Today we’d like to introduce you to Manny Mercado.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
After I graduated with a bachelors in engineering from New England School of Communications (in Maine) I moved to Miami FL and started interning at Studio Center Miami. (Summer 2009) That quickly led to a full time job as one of their in house engineers. After 3/4 years as one of the studio’s main engineers I was presented with an opportunity to become Flo Rida’s personal engineer and chief engineer for his record label IMG/StrongArm. I worked there for 2/3 years. Growth and change led me to I continue as a full time freelance engineer. I was hustling out of 5 of Miamis largest and most reputable studios. My run in Miami blessed me with an incredible network of colleagues and an impressive list of clients. (Flo Rida,Gloria Estefan, Nipsey Hussle, Trey Songs, P.Diddy, Ashanti, Scott Storch, J Cole, Lil Jon, Too Short, Belly, Flava Flav, Niykee Heaton, 6LACK, Breyan Isaac- too name a few)
In 2016ish I moved from Miami to Daytona to be chief engineer and Partners in a publishing company. Shout out Breyan Isaac who is a true friend/visionary. During this time I was blessed to be able to engineer/mix songs that appeared in movies like 50 shades Darker, Fast and Furious 7, BayWatch, Spider-Man into the Spider-verse, the shack.
Covid really forced an entire country to restructure and that meant me as well.
It took quite a bit of searching eventually I found a location in 2022 and began the build out of my own studio. I opened Daytona International Studios in Aug of 2022 with the help of long time friend/business associate Dustin Breeden (Shout out dB studios in boyton beach FL)
To wrap things up I’ve been a professional audio engineer for almost 2 decades. I’ve been blessed with 2 different Grammy nominations, a handful of billboard and movie placements. A laundry list of clients, studios, and countries my career has taken me.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
People taking advantage of your passion. They think because you love something you’ll do it for free. It took a lot of confidence and guidance to transition out of that early on in my career. Of course as an intern I wasn’t making any money. I was sleeping on my brother’s couch for almost a year before I was able to get my own place. I slept at the studio many nights. (shout out Hector from Studio Center Miami)
There’s also work related difficulties. A lot of competition in my industry. Sometimes clients can have an ego or attitude. As the engineer, if the song doesn’t sound right it’s your fault. Regardless if the “talent” gave you a quality performance or not. It’s your job to make it sound good.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Im an audio engineer. I record, mix, edit, master and do some basic acoustician work. I specialize in finalizing songs. I’ve been able to carve out a niche for myself as a mixing engineer. Without sounding braggadocios, I feel it’s my attention to detail while working. I always try to “serve the song”. Meaning The song tells me what adjustments are needed. You just need to be able to listen/hear them. Theres alot of “feeling” and passion in my work. I try to align myself with the artist’s vision and deliver what I feel is a sonically superior product.
How do you think about luck?
No luck, only God and truly believing I had no plan B. I’ve been blessed with opportunities I was fortunate enough to be prepared for. That plus proper execution. What is meant is for us is already ours.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://share.google/2XZGfgowHKwvwJXJe
- Instagram: @DaytonaInternationalStudios , @MannyMix21
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/64543uK5kbIzUsAMUDs1mO
