Stargate on producing Sam Smith songs with KOMPLETE | Native Instruments

Pop production duo STARGATE are behind some of the biggest hits for Rihanna, Sam Smith, Katy Perry, Beyoncé, Chris Brown, and more. We visit Stargate’s Mikkel Eriksen in his Los Angeles studio to see how Sam Smith & Normani’s “Dancing With A Stranger” and Sam Smith’s “To Die For” came together using NI KOMPLETE products like ABSYNTH, MASSIVE, UNA CORDA, SESSION STRINGS, and more.
Mikkel also makes a track from scratch using his voice and GUITAR RIG effects, as well as giving us a look inside LAAMP, Stargate’s music production school in Santa Monica.
Check out all these instruments in KOMPLETE 13: www.native-instruments.com/pr...
Learn more about how to use instruments and effects from KOMPLETE on your vocal and song productions here: blog.native-instruments.com/s...
Find out more about Stargate’s music production school LAAMP:
www.laampmusic.com/
00:00 - Intro
00:57 - The making of Sam Smith & Normani “Dancing With A Stranger”
01:08 - Lead synth line with ABSYNTH 5
02:04 - Vocal layers with effects
03:06 - Bassline created in MASSIVE
04:05 - Muted guitar from Orange Tree Samples’ EVOLUTION STRAWBERRY library for KONTAKT
05:39 - Producing Sam Smith’s “To Die For”
05:50 - Airy piano riffs with UNA CORDA
06:41 - Strings from KONTAKT’s SYMPHONIC ESSENTIALS
07:10 - Filtered drums in “To Die For”
08:37 - Mikkel makes a beat from scratch with KOMPLETE
08:45 - Chord harmonies with ALICIA’S KEYS
10:20 - Creating vocal samples on a cellphone
12:33 - GUITAR RIG for vocal effects
10:08 - Adding fat sub bass with MASSIVE X
13:43 - Inside Stargate’s music school LAAMP
Follow Stargate:
Instagram: / stargatemusic
Twitter: / stargate
#NativeInstruments #KONTAKT #ABSYNTH #GUITARRIG #UNACORDA #VSTPlugins
Subscribe to our KZbin channel
kzbin.info...
Follow us on:
Instagram: / nativeinstruments
Facebook: / nativeinstruments
Twitter: / ni_news
For more than 20 years, Native Instruments has been at the heart of musical innovation. We’ve created communities, pushed technological boundaries, and opened new creative horizons for amateurs and professionals alike. Today, driven by our mission to make music creation more inclusive and accessible, NI’s hardware, software, and services including MASCHINE, TRAKTOR, and KOMPLETE bundles, provide fully-integrated solutions for musicians, producers, and DJs of all genres and levels of experience.
For more info, visit our website: www.native-instruments.com/?u...
Follow us on:
Instagram: / nativeinstruments
Facebook: / nativeinstruments
Twitter: / ni_news
For more than 25 years, Native Instruments has been at the heart of musical innovation. We’ve created communities, pushed technological boundaries, and opened new creative horizons for amateurs and professionals alike. Today, driven by our mission to make music creation more inclusive and accessible, NI’s hardware, software, and services including MASCHINE, TRAKTOR, and KOMPLETE bundles, provide fully-integrated solutions for musicians, producers, and DJs of all genres and levels of experience.
For more info, visit our website: www.native-instruments.com/?u...

[@harrisfamilytv988]

Nice to see established producers making hits with the same programs we use. So inspirational! 🙏🏾

[@NativeInstruments]

🙌

[@b3at2]

Native instruments is not a toy...it is industry standard.

[@sobaentertainment6580]

i was thinking the exact same thing

[@dburnmusic]

Anyone else inspired after watching this, and gonna hit the studio now? Really enjoyed this video, and watching their process #Dopeness

[@Jamusictv]

Fr! Always inspired by these guys. Legit super producers.

[@dburnmusic]

@@Jamusictv Couldn't agree more!

[@pampymusic]

Loved how NI never redacted other 3rd party plugins or library in this video.

