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Doctor Nick

Hi, Doctor Nick! - Mastering Tips and and the Importance of Bringing in a Professional Engineer

As we've said many times before, there's no stopping Nick Hook. Even while immersed in the madness of SXSW, he still took the time to dole out advice to the XLR8R faithful. There's no topic our resident advice columnist is afraid to speak on, so anyone out there with questions about music, DJing, production, travel, romance, or whatever else should drop the good doctor a line at doctornick@xlr8r.com. Wassup y'all? I'm writing this live and direct from Austin, Texas. It's already been a blast after one day. B. Bravo, Kastle, and JETS all smashed it at the Surefire showcase. Even before SXSW, I had an amazing week. I saw Rustie and The Deftones smash it in New York, then I hopped in a car and drove 30 hours down here. … Read more »

Doctor Nick - Staying Positive, the Role of a Muse, and Good Books

Our readers have questions, Nick Hook has answers. It's a simple formula, which is why we have Doctor Nick pop in for a visit every Thursday morning. The XLR8R faithful want to know about music, production, DJing, travel, promotion, networking, love, life, and more. Luckily, Nick Hook has done a whole lot of living, and he's happy to share the tidbits of wisdom he's pick up along the way. Send questions to doctornick@xlr8r.com. Hi. How's everyone? I'm coming off a high after spending the last five days with Salva and Epcot. I saw two of the Magical Properties Tour shows with Daedelus, Ryan Hemsworth, and Samo Sound Boy. It was great. Then we ate a lot of food and made some good music. I also slept in a bed with four dudes and one girl for the first time in my life. It wasn't that eventful, to be honest. Maybe next time. … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - Juggling Girlfriends and the Hard Truth About Relationships in the Music Biz

Nick Hook is the best. For nearly six months, Doctor Nick has been answering questions from the XLR8R massive every Thursday morning, yet the wisdom just keeps on coming. No topic is off limits, and the man can speak with authority about music, production, DJing, travel, promotion, networking, and more. If you need a little bit of advice, he's your man. Send in your questions to doctornick@xlr8r.com. He's here to help. Yo. Not much new to report. I made a podcast for Fool's Gold. Peep that here. Ummm... who's going to Texas for SXSW? Let's hang there. I'm looking forward to that. … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - The Value of Having Your Own Studio Space and How to Deal with the Shitty Band Next Door

Happy birthday Nick Hook! That's right, our very own advice columnist is another year wiser today, but that didn't stop Doctor Nick from delivering his weekly dose of knowledge to the XLR8R faithful. Want to give him a present? Send in your questions to doctornick@xlr8r.com. The man knows about music, travel, DJing, production, romance, and the ways of the world. He's here to help, so let him work his magic. Hi. By the time you read this, I'll be in a private jet, going somewhere luxurious to celebrate my birthday. Nah, in all reality I'll probably be laying in bed, hungover from the ASAP Rocky show. It's cold in New York but there are good vibes. I was gonna do a "Harlem Shake" video for this week's column, but I figured everyone would be cool without that… Anyways, back to life, back to reality. … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - Business Cards and How Traktor/Serato Fit in with Being a 'Proper' DJ

We love Nick Hook. Not just because he's a great dude—which he most definitely is—but because each week, the guy takes time out from his ridiculous schedule of DJing, music making, traveling, partying, and general radness to help out XLR8R readers. Seriously, questions pour in from around the globe—if you have one, make sure to send it to doctornick@xlr8r.com (we ALWAYS need questions)—and Doctor Nick answers them. In a way, the guy is constantly paying it forward, and no matter what the topic, his internal encyclopedia seems to have some small nugget of wisdom that he's more than willing to share. We're lucky to have him. Hi. I'm still in LA. Shout out to the god Salva for putting his new record out. I had a blast with the Friends of Friends crew the other night, and afterwards I ended up in a vortex downtown. Also, shout out to friends winning Grammys. For readers of this column, let me explain that these guys started no differently than anyone else, and it's finally starting to manifest after something like eight or nine years. It's pretty cool. I remember meeting Diplo on a bench outside of Turntable Lab in 2004 and now the dude is up for producer of the year. Like, the same award Quincy Jones wins. The sky really is the limit. … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - Buying a Proper DJ Set-Up and the Value of Making Good Content

