PROFILE
Anthony Wright
By Andrew King
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit , 2020 was
shaping up to be a life-defining year for Anthony Wright , and that ’ s saying a lot considering all that this esteemed multi-faceted creator has accomplished in his diverse , multi-disciplinary career thus far .
At 14 , the native of Williamsburg , VA , was performing music alongside members of the Isley Brothers and Surface . Two years later ( yes , at 16 ), he was the staff arranger for the Starlight Orchestra at Tampa Bay ’ s famous Busch Gardens theme park . He studied at the Shenandoah Conservatory of Music and wrote and arranged for its heralded jazz ensemble while there . Soon after , he became the youngest musical director in Carnival Cruise Lines ’ history , and to this day , has credits on about half of the company ’ s original shows . After that , he toured the world as an in-demand DJ – and still runs a DJ company successfully serving cruise lines , hotels , and other high-profile clients .
And there ’ s more . As a talented multi-instrumentalist , he toured Canada with past Canadian Idol winner Eva Avila as the opening act on Beyonce ’ s I Am Sasha Fierce Tour . He was also a musician / arranger for CTV ’ s series The Launch , which led to collaborations with the likes of Bryan Adams , Nile Rogers , and Fergie , to name a few . Oh , and over the years , he ’ s accumulated production , writing , and performance credits on hits from B . o . B ., Flo Rida , Jadakiss , and others .
But fast forward to January 2020 . Having recently launched his own record label , Wright threw a party for one of his artists at Toronto ’ s Iguana Studios .
“ We rented it out to have a hang and casually record some tunes and I guess Vic [ Branco , owner ] liked what he heard , because he asked me to join the team as a producer / engineer the following day . It was a no-brainer for me . Iguana and that SSL will always be home , and I feel more than blessed every time I walk through that door ,” Wright tells Professional Sound from in front of that very console .
Speaking specifically to his studio work , Wright admits he sort of “ fell into ” the role of producer . “ I was playing for lots of incredible artists and coming up with tunes , but we could never find anyone that got the music right ; I had a sound in my head that I had trouble communicating to anyone else , so I thought ,‘ Why don ’ t I just do it ?’”
That inspired him to buy a basic Pro Tools system and get to work .“ I learned maybe the best way possible : in the fire . I made every mistake you could make , got harsh feedback , eliminated those mistakes , rinse , and repeat for years ,” he shares , noting :“ The transition to full-time producer was a tough one . It took me a long time to realize that I just had to jump in with both feet and go for it .”
Lately , he ’ s been busy writing and producing songs for a slew of talented emerging artists out of Iguana and finds it very rewarding . “ Kids just wanna make music ; they don ’ t care about metrics ,” he says ,
pointing to two specific artists , Natalie Rachel and Dave Sully , that he ’ s betting will be doing big things in the music industry before long – something he knows a thing or two about .
“ There ’ s no feeling like creating a song from nothing ,” he says about his favourite part of his job . “ There are songs that I ’ ve loved all my life , that I love to perform , that I love to play , but creating something new is just spiritual . If I write a song with you , I feel like I know you and you know me . It ’ s so vulnerable and I ’ m continually grateful to any artist that lets me that close to their art .”
Wright and his wife now reside in the Toronto suburb of Ajax , and he ’ s more than grateful to have her ongoing support as he chases his many muses . “ She ’ s everything to me and the best partner I could dream of ,” he asserts .
Outside the studio , running takes up a good chunk of his time . “ Running saved my life ,” he says bluntly . “ I came to Iguana in January 126 lbs . heavier than I am now , so a significant part of my day is spent on some trail having an adventure .” He also plays in popular Torontobased cover band uRequest Live and is a filmmaker specializing in short features , corporate videos , and music videos for other artists .
Looking ahead through the rest of 2020 , Wright has a few marathons – including an ultra-marathon – on the calendar that he ’ s preparing for , but otherwise , he ’ s looking forward to staying busy and inspired in the studio .
“ I just want to keep making music for amazing artists ,” he enthuses . “ I don ’ t care if it ’ s a big or small name – I ’ m here for the music . As long as I get to keep doing that , I ’ m a happy man .”
Andrew King is the Editor-in-Chief of Professional Sound .
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