“I’m completely nothing without the world that artists create” Blake Slatkin is pop music’s humble hitmakerMoving out of your parents’ home is a rite of passage for young adults – and one that was even more momentous for Blake Slatkin. In 2022, the producer and songwriter took a minute on social media to look back on his old recording studio in Los Angeles, where he helped make monster hits like Lil Nas X’s That’s What I Want and Kid LAROI’s Stay. For a caption, he wrote: “Still can’t believe we made all those songs at my mom’s house.”
When Slatkin set out for his own place, his priority was finding somewhere he could replicate that homely environment, where mom could drop in to offer snacks to the latest popstar in the booth. “It’s 90 per cent the same as the setup in my mom’s place,” the 27-year-old producer says of his new abode. “I’m superstitious, so I basically kept the same vibe. I think there was a lot of magic making music at my mom’s.”
Blake Slatkin is on the MusicTech Cover. Image: Ben Bentley for MusicTech
It’s a beautiful space. Adorned with wooden furniture, velvet sofas, vintage synthesizers, boutique guitar pedals, flourishing houseplants, and cosy lighting, the decidedly chic studio is pulled together with a faded rug and a desktop running Avid Pro Tools. The right-side wall is covered with photographs of all the artists who have inspired Slatkin over the years: Nile Rodgers, Notorious B.I.G., David Bowie, Madonna. Oh, and there’s a pool out in the yard.
“I really try not to even make music within the first hour of hanging with someone,” says Slatkin of his studio philosophy. “I just want us to get comfortable, talk, eat food, walk around the house, chill by the pool and let all the pressure melt away and strip us down to our creative selves only.”
Image: Ben Bentley for MusicTech
Before he had a revolving door of superstar collaborators at his mom’s house, Slatkin was taking out the trash at Benny Blanco’s studio. A devout fan of Blanco’s, Slatkin “begged” a mutual friend to introduce him when he was 16, which ultimately led to a mentorship. “I was so lucky to meet Benny when I did,” he says. “I’ve learned so much from him. He’s a very special person, very creative. He’s one of the all-time greats. And being around greatness is really important. I’m always learning stuff from him.”
Six months into his mentorship, Blanco helped set up a publishing deal for Slatkin with Universal Music. After graduating from high school, Slatkin studied music at New York University but dropped out after a year to head back to LA. “I learned some stuff, but I’ve learned the most by just actually doing it,” he says. “Plus YouTube and reading interviews, watching Mix With The Masters…There’s so much stuff out there.”
“Artists have never been more important than they are now”
Now, Blanco introduces Slatkin to fellow producers as “the G.O.A.T. all-rounder” in the studio. It must be pretty sweet to hear one of your heroes praise you like that. “Oh, it’s the best feeling,” Slatkin grins widely. “It’s always the best feeling working with anyone you’re a fan of and getting that validation. It’s funny hearing you say that now, because now we’re just best friends. We love to bounce ideas off of each other – whenever either of us is working on a project, we play it for each other and give notes. It’s all you could ask a creative relationship to be.”
For Slatkin, collaboration is what makes a hit record. He’s undoubtedly adept at cranking out chart-toppers for world-class artists, but views himself only as a member of a team, not as a driving force in a song’s creation.
Image: Ben Bentley for MusicTech
“Artists have never been more important than they are now,” he insists. “I can help make good songs, but I can’t do what they do. I’m completely nothing without the world that they create. They make worlds and communities, they make people feel seen, and they make people feel a part of something.”
How does he know whom to collaborate with? Easy. “The only criteria is that you inspire me… I’m just a massive fan of any artist I work with. That’s the luckiest thing about my job – I’m just a huge fan of music, who gets to be in the room with these amazing people.”
Slatkin has written and produced for the likes of Charli XCX, Ed Sheeran, Tate McRae, Gracie Abrams, Selena Gomez, BTS, Sam Smith, SZA, Luke Combs and Snoop Dogg. That’s one hell of a roster – but even Slatkin, with his track record and grinding work ethic, isn’t spared major labels breathing down his neck for a hit single.
Image: Ben Bentley for MusicTech
“You definitely don’t ignore [the pressure] when you’re falling asleep the night before. You don’t fucking ignore it!” he says with a laugh. He recalls the creation of About Damn Time with Lizzo, which won him his first Grammy in 2023. “The album was done, and the label said, ‘We need a single.’ And Lizzo and I had been working for a little bit, but obviously, it’s not very easy to walk in the room and be like, ‘Okay, what is our single?’ But it was also my first time working with Ricky Reed that day, so I just walked in and was excited to make music with the producer whom I liked. And for six hours, we completely forget that they wanted a single and just made something that we like.”