[@chandeleerjet5637]

If you're reading this Stargate, please please start streaming content like this! I’d happily be a subscriber to watch this process. Learned so much just in this small amount of time.

[@dinfluence30]

Check their masterclass on : Mixing with the Masters

[@soulfaktor]

Always looked up to Stargate. Dope to see they’re still keeping the light on! 🔥🔥🔥

[@noname-ng6sj]

They're making more money than ever, they're far beyond "keeping the light on"

[@soulfaktor]

@@noname-ng6sj light on referring to music. That's the only light i know. 🙂

[@JerMarMusicGroup]

@@noname-ng6sj That went over your head. 😅 Now if he said “keeping the lights on” with “s” on light. I would agree. We all know Stargate’s catalog is massive and getting them paid for sure. 👊🏾💯

[@noname-ng6sj]

@@JerMarMusicGroup why does everyone who respond have a music note but no one who cares about their music? hahahaha

[@JerMarMusicGroup]

@@noname-ng6sj The same reason why you called yourself “No Name”. 🤦🏾‍♂️😅

[@runkle8106]

05:39 Dat ultimate display of dominance tho

[@midimike88]

Stargate, nice meeting you and thank you for sharing some of your work flows and philosophies. I look forward to seeing / hearing more or your work.

[@didcomusic]

I like what you said: try, try, try... find the magic moment where things are different and interesting but stay in the same format. Nice lesson you gave us. I am not a professional but this is what I like in music creation. Start with an idea, develop, try...And result is always different at the end. Thanks.

[@Neroda]

The KOMPLETE bundles definitely have some 💎 in there ... you just have to take time to go through the sounds, functions, & FX to make it work for your sound. Glad to see some of the old school favourites haven't been forgotten. Alicia's Key's is still quality amongst other Piano libraries. Great Video! Stargate are 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@dubzmckenzie1]

"Not being precious, I think, is one of the most important things." Respect.

[@abhishekc1458]

These Two Producers are Really Amazing

[@wyattalexander4041]

This was one of my favorites this guy is really talented and showed many facets of how to use NI as well as showcasing such a cool opportunity through LAMP to become better in your craft 💯

[@TheFreshSoundsFlorida]

I've been a fan of Stargate for a long time. I was always curious about how they create their addictive sounds. Thank you for this.

[@NativeInstruments]

Now you know a bit more 💪

[@dansecatherine7148]

He is singing so well 👏

[@athomesongwriting]

This is awesome. Please do more of these videos with other producers.

[@jsnin9]

I love how the hand held mic affect sounds like a zillion splice loops. These guys are GOATs in the game though. Much respect.

[@andytolmaci6756]

I am addicted to NI products. I wish I had the inspiration you have. Thank you for showing us what is possible!

[@1000eyes55]

Thank you so much for the ride thru your music techniques, trix and tips into your musical approach i really like the way you stack your pluggins and side chaining. Building the song from the bottom up singing melody over the chords gives it a solid starting point good Job!

[@christian-k]

Thank you so much, Native Instruments and Stargate, for this great episode. Really did enjoy it.

[@NativeInstruments]

Our pleasure!

[@nikolaybakalov8264]

Thanks for sharing this!!! Been waiting for 15 years to see and listen to what this guy has to say!

[@blAmmAld]

Hvor totalt fantastisk det ville ha vært å se den helt komplette utviklingsfasen deres fra søk etter idé og hele veien frem til sluttproduktet!! :)))))

[@zigpop67]

Great video ! With a nice and genuine pro. Love that approach

[@jeromerusselldemusicologist]

Stargate has been my favorite music production duo!!! Fell in love with them after hearing the remix of "Do You Remember" performed by Debelah Morgan originally written by Phil Collins... Next favorite duo? Tim & Bob

[@arbazdrew6083]

Native Instrument have a unique way to show these production technique so on each and every you end up learning new everytime you watch a new video

[@NativeInstruments]

🙏

[@ericrisles7228]

I really enjoyed this video. Great tips on some of the NI plugins and others that Stargate uses to make their hits!

[@ArtbyAtlas]

Haven't heard a Stargate track I haven't loved. These guys are great

[@skowdish]

My goodness... ur voice... so angelic.. luv it!!

