ST. LOUIS, MO (KMOX) - Carl Nappa says he can "play God" in his recording studio, "but what I can't do is give it love, I can't give it that vibe, I can't give it that spark." The Producer/Engineer has worked with David Bowie, Madonna, Michael Jackson, and over the past decade, Nelly. He’s had a hand in the sale and distribution of over 85.5 million records. "Even if the person can't sing, I can make them sound good. But if they have that great soul and it just sounds like the music is like dripping off the speakers and the person just falls into your ears, that's when I know I have something special."
Nappa was the one behind the microphone, instead of the one behind the console, for the latest episode of the Audacy-produced "What the Media?!!?" podcast. He calls a recording studio a "safe haven" for an artist. "When an artist comes into a studio, especially my studio, I want that artist to feel so comfortable, because they're going to be creative or performing in a space that is so not conducive to performing." Nappa relocated to St. Louis, Missouri, opening the St. Louis Recording Club, "and my studio from the outside looks like a condemned building, you wouldn't even know I'm in there. But when you walk in, someone made the analogy, it's like walking into a tree house."
Nappa says artists can get "Red Light Fever" when the red recording light goes on, thinking their performance has to be absolutely perfect. He explains, the recording is a snapshot. He'd rather hear the flaws. "The music I grew up on, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, it was pretty rough at times, but it was beautiful music."
The economic model for the music industry has changed since those days. "As an artist you diversify, you still make some money from royalties. Unfortunately with the age of streaming, the service that I provide has become almost like a marketing tool. The record itself almost becomes something that is considered worthless, it's a giveaway a lot of times," explains Nappa. Services like Spotify and Apple have given audiences instant access to songs. "The most important thing that we have as creative people is the intellectual property. The actual song. That's where you make your money. And you make your money now by commercials, sync fees, you take all that stuff and... ...generate money that's outside of the normal payback. Getting into a movie, getting into a trailer for something, a TV show, and that's very lucrative."
Nappa has had a hand in dozens of Gold, Platinum, Multi-Platinum, and Diamond award-winning records.
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