Blog
Building the Zerosum Recordings Website: Learning from Professional Producer Sites
While building the Zerosum Recordings website, I spent some time looking at how other producers and studios present themselves online. A website is often the first place someone will go to learn about a producer or studio, so it needs to communicate who you are, what you do, and how people can work with you.
One of the websites I looked at was Abbey Road Studios. Their site is very clean and easy to navigate. You can quickly find information about their studios, services, and the artists they’ve worked with. The branding is very consistent, and the site uses strong imagery that immediately communicates professionalism and history.
Another example I looked at was producer Warren Huart’s website. His approach is slightly different because he combines his production work with educational content. His site includes videos, studio insights, and breakdowns of recording sessions. This gives visitors a sense of his personality as well as his experience.
One thing both sites do really well is clarity. It is always obvious what services are available and how to get in touch. Portfolio examples are easy to access and the overall design makes the information easy to follow.
Looking at these examples helped shape my own approach when building the Zerosum Recordings website. I want the site to clearly explain the services I offer while also showing how I work as a producer and engineer. Rather than just acting as a portfolio, the website should give artists a clear understanding of what working with me would actually look like.
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Designing the Zerosum Recordings Showcase
The Launch Pad project is all about presenting our professional identity and future direction. For me, that meant thinking about how I could introduce Zerosum Recordings in a way that shows both the technical side of recording and the human side of working with artists.
One of the main ideas behind the showcase is to focus on the recording process rather than just the finished music. A lot of people listen to recorded music without ever seeing what happens during a recording session. By creating a small recording setup in the gallery space, visitors will be able to see how the process works in real time.
The plan is to bring a simple mobile recording setup to the exhibition space. This will include a microphone, an acoustic guitar, and a recording system connected to my laptop. Visitors will be able to briefly try recording something themselves and hear the result through headphones.
Alongside the physical demonstration, the Zerosum Recordings website will launch at the same time. QR codes, flyers, and business cards will allow visitors to go straight to the website and explore the portfolio, services, and contact details.
The target audience includes musicians, creative students, and anyone interested in music production. The goal is not just to show the equipment, but to demonstrate how recording sessions actually work and how artists are supported throughout the process.
Overall, the showcase is designed to feel practical and approachable while also introducing Zerosum Recordings as a professional recording service.
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Planning the Next Step: Life After My Music Production Degree
One of the most useful parts of the Launch Pad module has been thinking seriously about what happens after finishing the course. The progression workshop encouraged us to think about different career paths and how we can start building a professional identity.
One of the biggest things I took away from the session was how important it is to build a strong portfolio. In creative industries like music production, people want to hear what you’ve done and understand how you work. A good portfolio can open doors to collaborations, freelance work, and future opportunities.
For me, the next step after completing my degree will be continuing my education by studying for an MA in Music Production. This will allow me to develop my technical skills further while also exploring more advanced production and recording techniques.
At the same time, I plan to continue building Zerosum Recordings as a working recording service. The idea behind the studio is to provide accessible recording for emerging artists, particularly through mobile recording sessions that can take place in rehearsal spaces.
The Launch Pad showcase is an important step in that process. It allows me to present the studio concept, introduce the website, and start building connections with musicians who might be interested in working together.
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Research Behind the Zerosum Recordings Showcase
While planning the Zerosum Recordings showcase, I looked at a range of research related to creative practice, industry expectations, and public-facing events.
One idea that influenced the project came from the concept of the “experience economy”, which suggests that audiences value experiences as much as products. This helped shape the decision to create an interactive recording demonstration rather than simply presenting finished tracks.
Research on employability in the creative industries also helped inform the project. Studies suggest that creative practitioners often build careers through portfolios, networking, and visible examples of their work. This reinforced the idea that launching the website alongside the showcase would be an important part of presenting my work professionally.
Another useful area of research looked at how recording environments affect performers. Some studies suggest that musicians often feel more comfortable recording in familiar spaces, which supports the idea behind mobile recording sessions.
Looking at these ideas helped shape the structure of the showcase. Rather than focusing purely on technical equipment, the project focuses on the experience of recording and the communication between producer and artist.
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What I Learned at the Abbey Road Amplify Event
Earlier this year I had the opportunity to attend the Abbey Road Amplify event at Factory International in Manchester. The event brought together a wide range of people working across music production, technology, and the wider creative industries.
One of the most interesting parts of the event was hearing from professionals who are currently working in the industry. Many of the speakers talked about how the music industry is constantly evolving, particularly with the growth of new technology and new ways of producing music.
There were also demonstrations of new music technology and discussions about how tools such as AI are beginning to influence creative work. While some people see these technologies as a threat, many of the speakers talked about them as tools that can support creativity when used thoughtfully.
