| Rob Chiarelli | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Born | January 13, 1963 |
| Origin | Newton, Massachusetts, United States |
| Occupations | Producer, Mix Engineer, Musician |
| Instruments | Electric Bass, Guitar, Drums |
| Years active | 1985 - Present |
| Associated acts | Will Smith, Christina Aguilera, LeAnn Rimes, Mary Mary, Kelly Clarkson, Usher, Janet Jackson, Keiko Matsui, Coolio, Ray Charles, American Idol, Pink, Johnny Mathis, Paula Abdul, Diana Ross, En Vogue, Ice Cube, The Four Tops, Yolanda Adams, The Temptations, 3LW, K-Ci & JoJo, Madonna, Club Nouveau, Calloway, Chuckii Booker, Teddy Pendergrass, The Naked Brothers, Aaliyah, Hilary Duff, Jesse McCartney, Ricky Martin, The Corrs,[1] Luther Vandross |
| Website | Official Website |
Rob Chiarelli (born 13 January 1963) is an American record producer, mix engineer, musician and published author. Widely recognized as a music producer for Will Smith and Men in Black II (2002),[2] Chiarelli's work appears on numerous Gold and Platinum albums and motion picture soundtracks, including five Grammy Award winners.[3]
Contents |
Rob Chiarelli was born January 13, 1963 in Newton, MA and raised in Waltham, MA. He started playing the drums when he was ten years old. By junior high school, he was performing in school bands and participating in the All-State Jazz Ensemble and the Greater Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra.
Chiarelli graduated from Waltham High School in 1981 and attended the University of Miami School of Music on a scholarship, where he studied under the direction of Don Coffman, Fred Wickstrom and Vince Maggio. He formed his own band Inferno which recorded with producer Gary Vandy and included members Tim Mitchell (guitar), Dag Kolsrud (keyboards), Rick Margitza (sax), Mike Mangini (drums), Ed Calle (sax) and Mike Lambert (trumpet).[3]
After moving to Los Angeles, CA in 1989, Chiarelli joined Paramount Recording Studios[4] as an assistant engineer and quickly worked his way up to a first chair recording and mix engineer. His professional breakthrough came with legendary producer Jay King while working with the Grammy-winning R&B group Club Nouveau. Impressed with Chiarelli's work, King asked him to mix the entire Nouveau album, which reached #12 on the Billboard R&B Charts. While working on Club Nouveau at Aire LA Studios in Glendale, CA, Chiarelli met mix engineer/owner Craig Burbidge and worked on numerous hit records from artists such as Calloway, Chuckii Booker and Teddy Pendergrass.[5]
Chiarelli was also CEO of Metro Beat Records, a joint venture with Semaphore Records from 1993 until 1996. In 1997, Chiarelli formed 3.6 Records, a Joint Venture Record Label distributed by BMG/Red Ant and located in West Hollywood, CA.[4][5]
As a mix engineer, Chiarelli has worked with such well known artists as Will Smith, Christina Aguilera, LeAnn Rimes, Mary Mary, Janet Jackson, Keiko Matsui, Coolio, Ray Charles, American Idol, Pink, Johnny Mathis, Paula Abdul, Diana Ross, En Vogue, Ice Cube, The Four Tops, Yolanda Adams, The Temptations, 3LW, K-Ci & JoJo, Madonna, The Naked Brothers, Aaliyah, Hilary Duff, Jesse McCartney, Ricky Martin, The Corrs and Luther Vandross.[6]
His recordings have been nominated numerous times for Grammy Awards including Christina Aguilera, Will Smith, Mary Mary and Yolanda Adams.[7]
Chiarelli is a classically-trained musician, his principal instruments include both the Electric Bass and Orchestral Percussion. As a musician his work can be heard on the recordings of Keiko Matsui, Will Smith, Hilary Duff, Waldemar Bastos, Jesse McCartney, Tatayana Ali, Teddy Pendergrass, Ray Charles, Jennifer Paige and The Corrs.
As a songwriter his work has appeared on Erin Boheme (Concord Records), Sunz of Man (BMG/SONY) and on the motion picture soundtrack of Love Stinks, a 1999 comedy starring French Stewart, Bridgette Wilson, Bill Bellamy and Tyra Banks.
In 2009, Chiarelli's first book The Electric Bass Bible: Volume 1 Dexterity Exercises was published by Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company, Inc.
Chiarelli has been a featured speaker at Berklee College of Music, University of Illinois, TAXI[8] and The Grammy Museum.
| Year | Category | Song/Album | Field | Result[12] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Best Engineered Album (non-classical) | Q's Jook Joint | Production & Engineering | Won (Quincy Jones) |
| 1997 | Best Rap Solo Performance | "Men In Black" | Rap | Won (Will Smith) |
| 1999 | Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album | Mountain High, Valley Low | R&B | Won (Yolanda Adams) |
| 2000 | Best New Artist | Christina Aguilera | General | Won (Christina Aguilera) |
| 2009 | Best Gospel Album | The Sound | R&B | Nominated (Mary Mary) |
| 2009 | Best Gospel Song | Mary Mary | R&B | Won (Mary Mary) |
| 2009 | Best Gospel Album | Bold Right Life | R&B | Nominated (Kierra Sheard) |
| 2010 | Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album | Let It Be Me: Mathis in Nashville | R&B | Nominated (Johnny Mathis) |
| 2011 | Best Gospel Album | Hello Fear | R&B | Nominated (Kirk Franklin) |
| 2011 | Best Gospel Album | Something Big (album) | R&B | Nominated (Mary Mary) |