In the following interview, we meet musicians and producers Tonee Jukeboxx and Farzad Rahnavard (Duo Mastering) in Hamburg and learn, among other things, how industry connections are built and how you can land projects as a music producer for successful artists like Cro, Shindy, Capital Bra, Moe Phoenix and Mike Singer.
Is there even a formula for success? All of that and more is what you’ll learn today right here!
In Part 1 of the interview, we talk with Tonee Jukeboxx about songwriting and music production. Part 2, focused on mastering with Farzad Rahnavard, will be out in a few days so stay tuned or follow us on Instagram or Facebook so you don’t miss anything. Let’s go.
Duo Mastering: Interview Part 1/2
Q: Hey Tonee, great that you found time for our interview today! How are you? What are you up to today?
Hi Beshko, I’m doing well! For a while now, I’ve been working at Friedemann Tischmeyer’s Mastering Academy so I’m heading there in a bit to enjoy my premium studio life.
Q: Where does your passion for music production come from?
It’s simple: when I wrote my first song, I was 9 or 10 years old. Back then I wrote poems and wrapped them in music. I think my dear grandma even kept my very first lyrics.
That’s how it started. With my basement band, we wrote our first songs together and when I was 13 or 14, I had a hard rock band and played metal.
I’ve basically always written songs. Over time, I just switched genres, started my own hip-hop band and then went back to rock. A lot simply evolved since it’s been a pretty long journey to get here.
Tonee started his career early and quickly became a multi-instrumentalist. With skills on drums, guitar and piano, Tonee now produces new talent and his own music and also works as an audio engineer for well-known artists. In 2018, he co-founded the mixing and mastering studio Duo Mastering together with Farzad Rahnavard.
Q: How did you get into professional songwriting?
I got into professional songwriting when I became a member of the group We’r’Songwriterz. It’s a collective of amazing musicians, producers and instrumentalists who write songs together.
Songwriting is a creative craft where a lyricist and/or composer creates melodies and lyrics that can be pitched or sold to an artist so the artist records the song and makes it their own. On bigger productions, several songwriters are often involved in so-called songwriter camps.
I got into the whole project through a photographer friend, Lee Maas. He asked if I’d accompany the Berlin singer Teesy with instruments at Radio Energy and of course I said yes. Funny enough, we met up to rehearse in the rooms of what is now the Mastering Academy. Friedemann wasn’t there yet but that’s where I met Farzad Rahnavard.
We rehearsed in the studio, played piano and did our thing. Farzad and I shared a lot of ideas and goals so three months later we met in Quickborn where he told me about the concept behind We’r’Songwriterz. Together, we wrote countless songs and even though the group isn’t as active anymore, we’re all still family in a way.
Q: Which artists have you written for and what came out of it?
Right before I joined, they did the song “Faith” with Blasterjaxx where Ziya recorded the vocals. That turned into an international monster track and went platinum in Sweden shortly after release!
They also wrote “Bist du Real?” for KC Rebell which came out with Moe Phoenix and now has over 65 million views on YouTube.
With the group, we wrote four or five lyrics and top lines for Mike Singer’s album “Karma,” contributed vocal production to “United” by Blasterjaxx and I also wrote the song “Feuer” for Laith Al-Deen. Laith’s album did incredibly well and sat at number 1 in the charts for several weeks!
Those were the biggest milestones.
We also did smaller projects. For example, we were in the studio with Haftbefehl’s brother, Capo. We also had sessions with Victoria Swarovski and delivered a few songs but there were also days where nothing new came out.
Beyond that, songwriting is often simply writing songs with or for well-known artists that never get released or only come out three years later.
Q: How do you get new songwriting gigs?
Well, back then I only wrote my own songs. Writing lyrics for other artists only came through We’r’Songwriterz. And I think it developed that way because Farzad isn’t just extremely talented, he’s also incredibly communicative. Word spread, mostly through word of mouth.
Farzad also used to sing in a boy band that was managed by Otto Waalkes. After enough encounters, you simply end up with lots of contacts in the music industry.
Sometimes A&Rs and artists reached out to us directly because we had a Facebook page that showed we did songwriting. Mike Singer’s producer, Phil The Beat, for example, reached out and that’s how the project happened.
An A&R manager (Artists and Repertoire) is the link between a label and new artists. They discover talent and are the direct point of contact for newly signed artists and bands.
Q: So in short: keep working, build connections and show references?
