The Pinnacle

Teo Domani is the Toronto producer and sample maker behind "Could It Be" by Fivio Foreign and Swae Lee. On episode 32 of The Pinnacle he breaks down how that placement actually happened. He sent a sample out, it moved through a chain of producers he had never met, and eight months later it was a major record.

We get into snippet purgatory and the records that never come out, the 20 minute timer method behind his output, why he thinks consistency beats talent, where producers should actually be sending their loops, the paid collab debate, what it took to score short films including one that screened at TIFF Lightbox, and why he believes an unknown artist is just as likely to change your career as a placement with a name.

Teo Domani: https://www.instagram.com/teodomani/

The Pinnacle: https://www.instagram.com/pinnacleatthetop/

Beats, samples, limited-run producer tools: https://zenith.gallery/

THE BLUEPRINT:

00:00 - The Text: "Swae Lee Just Cut This One"

00:31 - Meet Teo Domani: Producer, Sample Maker, Film Scorer

05:11 - Googling "What Software Does Joji Use" and Downloading Ableton

09:21 - Why 20 Is Not Too Old to Start Making Beats

10:29 - The Chain Begins: Sending Loops to Kierney

12:00 - A Random Tuesday in June: The Screen Recording

14:03 - The One Year Rule

14:41 - Snippet Purgatory: Records That Never Come Out

19:56 - Telegram Over Discord: Where Producers Actually Trade

20:25 - When Someone Posts an Email, Send It

23:13 - What Working Hard Actually Means

23:36 - "Talent Almost Is Irrelevant. Consistency Beats Everything."

24:13 - The 20 Minute Timer Method

27:21 - Nobody Wants to Be a Content Creator

28:34 - To Be Seen Is to Be Heard

29:14 - How Opportunities Actually Compound

30:29 - Reaching Out When You Think You Have No Reason To

32:06 - The Paid Collab Debate

34:16 - In the Session: Be Malleable, Be Coachable

35:22 - The Producers He Works With Most

39:01 - Scoring a Film That Screened at TIFF Lightbox

40:36 - The Dream Placement

45:13 - There Is Not One Linear Way to Do This

47:08 - The Hundred Record Goal

47:47 - An Unknown Artist Could Change Everything

50:53 - Advice Tweets Are Self Reminders

51:20 - Where to Find Teo

He knows zero music theory. He deleted Instagram at his lowest and the first DM waiting for him became a Grammy.

FORTHENIGHT has produced for Bad Bunny, SZA, Summer Walker, Don Toliver, Lil Uzi Vert, Mariah the Scientist, Latto & more. In episode 31 of The Pinnacle, he breaks down how those massive placements actually happened, the studio habits that get producers invited back, why he refuses to make beats specifically for placements, and the story behind the credit he almost didn't see.

THE BLUEPRINT

00:00 - The Hook: Terrible Moments Before Massive Wins

00:11 - From Toronto DJ to Global Placements

00:30 - Bypassing the Noise: Turning to Samples in 2018

01:09 - Branding With the Moon: Scoring Scary Movie Soundtracks

02:20 - Pure Networking: Relationships Over Opportunity

03:45 - The 50-Beat-a-Day Trap vs. Intentional Value Packs

05:13 - Meeting Yoko Gold & The 20-Minute Blind Test

06:00 - Executive Producing From Niagara Falls

08:51 - Bypassing the Game: The Lotto & Mariah The Scientist Track

09:39 - Going to LA: Linking Up with Calvin Valentine

10:39 - The Last-Minute Reality of Major Record Placements

11:20 - Inside the Executive Bag vs. Rapper Beat Cycling

12:13 - 0 Music Theory: Training the Ear to Recognize Pattern Scales

13:40 - Managing ADHD, Lawyers, and the Business Routine

15:46 - The #1 Rule: Don't Make Music For Placements

17:36 - Sync Placements: Direct Bags & Bypassing Paperwork Stress

18:24 - Studio Etiquette: Read the Mood, Stop Just Pressing Play

20:10 - Handling Failed Sessions & Overcoming Writer's Block

21:25 - The Incompatibility Reality: There Are Trillions of Artists

22:20 - Releasing Plugins and Mentoring the Producer Community

23:00 - The Full Grammy Story: Bad Bunny & The Instagram DM

24:54 - Bouncing Back From the Latin Grammy Loss

25:50 - The Diamond Mining Meme: Mindset in the Rough Patches

27:02 - The Harsh Truth About "Waiting For Inspiration"

