Shuta Shinoda Talks Turning Japanese Stereotypes Into an Advantage in London: Unbound Japan Interview
Categoria: Musica
The London-based producer/engineer spoke with Billboard Japan about the strengths he found in himself as a Japanese person working abroad.
Por Billboard | 08/09/2026
Unbound Japan is Billboard Japan’s new interview series featuring entertainment industry professionals who have built careers on the international stage, and those sending the country’s music out into the world. This installment features London-based record producer/engineer Shuta Shinoda. With over 20 years of experience in the U.K., he spoke with Billboard Japan about the strengths he found in himself as a Japanese person working abroad, the differences between the London and Japanese music scenes and more. You’ve been in London for a long time. Did you start your career there? I’ve been living in London for about 22 or 23 years now. After finishing high school, I came here for a year to study English and met all kinds of people along the way. One of them happened to be an audio engineer. I’d grown up as a kid who loved music, and it struck me that the work suited my personality, so I decided I wanted to study audio engineering. I went back to Japan, saved up money, returned to London to study at an audio engineering school, then went back to Japan again and started working at a studio. Where do you feel your strengths lie as you work in London now? London draws producers and engineers from all over the world, so to make it as a freelancer here I had to think about what my strengths were. The first thing that came to mind was speed and precision. Foreigners tend to have this image of Japan — the bullet train being incredibly fast, the Japanese being hard workers, that sort of thing. With that stereotype in mind, I made a real point of emphasizing speed and precision in studio sessions. Thanks to that, I think I’ve developed a quickness in decision-making when I’m recording or producing now. When you’re working directly with artists, is there a particular approach you’re conscious of? It’s the artist’s music, so rather than putting my ego into it, I make sure to have a proper meeting before we even get into the studio and really understand the idea of what they want to do. Once I can properly picture that in my mind, the sound is basically 70% finished for me already. After that, it’s just a matter of bringing what’s already in my head to life in the studio. Understanding the other person’s intent in that pre-session meeting is really important. Has there been a recent project that left an impression on you? Anna Meredith is one of my favorite artists, and we’ve made a few albums together at this point. A little while back I was involved in making her third album. I love her signature sound, built on a classical foundation with modern, technology-driven elements added. Over the course of your career, I imagine you’ve developed your own distinctive sound. What music has influenced you along the way? It’s less about music itself and more about producers and engineers, but when it comes to recording, I love Steve Albini. I’m also a huge fan of the