Exactly. You have to be in the right circles. It doesn’t help if you write a song for your neighbor and then think, “Yeah, Sony will call next week.” You just have to do the work and turn the right screws so you can collaborate with the right people. And of course a bit of luck is part of it too.
Q: Now to the good part: what’s special about your songs is that you don’t just write in German and English, you also sing in languages (like Portuguese and Twi) that you don’t even speak. What makes your lyrics special?
For me, it’s important that a song tells a story and tackles an emotional theme. I also sometimes try to see a song like a movie with a beginning and an end. Like Hans Zimmer says: “All you need is a story!”
Q: How much do you focus on phonetics?
Phonetics are super important, maybe even the most important factor. Music and songwriting are basically a good flow, a strong melody and great phonetics. That’s how songs can become internationally successful. Bonez from 187 Strassenbande proves it. Suddenly he gets played in French banlieues. If melody, flow and phonetics are right, you can be French and still vibe with a German song.
Depending on the genre, phonetics matter more. Simple shouts like “Ayee,” “Yo!” or “Woow” are sounds listeners can sing along with so it makes sense to build them in.
Even if you don’t fully understand the lyrics, you still know that the hook ends with “Ayyee yeah yeah” and that makes the song more tangible.
Especially in German, clean pronunciation matters and it’s a big part of good songwriting. A word like “Rüpel” doesn’t sound very smooth at the end of a line while a word like “Weg” can.
If you make English-language music, you should definitely look up Swedish songwriter Max Martin. He’s one of the most famous songwriters, he focuses heavily on phonetics and English isn’t even his native language.
Q: What’s your concrete songwriting process and how do you build an arrangement?
It depends on the song but usually I’ll start with a short intro with ad-libs or a filtered hook line so people ease into it.
Then I start the “rollercoaster ride.” That means: with the intro, people step into the rollercoaster calmly. The first verse (maybe 8 bars) gets things moving. Then you let them climb higher with a pre-hook (again maybe 8 bars) until they reach the top at the hook where the action really hits.
You can also drop down and get calmer in the pre-hook so the hook slams even harder.
Ideally you’ve got an intro, a verse and a pre that clearly separates the hook from the verse. The rest is optional. Either you do “second verse – second pre – hook – end” or you go “second verse – second pre – hook – bridge – hook – end.”
You do the second option when the hook is so strong that you want to present it a third time. Instead of a third verse, the bridge should go in a different direction, pulling the listener out of the familiar structure and then BAM, bringing them back with the hook.
Q: Any final tips for beginners and students?
From my experience, the most important thing is knowing what you actually want to do. At some point you start somewhere and maybe you keep making beats because you think you’ve got it and then you realize you actually want to focus on songwriting. Either you’re lucky and you just know it or you figure it out by doing it. So don’t talk too much, just do it and try as many things as possible.
On the way, you learn, you improve, you see your strengths and weaknesses and then you can focus. You don’t need to struggle with recordings for hours if you can write a hit in three minutes. You just have to find your lane through trying things out.
Tonee Jukeboxx discography: Cro, Mike Singer, Laith Al-Deen, Blasterjaxx, Ziya, Disarstar, Prinz Fero, Ronnie Eriic, TOCO, Luchiez, Corby Rhymez, Chiller1 and more.
Q: And what pro tip can you share with us?
Keep your projects clean. Imagine you’re working with another producer who uses the same DAW and wants to open your project file. If everything looks like a mess, that’s not cool.
It’s important that your project is organized. At the same time, making music is creative work so I don’t stop everything mid-flow just to name tracks. Instead, I rely on color coding during production. The rule is: build up the house.
The key elements like drums and bass come first. Then instruments in one color and vocals in another.
In PreSonus Studio One, I also put tracks into folders so I can keep an overview. When I need stems, I go back into the project and rename everything properly.
Q: Wow, thanks for the insight! What projects are you working on right now? When is new music from Tonee Jukeboxx dropping?
New songs from me are coming soon! I’m planning a lot of releases since I’ve obviously been producing a ton over time. The Island EP is dropping later this year, I can’t wait!
I also recently produced an album for my bandmate Corby Rhymez which I’m featured on. And our Afrobeats project TOCO is taking off right now. We’re collaborating with a bunch of artists from Ghana and Germany. I’m also mixing and mastering for some other things but that’s still secret.
Want to bring your own project to life with Duo Mastering? Get in touch!
Here’s the link to their website with services, references and contact details:
That was Part 1 of the interview. You can find Part 2 here:
- Part 2 of the interview with Duo Mastering