28:35 - Paying It Forward: Balancing Faith & Ethics in the Industry

31:21 - Sound Evolution: Transitioning From Pure Dark Textures

32:01 - Why Catchy Melodies Will Forever Defeat AI

33:33 - The Boy Wonder Secret: Making Complex Sound Simple

34:10 - Why Content Creation Burns Out Full-Time Beatmakers

35:39 - Philip Glass & Candyman: Finding Composition Angles

36:11 - Essential Gear of 2026: Why You Must Cop a Furman Power Block

38:22 - Digging the 60s & 70s Archives for Pure Creativity

38:52 - Outro: The Next Big Thing from Toronto

FORTHENIGHT

Instagram: https://instagram.com/forthenightmusic

THE PINNACLE

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thepinnacleshow

PINNACLE (Host)

Instagram: https://instagram.com/pinnacleatthetop

Nick Nash (producer for Connor Price, Sleepy Hallow, Kid G) on surviving a bad publishing deal, his 200M-stream record, leaving LA for Nashville, and why 1M TikTok views converted to less than 1,000 streams. In our fourth episode with Nick, we get into who actually controls what blows up in music right now.

The Pinnacle is back with new episodes every week. Catch it live: https://www.youtube.com/@thepinnacleshow

Nick Nash: https://www.instagram.com/nicknashmusicPinnacle: https://www.instagram.com/pinnacleatthetop/Beats & samples, curated, limited-run producer tools: https://zenith.gallery/

🎁 Stick around to the end of the episode there's something for you. (Code: NICKNASH75)

Quavo and Future producer Macshooter49 joins The Pinnacle to reveal the VSTs, effects and Kontakt libraries he actually uses to design drums and make beats.

Macshooter49 breaks down his secret Chop Suey drum-design technique, his favourite plugins from Arturia, Soundtoys, UAD, Teletone Audio, Slate + Ash and Spitfire Audio, and why the real “sauce” comes from processing and combining sounds, not simply owning rare plugins. He also discusses learning from producers like Nick Mira and BNYX, building a drum-kit business, staying consistent without burning out and dedicating most of his life to music while still in his teens.

Macshooter: https://www.instagram.com/macshooter49

Pinnacle: https://www.instagram.com/pinnacleatthetop/

THE PINNACLE

Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/1Iuuuie1skJOOAtLxg3Ie5?si=27de84daf09d4e37

Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/3GIP58l

BLUEPRINT

00:00 – Macshooter49 Introduction

02:42 – Starting With Ableton and Switching to FL Studio

06:30 – Learning From BNYX Streams Instead of Tutorials

08:00 – Why Producers Should Learn Multiple DAWs

10:10 – Copying Your Influences to Improve

14:20 – Planning Drum-Kit Releases and Rollouts

17:00 – Building Products for Long-Term Success

20:00 – Improving One Thing With Every Upload

23:10 – His Secret VST for Designing Drum Sounds

25:30 – Learning From Other Producers and Sound Designers

28:00 – Inspiration, Copying and Giving Credit

32:00 – Discipline, Consistency and Avoiding Wasted Time

33:00 – Outgrowing People Who Don’t Share Your Vision

37:00 – Basketball and the NBA

39:45 – Muay Thai and Boxing

40:40 – Diet and Self-Improvement

45:00 – Habit Stacking

47:00 – Reading and Creativity

50:00 – His Favourite Processing Plugins

52:30 – Switching to a 96GB MacBook

58:00 – Kontakt Libraries and More Favourite VSTs

1:03:00 – Prophet and Affordable Hardware Synthesizers

1:07:30 – Macshooter49’s Message to Producers

In today's episode, Dave and Pinnacle discuss the future of A.I. and it's role and effect on the music industry. They also discuss Dave's role as Head of Revenue at Audiomack, and his experiences and lessons derived from there as it pertains to A.I. and the future of music.

