BRITs Producer of the Year PinkPantheress on how she produces using just her MacBook keyboardGot a laptop and an idea? Then there’s nothing stopping you from becoming an award-winning producer. This year’s BRITs Producer of the Year, PinkPantheress, has shared her creative process when creating 2025 single Tonight – and she just used Logic Pro and a standard QWERTY keyboard.
That’s right. PinkPantheress – real name Victoria Beverley Walker – didn’t hook up a MIDI keyboard or any fancy plugins, just Logic’s Musical Typing option to create the track’s now-iconic chord progression. And even her use of Logic is fancy for her – she was previously crowned Billboard’s Producer of the Year in 2024, when she was still just using GarageBand.

READ MORE: “You can learn how to be a better producer but you can’t learn how to be a genius”: PinkPantheress opens up on the best mentors she’s worked with

The Bath born songwriter and producer shares the process behind the making of Tonight, the lead single from her 2025 mixtape, Fancy That, in a new video. In the video, she explains: “The first thing I start off with is figuring out the chords like this… as you can see, I put them in manually”.
She then adds how “MIDI controllers can be expensive! Inputting [chords] into whatever software you use works just as well”.

The artist also explains that the track’s bassline was put together by tapping out the chords on her laptop.
In the past, PinkPantheress also shared her process working on GarageBand for her Central Cee collaboration, Nice To Meet You. In a TikTok video, she flicked between her old reliable GarageBand and Logic Pro, as she was just in the transition phase to the more up-market software.
But that doesn’t mean she’s ever forgotten her GarageBand roots – when she received her first nod of production recognition as Billboard’s Producer of the Year, she shared a tweet simply reading “love you GarageBand”.

The post BRITs Producer of the Year PinkPantheress on how she produces using just her MacBook keyboard appeared first on MusicTech.

From Chance the Rapper’s courtroom revelations to Live Nation’s DOJ settlement… it’s MBW’s weekly round-upThe biggest headlines from the past few days...
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K-Whooms by Hansen Audio is a FREE virtual analog synth for Windows and Linux
Hansen Audio’s K-Whooms is a free virtual analog synthesizer available for Windows and Linux. It first appeared in 2024 and was updated in 2025, but we haven’t featured it on BPB until now. I’ve been getting more requests to cover Linux-compatible software on BPB, and K-Whooms somehow flew under my radar. It was mentioned in [...]
View post: K-Whooms by Hansen Audio is a FREE virtual analog synth for Windows and Linux

Fred again.. tested stock plugins against those on the market and felt results were indistinguishable: “It was all the same. It just could not matter less”Fred again.. has been sharing his opinions on plugins, and how saturating your workflow with too many is unhelpful.
Not only does he feel less is more when it comes to the amount of plugins you use, he also feels there’s very little difference between them. To test his theory, he pitted stock plugins from Logic against other sets, presumably from large brands, and found it was undetectable which version of his track featured which.

READ MORE: Watch Fred again.. perform with Thomas Bangalter during final night of Alexandra Palace residency

During his appearance on the Tape Notes podcast, he explains [via MusicRadar], “I’ve spent so many thousands of hours wasted on plugins, getting into the weeds with these things. I’ve made it so that my Logic [has] just got this one menu that only has the 12 plugins I use. It just doesn’t matter.
“You want to do the things that liberate your mind to be hearing well, not whether or not [you’re using] this compressor or this distortion… the thing that’s most dangerous about getting into that is that you’ll forget about whether or not the chorus is wrong, or whether or not the chord progression is actually not serving the feeling right.”
He goes on to add, “I did a few days teaching at some unis last year and I made a session that made a few sounds, a vocal, some drums and a guitar thing. I made the exact same sound with all Logic [stock plugins], the same sound with another set of plugins, the same sound with another one, and I played it for everyone and it was all the same… It just could not matter less.”

