There comes a time in a lot of people’s lives when they have to commit. Be it to a job, an ambition, a relationship or even a big move abroad, sometimes you just have to dive right in and hope that your gut feeling will take you to greater heights than before. For producer/music director Adam Shanahan (AKA MyFault), that time is now. After nine years of working an office 9-5,

Shanahan has taken the plunge and committed to pursuing music production full-time. “I’m at a point now where I feel like I need to give it my full attention,” the producer admits when asked about the decision,

“I feel like I’m meant to do this and if I didn’t give it my all or at the very least try to make it a full-time job, then I’d always regret it. Honestly, I’m terrified about how it’s going to go because I don’t really know anything else other than an office job as “work” but I’m extremely excited and looking forward to seeing what the future holds for me in the music world”.

Growing up, Shanahan always had ambitions of pursuing a career in front of the microphone rather than behind it, but his experiences in the studio as part of bands in his young adult life gave him an insight into the role a producer plays in the creative process and the positive effects a much a good can have on a session. His musical journey began when a school friend’s band ditched their drummer and asked Shanahan to step up to the plate.

“It was like The Killers, pop Americana type stuff,” he laughs of the band's output, “We recorded an EP then went on to write completely different stuff. It was an extremely exciting time. But then one of the band moved to Canada and the creative process didn’t quite click without him. It was then that I decided to pack it in and move to production”. 

“There was a time when I thought it was an absolute cowboy job,” he notes of his early opinions of the role, “someone is just here and they’re not actually doing anything”. It was an introduction to Irish producer Philip Magee, however, that quickly changed his opinion.

“He was ever-present,” Shanahan recalled, “he was nudging, it was always a case of ‘I can hear the song now, maybe we should try this? If it doesn’t work that’s fine.’ What I learned from that experience was that the producer is there to push the project forward. I always wanted to be that person, to be that vessel”. 

This balance, Shanahan believes, is a critical and often unheralded part of being a producer. Knowing when to push an artist in a certain direction, and when to step back and let them bleed their emotions onto a page. That sense of trust, between artist and producer, is censorious to creating good art.

“If you have the trust you’re doing a good job,” Shanahan remarks, “That clicks a lot of pieces together for me. If you’ve agreed to work with someone then it’s already in the air, just latch onto it in terms of developing creativity”.

As technology has advanced, many bands and solo artists have begun making the decision to produce their own stuff, either from their bedroom or their spare garage. The cost of hiring a producer and a studio is, to many, prohibitive and a waste if the same job can be done for free from your laptop. What should new artists and bands considering a producer bear in mind when making their decision? 

“It’s hard because the producer umbrella is so subdivided now,” Shanahan replies, “there are so many branches of what a producer is. I think I would consider myself a producer in the classic sense of the word. I know how to tease out ideas”.

“There’s a lot of skill that goes into producing and a lot of time gone into learning those skills,” he adds, “Trying to sell the project management thing to someone at the start is hard. If they’re at the point where they’re making demos I’ll help them climb the ladder, it really depends where that artist is”.

Despite the years learning his skill, and the time he spent with legends of the field such as Philip Magee, you have to be ready to take your opportunities when they come. For Shanahan, that opportunity came when he met Dublin hip-hop artist Nealo.

“I was actually at his first live show in Hangar,” Shanahan recalls of his introduction to the Clonsilla native, “He was really nervous and I thought being in a room and being there for that, it all stems back to that. It’s a really good relationship. I am immersing myself into the projects that I’m part of and to me that is so much more rewarding than being in a band”.

As well as producing Nealo’s Choice Prize-nominated debut album ‘All The Leaves are Falling”, Shanahan has also been hard at work with artists such as Bobbi Arlo (on tracks including her song of the year nominated ‘Feel It’), 7th Obi, Pat Lagoon, Rikkshaw, Bobby Basil and Rebel Phoenix to name but a few. 

As well as music production, Shanahan also produces the popular Irish music podcast ‘No Encore’, which is hosted weekly by Dave Hanratty and Craig Fitzpatrick. On top of producing the weekly episodes, Shanahan works behind the scenes on his own associated podcast, ‘Before The Encore’, which interviews prominent members of the Irish music community who work behind the scenes to put together the music we hear every day.

Released once a month, he’s already interviewed musician Joe Hertz, composer/multi-instrumentalist Theodora Byrne, artist Sivv, Windmill Lane manager Niall McCongale, fellow producer Jar Jar Jr and, most recently, artist manager Bekah Moloney. Each episode delves deep into the individual’s creative lanes and what it took to be the best in their field. Guest openness and honesty throughout is startling, and their willingness to open the door on a traditionally dog-eat-dog industry is refreshing. 

“At the time the idea came from not hearing a lot of people talk to producers, it’s like there is a massive curtain in front of the studio,” Adam explains of his decision to start the podcast,

“You’re talking about those 18, 19, 20, year olds who are coming into the music industry and a lot of them don’t know what goes on behind closed doors, that to me is a bit of a shame”. If he was to sum up his guests key message in one word, what would it be?

“Dedication,” he replies without hesitation, “The tone in everyone's voices you can tell how much they love it. You can’t put a price on that. JarJar skipped lunch to make beats. Obviously don’t be unhealthy, but there has to be an element of ‘how much do I want this?’. It’s so insightful, nobody is cagey with their information. I love that. That’s what people want to listen to so they can apply it themselves in their own lives”.

 Does Shanahn believe that honesty has always been there, or are they only being open because it’s the first time they’ve been asked? For now, he’s unsure, but able to see both sides of the argument.

“There’s a tangible thing where I can be like, ‘this is what I did and this is how I did it.’ But I do think that there is an element of “well, no one has actually asked me this before.”” he smiles, “But I think for a lot of the time, Irish people talking to other Irish people, there is a lot of openness. I feel after you get to a certain level and confidence in your craft, that disappears. Everyone who’s at a level that they’re at, when I ask a question they give me a direct answer”.