Producer Crosstalk: Katelyn Clampett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . By Rob Putnam

KATELYN CLAMPETT

Writer and producer Katelyn Clampett embarked on her jangle journey during high school. By the time she was 15, she’d begun to experiment with Cubase. A scholarship to Berklee College of Music soon followed, then she moved to Los Angeles in 2010 and on to Nashville in 2013. Clampett has written with a number of country and Christian artists, for an array of TV shows and commercials and has performed with Selena Gomez and The Scene as a background singer. “Daddy's Little Girl”—a song she co-wrote with Ernie Halter—was used by Nick Edwards in his 2022—audition and has since earned millions of YouTube views.

Clampett’s roots are in pop. “Working in pop initially gave me some chops that transferred into the genres that felt more natural,” she observes. “That’s allowed me to be the girl that’s doing the demo in the room as well as writing. I don’t do as much Christian anymore and that was a conscious choice. Country is my forte, but I still do a little pop.”

Over the course of her career, Clampett has worked at a number of studios, notably Nashville’s Station West. But more recently she’s turned to her own creative home space where she records virtually all of her work. Being a woman in a field that is still largely dominated by men, Clampett finds that she has to be at the apex of her game in order to be recognized. “My chops have to be good enough so that I’m listened to,” she asserts. “Our voices aren’t heard or validated, or we have to feed them through a man. I have to hone in on my craft, advocate for myself and trust my instincts. I didn’t start out feeling that way. It’s something I had to grow and build.”

Clampett is fond of using unconventional sonic sources, such as toasters and high heels in her work. “I got bored with the same old sounds,” she says of that choice. “The productions I was drawn to had something tasty that drew me in and encouraged me to do the same. There’s construction going on at a neighbor’s place now and I’ve sampled some of that. They’re such great sounds: the saws, hammers and even some of their shouts. Those types of things are fun.”

Musicians and engineers are often obsessed with gear, and Clampett counts herself among the gear geeks. “I’m a huge vocal production nerd,” she admits. “Townsend came out with the [Sphere] L22 Precision Microphone Modeling System. I bought it during the pandemic and fell in love with the setup because it enabled me to model some of my favorite vintage mics or [had] great options for some really nice [modern] ones. The sound is comparable to all of them.”

These days she’s working on a number of singles, but aims to release an EP or perhaps even a full-length record sometime in 2023. She’s been in “artist mode,” as she calls it, for the past several months as she develops her live show. . . . lessons she’s learned as a writer and producer are:

• Don’t over-produce. Sometimes I have the inclination to want to prove my chops. I have to remember to simply be confident in doing the production that’s needed and not one that’s rooted in ego. • The song shines first. When you have a great one, you don’t have to decorate it much. • Use what you have. Don’t reach for the newest or most expensive piece of gear. There’s a lot that can be done with just a little.