GREG KURSTIN Blazing his own trail from jazz scholar to pop hit-maker By Michael Gallant He’s produced a bevy of wildly successful artists including Kelly Clarkson, Pink, Ke$ha, Tegan and Sara, James Blunt, Dido and the Shins. But Greg Kurstin came to his hit-making career through an unconventional route—as a student of jazz piano. “I loved arranging songs and finding different voicings for chords,” says Kurstin, who studied at New York’s... 

VocalizeU Release Party Hosted by: Natasha Bedingfield Presented by Dave Stroud & Michele Rundgren Photography by Jeff Fasano Natasha Bedingfield and Jessie Collins Ben Folds Bren and Rebop Rundgren Bren Chloe Leighton and guests Crystal Knighton and Aisha Francis Daniel Bedingfield and Natasha Bedingfield Daniel Bedingfield, Natasha Bedingfield and Jessie Collins Daniel Bedingfield Dave Stroud and Ben Folds David Matalon, Sonnet Simmons, Dani... 

NATASHA BEDINGFIELD Building relationships through the power of positive songwriting “I am quite pessimistic—that’s why my music is the opposite,” Natasha Bedingfield says with a laugh. “I need music to help me get through things.” The English singer and songwriter sure makes a convincing optimist. Her latest release, Strip Me, is so chock full of uptempo grooves and sunny lyrical nuggets that it comes on as the musical equivalent of... 

Selecting the right microphone for you is crucial to a sound performance When you’re belting out a power ballad in front of thousands of excited fans or laying down a delicate guitar overdub in the studio, having the right microphone can make your music sound its best—and the wrong mic can turn it flat and lifeless. But with so many variations available, how do you choose? And with top-end mics selling for tens of thousands and cheapies going...