He goes on to advise people to just stick to a handful of plugins, and scrap the rest to avoid the overwhelm. He continues, “I’ve seen people make the most incredible-sounding records in every way, so therefore all that matters is the ear. I’ve seen people do it in tape, analogue, SSL desk, and it’s incredible, and I’ve seen Sonny [Skrillex] do it all in a laptop. Clearly, then, it’s most important to just liberate your headspace.”
The full Tape Notes podcast episode with Fred again.. is out now.
The post Fred again.. tested stock plugins against those on the market and felt results were indistinguishable: “It was all the same. It just could not matter less” appeared first on MusicTech.

Live Nation employees joked about “robbing” ticket buyers in internal messages, report claimsMessages between Live Nation employees allegedly show them joking about “robbing” ticket buyers and saying, “These people are so stupid,” in reference to customers paying a high fee for VIP admission to a 2022 Kid Rock show.
The messages have been released following an antitrust lawsuit that Joe Biden’s Department Of Justice filed against Live Nation and Ticketmaster in 2024. A settlement has been reached, but internal messaging on Slack between two employees in senior roles has been released.

READ MORE: New Music Venue Trust-backed “ethical” ticket platform prohibits ticket resales above face value

The New York Times reports [via Stereogum], that these messages occurred from late 2021 to early 2023 between two employees who, at the time, were in regional ticketing director roles for Live Nation venues over in the US.
Other messages regarded premium parking prices, with the employees allegedly sending messages such as “I almost feel bad taking advantage of them”, “I have VIP parking up to $250 lol”, and “robbing them blind baby”.
Live Nation has allegedly claimed the messages are “irrelevant”, and that they were “off-the-cuff banter” between friends and “not policy, decision-making or facts of consequence.” It also claims that because the messages were private, it has learned of them at the same time as the public, and will be looking into the matter.
A Justice Department lawyer, however, claims they “provide a candid, contemporaneous look into how they view the prices that Live Nation charges fans for ancillary services at their respective venues”. MusicTech has reached out to Live Nation for comment.
Live Nation’s settlement deal with the US Department of Justice means Ticketmaster (which it merged with in 2010) will be required to open parts of its platform to rival companies such as Eventbrite and SeatGeek, while long-term exclusivity contracts with venues will be capped at four years.
Live Nation will also divest up to 13 amphitheaters across the country and cap Ticketmaster service fees at 15 percent of a ticket’s price. The deal will also require Live Nation to pay roughly $280 million in damages to nearly 40 states that joined the lawsuit. Even so, the settlement represents a far less severe outcome than the government’s original proposal, which sought to break up the company.
Speaking of the settlement, Live Nation president and CEO Michael Rapino said: “We have never relied on exclusivity to drive our ticketing business, it has simply been the result of having the best products, services and people in the industry. We are happy to take greater steps to empower artists and venues in their ticketing decisions, and are confident we will continue to succeed on the quality of what we deliver.”
MusicTech has reached out to Live Nation for comment.
The post Live Nation employees joked about “robbing” ticket buyers in internal messages, report claims appeared first on MusicTech.

Yamaha Creator Pass brings 21 audio brands under one subscription – including LANDR, Output and GrooverYamaha has launched a new Creator Pass platform that gives musicians and podcasters access to a collection of audio tools under one subscription.
At launch, the Creator Pass is available in 37 countries and regions, spanning across the US, Canada, Europe (30 countries), Australia, Singapore and Japan. There are seven different plan tiers catering to the varying needs of music makers and podcast creators, from beginners to pros.

