Trevor Lawrence Jr on Carnegie Hall glory and drumming with AUDIX microphones

From the legendary stage of a sold-out Carnegie Hall to the cutting-edge production of his latest GRAMMY-nominated work, drummer and producer Trevor Lawrence Jr. is a drummer and producer to be reckoned with. A veteran collaborator with icons from Dr. Dre to Bruno Mars, Lawrence Jr. bridges the worlds of jazz, hip-hop, and orchestral performance. To capture every nuance of his signature sound, he relies on a precision AUDIX microphone setup, ensuring world-class sound from the studio to the global stage. Headliner gets the scoop on his recent endeavours and the tech behind it.

Could you share the details behind your recent GRAMMY nomination?

I have been honoured to be associated with Grammy-nominated work as a writer, producer, or drummer for about the past 30 years. This year, an album with Terrace Martin and Kenyon Dixon, which I contributed to, called Come As You Are, is up for Best Progressive R&B album. Also, one of the songs I co-wrote and produced on the album, WeMaj, is up for Best Melodic Rap Performance. This album feels great. Unless you’re on 50 per cent of the project, those of us who are just producers or writers often don't get GRAMMY statues, just the certificate, but it is always cool to see your work be recognised.

How is your current microphone setup configured for studio and live use?

The kit here in my studio is fully miked with AUDIX. I use a PDX 520 under the snare. I have D6X on the kick and two D6 on the floor toms. The D6X will give you a great bass drum sound. The SCX-25 lollipops are my overheads. I absolutely love the little clip-on D2 tiny tom mics. It’s a huge thing for me that they are so small and out of the way, yet they sound incredible. I position a pencil mic F9 under the hi-hat, and use the overheads to pick up the top. I use this setup primarily for online content.

I also use AUDIX a lot for live shows. The entire setup for the orchestral performance of the anime franchise Attack on Titan is all AUDIX, too. I’m also the musical director on that gig, and we just did two sold-out shows at Carnegie Hall. When I am in control of my live sound, you won't see anything else but AUDIX. Because with AUDIX, I know exactly what's going to happen. I’ve never had anything drum-wise sound that clean. It just sounds incredible.

Why is AUDIX your primary choice for microphones?

AUDIX has come a long way, and I think they have emerged as one of the best players in the microphone world, for sure. Sonically, and why I choose them, is that AUDIX microphones are just transparent. I'm never worried about having to fix it in the mix or anything being overhyped. Plus, the functionality presented by AUDIX is incredible.

What advice would you offer to aspiring musicians and producers?

A big one for me is "your ego is not your amigo." A lot of the decisions we make are driven by ego without us realising it. That phrase has stuck with me since I worked at Aftermath with Dr Dre. I believe Fredwreck said it first. You have to stay creative, but you also have to stay humble. Often, ego prevents us from finding out what the optimal decisions in the moment are. People say, "I'm just going to do what I do," but that's not what the music says you're supposed to do. So, I’ll just say it again, “make every decision for the music.” I think the other thing is, and I say it every time I give a masterclass, “If you're going to do something, do it authentically like it's the only thing you do.”