Show Notes
Julian Astri, aka Toru, is a music producer, educator, and the host of the ProducerHead Podcast, a show dedicated to amplifying the voices of beatmakers, producers, and creatives at every stage of their journey. Through his work, Toru fosters a culture of consistency, curiosity, and community in music production—offering motivation and real-world insight through interviews, daily posts, and personal reflection. In this conversation, Toru and I explore the power of creative discipline, the value of sharing imperfect work, and how building in public can lead to deep personal growth and meaningful connection. We talk about the origins of ProducerHead, the importance of community for producers working in isolation, and how showing up consistently—even with low expectations—can create long-term momentum. It's an inspiring and down-to-earth look at what it means to be a modern music maker. Listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube ⸻ Takeaways • ProducerHead's Origin Story – Julian shares how a need for community and consistency led to the launch of his podcast and beatmaking platform. • Post Imperfect, Grow Anyway – Publishing unfinished or imperfect ideas helps develop confidence and invites authentic connection. • Small Moves, Big Impact – Showing up daily in small ways can be more powerful than rare moments of brilliance. • Build the Community You Need – Julian talks about intentionally creating a space for like-minded producers who want to share, grow, and stay accountable. • Creative Momentum Is Built, Not Found – Progress comes from doing, not waiting for inspiration to strike. • The Power of Consistency – From Instagram beat snippets to podcast episodes, repetition builds clarity, skill, and confidence. • Social Media as Practice Space – Instead of chasing perfection, Julian treats social platforms as a rehearsal room for sharing ideas and learning out loud. • No One Is Paying as Much Attention as You Think – Letting go of perfectionism frees you to take more creative risks and build resilience. • Making Music Is a Long Game – Julian encourages artists to detach from quick results and focus on process and community over metrics. • Sharing the Process Is the Art – ProducerHead is not just about final products—it's about showing the journey of making music and staying creative. ⸻ Links: ProducerHead Podcast ProducerHead on Instagram Toru on Instagram ProducerHead on YouTube Brian Funk on ProducerHead Podcast #16 Ableton Music Producer Podcast with Dan Giffin The Creative Act by Rick Rubin Make Your Own Rules by Andrew Huang Someday is Today by Matthew Dicks Slow Productivity by Cal Newport Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert War of Art by Steven Pressfield The Artists Way by Julia Cameron Brian Funk Website Music Production Club 5-Minute Music Producer Music Production Podcast Ableton Live Packs – Save 25% with code: PODCAST Intro Music Made with 16-Bit Ableton Live Pack Podcast Editing by Animus Invidious / PerforModule ⸻ Thank you for listening. Please rate and review the Music Production Podcast on your favorite app. Visit BrianFunk.com for tutorials, videos, downloads, and sound design tools for Ableton Live.
