Alumni Achievements-DarrieWRLD
Alumni, DarrieWRLD, a Ghanaian artist/producer/engineer developed his production chops with our October 2020 Group. Now Darius Armah aka alumni DarrieWRLD engineers from 9 to 5 in Accra’s Paradisus Studios while building his amazing brand as a singer and producer for his own material. We caught up with Darius while he was in South Africa for a few music production sessions.
What have you been getting up to since graduating?
I started doing some engineering work for some friends and artists in the industry back home in Ghana. I wasn’t getting paid for any of those jobs because I wasn’t overly confident – but I was passionate about doing it so I kept going. As time went by, I got introduced to more clients and that is how I landed my first paying gig. It was very fulfilling because that was my hard-earned money and my passion became business.
Darius comfortable behind the console at Paradisus Studios in Accra, Ghana.
A few months later I got introduced to a producer from London’s SW6 studios who had built a studio in Ghana and needed someone to be a studio engineer and manager. After a brief meeting, I landed the job and things haven’t been the same since. Through the job, I got signed as an artist by the studio’s company. That same company has been in business with Warner Music UK for 10-plus years. It’s been an amazing journey so far. There’s still so much work to do but everything seems to be coming together nicely and I can’t wait for everyone to see everything that we have planned and created for the brand “darrieWRLD”
Tell us about a typical day at the studio.
A typical day in the studio is running sessions that start around 10 am until probably the next day. By 3 a.m., everyone’s brain is fried so we break and resume at 10 a.m., the next morning. It can go on for about a week if there’s a writing camp. You have various artists, producers, writers and instrumentalists coming through, managers and A&Rs checking in on their artists and listening to new music.
It’s an entire experience and I’m so grateful I had the opportunity of studying at Abbey Road Institute Johannesburg because it prepared us for the field.
credit: @darriewrld
How many roles do you usually play in a production?
I play the keys so it helps me to come up with most of the melodies as well. Collaborating is a big part of my process and I believe in sharing ideas. Two heads are better than one.
credit: @darriewrld
Describe your production process.
My production process usually begins with a melody that I keep hearing in my head. We start developing that melody by adding elements like keys, guitar, synths (depending on the direction of the production), drums and then vocals.
As a student you might not see it as such but trust me, once you find yourself in that space, everything begins to make sense. It’s like school assignments all over again but industry level and once you’re there you become very appreciative.
What are you working on?
Currently, I’m making a lot of music. Recording and producing almost every day and developing a sound that’s unique to darrieWRLD.
Listen to Damo Shi [Acoustic version] here.
Follow darrieWRLD on instagram here and stay up to date with all his new releases.
Find out more about our Advanced Programme in Music Production and Sound Engineering here.
