Ryan Gilligan (Kanye West, John Mayer, Kevin Garrett)

LA-based mix engineer Ryan Gilligan started at Electric Lady and Quad Studios in New York. Legendary mixer Michael Brauer mentored him for more than seven years before relocating to LA in 2014 and establishing himself as a freelance mix engineer. Gilligan has been awarded three Grammy Certificates for work with John Mayer, Kanye West, and Calle 13. Other credits include Solange Knowles, Kevin Garrett, Twin Shadow, Wu-Tang, and Never Shout Never;

Tell us about your current studio setup.

My current mix setup is a hybrid rig with Pro Tools HD Native. I use an Avid MTRX Studio interface into a Neve Orbit summing amp, Avalon 747 (gifted to me by Brauer and the same one he used on Coldplay’s Parachutes!), into an RME ADI- 2 Pro as the stereo AD back into Pro Tools. 

I do the hybrid thing to get transformer and tube love on the mix buss. 

In the box, my go-to plugins are Fabfilter Pro-Q 3 for carving out problematic frequencies, Spectre for more interesting additive EQ, and various Goodhertz plugins. There are always UAD plugins used like the 1176, LA-2A, and Culture Vulture. 

I monitor with a pair of ATC SCM25A speakers and HEDD Audio HEDDphones. The RME serves as my main DA and volume control to the speakers and headphones. The RME is fed digitally from the MTRX. I utilize the monitor control function of the MTRX via an iPad for source switching. 

I’ve spent a lot of time dialing in the acoustics of my room, which is one of the essential things to turn out good mixes reliably. 

How do you stay excited about making music every day?

What keeps me excited about the work I do is continually working to improve my craft and try out new ideas with new projects. Every so often, a song comes along that gels perfectly with a sonic vision I’ve had in my head, and when that aligns perfectly, and the artist and producer are on board, it’s the best feeling in the world. 

What further keeps things interesting is getting to work on many different genres. I inevitably end up applying mix techniques across genres, so my influences are constantly evolving. 

How do you approach the mixing of a song?

When starting a new mix, the first thing I do is listen to the rough mix a few times. By this point, I’ve received notes from the artist or producer on what they love or don’t love about their rough. I listen for what they’ve mentioned and keep a mental note of areas that I can improve on or get more creative with. 

Then, I’ll spend time organizing the multitrack or stems that I’ve been sent and ensuring they match the rough mix, changing balances if I have to. It’s important to me that I start where they left off. 

At this point, I import my mix template, group tracks for VCA control, and buss things through my template. 

It’s all calibrated - levels don’t change much via the bussing, and there’s subtle enhancement happening off the bat with the processing in my template. 

If the artist has sent me a playlist of references, I’ll have that on in the background while doing the bussing to get into the vibe they are looking for. SoundFlow on a stream deck is a huge time saver for the prep. 

Later on, throughout the mix, I’ll AB with the rough to make sure what I’m doing is an improvement and not losing any of the good aspects. 

What advice do you have for aspiring mixers looking to get better at what they do?

For any aspiring mixers, I would say listen to finished mixes you’ve done over and over again and focus on things you could have improved on for next time. There are many videos online with mix tips, and those can be helpful, but don’t blindly apply them without listening to see if there’s an improvement. What works for one song will not work for all songs. 

When dealing with clients and receiving mix notes, remember that you are there to serve their vision and bring that to life. Check your ego at the door and be open to exploring ideas they may have without judgment. Ideas are fragile, and giving them space can lead to unexpected places. 

If their idea doesn’t work, let them hear it themselves, even if it’s something you tried and rejected before sending the mix off.