READ MORE: Bitwig Studio 6 has arrived: Everything you need to know about the latest version of the popular DAW platform

More updates will be rolling out in the coming months, but right now users have access to core tools including Output, LANDR, Riverside, and Groover. Pass holders will also be offered special discounts and incentives upon sign-up from un:hurd, RoEx, Linktree, freebeat.ai, SoundCloud, Steinberg, Adobe, Fourthwall, SymphonyOS, Offtop, DISCO, [untitled], Mogul, AudioShake, and DistroKid.
Over the next few months, subscribers will also be able to purchase add-on features from some of these huge brands. The current subscription tiers are: Beginner, Beginner Plus, Beginner Complete, Producer, Producer Plus, Podcaster, and Podcaster Complete.
“We believe that the creative process should feel inspiring and not complicated. With Yamaha Creator Pass, we’re proud to bring trusted music and podcast offerings under one unified platform so that artists and content creators at any level have access to tools that turn concepts into art,” says Yusuke “Scott” Sugino, President and CEO of YMI.
“YMI’s mission is focused on collaborating with startups and established companies shaping the future of music and audio to ensure the most effective solutions for consumers. By developing Yamaha Creator Pass with key best-in-class partners, we aim to empower the next wave of audio innovators and creators and SXSW provides the right stage to bring it to life.”
Prices start at $14.99 per month with seven-day trials available for Beginner and Producer plans, and 14-day free trials available for the Podcaster plan. Beginner Complete and Podcaster Complete are only available in the US for a limited time and do not include free trials. Groover is also not included in the Producer Plus free trial.
Subscribers can choose from monthly or annual billing, and as a limited offer, creators who choose Beginner Complete and Podcaster Complete plans will receive a Yamaha AG01 USB Mic.
YMI will showcase Yamaha Creator Pass at SXSW from 13-15 March through an interactive studio experience. To find out more, head over to Yamaha Creators.
The post Yamaha Creator Pass brings 21 audio brands under one subscription – including LANDR, Output and Groover appeared first on MusicTech.

IK Multimedia update ARC On-Ear The latest update to IK Multimedia’s ARC On-Ear system extends its functionality to an additional 12 models as well as improving the underlying technology.

Audio Assault offers the Invicto amp sim based on the Peavey Invective 120 for FREE
Audio Assault, the company behind Amp Locker, has been going strong for several years now. In celebration of their 12th year in business, they’re giving away the amp sim Invicto for free for a limited time. Invicto is part of the ReAmp 2 collection inside Amp Locker, based on the Peavy Invective 120, which is [...]
View post: Audio Assault offers the Invicto amp sim based on the Peavey Invective 120 for FREE

“I really wish I had chosen different words”: Suno CEO reflects on his controversial comments that most people “don’t enjoy” making musicMikey Shulman, the co-founder and CEO of AI music platform Suno, has reflected on his controversial opinion last year that most people “don’t enjoy” making music, and it seems he has some regret.
Shulman made the comment during an interview on the 20VC podcast last year, when he claimed that most people don’t enjoy the majority of the time they spend making music because of how time consuming the process is, but also because it “takes a lot of practice” and “you need to get really good at an instrument or really good at a piece of production software”.

READ MORE: BandLab introduces new AI loop-matching tool, Palette

Shulman was met with significant backlash from musicians, who felt the labour of making music is a labour of love, and that it should be time consuming. Looking back on the controversy now in a new interview with Billboard, Shulman admits: “I really wish I had chosen different words.”
He doesn’t expand much more on his thoughts within the piece, but does add, “I do have a lot of respect for music.” Elsewhere in the interview, Shulman has shared his vision for the future of Suno, stating that it is working on to create a “verticalised” service, incorporating a TikTok-like social media feed known as Hooks, a streaming service, and a number of different music tools to target “anyone from “Grammy winners to grandmas”.
“When we talk about ‘verticalising’ inside the company, it’s not like we want to smush TikTok and Spotify together,” he adds. “Those two things already exist, and that is not going to reap a lot of benefits … I’m thinking, ‘How do I make discovery way better than it is now?’ Because we are able to do something no one else can do. [The point of Hooks] is to get you off of the feed, playing with content and remixing it. That’s the kind of discovery that doesn’t exist right now.”
Shulman also tells Billboard that Suno doesn’t have a “fixed pie mentality” when it comes to its place in the music industry: “We want to grow the pie and make the music industry even bigger.”
The post “I really wish I had chosen different words”: Suno CEO reflects on his controversial comments that most people “don’t enjoy” making music appeared first on MusicTech.

