sonic branding

Musical Alchemy: An Interview with Eric Singer – Part 2

June 1, 2022 by Jodi Krangle

“One of the wonderful things about music is that it’s by and large pretty universal, you know, when almost any culture will perceive a minor chord as something that feels sad. Even my 4-year-old son can identify that as ‘oh that’s sad.’ But there are more subtleties too, you know, and that may affect instrument choice, it might affect tempo, and it might affect chord progression.” — Eric Singer

This episode is part two of my interview with audio producer and creative director Eric Singer as we discuss the advantages of virtual audio presentations, the challenges independent artists face in an increasingly online industry, and some surprising new advances in advertising technology.

As always, if you have any questions for my guest, you’re welcome to reach out through the links in the show notes. If you have questions for me, just visit www.audiobrandingpodcast.com where you’ll find all sorts of ways to get in touch. Plus, subscribing to the newsletter (on the www.audiobrandingpodcast.com webpage) will let you know when the new podcasts are available.

Creating Music and Sound

We start the second half of the interview with a discussion of how the industry has changed over the past few years, and how virtual conferences and Zoom meetings have all but replaced direct presentations. Eric tells us some of the limitations, as well as a few unexpected advantages, of online audio demonstrations, and how Coupe Studios is rising to the challenge of bringing authenticity to audio branding and marketing. “We discovered along the way,” he says, “that we really, really enjoy applying that authentic creativity, that art form of creating music and sound, to advertising.”

A Whole New World

The topic turns to the indie bands that Coupe Studios also supports, and how social media and the new sonic landscape have impacted smaller bands and artists. “It’s a whole new world out there,” Eric notes, “but I think the plus side of that is that there’s so much content, not just advertising, podcasts, streaming video… there is so much content that needs music. There are infinitely more opportunities to get your music heard.” He also tells us about Coupe’s strategy for localizing jingles for companies all over the world, and how collaboration is the key to a successful sound design. “We try to make it a pretty big party where we get input from anybody who has something valuable to bring to the table.”

For Your Ears Only

As the episode comes to a close, we look at the new technologies that might change the advertising industry in the near future. “One thing that I believe we’re going to see much more of,” Eric tells us, “in probably the fairly near future, is hyper-targeted, out-of-home advertising,” such as directional sound technology that can send targeted audio messages to a single individual within a crowd, and new ultrasound systems that can expand its reach to cover each and every customer in a store. “Now that the cost is starting to come down,” as he puts it, “advertising is the obvious application.”

Episode Summary

How virtual presentations have changed Eric’s approach to audio
Coupe Studios’ journey from classic rock studio to brand compositions
The challenge indie artists face in the digital music industry
Directional sound technology and the future of audio advertising

Connect with the Guest

Website: https://coupestudios.com/

Connect with Eric Singer on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-singer-audio/

Get your complimentary mini e-book and learn how to create your personalized and branded audio branding strategy with my Top Five Tips for Implementing an Intentional Audio Strategy.

Do you need a voice talent for your next project? Visit my voice-over website to find out more about how my voice can help you with your audio brand. You can also subscribe to the Audio Branding Podcast on YouTube to watch the show’s latest episodes.

Please leave the Audio Branding Podcast a written review or a spoken review so others can find the show on their favorite podcast player!

This interview episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco.

Musical Alchemy: An Interview with Eric Singer – Part 1

May 25, 2022 by Jodi Krangle

“There are generally two things that I want to focus on when presenting the creative to a client. First, and I think the most important, is the why: what is the justification for why we have done this or why we’ve included this instrument, why we’re including this long breakdown section, why this tempo, whatever it is.” — Eric Singer

My guest’s first love in this episode was audio, but it took him a while to get back to it. He’s been with Coupe Studios for sixteen years, and before that he spent time as a magazine editor, a photographer, and even a semi-pro football player. Now a partner at Coupe, he’s focusing specifically on sonic branding and music for advertising and film. His name is Eric Singer, and I’m looking forward to hearing what he has to say about where audio branding is now and where it’s heading into the future.

How does he let their clients know that their audio is important? How does Coupe Studios differentiate itself in a steadily growing audio-forward market? If you’re trying to decide why audio branding is important for your company, this discussion will give you a firsthand look.

