor, Chuckie Thompson, Mario Winans, Corey Rooney, Keith Diamond, Jim Thirlwell, Sean Beavan.

And notable Billboard Charting projects including:

20 Gold & Platinum projects (incl: 4 Multi-Platinum albums; 5 Gold Singles); Dozens of albums and singles charting within the top 40 of various Billboard charts; And 9 singles or albums that reached #1 on respective Billboard charts.

I'm an artist...

"I'm a very technically oriented person, and technology is a big part of mixing. But I'm really more of an artist. A 'mixing artist". My approach to mixing really comes from a musician's point -of-view... songwriting, playing, arranging... and clients come to me for that unique approach. My background as a musician lets me work with my clients on their level. I can get inside their head and really understand the sounds and textures they're looking for. Having done projects with many different styles: Pop, latin, rock, classical, hip-hop, flamenco, electronica... all those experiences give me more tools and tricks to use each time I mix. And it allows me to be flexible in my approach. For instance, I produced and recorded the "KC and the Sunshine Band" horn section for a Puffy song; and used everything I know to get the flamenco guitars, turn-table scratches, and electronic and acoustic drums to all work perfectly together for 3 album projects for Ojos de Brujo.

About Technology...

I've been using ProTools since it was Sound Designer... so for me, it's like a third hand. I use the technology to make the songs stronger, and never let the technology become the focus. When I listen to music, I really love the musical and sonic suprises. Those special moments, sometimes in the middle of a song, or maybe right away at the start... Some SURPRISE happens... a sound or a texture that you weren't expecting; a drop in all the instruments that lets the lyric or melody really stand out; or maybe a dramatic section change. I recorded and mixed on old-school gear for years: analog tape and big mixing consoles, but working with ProTools really allows me to explore and create interesting surprises in my mixes. I do this all the time, while keeping it musical, so the song is still the focus, not my tricks. Those are the special moments that set the mood and as a listener, pull you in. Those are the things that I constantly search for,  and then make sure they really make stand out."

Early Days...

Born in Chicago, Jim played guitar and piano from the age of 9. His older siblings left behind a treasure trove of 60's and 70's rock and pop albums and singles: his first musical training. "Hotel California" and "Sgt Pepper's"... Those 2 albums spent a lot of time in a permanent loop!! 

"Sometimes I use recording gear and plug-ins in ways that they're not designed to be used. It's a great way to find sounds and textures like no one else. As a kid, I worked at my dad's auto-repair shop, it shaped my long-term thinking about doing things for yourself, and also that having and using the correct tools is critical, but not to be a snob... don't shy away from using whatever you have at hand to get the job done. "

"I studied guitar for 6 years with this old guy from the neighborhood, a clarinetist! But he taught me about MUSIC... all sorts of music. We'd work on rock guitar, and some piano, but also jazz standards from the 1920's and 30's. It gave me a great foundation. Later, I went to DePaul University's School of Music, I ended up choosing Recording Technology as a major, but seriously studied voice, piano, composition and arranging... I sort of customized my major towards record production. I think all that training is the reason artists like Faith Evans, Kelly Price, Allyiah, Jennifer Lopez and Angie Stone liked having me in the studio when recording vocals."

Universal Recording Studios.... 

During college, Jim was hired at the famed Universal Recording. "I got to be a part of every aspect of a real studio, while at the same time studying recording and music at school. The recording program at my university was new, so Universal Recording agreed to provide the studio classes. It was a very exciting time. Records were still being made with studio musicians, and on analog tape and gear....but it was also the very beginning of MIDI, samplers and digital recording. I learned studio tech from seasoned studio technicians who could actually build gear, and engineering from engineers who had assisted Bruce Swedien" While still at DePaul, Jim fully immersed himself into audio, doing live recording and live PA systems for school concerts. "Doing live sound really hones your technical chops. Everything is immediate, and every problem needs to be solved, like, right now. You become a trouble-shooting expert. Super focused at being on-point and making split second decisions. I always became the "fifth-Beatle" for whatever group I was mixing. I got to know all the songs, the personalities, their strengths and weaknesses, and their needs. I was there to support them and make them sound the best that I could."

Big Breaks...

After college, Jim spent 2 years on tour and recording with The Drovers (featured music & performances in the films "Backdraft" & "Blink"). "We REALLY thought that "Blink" was going to open the doors for us to a record contract... but we were kids, and not at all connected in the music business. Eventually, after 2 years with no record contract offered, and running out of money, Jim needed to be back in the studio.

"At that time, Chicago was not happening as far as making records was concerned. So, it was either L.A. or NYC... I chose NYC. I interviewed at quite a few studios, I ended up with 2 gigs: one at Clinton Recording, and another at Unique Recording. Totally opposite ends of the recording world. Clinton was great, almost 100% live music, Frank Sinatra, The Spin Doctors, Extreme, Tony Bennett, and a ton of Broadway Musical soundtracks and TV commercials... Unfortunately, Clinton didn't pan out for me. But...Unique Recording offered a lot of opportunities to move up as an engineer.

Unique Recording only had "free-lance" assistant engineers. This was good and bad, because you didn't have a set schedule, but it also meant that if you were ever hired as an engineer, you could take time off to do the gig. I started as an assistant engineer, but quickly picked up small engineering gigs, and assisted when I needed extra money. The studio was cutting edge for that time, with MIDI synths & samplers, and analog and digital recording (doing a LOT of hip-hop, R&B and dance records, and also having just done Steve Winwood's "Back in the High Life".) My breakthrough came one day when a client showed up, but their engineer didn't. The song was "Playa's Anthem" by  Jr. Mafia (Notorious B.I.G. , Lil' Kim) on Big Beat/Atlantic Records. I recorded all night, and made some ruff mixes. They loved my work. I still can't believe what a big hit it became, with those crazy dirty lyrics!

I'll never forget the last assisting gig I ever did at Unique... 2 weeks of assisting Sean Beavan and Trent Reznor (NIN) in the mixing of Marilyn Manson's debut EP "Smells Like Children". At that time, no one had ever heard of Marilyn Manson... and their lead singer was introduced to me as "Brian"... After about a week of working, I almost sh*t on the floor when I saw "Brian" all done up in costume and make-up... transformed into "Marilyn Manson"!! It was summer, but Halloween came early that year.

Currently...

Janik spent most of the late '90s and early '00s running around NYC between studios such as: Axis, Sound On Sound, The Hit Factory, Sony Music Studios, Clinton, Right Track, SoundTracks, Sorcerer, Room with a View, etc... as well as working outside NYC in: Chicago, Miami, Atlanta, LA, Nassau, Bahamas. After 9/11 happened, clients were worried about working in NYC for about 18 months. At almost the same moment, the major labels consolidated,  and many of the big studios closed their doors one-by-one. Janik made the move to consolidate all his gear, and open a "mixing suite/writing & production room". "It didn't seem like it at the time, but I guess I was ahead of the curve. Now almost everyone is working this way