[@JCILORD]

The professionals make masterpieces with instruments that were already released many years ago.

[@Charieldeleon]

Not what you have but how you use what you have it took me years to realize that.

[@Hypno_BPM]

look at how old 808s are and still used today

[@EngeniusBeatz]

This is pure gold! One of my favorite production duos 🔥

[@NativeInstruments]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@yakyakyakperfect]

That Vocal Performance Was Brilliant !

[@dagalost1949]

I never thought my cellphone and GUITAR RIG could do this.😩THANKS A LOT!

[@sherwinbostock9611]

After watching your channel for the first time. I must say that I was very inspired. What so funny about my experience is; I sold and shipped my KeyLab 49, hoping that my new Komplete Kontrol S49 would arrive from Sweetwater before shipping the KeyLab. But it didn't happen that way. So I will definitely watch it again for more inspiration. Thanks

[@lukaszt489]

So inspiring! Thank you

[@vkzkv]

"It's really tough to find a sub, that is both super thick and low, but also audible on small speakers" - plays melody, which is non-audible on my mbp)))

[@rishabhrajan]

I can hear it on my phone! 😱

[@bhaveshtochabbra6853]

😭😭

[@rishabhrajan]

@UCARWg5XY5ZmI_2oJ6nmxejg not groove3, macprovideo & AskVideo. And thanks for watching!

[@mattmullin33609]

Super obvious listening on iPhone. Easy AF to hear that bass.

[@Dougie-]

Sounds good on my mb

[@AsteroidKiller]

I absolutely love this episode! 🎶✨🚀

[@NativeInstruments]

🙏

[@benwaveproducer]

Thanks for the insights, Stargate was probably the biggest inspiration for me since 2010, to switch from old school hip hop to a more RnB and Pop Sound (all the rappers despited at this time, I worked with😂)

[@Squidaniel]

Una chorda is my favorite piano. It’s so underrated

[@misterrockster]

Native instruments been killing it with these

[@SonikemOfficial]

So inspiring!!

[@julienmarocco]

Apologize This has been my go to preset for a while, sounds amazing in lots of genres (for instance I wouldn't think of Massive when I'm composing some neo-soul or progressive rock, but this preset just fits everywhere) and it's perfect as well to double my real bass !

[@matthewclaiborne229]

Same here. Was so stoked when he mentioned that preset. It’s such a neutral yet full sound. I like B-low as well!

[@justinhenryrebel]

Use it for sound design. Opens up another world.

[@DreSoul2049]

This was Brilliant! Inspired! 😎👍🏽

[@roogrey]

Fabulous. I love these guys.

[@FLAVMEDIA]

Great BTS STARGATE!! CHEERS...

[@mr.shelton9632]

Thank you ☺️

[@MrKoi13]

Inspirational!!

[@CGDreamsTutorials]

You have a seriously good voice, love to hear more of it.

[@mrfleamino9350]

Really great , thank you

[@lincolnmmitchell]

I hate videos like this. I love this guy tho!!! Im really glad I watched this!! Musical maturity shine as his calm and logical composition philosophy reveal gems like - :you can't be too precious". I love that!! I have an understanding of this for myself, but the phrase he uses embodies so much of what I have been trying to improve on recently. For example - letting go of the belief that any one track or take is magical. If it came from me once, its me, etc. Its been a long process of learning to trust myself. Both as a mix engineer and composer. Something about this video really allowed me to feel a connection with a fellow musician and learn from another's experience. I mean, I get it. It sounds obvious. But to someone who typically gets bored or annoyed with these types of things (and that's me not the content! lets be clear) - It was really such a nice thing. Super grateful - big thanks!

[@thaexception3406]

I knew at least one of them had some vocals! Insightful

[@bluemonster8399]

I love the video and Stargate is insanely amazing , but plz put a mic on this desk dooood 11:01

[@jo_ey]

Great docu! Inspiring to see.

[@NativeInstruments]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@thalesmatos]

Ridiculously talented and humble!

[@eusouangeloblanco]

Thats Great!!! Inspiration Vídeo!!!