Producers serious about their craft, if you're looking for FIRE, LIMITED copy samples, look no further: https://zenith.gallery/

00:00 - Dave Edwards Introduction

01:30 - Audiomack and How it Helps Artists

08:30 - A.I. and the AMOUNT of Music Being Released

10:34 - A.I. is Already Here

14:00 - Artist Intellectual Property

17:00 - What Being The Head of Revenue at Audiomack Looks Like

19:00 - Starting and Making an App

23:00 - The Speed of Innovation in the A.I. Space

29:30 - A.I. Fear and Uses Depending on the Industry

36:00 - A.I. Regulations

36:30 - Helping Software Engineers

38:00 - Having the Best Session Guitarist in The World in Your Studio

40:15 - Record Labels Dealing With Piracy in the early 2000's

Producers serious about their craft, if you're looking for FIRE, LIMITED copy samples, look no further: https://zenith.gallery/

In today's episode, Multi-Platinum Producer Txpski and Pinnacle discuss his work with Chris Brown, Ye Ali and MIKExANGEL. They talk about shifting roles in the industry and building a good network and support system. Txpski discusses his future trajectory and what he has in store for 2023.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Txpski Intro

03:15 - Changing Between Producing and Songwriting

05:10 - First Major Placements with Chris Brown on Heartbreak on a Full Moon

08:00 - Using Opportunities to Leverage Other Opportunities

13:00 - Goals of Being Billboard #1 and Changing Goals

16:00 - Biggest Challenges Coming Up / Access to Studios

17:15 - Not Using VSTs for 3 Years / Using Soundfonts

20:00 - How Txpski Learns New Skills

22:30 - Txpski's Day

24:00 - The Process of Sending Out Demos for Artists

28:00 - Music Not Sticking Around Long Anymore / Favourite Projects

30:00 - Protecting Your Ears / Having a Good Support System

35:00 - Modelling Your Beat after a Billboard Hit

37:00 - Being Financially Aware When Going to L.A. etc

40:00 - A.I in Music

41:00 - Releasing His Own Music

42:00 - First Sync Placement

In today's episode, Soldado and Pinnacle discuss his music production and his collaborations with artists such as Baby Keem, Lil Uzi, ASAP Ferg, and Migos, noting his preference for using one shots and emphasizing the importance of unique sound design and FX. Pinnacle and him provide advice for new producers, including the value of consistency and the importance of having fun and being creative. Additionally, they stress the importance of networking and building relationships with collaborators and professionals in the music industry.

RIAA Platinum producer Goldenboy has worked with Chris Brown, Jacquees, Tink, Khary, Tracy T, anders, Garren and more. On Episode 24 of The Pinnacle, he breaks down how his Chris Brown placement on Royalty happened, why marketing is one of the biggest advantages producers ignore, how he built genuine relationships in the industry, and the mindset required to survive the inevitable lows of a music career.Goldenboy: https://www.instagram.com/ohgoldenboy/Pinnacle: https://www.instagram.com/pinnacleatthetop/THE PINNACLESpotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/1Iuuuie1skJOOAtLxg3Ie5?si=27de84daf09d4e37Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/3GIP58lInstagram: https://instagram.com/ThePinnacleShowTHE BLUEPRINT00:00 - Goldenboy Intro01:23 - Creating Studio Sessions Artists Want to Return To04:45 - Breaking Through Creative Blocks in the Studio08:27 - Being Timely in Studio Sessions 11:00 - How He Got His Beats Heard13:40 - Moving to L.A After Winning Beat Battle18:31 - Why Marketing Helped Him Land Placements20:30 - How the Chris Brown Placement Happened26:15 - Staying Organized and Keeping A Schedule28:35 - Dealing With Low Moments31:00 - Favorite Plugins & Production Workflow34:52 - Who Do You Go To When You're Feeling Lost38:50 - Types of People You Don't Want to Work With41:41 - Favorite Piece of Equipment45:20 - Advice Every Producer Needs to Hear48:30 - Why Most Producers Quit Too Early52:00 - Why Intentions Matter in Music53:00 - Pessimism in the Music Industry59:00 - Learning As Much As You Can From Your ExperiencesLIVE BROADCASTSEpisodes are recorded live, join us next time right here on YouTube and be a part of the experience or:Twitch: https://twitch.tv/thepinnacleshowKick: https://kick.com/thepinnacle#MusicProducer #ChrisBrown #ThePinnacle