IK Multimedia ARC Studio is an effective, low-priced room correction system for the home studio£249 (street price), ikmultimedia.com
Room EQ is an incredibly useful tool that takes care of any inadequacies in the frequency response of your control room or home studio. You’d typically run it as a plugin within a DAW, or through a system-wide app on your computer, but this software-only approach uses a computer CPU and adds latency to the monitoring system. Frustratingly, on most DAWs you have to insert the room correction as a plugin at the end of the master bus chain, and then remember to turn it off when exporting a mix, which makes it impossible to properly monitor a real-time bounce running through external hardware.

READ MORE: Audient’s ORIA Mini review: A giant leap for hardware-hosted room EQ and monitor control

IK’s ARC Studio aims to do away with such frustrations with a hybrid, hardware and software solution. It boasts the lowest price for a complete system of this type including the more recent Oria Mini (around £350) and the Trinnov Nova found in commercial studios (£4,000 upwards).
Image: Press
What is ARC Studio?
IK Multimedia’s ARC Studio is a box that sits between your main audio interface outputs and monitors, offering a complete package for measuring room correction profiles and then hosting them.
Once you measure the room profile with the included microphone, you can load it up onto the Studio and work away with EQ-corrected monitors, with minimal latency. Just like competing products, there are also EQ profiles that allow you to audition your mix using virtual monitors, to see how it sounds on a car stereo, phone speakers and so on.
The hardware is simple and uncluttered. The front panel houses just two LEDs to indicate power and signal level, plus a single illuminated button to toggle the correction on and off. On the back, there are stereo XLR inputs and outputs, a USB-C port for loading and switching profiles from the computer, and a power socket. Unfortunately, there’s no digital input, so you’re stuck with an extra round of analogue-to-digital conversion inside the box that might be of lesser quality than those in the audio interface being used.
Image: Press
How do you set up ARC Studio?
To get going with ARC Studio, you need an audio interface with a mic preamp and phantom power. The measurement software prompts you to plug the microphone in, turn phantom on and set an appropriate level, and then place the microphone at different positions (and different heights) in the listening position while short sine sweeps are played on the monitors. I opt for the more accurate, 21-position measurement, and it is straightforward and relatively swift, at under 15 minutes.
If you’ve used Sonarworks, the ARC measurement process seems more primitive since the monitors send no ‘clicky’ triangulation signals to calculate exact points for the various measurement positions in the room. With ARC, you need to remember where you’ve been and try to be consistent, which isn’t that easy. That all said, the final profile is based on an average of the room response in all these positions, so it probably doesn’t matter as much as you’d expect.
ARC X. Image: Press
How well does ARC Studio work?
In use, the ARC X software fares incredibly well. My room has a large desk, plus a window to one side, and neither of these aspects can be adequately fixed with the basic filters on my main monitors. ARC X takes care of the frequency response (including the difference between left and right), and I can easily select and tweak the target curve by using or modifying one of the preset ones. For example, critical listening might use the standard target curve with a full mid range, while a general listening curve with a pleasing, gentle mid scoop could avoid fatigue. Emulations of other speaker systems are also handy, most notably for checking whether kicks and basslines can be distinguished on phone speakers.
With ARC studio, there’s no faffing with switching plugins on and off. I work with the low-latency Natural Phase mode (1.4 ms latency) with no issues when tracking, and then switching to the more accurate Linear Phase mode (42 ms) for playback.
The correction is less extreme and more pleasant to listen to than my usual Sonarworks profile, with a strong phantom centre image from ARC, versus a slightly hollow result with Sonarworks.
A set-and-forget approach works best here, with the measured profile loaded into the ARC hardware and the room correction always switched on. This works splendidly, but it’s a little less simple if you want to switch between different room correction profiles (or virtual monitoring systems) as these things need to be done in the software, with the USB cable connected. In practice though, you get used to having a calibrated monitoring system where you begin to trust the translation across to other playback systems. The novelty of checking mixes on a virtual Bluetooth or phone speaker wears off to become a final quality control check rather than a regular occurrence.
The simplicity of the hardware will appeal to those who don’t really have a burning desire to keep tweaking their monitoring system, and if you already have monitoring controls on your audio interface or monitor controller (there are no fancy monitor controls or significant remote control options here, unlike the competing Oria Mini from Audient and Sonarworks).
There are a couple of frustrations with the hardware. The measurement mic is flimsy, its plastic build nearly as hollow as a Kinder egg shell. And there’s not quite enough weight in the Studio’s metal case to stop it tipping up under the weight of the connected XLR cables when placed on top of other outboard gear.
Speaker browser in ARC X. Image: Press
Is ARC Studio right for you?
If you work primarily on a single set of studio monitors, then the ARC Studio is a winning option, unrivalled at its price point. Load your correction profile up and happily work away on mixes that translate well to other systems, without noticeable latency or stress on your computer’s CPU.
The ARC X correction sounds natural and there’s a lot to be said for the hardware’s simplicity. That said, if you need slightly more in terms of profile switching on-device, monitor/remote control options, or a digital input, you might dream of an ARC Studio Pro. In the meantime, you’ll be better served by an Oria Mini (around £100 more for the equivalent bundle).

