JONATHAN RADO
PRODUCER | SONGWRITER
“Dream Star Studios, where your dreams of being a star are studio’d!” Rado used to say. Dry-as-a-bone stupid little quip, always got a little laugh. Little did we know, Rado was reading his own tea leaves.
This was over a decade ago, back when Rado first began recording out of the garage at his old place in Woodland Hills, the cheesy studio name meant to evoke a scammy studio you’d find in the yellow pages. The first album recorded at Dream Star was his band Foxygen’s second proper album for Jagjaguwar ‘…And Star Power,’ a sprawling, explosive tweaked-out concept album about concept albums so gloriously drenched in tape hiss it should have received a credit in the liners. Dream Star felt like it was destined to be the hardscrabble woodshed for all Foxygen output.
But soon enough, something started happening at Dream Star. Rado’s deceptively loose, playful approach to recording became a popular flavor for those in the know. This young rascal’s ear for giving the classic sounds of Jeff Lynn, Lindsey Buckingham or King Tubby a freshy-fresh, contemporary steez — Rado and Dream Star had a gravitational pull. Tim Heidecker, Whitney and The Lemon Twigs all tapped in for sessions. Rado had all-of-a-sudden became a name one would assert when an upcoming artist went producer hunting. And yes, by the way, if you know him, you call him Rado. And if you know him, lucky you.
You see, with each passing year, higher profile names like Father John Misty, Weyes Blood and Cuco came a’knocking. He kept his Dream Star homebase (now in another garage called Dream Star 2) but found himself in Hollywood spots like Sound City and Electro-Vox. He treated these new environs just like Dream Star, playing with the space, testing their limitations. Yes, that old trope of “studio-as-instrument” but more intuitive, less intentional. Some producers are just built different. Perhaps it was his mentorship under visionary producer Richard Swift. Or maybe it’s his internalized allegiance to Eno’s Oblique Strategies. Or maybe he’s just as fearless and pure an artist as they come. Someone who simply says YES to chance, opportunity and again, his own intuition. As infatuated with palette of eras past as new possibilities. And this is how Rado continues to rise to the occasion.
In recent years, Rado has again unlocked new levels. And again, he’s risen to the occasion. He’s become a go-to producer/collaborator for The Killers and frontman Brandon Flowers. His name appeared on the list of producers for Beyoncé’s Grammy-nominated Cowboy Carter and he’s been burning the midnight oil on Miley’s Dark Side-nodding new album ‘Something Beautiful.’ In the ever-expanding bosom of this dream star.