MixWithTheMasters Mike Bozzi Kendrick Lamar, Sza Mastering Workshop #2 [TUTORiAL]

Hosted at Bernie Grundman Mastering, engineer Mike Bozzi introduces you to the specialized facility and its equipment, then gives a synopsis of his professional background, musical influences and mentor Brian Gardener. He discusses the achievement of tasteful loudness in modern mastering, common issues with mixes received, submission advice, mastering single tracks versus albums, sample rate, bit depth, working in dual mono, his monitoring setup, outboard gear and signal path.

He proceeds to master three tracks in the style of hip-hop, trap and R&B by artists Kendrick Lamar and SZA. In each case, he critiques the mix, matches overall loudness for comparison and proceeds to master while A-B’ing with the unmastered version. He divulges on precise EQ alterations, de-essing, soft saturation and limiting considerations, and explains why he uses little or no compression or stereo widening. He also comments on streaming platform algorithms and mastering for various formats.

INTRODUCTION
Mike’s background, modern workflow and aesthetics, mix buss advice, sample rate, bit depth, signal path

KENDRICK LAMAR - HUMBLE
Mastering ‘Humble’ – subtle EQ, vocal focus, monitoring considerations, listening space

SZA FT. TRAVIS SCOTT - LOVE GALORE
Mastering ‘Love Galore’ – de-essing, adding warmth and air, taming high-mids, commentary on widening

SZA - THE WEEKEND
Mastering ‘The Weekend’ – adding clarity, soft saturation, light limiting, dithering, streaming algorithms

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