Angelo Montrone is an American record producer, songwriter, and talent scout ( A&R). Montrone has played a key role as producer and A&R man for Grammy-winning acts including

Matisyahu Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), known by his stage name Matisyahu (; ), is an American singer, rapper, beatboxer, and musician. Known for blending spiritual themes with reggae, rock and hip hop beatboxing sounds, Matisyahu's 2005 sin ...

and

Los Lonely Boys Los Lonely Boys are an American musical group from San Angelo, Texas. They play a style of music they call "Texican Rock n' Roll", combining elements of rock and roll, Texas blues, brown-eyed soul, country music, country, and Tejano music. The ...

, as well as producing acts such as jam band favorite

Railroad Earth Railroad Earth is a bluegrass-influenced Americana band formed in Stillwater, New Jersey in 2001. The band's music combines elements of progressive bluegrass, folk, rock, country, jazz, Celtic and other Americana influences. Recognized as ...

, and discovering a young

Jennifer Love Hewitt Jennifer Love Hewitt (born February 21, 1979) is an American actress, producer and singer. Hewitt began her career as a child actress and singer, appearing in national television commercials before joining the cast of the Disney Channel serie ...

. Over the course of his nearly 30-year career, he has worked as an independent record producer as well as being a staff producer and A&R man for

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

, Elektra Entertainment,

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

, Or Music,

Razor & Tie Razor & Tie was an American entertainment company that consisted of a record label and a music publishing company. It was established in 1990 by Craig Balsam and Cliff Chenfeld. Based in New York City (with additional offices in Los Angeles and ...

, and Majestic Music. Montrone had a #4 song on the Billboard Dance Charts with "Break Me". Also, his song "Free to Be a Woman" was the theme song for the

Style Network Esquire Network was an American pay television network that was a 50/50 joint venture between NBCUniversal and the Hearst Corporation. Launched on October 1, 1998 as Style Network, a spin-off of E!, the channel initially consisted of fashion, ...

's show ''The Modern Girl''. He is the founder and CEO of the Majestic Music record label based in

Hampton Falls, New Hampshire Hampton Falls is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,403 at the 2020 census. History Archaeological excavations have confirmed that what is now Hampton Falls has been occupied by humans for roughly 1 ...

Biography

Montrone began playing piano at the age of seven, qualified for a school violin program at 10, played trombone in his school band from ages 11 through 13, and throughout that time sang and did solo piano performances for his school. At 14 he got into his first rock band as a keyboard player, and at 16 was playing professionally as lead singer and keyboard player in the band he cofounded, Amadeus, which performed around the New England area. During the 1990s, Montrone made forays into the music industry as protégé to producers

Arif Mardin Arif Mardin (March 15, 1932 – June 25, 2006) was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco and country. He worked at Atlantic Records for ov ...

and

Tommy LiPuma Tommy LiPuma (July 5, 1936 – March 13, 2017) was an American music producer. His productions received 33 Grammy nominations and sold over 75 million albums. His six individual nominations resulted in five Grammy wins. LiPuma worked with many mus ...

. It was during this time that Montrone also began his lifelong working friendship with 21-time Grammy engineer

Al Schmitt Albert Harry Schmitt (April 17, 1930 – April 26, 2021) was an American recording engineer and record producer. He won twenty Grammy Awards for his work with Henry Mancini, Steely Dan, George Benson, Toto (band), Toto, Natalie Cole, Quincy Jone ...

, with whom he co-owned the music rental company A&A Vintage Rentals. The 1990s also marked Montrone's start as a talent scout; he discovered both

Jonatha Brooke Jonatha Brooke (born January 23, 1964) is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist from Massachusetts, United States. Her music merges elements of folk, rock and pop, often with poignant lyrics and complex harmonies. She has been a ...

and Jennifer Love Hewitt. Angelo went on to produce Love Hewitt's American debut album, '' Let's Go Bang'', with

CEO

Doug Morris Doug Morris (born November 23, 1938) is an American record executive. He was chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Universal Music Group from 1995 to 2011, as well as Sony Music Entertainment from 2011 to 2017. He is the founder and CEO ...

, who acted as executive producer. After working independently as a producer and engineer for a number of years, Montrone was hired by Sony music executive

Michael Caplan Michael G Caplan KC (born 1953 in Wandsworth, London) is an English solicitor. Biography Caplan read law at King's College London (LLB, AKC), before undertaking study at The College of Law in London. Articled at Lickfolds Wiley & Powles, he ...

to be Director of A&R and Staff Producer for their upstart record label, Or Music. Together with Caplan, he signed and developed the careers of Los Lonely Boys, Matisyahu, and Pitty Sing, and oversaw artists

Tower of Power Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. The band has had a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted ...

