Do you know the people behind Jason Derulo, Nicki Minaj, Fall Out Boy, Rihanna, Empire and Gwen Stefani? To make a successful hit, there is always a magic weaver behind each artist. One such man holds that responsibility. Music producer J.R. Rotem has been working the industry for over the decade with his expertise. The busy man was contained in the studio for the most part of the year but Time was able to sit down with him and find out his secret to success.
He shared how he helped Gwen Stefani score her first album that became a No. 1 hit, as told by EW. Gwen Stefani is just one out of the many artists he helped elevate. He's been in the music industry for over a decade and tells Time about the challenges of writing music for TV and the upcoming artists this 2016.
Rotem describes working with Stefani as honest. He goes on to explain that the artist will come in with sudden thoughts that came to her from the night before. "It was coming in without a plan, just following whatever emotions we were all feeling. She wasn't like, "Hey, let's just try and make hits," she was really intent on telling her story. You don't expect that level of depth or honesty with a superstar," says Rotem.
He points out that Stefani was connected on an emotional and spiritual level which makes her an amazing artist. "...And also what she's going through right now. It's not like she's in this very stable, boring place in her life-it was the most turbulent time!" exclaims Rotem.
Having made a lot of songs for a lot of people, he was happy to share those rare moments with Stefani. He reminisced about the time when he just started. He was a classical pianist when he was younger and then evolved to become a classical pianist. He never expected to become involved with artists like 50 Cent and Eminem. He transitioned to pop and then got involved with Rihanna and Britney Spears.
When asked what's his secret to success? For him there are always "...ups and downs in the music industry. Every career has ups and downs. I think there was a point where maybe I got stale or needed a new breath of life, I needed to reinvent myself."