A Multisensory Experience

We begin the interview with Eric’s account of his earliest memories of sound, a Fischer-Price turntable that he used as a child to play the classic Beatles album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. As he puts it, its unconventional sound design and ambient effects “planted the seed for me in terms of a love of audio.” He goes on to recount his very first experience as a radio DJ during high school. “It was this multisensory experience,” he says, “where you’re looking at the album art [and] you’re reading the liner notes. The center of it was the music, but I loved talking about it just as much.”

Digging in Deep

Eric tells us about how he discovered his affinity for editing and production, and how it led to his role as an audio producer. “We have this extremely talented, dedicated team of composers and sound designers,” he explains, “and my job is to stay out of their way.” We talk about how he works with clients to help them understand and navigate the sometimes overwhelming process of finding just the right creative strategy. “There’s no better way, I think, to emphasize the value in what we do than working collaboratively with the client or with the agency and really digging in deep.”

Flying Below the Radar

Next, we look at the process of building a sonic brand for a client, whether it’s a new company that’s starting from scratch or a major brand like McDonald’s with an established audio brand. Eric explains that a new brand can offer more room to create a unique sonic identity: as he puts it, “it’s nice in the sense that we can often get involved before they’ve really thought things through.” We also talk about how easily audio is overlooked, and how that can sometimes be as much an opportunity as a challenge. “It’s a tricky position to be in,” he says, “but it’s also kind of fun to fly below the radar.”

The Emotional Aspect

“The second piece of it,” Eric says about the two parts of creating a sonic brand, “is the emotional and the subjective aspects of it.” We discuss how individual experiences and impressions, everything from cultural nuance to an unpleasant memory, can have a powerful impact. “The idea of something totally subjective killing a really great piece of work can be really scary,” he says while telling us how he guides clients in making the right decisions when it comes to crafting a unique brand.

Episode Summary

Eric’s early experiences with radio production and advertising
The secret to being a successful creative producer
The importance of practical and original sound elements
Designing a new sound vs. working with an existing brand
Navigating the subjective side of audio composition

Check back next week for part two of our interview as Eric and I talk about how our post-pandemic world has changed his presentation strategy, how Coupe Studios works to support indie bands as well as sonic branding, and some of the most cutting-edge developments in audio technology.

Connect with the Guest

Website: https://coupestudios.com/

Connect with Eric Singer on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-singer-audio/

Get your complimentary mini e-book and learn how to create your personalized and branded audio branding strategy with my Top Five Tips for Implementing an Intentional Audio Strategy.

Please leave the Audio Branding Podcast a written review or a spoken review so others can find the show on their favorite podcast player!

This interview episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco.

Signature Sounds: An Interview With Jon Brennan & Sean Beeson – Part 2

April 20, 2022 by Jodi Krangle

“Through our research, we also found that anything beyond four notes, if we were to create a pattern that had more than four notes in it, that it started to sound too much like a jingle and just out of place for an automobile. Automobiles really just had single-tone dings, and so we knew we couldn’t stray too far from that, or we would start sounding too much like a cell phone or something out of context.” — Sean Beeson

This episode continues my interview with Jon Brennan and Sean Beeson, formerly of Sonic Signatures.

Keeping Your Brand Current

We begin the second half of the interview with a look at what might happen when a product or company changes, and how an existing audio brand can be impacted by something as simple as a new speaker design. “The more specific you’re intentionally creating audio for something,” Sean explains, “the more often you have to go back and fix things when something changes.” Jon tells us about the detailed audio guidelines that Sonic Signatures uses to help guide their clients through such changes and offers an important tip about making sure that your sonic branding is up-to-date.

A Human Touch

The episode continues with a firsthand look at the work Jon and Sean have done for such clients as Union Home Mortgage and KeepTruckin. We start with Union Home Mortgage’s sonic logo, how it combines technological innovation with a warm, human touch to reflect the company’s brand, and the process used to create its distinctive sound. As Sean puts it, “we continued to make the harmonics richer by layering sounds that really only serve to… add to the overall richness and brilliance.”

Listening on the Road

We then listen to samples of the audio interface Sonic Signatures designed for KeepTruckin’s vehicle monitoring devices and discuss how they met the challenge of creating distinctive sounds based on chimes and mid-range tones that the fleet drivers would recognize right away without becoming distracted or irritated. “We kept having the sounds get closer and closer to the sound of a car,” Sean says, “because that’s what the drivers are trained to hear.” We talk about the research that goes into such an innovative audio interface, and wrap things up with a peek at their upcoming projects.