John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, dr ...

Alejandro Escovedo Pedro Alejandro Escovedo (born January 10, 1951) is an American rock musician, songwriter, and singer, who has been recording and touring since the late 1970s. His primary instrument is the guitar. He has played in various rock genres, includin ...

, and more. It was during this time that one of Montrone's songs, "Free to Be a Woman", became the theme song for the

's ''The Modern Girl''. In 2006, Montrone was hired by Sony Music as an A&R talent scout and staff producer for the Sony subsidiary, One Haven Music. Here, he discovered Tina Sugandh, for whom he produced and cowrote "Break Me" (#4 on the Billboard Dance Charts). Along with production and songwriting, Montrone worked as a consultant at One Haven, providing direction for artists such as

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...

Coheed and Cambria Coheed and Cambria is an American progressive rock band from Nyack, New York, formed in 1995. It consists of Claudio Sanchez (vocals, guitars, keyboards), Travis Stever (guitars, vocals), Josh Eppard (drums, keyboards, backing vocals), and Za ...

, and more. During this time, Montrone wrote an open letter to the music industry, which was featured on Bob Lefsetz's blog, "The Lefsetz Letter". Montrone challenged his fellow record executives to forgo extreme

compression Compression may refer to: Physical science *Compression (physics), size reduction due to forces *Compression member, a structural element such as a column *Compressibility, susceptibility to compression * Gas compression *Compression ratio, of a ...

during the mastering process in favor of greater

dynamic range Dynamics (from Greek δυναμικός ''dynamikos'' "powerful", from δύναμις ''dynamis'' " power") or dynamic may refer to: Physics and engineering * Dynamics (mechanics), the study of forces and their effect on motion Brands and ent ...

. The phenomenon of ever-increasing compression decried by Montrone is often referred to as the "

loudness war The loudness war (or loudness race) is a trend of increasing audio levels in recorded music, which reduces audio fidelity and—according to many critics—listener enjoyment. Increasing loudness was first reported as early as the 1940s, with r ...

". Montrone's latest endeavour has brought him to the

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

town of Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, where he has established, Majestic Music LLC, a nontraditional record label that emphasis artist development and engages in joint ownership partnerships rather than record contracts. Located within a modified 1803 farmhouse Majestic Music combines a world class recording studio, a treasure-trove of musical instruments and bed & breakfast style accommodations. This all in one facility allows Montrone to work with artists from around the globe providing personalized artist development and recording the results with audiophile quality.

Discography

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

, ''Michael'' (

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

): engineering *

Kina Grannis Kina Kasuya Grannis (born August 4, 1985) is an American guitarist, singer and Internet personalities, YouTuber. Grannis was the winner of the 2008 Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest, earning a recording contract with Interscope Records and ha ...

, ''Stairwells'' (One Haven Music): Producer, Recording, Mixing, Mastering. #5 Billboard Top Internet Albums chart, #2 Billboard Heatseekers chart, #18 Billboard Independent Albums chart. *Elizabeth Valgur, ''Valgur'' (

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum ...

, Mexico): Mixing (album) *

, ''Railroad Earth'' (One Haven Music): Producer, Recording, Mixing, Mastering. Named #1 album of 2010 by JamBands Online *

, ''Live at Stubs'': Producer, Mixer, Recording, Mastering #1 Reggae album (Billboard), #2 Reggae album of the decade 2000-2010 (Billboard) *

''Live in Israel'' DVD (Sony), Mixer, Production Consultant *

''No Place To Be'' (Sony) Producer, Mixer, Recording *

(Or Music/

): Acoustic tracks, live tracks: Producer, Mixer, Recording, A&R (Grammy for Best Pop Performance, 2005) *

Semi Precious Weapons Semi Precious Weapons was an American rock band from New York City, New York, United States, consisting of Justin Tranter on vocals, Stevy Pyne on guitar, Cole Whittle on bass and Dan Crean on drums. Pyne replaced former guitarist, Aaron Lee T ...

(

): Mixing, A&R. Touring with

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...