Key features

Hardware / software room EQ package
Stereo XLR inputs and outputs
Simple LED metering on hardware
Modes: Natural Phase (1.4 ms latency) ; Linear Phase (42 ms latency)
USB-C port for connection to computer
External DC power supply (included)
Measurement mic and ARC X software included

The post IK Multimedia ARC Studio is an effective, low-priced room correction system for the home studio appeared first on MusicTech.

Sales automation startup Rox AI hits $1.2B valuation, sources sayRox, founded in 2024 by the former chief growth officer of New Relic, offers an AI-native alternative to CRM tools.

Philip Glass' Akhnaten Rises at the LA OperaAbove: John Holiday as Akhnaten and Sun-Ly Pierce as Nefertiti in LA Opera's 2026 production of Akhnaten. Photo credit: Cory Weaver

It's been four days since this writer attended the LA Opera's production of Philip Glass' Akhnaten at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on a Sunday afternoon in March, and still, more time is needed to process it all. The music, the visuals, everything is so wonderfully overwhelming and absolutely breathtaking, some reflection is required to fully appreciate the whole event.

John Holiday in the title role of LA Opera's 2026 production of Akhnaten. Photo credit: Cory Weaver

In our recent feature Opera for All, Akhnaten director Phelim McDermott explained that, "There is a theory that Akhnaten was the first monotheist. In ancient Egypt, there’s all these different gods, and he said, ‘No, no, enough of that. Enough of the multi-God stuff. There’s just going to be one God, and it’s the sun.’ So he replaced all the other gods with this idea that the sun is the God and that he was the embodiment of this. God on earth. He had this reign of, I think it was only 14 years where he built this whole city, and then they got rid of him, and then Tutankhamun came in. So the opera is about ideas. They’re about musical meditations on the idea."

Yuntong Han as the High Priest of Amon in LA Opera's 2026 production of Akhnaten.  Photo credit: Cory Weaver.

"Musical meditations on the idea" is a great way of looking at this, and for anyone expecting a standard narrative in a traditional storytelling format, Akhnaten might prove heavy going. As is the case with much of Glass' work, you have to let it happen to you. It's possible that lovers of David Lynch movies will catch on quickly; you have to experience the art rather than follow it with a proverbial finger under the line.

Countertenor John Holiday, in the role of Akhnaten himself, told us that, "I would think that one of the most beautiful things that they would experience, but they may not be looking for, is that this is a type of music that is very transcendental. It transcends the current time. It transcends what they’ve been used to, because there are so many patterns in it. One can be kind of low in it. It becomes very meditative. And what I, as a singer, have to remind myself is that you can’t phone it in. You have to pay attention. And because there are so many patterns, people can, it also lends itself to ear worms. But I think that people are going to find that there is a meditative aspect of it, and I, as a singer, really love that."

