It’s My Birthday Live-Stream! 50% Off Everything at IamKarra.com

Taylor Crouse

— 6 min read
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Birthday celebration with cake, confetti, and a smiling person.

This weekend, I decided to celebrate my birthday month with a special live stream event! While my birthday was on July 22nd, I was traveling and couldn't do a live stream then. So, here we are, celebrating a little late but with a big sale!

Key Takeaways

  • Birthday Sale: Get 50% off all vocal sample packs, stock plugin vocal templates, Serum presets, and music courses on IamKarra.com until July 31st.
  • Carathon Live Stream Week: I'll be live streaming daily this week to develop new products and connect with you all.
  • New Serum Presets: Working on a new Serum preset bank for Serum 2 users, made from my own voice, expected by the end of August.
  • Career Shift: Embracing content creation and YouTube after initially dreaming of being a signed pop artist.
  • Touring vs. Home Studio: Realized touring wasn't sustainable and found fulfillment in building a home studio and creating content.
  • DAW Preferences: Personally enjoys Logic, ProTools, and Ableton for different aspects of music production.
  • Gear Insights: Discussed microphones (Sennheiser, Shure SM7B) and shared a home studio tour for gear details.
  • Favorite Artists: Loves Queen, The Beatles, Paramore, Rihanna, and Jax Mannequin.
  • Vocal Sample Packs: Detailed the "Big Butt" vocal sample pack, including usage rules and royalty-free licensing.
  • Vocal Templates: Explained the stock plugin vocal templates for various DAWs, designed for beginners.
  • Music Production Journey: Shared insights into developing products, learning video production, and the importance of support, especially from partner Reed.
  • Songwriting & Production: Discussed co-writing "Are You Lonely" with Alan Walker and producing K-pop/J-pop.
  • Live Stream Content: Showcased acapellas from "Big Butt" and "Tempting" from the album "Beauty and the Boss," explaining production techniques.

Celebrating 33 Years and Embracing a New Path

So, it's not technically my birthday today, but it was on July 22nd, and I turned 33! I actually love getting older. Society can be a bit weird about aging, but for me, each year feels like I'm more connected, more myself, healthier, stronger, and more successful. Especially now that I'm not chasing the artist dream, which can be tough in the music industry when it comes to age. I'm proud to be 33!

It's been amazing seeing your comments and connecting with you all. Happy birthday to Antonio McKini and Jack N Bunny – we're practically birthday twins! And yes, Flowmaker, I said "slay" for you!

It's pretty cool that 33 is also a life path number for some of you. It represents self-mastery, and honestly, I feel like I'm hitting that mark. Everything is coming together – my craft, myself, my energy, my business. And that's largely thanks to you guys, so thank you!

The Annual Birthday Sale and Carathon Live Stream

Speaking of business, every year for my birthday, I do a big sale on my website, IamKarra.com. This year, it's 50% off everything! That includes all my vocal sample packs, stock plugin vocal templates for every popular DAW, music courses on singing, songwriting, and creating sample packs, plus my Serum presets and other plugin presets. The sale runs until the end of July, so you've only got a few days left to grab these deals.

To make things even more exciting, I'm doing a "Carathon" live stream week! I'll be trying to stream every single day. Normally, creating new YouTube videos takes a lot of time and effort, and Reed and I are also developing a new Serum preset bank for Serum 2 users, which is made from my voice. We're aiming to release that by the end of August. So, instead of new videos, I'll be live streaming daily to finish these products and connect with you all.

From Touring Artist to Content Creator

For a long time, I thought I'd be a touring artist. That's all I saw growing up, and it's what I was working towards. But then I stumbled into content creation, YouTube, and sample pack creation. Selling millions of vocal samples on Splice really changed my career path. I also come from a family of teachers, and it turns out I'm a natural teacher too. About 10 years ago, I started making content giving advice on the music industry and documenting my life as a songwriter and EDM topliner. It's kind of wild how things turned out – the thing I was most afraid of, this path, has become my passion and purpose.

I did a lot of EDM festivals and tried to build a touring career, but that lifestyle wasn't fulfilling or healthy for me. Too much chaos, not enough sleep, and unfortunately, partying. While I had some great experiences, it wasn't sustainable. I realized I wanted to build a home studio and create content without feeling drained. Touring got dangerous; I was even hospitalized twice from anxiety and panic attacks. So, I made the choice to focus on home studio content and building my YouTube channel. It's been a wild ride, and I love it. It's amazing how the thing I was most afraid of became my life.

Favorite DAWs and Gear

When it comes to DAWs, I personally like Logic, ProTools, and Ableton. I record most of my vocals in ProTools because I felt most comfortable with it for that. Ableton is fantastic for music production, especially electronic music, and its setup is really convenient. My Ableton vocal template, made with stock plugins, is also available in the sale! Logic is great because it's accessible, and as a Mac user, it made sense to start with.

As for microphones, I switch them up depending on the project. I've used Sennheiser, and the Shure SM7B is a classic, great for a lo-fi or grungier sound. For pristine pop vocals, you'd want something like a Telefunken 251 or Sony C800. If you're curious about all the gear in my studio, check out my home studio tour on my channel!

Favorite Singers and Musical Influences

Right now, I'm not listening to a ton of music, often preferring meditation music or silence to decompress from making music all day. But growing up, I loved Queen, The Beatles, Paramore (Hayley Williams is incredible!), Ellie Goulding, and Rihanna. Rihanna is probably my favorite pop artist because of her versatility. I see a lot of myself in her, especially now that she's focused on her business. I also loved Jack's Mannequin (Andrew McMahon).

My song "Obstacle" has a rock vibe, and I channeled my inner Hayley Williams on that one. It's funny, people ask why I'm beautiful, and I think it's more about inner beauty. I just try to bring beauty into the world through my music and my work.

Exploring My Music: "Big Butt" and "Tempting"

I wanted to share some of my music with you today. First, let's look at the acapella for my song "Big Butt" from my album "Beauty and the Boss." This song is definitely a joke with ridiculous lyrics, but it's also a bop! It's meant to be fun and danceable, a contrast to some of the EDM toplines I used to do. I like to have fun with my music, not just be serious all the time.

For "Big Butt," we used a lot of vocal samples, including one from Easy McCoy, who is an incredible rapper. I love using vocal samples as instruments, effects, or ear candy to add hype and keep the momentum going. We also used a lot of stutters and vocal effects to create a fun, almost cartoonish vibe that matches the song's unserious nature. We even layered screams of "big butt" for a big, impactful sound.

Another song from the album is "Tempting." This one has a sexier vibe, and I experimented with different vocal techniques. For the fast verses, I alternated between two vocal channels to make sure I had enough breath. I also love using autotune strategically, sometimes going hard with it for a specific effect, like on the post-hook. I also added opera vocals in the background, blending classical technique with a modern hip-hop beat. It's all about creating a journey for the listener with automation, effects, and harmonies.

The Importance of Support and Collaboration

Working with my partner, Reed, has been incredible. He's been so patient and supportive, especially in helping me learn music production. It's rare to have a partner you can work with so closely, and it truly changes the dynamic. We've built this business together, and while it's been tough with sleepless nights and challenges, it's all been worth it. Having that support system is key, whether it's from a partner, family, or friends.

Final Thoughts and Sale Reminder

Thank you all so much for the birthday wishes and for being a part of this community. It means the world to me. Remember, the 50% off sale on IamKarra.com ends on July 31st! You can get vocal samples, templates, presets, and courses. I'm excited to continue this live stream week and share more with you all. Tomorrow, I'll be recording a ballad, "Romeo and Juliet." See you then!

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