Episode Summary

How business and product changes can affect an audio brand
Sonic branding and conveying the essence of a business through sound
Vehicle interfaces and creating a safer, more pleasant user experience
Upcoming audio projects and how to get in touch with Sonic Signatures

Connect with the Guests

Website: www.sonicsignatures.io

Follow Sonic Signatures on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sonicsignatures

Connect with Jon Brennan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonbrennan/

Connect with Sean Beeson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonbrennan/

Follow Sonic Signatures on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sonicsignatures

Get your complimentary mini e-book and learn how to create your personalized and branded audio branding strategy with my Top Five Tips for Implementing an Intentional Audio Strategy.

Please leave the Audio Branding Podcast a written review or a spoken review so others can find the show on their favorite podcast player!

This interview episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco.

Signature Sounds: An Interview With Jon Brennan & Sean Beeson – Part 1

April 13, 2022 by Jodi Krangle

“I think that the future of audio is one that’s customized, personalized, interactive, intelligent and dynamic, you know, instead of always treating audio as on and off, we need to treat it in a way that’s delivered to each person as a unique experience.” — Sean Beeson

This episode features a rare two-for-one interview with a powerful sonic duo, Jon Brennan and Sean Beeson, formerly of Sonic Signatures. Jon Brennan’s a music composer and sound designer with twenty years of experience creating sound for iconic brands and multimedia platforms. With the rise of voice, podcasts, and streaming, he founded Sonic Signatures to enable brands to effectively use branded audio across every campaign and platform. He’s created audio logos, original music, and sound design for leading brands including Amazon Alexa, Tide, Southwest Airlines, IBM Security, Mercy Health, Union Home Mortgage, and KeepTruckin. His film scores include internationally distributed feature films and documentaries, and he has an MFA in Music Composition for the Screen from Columbia College Chicago. Very recently, he decided to work with Sixième Son in the US.

Sean Beeson is a composer and sound designer who’s worked on hundreds of scores for video games, ads, trailers, and podcasts for clients like Google, Disney, McDonald’s, Taco Bell, State Farm, Wizards of the Coast, Neoglyphic, and Sony. He helped develop the sonic identity of Google’s Pixel phone, Pixel Buds 2, and Google’s Home and Max speakers. He’s contributed to three Emmy award-winning projects and has been nominated for multiple Game Audio Network Guild Awards. He’s now doing independent music and sound design work.
If you want to understand why audio is so important to your brand, Jon and Sean have a thing or two to tell you about that.

The Essence of a Project

We start off with a look at the early influences that shaped Jon and Sean’s interest in sound. Jon tells us how his older brother’s Depeche Mode album sparked a lifelong career in music, while Sean recalls his very first encounter with audio branding when he played Sega video games as a child. The topic turns to the versatility of sonic branding in everything from mobile games to casino slot machines. The goal, as Sean explains it is, is “to boil down the essence of a project or product or brand to what really makes it unique and what really helps make it relate to the consumer or the user of that product.”

Supporting the Brand

The interview continues with the story of how Sean and Jon met at a gaming conference, and how their combined experience in commercial music and interactive audio gave them a unique perspective when it comes to audio branding and marketing.”We feel that we can best help a company through our one-on-one relationship,” Jon says, “and it’s through that personalization that we can come up with the most custom and creative results that are the most effective in the long run.”

Everything is Interactive

Next, we talk about audio branding, what it means to them, and how video games in particular have always been ahead of the curve when it comes to dynamic audio and using sound to continually shape the listener’s experience. Jon sees interactive audio, guided by machine learning, playing a more vital role in our everyday lives as smart devices become widespread: “Sonic branding,” as he explains, “extends beyond just having a jingle or a piece of music, and it really needs to kind of aid the user to be able to identify, interact and interpret the audio so that it creates a better experience.”

Delivering a Unique Experience

Jon and Sean tell us about the process of creating a sonic brand for a client, and how it can vary from one project to the next. “It’s less about what you personally like and dislike,” Jon says, “as opposed to what has been shown to work the most in testing.” We look at how they communicate with and work to keep their clients engaged in the process, whether it’s creating a variety of audio logos for a new app or testing the sound interface for a new piece of hardware. “Everybody is integrated into the process,” Sean tells us, “from the creative planning parts to the actual creation to the implementation.”