. * Tina Sugandh (

) Producer, Songwriter (seven songs), Mixer, Recording. Single "Break Me" #4 Billboard Dance Chart (co writer, producer). *"Free To Be A Woman" featuring

: Theme Song for

's "The Modern Girl" Songwriter, Producer, Mixing, Recording *Katia Cadet: album, ''Boundless'', Mixing *Katia Cadet: Recording, Mixing ''Lan Mo Devan'' benefit for Haiti * Endeverafter (

) Mixing *Pitty Sing ''Demons, You Are the Stars in Cars 'Til I Die'' (Or Music) Producer, Recording, Mixing, A&R *

''Live at the Village Underground'' (Or Music) Mixing, Recording, A&R *

Michael Showalter Michael Showalter (born June 17, 1970) is an American director, writer, and producer. He first achieved recognition as a cast member on MTV's ''The State'', which aired from 1993 to 1995. He and David Wain created the ''Wet Hot American Summer ...

(Comedian) ''Sandwiches and Cats'' Recording *

"Por Vida" Tribute (including Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle, Calexico, Cowboy Junkies, Charlie Sexton, John Cale): Mastering, A&R *

Alpha Rev Alpha Rev is an American alternative rock band from Austin, Texas, fronted by Casey McPherson (formerly of Endochine). McPherson remains the group's only consistent member. However, historically the core members have also included Zak Loy on l ...

- Producer, Recording, Mixing *

"Let's Go Bang" (

) Producer, Songwriter, Keyboards *

Anita Baker Anita Denise Baker (born January 26, 1958) is an American jazz and soul singer. She is known for her soulful ballads, particularly from the height of the quiet storm period in the 1980s. Starting her career in the late 1970s with the funk ban ...

"Rhythm of Love" (

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

) Synth Programmer *

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to prominence in the mid-1970s, with the release of her debut ...

"Take A Look" (

) engineering *

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan ( ), is an American singer. Known as the " Queen of Funk", her career has spanned more than five decades beginning in the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of ...

"The Woman I Am" (

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

) Assistant *

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (February 10, 1937 – February 24, 2025) was an American singer and pianist known for her emotive, genre-blending ballads that spanned R&B, jazz, Folk music, folk, and pop and contributed to the birth of the quiet storm ...

"Set The Night To Music" (

) Assistant *Soundtrack "

Glengarry Glen Ross ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' is a 1983 stage play written by the American playwright David Mamet. It is a two-act tragedy that depicts two days in the lives of four desperate Chicago real estate agents who are prepared to engage in any number of un ...

" (Elektra) Assistant Producer *Little

Jimmy Scott James Victor Scott (July 17, 1925 – June 12, 2014), known professionally as Little Jimmy Scott or Jimmy Scott, was an American jazz vocalist known for his high natural contralto voice and his sensitivity on ballads and love songs. After ...

"All The Way" (Warner Bros) Assistant Producer *

Joe Sample Joseph Leslie Sample (February 1, 1939 – September 12, 2014) was an American jazz keyboardist and composer. He was one of the founding members of The Jazz Crusaders in 1960, whose name was shortened to "The Crusaders" in 1971. He remained a p ...

"Invitation" Assistant Producer *

Howard Hewett Howard Hewett Jr. (born October 1, 1955) is an American singer–songwriter. Hewett rose to fame as the lead vocalist of the group Shalamar. In 1985, he left the group to pursue his solo career, but he later returned to the group in 2001. He si ...

"Allegiance" (Elektra) Assistant Producer *

Linda Eder Linda Eder (; born February 3, 1961) is an American singer and actress. She originated the role of Lucy Harris in the Broadway musical '' Jekyll & Hyde'', for which she was nominated for the Drama Desk Award. Biography Eder was born in Tucso ...

"It's No Secret Anymore" (Atlantic) Assistant Engineer *The Story (

), secured record deal with Elektra Records *

, secured deal with Atlantic Records *1991

, Production assistant to

1992:

, A&R, Production assistant to

. Signed

and The Story,

(to

). - 1994-2002: Independent Record Producer, Songwriter 1994: Created A&A Vintage Rentals with partner

). *2002-2005: Director of A&R, Staff Producer, Or Music (

, Pitty Sing) *2005-2007: A&R Consultant, Producer,

(One Haven Music) *2007: A&R Consultant, Producer,

*2009: Launched Majestic Music Factory Studio, Brooklyn, New York *2013: Launched Majestic Music LLC

References

External links

Everything Louder Than Everything Else by Joe Gross
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montrone, Angelo Record producers from New Hampshire Songwriters from New Hampshire American male songwriters A&R people People from Hampton Falls, New Hampshire Year of birth missing (living people) Living people