You Listen to This Man Every Day

Why don’t you work there anymore?

It was really a political thing. Eventually, after a few years, there were other people who worked there who just didn’t want me to be involved. And it was fine with me.

What’s the future of the music industry?

I don’t know. I feel like there will be a different version of it. It may not work the exact same way, but people are happy to pay for something good, whether it’s music or a music service or however it works. You can’t expect them to pay if you’re not giving them something of value.

You have to make better music to make a better business.

Absolutely.

rubin 2Do you see the Adele record, 21, which you co-produced and which was released on Columbia, as a case in point?

Absolutely. We recorded it here. There were no concessions made on that album. There was no sense of what the radio sounds like, or any pop considerations at all.

Your taste—your ear—has been spot-on again and again, across genres. What’s the secret?

I never decide if an idea is good or bad until I try it. So much of what gets in the way of things being good is thinking that we know. And the more that we can remove any baggage we’re carrying with us, and just be in the moment, use our ears, and pay attention to what’s happening, and just listen to the inner voice that directs us, the better. But it’s not the voice in your head. It’s a different voice. It’s not intellect. It’s not a brain function. It’s a body function, like running from a tiger.

Instinct.

Yes. But being open to using your instincts instead of going, “Oh, that’s not going to work.” Or listening to the part of your brain that goes, “Oh, that’s out of tune.” Or the part of your brain that says, “That’s too loud.” You have to shut off all of those voices and look for these special moments—these moments that you accept you have no control over. So much of my job is to not think—to be open to what’s there, and then use my intuition to see where it takes me.

Article Appeared @http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2013/06/26/rick-rubin-on-crashing-kanye-s-album-in-15-days.html

 

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