Episode Summary

Jon and Sean’s first memorable experiences with sound
Casino sounds and the importance of creating a positive impression
What modern sound interfaces can learn from video games
How machine learning and voice-first technology are changing sonic brands
The importance of working with clients to create a unique audio package

Check back next week for the second half of our interview as we take a closer look at some of the clients that Jon and Sean have helped, and actually listen to the audio brands and interfaces that Sonic Signatures has created for such companies as Union Home Mortgage and KeepTrunkin.

Connect with the Guests

Website: www.sonicsignatures.io

Follow Sonic Signatures on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sonicsignatures

Connect with Jon Brennan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonbrennan/

Connect with Sean Beeson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonbrennan/

Follow Sonic Signatures on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sonicsignatures

Get your complimentary mini e-book and learn how to create your personalized and branded audio branding strategy with my Top Five Tips for Implementing an Intentional Audio Strategy.

Please leave the Audio Branding Podcast a written review or a spoken review so others can find the show on their favorite podcast player!

This interview episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco.

Musical Logos: An interview with Rajeev Raja – Part 2

December 29, 2021 by Jodi Krangle

“So brands are trying to find a voice which is sympathetic, which is sincere, and we think music can play a big role in that. Because if you like music, you like it, you don’t judge it. You don’t question the intentions of an artist. You just love the piece of music.” — Rajeev Raja

This week we continue my interview with musician, soundsmith, and BrandMusiq founder Rajeev Raja as we talk about no-contact business branding, sonic branding in the retail market, and the challenge of bringing the nuance of branding to musical logos.

Keeping the Brand Alive

We start the second half of the interview with a look at how the pandemic has changed the relationship between businesses and their customers, and how sonic branding can help preserve a sense of connection even in the absence of face-to-face transactions. “They’ve discovered that having a sonic identity,” Rajeev explains, “transmits an emotion which can actually keep their brand alive in the emotional dimension, and raise their emotional quotient and keep it there.”

The Subconscious Level

After that, we talk about the power of MOGOs and audio branding in the age of social media, the challenge and opportunity to differentiate brands using audio, and the influence it can have on a deeper, more subconscious level than most marketers consider. “When you create a sonic identity for a

brand,” he says, “and wherever the brand is heard, it’s not just about creating a jingle and saying hey, hey, hey, listen to me – it’s also the feeling that you leave behind.”

Mapping Society’s Mood

We wrap up the interview by considering how many different aspects of our lives are being revolutionized by sound and the potential for sonic branding, from custom sounds in electric vehicles to healing sounds in hospitals, and how this new soundscape can reflect and even help improve the mood of our global society. “During Covid, I used to just play healing tunes on the flute, and started sharing it,” he tells me, “and I started realizing the power, the honest feelings that you have. Close your eyes, listen to that piece of music, and it’s like you put the worries of the world away for a while.”

The Theory Behind MOGOs

If you’d like to learn more about Rajeev’s theory of MOGOs, check out his TED talk “The Enchanting Theory Behind MOGOs” at https://youtu.be/hBhREwd-LaM. You’ll get to hear him demonstrate the concept with a beautiful flute performance and learn more about how, as he puts it in the video, a MOGO, or musical logo, is “the shortest distance between a brand and the consumer’s heart.”

Episode Summary

How audio can help strengthen brand relationships
Audio branding and the social media revolution
The power of sound to make a subconscious impression
How sound can change the way we see the world
Rajeev’s Theory of MOGOs on YouTube

Get your complimentary mini e-book and learn how to create your personalized and branded audio branding strategy with my Top Five Tips for Implementing an Intentional Audio Strategy.

Please leave the Audio Branding Podcast a written review or a spoken review so others can find the show on their favorite podcast player!

This interview episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco.

Connect with Rajeev

Website: https://brandmusiq.com/

The enchanting theory behind MOGOs | Rajeev Raja | TEDxSIULavale: https://youtu.be/hBhREwd-LaM

Follow Rajeev Raja on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rajarajeev/

Connect with Rajeev Raja on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajeev-raja-1b0b1649/

Listen to Rajeev Raja on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/brandmusiq

Follow Rajeev Raja on Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/rajarajeev/

Musical Logos: An interview with Rajeev Raja – Part 1

December 22, 2021 by Jodi Krangle

“Because we also believe that brands are multidimensional, just as human beings are, right? So, we are multidimensional: we are seen in a certain way by our close friends, we are seen in another way by our family, close family, we are seen in a third way by our colleagues and associates, right? So, we are multidimensional, and brands also need to express themselves in different ways depending on the environment that they are in.” — Rajeev Raja

This episode’s guest is the former National Creative Director of ad agency DDB Mudra as well as one of India’s finest jazz and fusion flautists, with a number one album on the iTunes India charts for three weeks running. He’s the founder and “soundsmith” of BrandMusiq, the first company in Asia dedicated to designing and managing sonic brand identities, and is a creative powerhouse who straddles the two worlds of branding and music.