[@baztudyo]

Amazing talent

[@swagonmax]

Oh snap! Stargate are from my city Trondheim🔥🔥🔥

[@Heisenberg2097]

THX³ for Rihanna's S&M one of my fav songs by R³

[@benwaveproducer]

Danke, extrem gutes Video, bin tatsächlich jetzt mal etwas mehr in meine Kraft gekommen und schon kommen richtig krasse Angriffe, zumindest meine Wahrnehmung, gutes "Instant Tool"

[@ProdByLoneGud]

More of these 🙌

[@tastelesstouch]

When are we gonna see a new version of Absynth? Give that baby some love it’s an awesome classic

[@tamassito]

lovethis!!

[@TSUNAMIBEATSONE]

Amazing, thanks! Where can I find such a bass preset from Massive? Couldn't find "Apologize This" preset anywhere

[@NativeInstruments]

'Apologize This' is a preset from the Massive Factory bank Urban Arsenal 💪

[@WeCreateMusicTV]

This is so awesome! Stargate has always been a fav of mine. Does this mean that there may be something coming from NI and Stargate???????? Play Series, Artist Expansion.........

[@nickepic1863]

I don't think so, NI doesn't have that kind of money to pay guys that make 100 000 dollars per song lol

[@chandeleerjet5637]

4:45 I've been looking for a vst guitar like that for years!! Spent thousands of dollars on libraries from Spitfire and other libraries and their guitars always sound like soundscapes and pads and not guitars. Thanks for sharing!

[@NativeInstruments]

You're welcome! We have plenty of powerful guitar plugins in our shop 🛍

[@harmobeats3077]

@@NativeInstruments How can I get this library?

[@MalcomBeatz]

beast 🔥🔥

[@demenyizs17]

Can someone give me any advice on how to learn improvising and coming up with basic chords like he did? I know basic music theory, but i cant ever play a progression like this. How do i learn?

[@alexwmusic]

Brilliant to upload this on 17 May, which is Norway's constitution day.

[@puff6033]

Legendary ✊

[@Stuup1dTheProducer]

Top Ten producers in my opinion

[@darbomusic]

Awesome 👌

[@NativeInstruments]

🙌

[@sideast]

Nice Watch !

[@ahmtTyln]

Make some vox takes with the phone mic and throw it to ptools afterwards (probably via bluetooth or wi-fi .😁😁).its so scary seeing that audio technology has come this far..Crazy..💯💯💯💯

[@eraldopalmero7140]

Just Amazing and Inspirational but I really wanna know is about the COMPUTER SETUP is running ALL this 😄

[@hazelvision1105]

That metronome sounds better than most drum loops on splice tbh

[@bw2937]

LOL

[@nnamee]

Cool :)

[@YungstarProd]

What's the guitar preset on Strawberry on the longs? On 4:44, forward?

[@jeffo466]

I would like to know too.

[@KaitavSapreMusic]

Awesome and very inspiring, thank you so much! What's the song at the end of the video?

[@NativeInstruments]

You're welcome! That track is called "Prime" and is an audio demo made by the creators of our Play Series Glaze: bit.ly/3PsopMA 👈

[@1linkjimmy]

Dope

[@lovebirdsmusic]

really nice and skilled guy. perfect for our time where we consume music like mcdonalds meals 😂

[@toyshow257]

Is the DAW being used in this video, LOGIC on a MAC?

[@philp4490]

9:50 how do you do a side chain when you have just one track?

[@mkkrt]

Nice watch

[@Julian-uv2rs]

yo one thing i didn't understand is when he recorded the voice memo, he had the music playing externally while he did that. how did he keep it out of the recording?

[@adrianirvine2406]

my best guess is his speaker volume was much lower than it sounds in the video when he recorded. it's probably in there a bit but so low that it just adds to the vibe instead of sounding messy?

[@directed6924]

Denniz Pop is also from Norway, the mentor of Max Martin.

[@SledgemanGuitar]

Denniz Pop is from Sweden (so is Max Martin). Born in Botkyrka. :)

[@directed6924]

@@SledgemanGuitar His parents are norwegian. Doesn't matter where he was born.