There are, of course, themes. There is a story. Akhnaten was a very real Egyptian Pharaoh who, during his 17-year reign, created the first monotheistic religion. Up until then, the Egyptians worshipped multiple gods and, after Akhnaten, they went back to that system of worship. But for those 17 years (which were subsequently, swiftly, swept under the rug), Akhnaten implemented a one-god system.

The opera is the story of his life, but it's not easy to follow the political and theological through-lines. That said, you really don't need to. Sit back, buckle up, open your mind, and enjoy.

So Young Park as Queen Tye and Zachary James as Amenhotep III in LA Opera's 2026 production of Akhnaten. Photo credit: Cory Weaver

The music is gorgeous. Hypnotic, and certainly meditative. The orchestra is impeccable. The juggling is, perhaps surprisingly, captivating. And the scenery is spectacular. All in all, a glorious production.

Photos by Cory WeaverThe post Philip Glass' Akhnaten Rises at the LA Opera first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

quantovox VoxomatVoxomat adds a unique human-meets-machine character to your tracks. It transforms simple basslines into talkative, morphing sequences, while offering endless possibilities for non-pitched sounds like drums. Higher-pitched inputs can trigger complex harmonic shaping effects – the resulting inharmonic textures and FM-style intermodulation deliver a grit typical of Lo-Fi aesthetics. Conversely, these frequency modulation effects can also be smoothed out by using harmonically dense inputs, such as overdriven tones or overtone-rich sawtooth-based sounds. Using the plugin's modulation options in parallel opens wider sonic possibilities – for example, adding powerful chiptune effects to any source or mimicking the aggressive, harmonically shifting "tearing" sound of hard-synced oscillators. Based on the Ringotron engine, Voxomat utilizes a hybrid modulation architecture combining audio-rate modulation with resonators. Features: • Complex rhythmic movement driven by an array of synced LFOs for deep, malleable modulation. • Integrated envelope follower for responsive modulation. • Touchscreen-friendly modulation sequencer for pitch FX control. • Powerful resonant vocalizer for synth basses and all overtone-rich bass timbres. • On unpitched inputs like drums, effects range from whispers to glottal textures and stronger vocal glitches. • For pitched inputs, higher registers can more easily uncover robotic qualities as complex frequency relationships yield unique, inharmonic textures. • The user interface is designed to blend algorithmic automation with tactile control, turning the effect into a responsive performance tool. • Each preset features a set of primary performance controls pre-mapped for automation and expressive live play. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rz30aLDKAM&list=PLbokWO8YipvXRZFnp1eXZQf9Y_FFh5hM2&index=3 Read More

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Mapping The Sound Field Of An Acoustic LevitatorSound! It’s a thing you hear, moreso than something you see with your eyes. And yet, it is possible to visualize sound with various techniques. [PlasmatronX] demonstrates this well, using a special scanning technique to visually capture the sound field inside an acoustic levitation device. 
If you’re unfamiliar, acoustic levitation devices like this use ultrasound to create standing waves that can hold small, lightweight particles in mid-air. The various nodes of the standing wave are where particles will end up hovering. [PlasmatronX] was trying to calibrate such a device, but it proved difficult without being able to see what was going on with the sound field. Hence, the desire to image it!
Imaging the sound field was achieved with a Schlieren optical setup, which can capture variations in air density as changes in brightness in an image. Normally, Schlieren imaging only works in a two-dimensional slice. However, [PlasmatronX] was able to lean on computed tomography techniques to create a volumetric representation of the sound field in 3D. He refers to this as “computerized acoustical tomography.” Images were captured of the acoustic levitation rig from different angles using the Schlieren optics rig, and then the images were processed in Python to recreate a 3D image of the sound field.
We’ve seen some other entertaining applications of computed tomography techniques before, like inspecting packets of Pokemon cards. Video after the break.