With over twenty-five years of advertising experience, he’s worked on many of India’s and the world’s top brands and created many award-winning nationwide campaigns. With such strong credentials in music and branding, it’s only natural that Rajeev Raja founded BrandMusiq – a perfect example of how one’s passion can also become one’s life work! Listen in as we talk about the power of sound: how it can make a brand more memorable, and how it can touch and influence our emotions on a daily basis.

The Flute Found Me

Each episode begins with a look back at my guest’s earliest memories of sound, and Rajeev shares a moving account of how he grew up listening to the vinyl records his mother used as a classical dancer in a home that was always filled with music. Soon he began to listen to pop music from around the world, then early jazz, the blues, and then the flute. “Just by ear, I could immediately play it,” he says. “It was as if I’d found the flute, but the flute found me.”

Music on a Higher Level

Even after he’d settled into a successful career as an advertising professional in Mumbai, music still called out Rajeev, and he faced a choice between following his two passions. When he realized how essential music can be for branding, and how few companies had really tapped into its potential, he founded BrandMusiq. As he puts it, “we can elevate music to a higher level, compared to the way it was used generally, which is a good old jingle that happens on a radio spot or a TV spot but doesn’t reflect the essence of the brand.”

One Brand, Many Expressions

Next, we talk about MOGOs, or musical logos, a term he created that’s quickly taken off in the business world. Rajeev uses his flute to give us a beautiful firsthand demonstration of how subtle changes can affect the mood it creates in surprising ways. “The beauty is once you’ve created your sonic identity,” he says, “which the MOGO, the musical logo, is, as we’ve said, a big part of, then you can actually start creating different adaptations with these different emotions… it’s one brand, but with many expressions.”

Creating a Musical Identity

The first half of our interview concludes with a look at musical motifs and Jungian archetypes, and the power of musical logos to transcend the boundaries between cultures and generations while embracing their unique qualities. “There is a rich tradition,” he explains, “and a science behind this in our Indian culture… and if you listen to the great western composers, you’ll see that they knew that the use of a certain scale or combination of scales, major to minor and etcetera, would evoke certain emotions.”

Episode Summary

Rajeev’s early life and music in Bangalore
How a twist of fate led him to become a flautist
Founding BrandMusiq and the theory of MOGOs
Musical motifs and the power of archetypes
The flexibility and diversity of MOGOs

Be sure to listen next week for part two as we talk about the challenge of branding in a no-contact world, the explosion of sonic branding thanks to social media, and how MOGOs could become as much a part of our personal lives as they are the business world.

Get your complimentary mini e-book and learn how to create your personalized and branded audio branding strategy with my Top Five Tips for Implementing an Intentional Audio Strategy.

Please leave the Audio Branding Podcast a written review or a spoken review so others can find the show on their favorite podcast player!

This interview episode was very skillfully made to sound beautiful by the talented Humberto Franco.

Connect with Rajeev

Website: https://brandmusiq.com/

The enchanting theory behind MOGOs | Rajeev Raja | TEDxSIULavale: https://youtu.be/hBhREwd-LaM

Follow Rajeev Raja on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rajarajeev/

Connect with Rajeev Raja on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajeev-raja-1b0b1649/

Listen to Rajeev Raja on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/brandmusiq

Follow Rajeev Raja on Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/rajarajeev/

Jodi Krangle

Musical Alchemy: An Interview with Eric Singer – Part 2

Musical Alchemy: An Interview with Eric Singer – Part 1

Signature Sounds: An Interview With Jon Brennan & Sean Beeson – Part 2

Signature Sounds: An Interview With Jon Brennan & Sean Beeson – Part 1

Musical Logos: An interview with Rajeev Raja – Part 2

Musical Logos: An interview with Rajeev Raja – Part 1

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