More from Music Production Podcast
Beau McLeod is a music producer and educator, who makes music as Bohemyth. Beau runs Low End Candy, where he designs plug-ins and Ableton Live tools. His newest plug-ins are Preverb for easily creating reversed reverb, and Slingshot for creating reversed delays. Beau spoke about his journey learning how to make plug-ins and tools for producers. We discussed how he came up in the music production world by working with some of his favorite producers. Beau shared some of his insights on how to develop a unique sound and stand out from the crowd. Listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube Links: Low End Candy - https://lowendcandy.com Preverb - https://lowendcandy.com/preverb/ Slingshot - https://lowendcandy.com/slingshot Premix - https://lowendcandy.com/premix Low End Candy YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@lowendcandy Bohemyth on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/_bohemyth_/ Bohemyth's SoundCloud - https://soundcloud.com/boheymth Beau's Ableton Extensions Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WrXO7jIwX4 Brian Funk Website - https://brianfunk.com Music Production Club - https://brianfunk.com/mpc 5-Minute Music Producer - https://brianfunk.com/book Intro Music Made with 16-Bit Ableton Live Pack - https://brianfunk.com/blog/16-bit Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/podcast Save 25% on Ableton Live Packs at my store with the code: PODCAST - https://brianfunk.com/store This episode was edited by Animus Invidious of PerforModule - https://performodule.com/ Thank you for listening. Please review the Music Production Podcast on your favorite podcast provider! And don't forget to visit my site https://BrianFunk.com for music production tutorials, videos, and sound packs. Brian Funk
Anthony Marinelli is a legendary composer, performer, and synthesist. He worked with Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones on Thriller, James Brown, Kenny Loggins, Van Halen, and many more. He worked on the scores for over 90 original film score soundtracks including War Games, Stand by Me, and one of my favorites Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. He shares his knowledge on his YouTube channels and his in-depth courses Think Like a Synth and Bass DNA. I spoke with Anthony about how he breaks down sounds for synthesis and visualizes his sounds in his imagination rather than in technical terms. Anthony spoke about getting his start working as a synthesizer player and programmer as a teenage, and what it was like working with legends Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones. Listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube Links: Anthony's Website - https://anthonymarinellimusic.com/ Think Like a Synth course - https://anthonymarinellimusic.com/products/think-like-a-synth Bass DNA course - https://anthonymarinellimusic.com/collections/courses/products/bass-dna Anthony's YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/@anthonymarinellimusic Anthony on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/anthonymarinellimusic/ Brian Funk Website - https://brianfunk.com Music Production Club - https://brianfunk.com/mpc 5-Minute Music Producer - https://brianfunk.com/book Intro Music Made with 16-Bit Ableton Live Pack - https://brianfunk.com/blog/16-bit Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/podcast Save 25% on Ableton Live Packs at my store with the code: PODCAST - https://brianfunk.com/store This episode was edited by Animus Invidious of PerforModule - https://performodule.com/ Thank you for listening. Please review the Music Production Podcast on your favorite podcast provider! And don't forget to visit my site https://BrianFunk.com for music production tutorials, videos, and sound packs. Brian Funk
Ben Burnes is a musician, producer, and game developer. He is the author of the new book How to Write a Song in Two Hours, based off his experience writing over 400 songs in weekly two-hour sprints. Ben is back for his fifth conversation! We spoke about his new book and some of the wisdom he picked up writing songs in two hours. We covered practical techniques and philosophical approaches, and we also got to meet a few of his five cats. Get How to Write a Song in Two Hours by Ben Burnes: Payhip - https://payhip.com/b/FfV4x Itch - https://tallbeard.itch.io/write-a-song-in-two-hours Gumroad - https://ben-burnes.gumroad.com/l/write-a-song-in-two-hours Listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube Links: Ben's Website - https://www.abstractionmusic.com "If I Had a Hi-Fi" by Ben Burnes - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=764uUMKuHTE Artifacts - Sunset Frequencies by Ben Burnes - https://abstractionmusic.bandcamp.com/album/artifacts-sunset-frequencies "Back at it Again" by Ben Burnes and Devin Henderson - https://abstractionmusic.bandcamp.com/album/back-at-it-again Frozen - Two Hour Track Challenge Album - https://2hac.bandcamp.com/album/frozen-2hac-volume-35 SoopurKul - https://www.twitch.tv/soopurkul On Writing Well by William Zinsser - https://amzn.to/46F0gfP Getting Things Done by David Allen - https://amzn.to/46F0gfP The Four Agreements - https://amzn.to/3Vqqhga Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert - https://amzn.to/4cI8AyN Elastic Stage Vinyl Pressing - https://elasticstage.com Struthless - https://www.youtube.com/struthless The Troubadeck by Charlie McCarron - https://troubadeck.com Charlie McCarron on the Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/blog/charlie-mccarron Ben's First Appearance on the Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/blog/2017/3/28/9-ben-burnes Ben's Second Appearance on the Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/blog/2019/10/9/ben-burnes-wisdom-on-200-2-hour-track-challenges-music-production-podcast-131 Ben's Third Appearance on the Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/blog/ben-burnes-3 Ben's Fourth Appearance on the Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/blog/ben-burnes-4 Brian Funk Website - https://brianfunk.com Music Production Club - https://brianfunk.com/mpc 5-Minute Music Producer - https://brianfunk.com/book Intro Music Made with 16-Bit Ableton Live Pack - https://brianfunk.com/blog/16-bit Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/podcast Save 25% on Ableton Live Packs at my store with the code: PODCAST - https://brianfunk.com/store This episode was edited by Animus Invidious of PerforModule - https://performodule.com/ Thank you for listening. Please review the Music Production Podcast on your favorite podcast provider! And don't forget to visit my site https://BrianFunk.com for music production tutorials, videos, and sound packs. Brian Funk
Howard Benson is a Grammy Award-winning, multi-platinum producer. With 15 platinum records, 10 gold records, and over 150 billion streams, Howard has shaped the sound of modern rock and alternative music. Howard has worked with Hoobastank, POD, My Chemical Romance, The All-American Rejects, Daughtry, and many more. He is also the co-founder of Judge and Jury Records. Howard spoke to me about his work with some of the biggest names in modern rock, and the importance of songwriting and vocal performance and production. Listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube Links: Howard's Website - https://www.howardbenson.com Howard's YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@hbenson Howard's Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/howardbenson/ Judge & Jury Records - https://judgeandjuryrecords.com Howard Benson Vocal Plug-in - https://joeysturgistones.com/products/howard-benson-vocals Howard Benson Vocal Multiplier Plug-in - https://joeysturgistones.com/collections/vocal-plugins/products/howard-benson-vocal-multiplier Brian Funk Website - https://brianfunk.com Music Production Club - https://brianfunk.com/mpc 5-Minute Music Producer - https://brianfunk.com/book Intro Music Made with 16-Bit Ableton Live Pack - https://brianfunk.com/blog/16-bit Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/podcast Save 25% on Ableton Live Packs at my store with the code: PODCAST - https://brianfunk.com/store This episode was edited by Animus Invidious of PerforModule - https://performodule.com/ Thank you for listening. Please review the Music Production Podcast on your favorite podcast provider! And don't forget to visit my site https://BrianFunk.com for music production tutorials, videos, and sound packs. Brian Funk
Dennis DeSantis is a composer, percussionist, sound designer, author, and educator. He is a professor of Music and Technology at Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester, where he is developing an all new BM in Music Creation and Technology. Dennis worked as Head of Music Learning at Ableton, and wrote Making Music 74 Creative Strategies for Electronic Music Producers. Dennis and I spoke in depth about his work at Eastman School of Music. We shared thoughts on finishing projects and overcoming creative challenges. Dennis reflected on his work at Ableton and how it has prepared him for his newest chapter in cutting edge music education. Listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube Links: Dennis's Website - https://dennisdesantis.com University of Rochester's Music Creation and Technology Program - https://www.esm.rochester.edu/go/soundarts/music-technology/ Making Music 74 Creative Strategies for Electronic Music Producters by Dennis DeSantis - https://makingmusic.ableton.com Learning Music - https://learningmusic.ableton.com Learning Synths - https://learningsynths.ableton.com Dennis's Max for Live Devices - https://dennisdesantis.com/max-for-live-devices Brian Funk Website - https://brianfunk.com Music Production Club - https://brianfunk.com/mpc 5-Minute Music Producer - https://brianfunk.com/book Intro Music Made with 16-Bit Ableton Live Pack - https://brianfunk.com/blog/16-bit Music Production Podcast - https://brianfunk.com/podcast Save 25% on Ableton Live Packs at my store with the code: PODCAST - https://brianfunk.com/store This episode was edited by Animus Invidious of PerforModule - https://performodule.com/ Thank you for listening. Please review the Music Production Podcast on your favorite podcast provider! And don't forget to visit my site https://BrianFunk.com for music production tutorials, videos, and sound packs. Brian Funk