[@CDob]

I think I peed my pants at 4:45 when he played the keyboard and it sounded exactly like a guitar... Stargate and KOMPLETE is the TRUTH!

[@Kickdrum00]

Thank you! This was great!🚀🚀🚀🚀

[@soccerman127]

Peep the Drums That Knock samples tho. Shoutout DECAP

[@X-Lightz]

Nice video! However, Native Instruments should finally make all their plugins VST 3 and Apple-Silicon compatible. Otherwise I am not buying anything anymore. ;-)

[@nkryptedmusic7961]

They won’t miss you😎

[@X-Lightz]

@@nkryptedmusic7961 Neither will I miss them 😎

[@NaweedQadirdotcom]

So inspirational. I am a great fan of Sam Smith's songs and love their arrangement. So this was a great session knowing Mikkel's approach and overall take on developing those fantastic productions. I am so energized to work on new compositions.

[@ebeyslough]

Amazing video. Always love to see the sausage making process of songwriting. I have to say, being a novice who only knows how to use Logic Pro X, Pro Tools looks like a real mess of a DAW to use.

[@AndreasArianto]

I used to use Pro Tools in the past, but I only use Logic Pro X now and I can say that there are many pros in the industry who use Logic Pro X really extensively because this DAW is also very rich with features to help us create music, dare I say, more intuitively than when I use Pro Tools to write music from scratch

[@bw2937]

The ones that use pro tools normally produce without using much midi, mostly audio. PT is much better for that way of working. (benny blanco, max martin, dr luke, andrew watt, charlie puth etc).

[@BJG1Faulkner]

Learning to use Pro Tools in 2022 isn’t necessarily a “requirement”. You can achieve the same results on Logic, Studio One, Ableton Live, etc. Doesn’t matter what you use to put it all together but the basic idea which is what homie from Stargate is tryna get across is with some basic music theory which everyone should have, the right “sound palette” (plugins, samples, drum sounds) and an imagination, you can make records just as good! 👍🏾

[@allilve]

Stargate truly Legend

[@mcryptonite6948]

What a cool guy

[@ProducerGio]

Bring LAMP to south florida plz

[@franciscorey9635]

What is the song on the intro ?

[@josuerabadan3864]

Does anyone know what brand of speakers they are using?

[@NativeInstruments]

Barefoot speakers 🔥

[@Rose-gi5xx]

Apologize this has been my go to for years.

[@alvinedwards434]

I love Stargate's simple approach to music. I think we producers sometimes make things too complicated when music doesn't need to be. Interesting > Complex

[@jeromerusselldemusicologist]

Complexity largely depends on the genre/artiste

[@bw2937]

@@jeromerusselldemusicologist Nah, regardless of genre less is always more.

[@shredder523]

Yes, but when you do have minimalist arrangements you absolutely need to be sure you have an amazing top line because if not the song will fall apart, less going on means the spotlight is all on the few elements you’re hearing so if your melody is trash or your singer doesn’t have character it typically won’t land

[@alvinedwards434]

@@shredder523 Agreed.

[@tutengenezemuziki]

Interesting,but Last time I checked,NI Komplete Kontrol wasn't fully kompatible with Pro Tools....🤔 Or Is he using it as Basic Midi?

[@NativeInstruments]

Since it's 2021.10 update, Pro Tools has an advanced Komplete Kontrol integration 🎉 Feel free to read more about that here 👉 bit.ly/3FYkVwU

[@tutengenezemuziki]

@@NativeInstruments Thanks🤛🏾

[@rhythmicon9821]

That's nice they started an academy after being successful to help the next generation.

[@jeffo466]

I pulled up the same preset in Absynth and it sounds different

[@jeffo466]

the actual preset is called "Sine Drops" but it still sounds different.

[@biggrime]

I'm sure it was modified. Only based on the preset

[@moonwalker_818]

He did say they tweaked it and how much they tweaked it only they know .

[@nickepic1863]

Thats the trick with modern producers and giving away secrets. They act like they show you something usefully but they don't mention other things that are important.

[@tomwhite916]

Hes a damn good singer as well