Slatkin says he got lucky that day, But being able to adapt to different artists’ processes, styles, and tastes is surely what’s made him so sought-after. He knows that following a singular process or workflow isn’t productive: he’ll work with some artists for three months on a song, and with others, he’ll write three songs in a day. His job, as far as he’s concerned, is making artists feel comfortable enough to be vulnerable with their music and guiding them to bring their ideas to reality.
“I think we’re in one of the most inspiring times ever for music”
And it all comes down to that song idea. “Production, first of all, is nothing without a good song,” he declares. “Anything I do when I make music is just in service of the song itself.”
What does that mean exactly? Slatkin says that 90 per cent of the music he makes, alone or with friends, is “trash,” but that it’s important to create often to find those golden ideas. Making a powerful song isn’t about throwing more instruments and effects into the track, he’s learned, but stripping back the elements and letting the main parts shine. Whenever he falls into a rabbit hole of editing and overproducing while tracking, he reminds himself: “At the end of the day, song is king. We’ll get the good drum sounds later. When I’m making music, I only want to be thinking about the song.”
Image: Ben Bentley for MusicTech
Slatkin admits, however, that keeping a track simple isn’t as easy as it sounds, especially when creators today have unprecedented access to myriad plugins, software and affordable gear. He cites John Mayer (“one of the most impressive musicians of all time”) and Charlie Puth (“un-fucking-believable at piano; he knows all the theory”) as artists who can dial it back to simplicity. “To watch them sit down and play an F chord to a G chord over and over… When you know everything, it’s not easy to be as simple as possible.”
Slatkin doesn’t have a secret for keeping it simple. He does, however, have a “self-soothing answer” to ensuring a track is produced with intention. “I use Pro Tools and it just sucks ass,” he laughs, half-serious. “It’s harder to do stuff in Pro Tools; it makes you think a little bit more about what you want to do. It takes that extra five seconds to change the tempo. So it makes me think, ‘Do I really want to change the tempo?’”
If there is a magic formula for making a hit, Slatkin doesn’t know it, despite his best efforts. “I’ve read every interview of every artist I love. And I remember growing up, listening to interviews and hearing producers being like, ‘It’s different every time! The gear doesn’t matter!’ and being so frustrated with that answer. But it really is the only proper answer.”
“Anything I do when I make music is in service of the song itself”
But this frustration is also liberating for Slatkin. He’s practically relieved that great music doesn’t hinge on equipment or expensive studios, but on ideas and authentic creativity. That’s what keeps him excited about new music and upcoming artists, at a time when anyone with a smartphone can produce a hit.
“Now things are getting so accessible, the only thing that separates good music from bad music is just good ideas,” he says. “I’ve been a part of songs where we spend so much money – we’re at fancy studios, and we have the best gear and the best engineers, and we make something that doesn’t do well. And then there’s a kid in Wisconsin who’s in their closet, making a song that goes massive.
“That’s exactly how it should be, honestly. I’m not mad at that at all. There are no rules. No one is listening, thinking, ‘Ah, he didn’t use the right kick mic for that. This song isn’t good.’ It’s really just like, ‘make something good.’ And I think we’re in one of the most inspiring times ever for music. It’s very punk rock.”
Image: Ben Bentley for MusicTech
Is Slatkin interested in following in the footsteps of his hero, Benny Blanco, who’s recently taken an intentional step into the limelight? He tells us he doesn’t have those same ambitions – not yet, anyway. “One day, Benny got the bug, and he was like, ‘I want to challenge myself in a new, creative way.’ So I totally understand that; I don’t have any aspirations to do it, but I would never count anything out. I just love making music.”
Slatkin’s most recent Instagram post is of him in another studio, one more high-end than his mom’s house. He’s pictured working on music with Dave Grohl, John Mayer and Pino Palladino. Blake Slatkin may not be chasing the spotlight right now, but at this rate, it might just find him anyway.
Blake Slatkin is on the cover of the MusicTech Magazine July/August 2025 issue.
Words: Sam Willings
Photography: Ben Bentley
Hair & Makeup: Jack Goldsmith
Location: Cinepacks Studios
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