Nick Hook can't be stopped. Once again, the good doctor is on the road, yet he still made sure to sit down, scrape his brain for knowledge, and put together some advice for the XLR8R massive. For the uninitiated, Doctor Nick does this every Thursday, answering questions about music, life, love, DJing, production, travel, studio gear, and more. He can help you, so send your questions—seriously, we always need more questions—to doctornick@xlr8r.com and let the wisdom flow. Hi. Hope everyone is well. I'm back in LA. I went home to New York for eight hours and got called back to work in LA the next morning. Life. Ride the wave. Check out Kilo Kish's mixtape that came out today. Shout out to Salva for a dope day of Japanese food and listening to new beats. His new record is sick. Shout out to Philly and its amazing art museum. I played this warehouse party in the hood and it was amazing. Ummm.... yeah. Just send in more questions. Haha. :) … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - How to Make Things Happen, Regardless of What City You're In

There's no stopping Nick Hook. This week, the good doctor is in Los Angeles, and even after spending a long night in the club, he made sure to sit down and put together some advice for the XLR8R massive. For the uninitiated, he does this every Thursday, tackling questions about music, DJing, production, travel, romance, studio gear, and more. He can help you, so send your questions to doctornick@xlr8r.com and let the wisdom flow. Hi. It's 3 a.m. My editor Shawn is gonna kill me, but it's hard being a doctor sometimes. Shout out to Gaslamp Killer, Daddy Kev, Nocando, D Styles, and Nobody for having me out to Low End Theory tonight. It's such an honor to be able to be a part of something that special. To everyone who writes in and wants to know how and why to do things, research their story. They started from scratch, played what they believed in, stuck with it, and it worked. It's amazing. … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - The Pros and Cons of Being Anonymous and What to Do When Your Music Is Difficult

There's no stopping Nick Hook. Even when he's on the road—as he is this week—the man takes the time to dole out advice to the XLR8R massive. He does this every Thursday, tackling questions about music, DJing, production, travel, romance, studio gear, and more. He can help you too, so send your questions to doctornick@xlr8r.com and let the wisdom flow. Sup y'all? I'm comin' from San Francisco. Shout out to my man Vin Sol for saving my life and letting me grab some tunes after I left my hard drive on the plane. Delta, if you have it, I need it! … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - The Secrets of Getting Started and How to Put on a Concert

Nick Hook has the knowledge. XLR8R is just the place where it's easiest to observe him dispensing it. He may not be an actual doctor, but he has more than enough wisdom to show up every Thursday morning and answer questions from our readers about music, gear, DJing, travel, production techniques, love, life, and more. Have a question of your own? Drop him a line at doctornick@xlr8r.com and let the good doctor work his magic. Yooooo. I don't got much to say except that I've been working… a lot. Follow my new assistant Leon on Twitter: @_leonkelly. He's a G. … Read more »

Hi, Doctor Nick! - Wedding DJs, Jamming with Ableton, and Building a Career in the Music Industry (When You're Not a Musician)

Without tooting our own horn too loudly, we think that there are some pretty talented folks here at XLR8R. That being said, when it came time to launch a new advice column, we knew that nobody on our staff had a skill set that matched up with Nick Hook. He may not be an actual doctor, but he has more than enough wisdom to step in every Thursday morning and answer questions about music, gear, DJing, travel, production techniques, love, life, and more. Doctor Nick is here to help, so drop him a line at doctornick@xlr8r.com and let the flow of knowledge begin. Hi. Happy New Year... still. This is a real question: when do you stop saying "Happy New Year" to people? I'm taking a survey. Keep sending questions. We got a bunch of dope ones last week, but we need more, always. Anyways... happy birthday to Just Blaze, too. … Read more »

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