For me, the event was valuable because it provided a glimpse into how the industry currently operates. It was also encouraging to see how many different career paths exist within music production and related fields.
Experiences like this help reinforce why projects like the Zerosum Recordings showcase are important. They provide a chance to start building connections, present ideas, and take early steps into the professional world.
Overall, the Abbey Road Amplify event was both inspiring and motivating, and it helped strengthen my interest in continuing to develop my work as a producer and engineer.
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Presenting My Research at the British Conference of Undergraduate Research
As part of my final year studies, I have been developing a research project that explores the relationship between music, culture, and protest. The project examines how music can serve as a powerful form of social commentary, particularly in genres such as hip-hop and grime.
The research focuses on how artists use sound, rhythm, and spoken word to express political frustration, social identity, and resistance. Rather than looking at lyrics alone, the project also explores how musical structure, production style, and performance can communicate meaning and emotion. By combining academic research with music production and spoken-word recordings, the project aims to demonstrate how protest can manifest both in written form and in creative practice.
I have recently been given the opportunity to present this research at the British Conference of Undergraduate Research (BCUR). BCUR is a national academic conference that brings together undergraduate researchers from universities across the UK to present their work and share ideas.
My presentation will introduce the research question behind the project and explain how music production and spoken word performance are used as part of the research process. As a practice-based project, the work combines academic analysis with original creative material, allowing the ideas to be explored through both theory and sound.
Being selected to present at BCUR is an exciting opportunity because it allows me to share my work with students and academics from a wide range of disciplines. It also provides valuable experience in communicating research to an audience outside my own course.
Opportunities like this are important because they help connect academic research with real creative practice. Presenting the project at BCUR allows the ideas behind the work to be discussed more widely and encourages conversation about the role of music as a cultural and political voice.
For me, presenting at BCUR represents an important milestone in my studies and a chance to share the ideas behind my work with a wider audience.
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Reflecting on My Experience Presenting at BCUR
On Thursday, 2nd April, I had the opportunity to present at the British Conference of Undergraduate Research. It was a valuable experience, both academically and personally, and it gave me the chance to share my work with students and researchers from a wide range of disciplines and institutions.
My presentation was titled Concrete Voices: Exploring Protest, Identity and Lived Experience in Grime and Hip-Hop. The project explores how music can communicate protest, identity, and social experience, not only through lyrics, but also through sound, delivery, production, and performance. The final outcome will take the form of a single-person immersive listening booth that combines original music, spoken-word poetry, reactive visuals, and synchronised lighting. Inside the booth, the audience member listens through headphones as instrumental versions of the project’s mixtape tracks play continuously, creating the installation's main soundscape. In front of them is a controller that lets them trigger chopped spoken-word phrases from recorded poetry, layering these vocal fragments over the music in real time. Each trigger also activates a visual response on the screen, built from edited protest footage, news material, archival civil rights imagery, and contemporary scenes of social unrest. The space is further shaped by synchronised lighting that responds to the music, creating a focused and immersive environment centred on protest, identity, and lived experience. Presenting the project in this setting allowed me to explain the research clearly and demonstrate how creative practice can operate alongside academic enquiry.
One of the most important aspects of the experience was delivering the presentation itself. Speaking in front of an audience and discussing the project's ideas felt like a significant step forward. It provided an opportunity to present work I had spent considerable time developing and to show how my interests in music production, spoken word, and research come together in a single project. It also encouraged me to think carefully about how to communicate the work to an audience that may not already be familiar with the genres, themes, or creative methods involved.
Another major part of BCUR was the opportunity to meet and network with like-minded people. One of the most rewarding aspects of the conference was being surrounded by students who were clearly committed to their research and creative practice. Although the projects on display came from very different disciplines, a shared sense of enthusiasm, curiosity, and professionalism made the event especially engaging.
Speaking with other presenters and attendees was equally valuable. It reinforced the idea that research does not happen in isolation. Hearing about other projects, methods, and perspectives helped place my own work within a broader academic and creative context. It was particularly interesting to see how people from very different subject areas often engaged with related ideas about identity, society, communication, and lived experience.
The experience also gave me greater confidence in my own project. Presenting the research to a wider audience made the work feel more established and reinforced the relevance of its ideas. It confirmed that the themes explored in Concrete Voices can connect with people beyond my own course and that there is real value in combining academic research with creative practice.
Overall, presenting at BCUR was an extremely positive experience. It gave me the opportunity to share my research, strengthen my confidence as a speaker, and connect with other students who are equally invested in their work. It felt like an important milestone in my final year and a strong reminder of the value of bringing research and creative practice together.
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